fundraising!

hours) of receiving their gift. This can be as simple as an email or text saying that you received their gift, noting that you’ll send out a more formal acknowledgement letter within a day or two.

Research on fundraising at non-profits has shown that first-time donors who are thanked personally within 48 hours of their first gift are far more likely... See more

Planning the Ask

A good ask has several components:

A vision of a better world that you believe in, they believe in, and your mission serves

An immediate need that you have (“We need a new X / Y”)

A specific amount, that they can give, which fits the need

A clear connection between their gift and the solution to the problem.

You are ready to make an ask when:

You have had six to eight interactions or points of contact with a donor

You have established that the donor has sufficient means, and how much they are likely to give

The donor knows your larger mission, as well as current needs + projects

The donor is excited about what you’re doing. Emotional engagement is critical... See more

Plan to visit donors in person whenever possible. The goal of each meeting is twofold:

Convey what you’re actually doing to funders. Help them to understand what you’re doing. Share the mission and current projects with people in a way that’s compelling, interesting, that they feel grateful for.

Learn what their interest level is through research and... See more

When you interact with donors, most of the conversation should be listening to them, learning about them, and what’s interesting to them. 80% of the conversation should be listening to them; 10% conveying about what you’re working on, and 10% learning how they feel about it.

As a rule of thumb, aim to contact donors once every four to six weeks. Thi... See more