October Halloween Nonprofit Blog Carnival – Major Gifts Tricks and Treats

If your major donors are looking like this, you’re not treating them properly!

Fear not! The Halloween Nonprofit Blog Carnival is back, offering tricks and treats galore from nonprofit experts all around the web – a full Baker’s Dozen (or shall I say a Witches Coven)! — to help you find, cultivate, solicit and steward your major donors. When you trick and treat, you always like to go to the houses that give out the most candy, natch?  Well… let’s find the donors giving out the most goodies so your mission is assured of success. But you’ve got to be prepared! No just showing up without a costume, a plan of attack or a strategy for success. You’ll get some lollipops and stuff, sure. But I know that’s not what you really want. Go for what you need.  Go for what will make your time spent on this effort feel worth your while.  And we’ve got 13 experts telling you exactly what to do.

Pick a goodie or two from this great list of 13. After all… it’s the season!

1. Halloween is largely for kid’s; not so major gifts. Marion Conway reminds us of this in Major Gifts – Treat Donors Like Grown-Ups. Here’s some no-nonsense advice to help you stop pussyfooting around when you’re asking. Plus she gets special credit for the photo of the yummy Halloween snacks, especially because those pretzel thingies are my new favorite treats!
2. This one tool is essential to major gifts asks says Mazarine Treyz of Wildwoman Fundraising. And special props to her for holding up a photo of one of my favorite non-fundraising fundraising books! If you want to turn your donors faces into smiling jack-o-lanterns be sure to check this post out.
3. If you find looking for donor prospects scary, this one’s for you! Greg Warner of Market Smart offers a heapin’ Halloween sack filled with How to reach out to your major or legacy gift prospects using LinkedIn, plus a link to a summary “Cheat Sheet”. If you’re not yet using Linkedin as a prospect research and relationship-building resource, check this one out.
4. Are You a Treat? This timely titled post comes from Halloween baby herself, Beth Ann Locke of Fundraiser Beth. In it, she shares six insights to how fundraisers can be more treat than trick for donors. I especially like what she has to say about designated giving. Check it out! And… Happy Birthday Beth!
5. Major Gifts: The Holy Grail of Matching Gifts. Adam Weinger of Double the Donation offers this timely reminder: Show your major donors how they can leverage their giving; then make it as easy as possible for them to complete the required paperwork. Don’t leave free money on the table! When the gift arrives, how about a social media shout-out to both the donor and the corporation? Everyone likes a bit of candy now and again.
6. Amy Eisenstein asks: Have You Eaten Your Frog Today? Click through to read how a little eye of newt could be just the thing to begin your day! In other words, if you find yourself never getting around to your asks, learn a few tricks to park procrastination at the door.
7. This 6-step game plan for your next major donor meeting comes from Ally Dommu on the Big Duck Blog. Straightforward advice for nonprofits of all sizes.
8. Large Gifts are Not Just for Bricks and Mortar says Gayle Gifford at Cause & Effect. And I 100% agree. You’ve just got to help your donor visualize something. An amazing vision they can bring to fruition. A scary story to which they can give a happy ending. Stories happen every day; not just when you’re building offices, schools or auditoriums. Check this out to learn how to develop investment opportunities your donors won’t want to turn down.
9. What’s the best way to get the attention of major donor prospects? Hint: It’s not jumping out from behind the bushes to scare the beejeezus out of them! The 4 Keys to Building Relationships with Major Donors by Joe Garecht at Fundraising Authority tells you not only how to get in the door, but what to do once you’re there to build a winning donor relationship. You don’t want your major donors to fade away like ghosts.
10. Why You’re Not Reaching Your Fundraising Goals by Lance Leasure at OrangeGerbera is a reminder that if you’re afraid to ask you’ll find a zillion other things you need to do first. Learn to overcome the urge to procrastinate by checking out these practical suggestions. Nothing creepy about it. Brass tacks baby!
11. Quick storytelling tip for nonprofit board members comes from Marc Pitman, Fundraising Coach, to remind you that board members can be a huge key to securing major gifts. Check out this short video to learn a quick trick to use board member power to BOOst your major gifts asks. Added bonus? Your board members will feel really, really good.
12. Are you a “Fred the Baker” type of non-profit leader? from Eric Anderson of The Healthy Non-Profit talks about the need to put certain pre-conditions in place in order to be ready for major gift fundraising. These are things that may have little to do with asking for a gift. Is your organization ready?
13. How to Get (and Keep) Major Donors by Randy Hawthorne for Nonprofit Hub is a comprehensive piece about how to approach donors once you are ready. Smoke and mirrors is not the right approach; you’ve got to be prepared to align with their values, and ready to show them how they can create a solution.

Next month’s Carnival will be hosted by Pamela Grow, and she’s picked a great topic: Gratitude and Abundance. Check out her call for submissions – and, if you’re not yet signed up, sign up to get monthly reminders about each topic.

Get Your Major Gifts Playbook

The new Clairification Major Gifts Playbook includes 4 separate Guides. They work as stand-alones as well as companion pieces. If you’re new to major gifts, get ‘em all at the “Bundle Bargain” discount . Have a specific area that’s proving to be a stumbling block? Buy one or two that meet your precise needs.

• Get Ready for Major Gifts Strategy Workbook
• Get Your Solicitors and Donors Ready for the Major Gifts Ask Strategy Workbook
• 50 Ways to Move Your Donor – Cultivation Solution Kit to Get to Yes with Finesse 
• 50 Ways to Move Your Donor – Cultivation Solution Kit to Get to Yes with Finesse 

I stand by my products. If you’re not happy for any reason, let me know and you’ll get a full refund. Wishing you all the best… and have a terrific Halloween week-end!

Image courtesy of Freedigitalphotos.net