All advancement programs have finite resources, both human and financial. The idea that you can spend whatever you wish to accomplish your goals and aims is not reality. Sure, advancement budgets at some institutions are larger than at others, but there is always a limit. And, over the last few years – regardless of the…
Author: Jason McNeal
I provide leadership, advancement and fundraising consulting services to educational, healthcare, and non-profit organizations.
3 Leadership Statements That Build Team Trust
One version of leadership posits the leader as a know-it-all. This is the supremely confident individual who has most all the answers and always knows a direction for future growth. The strongman (or woman) model. However, under this form of leadership, team trust is rarely optimized, which means that team effectiveness is rarely optimized. In…
Blah, Better, Best
Ineffective gift officers will (perhaps) spend time with prospective donors; Better gift officers will spend time with prospective donors. And they, also, will invite the gift; The best gift officers will spend time with prospective donors. They, also, will invite the gift. And they will utilize the influence of others to increase the chances that…
Time and Money
Most every institutional and advancement leader will say they want to raise more money in the future. In fact, most will say adamantly that they need to raise more money in the future. However, many leaders will also say in the very next breath, “but we don’t have money to add a new gift officer…
Winging It And Authenticity
Some gift officers chafe at the idea that Prospect Discovery visits should be purposefully planned with specific questions prepared to ask. “It feels too staged. . . too inauthentic. . .to probe with specific, planned questions,” they respond when presented with questions they could ask the prospect. “I just let the conversation emerge organically and…
Fear, Anger, and Hate
You can raise a lot of money very quickly appealing to negative emotions. Humans are hard-wired to respond physically to negativity. When we are fearful, or angered, or bitter, our bodies release stress hormones that prepare us to fight or flight. Our physical and psychological responses to negativity are powerful motivators. In the short term,…
5 Lessons Dogs Teach Us About Fundraising
Pay more attention to others, less to yourself. Dogs don’t care about what they are doing. They care about what you are doing. And that makes us feel good. Don’t let a “no” derail your efforts. Sure, your dog might pout or cower if told “no” forcefully. But dogs don’t stay in that negative emotional…
Concealed Benefits
**This Jason’s Blog entry is a bit more personal than usual. I hope you still find it helpful** Today, our family will travel together to move our oldest child and only daughter (and sister) to college. I’m a first generation college graduate. I grew up professionally in the higher ed. administrative and teaching spaces. I’ve…
The Donor Awareness Matrix
A key aim of our advancement work should be to gain deeper awareness of our donors (and prospective donors). What do they believe about our institution? What is their motivation to volunteer? To give? What are their specific reasons for engaging with us? How would they describe their values? What other organizations do they support…
Where, Who, and How
“What makes us distinctive or different or unique as compared with other institutions like us?” This is a question that Board members, administrative leaders, advancement folk, and others ask regularly and with some measure of irritation. The regularity of asking this question stems from the fact that our answer is fundamentally important to our marketing,…