You are in year 3 of a 5 year campaign. Things have gone well to date, the Quiet Phase exceeded goals. But now, suddenly there has been a slowdown in commitments. Perhaps a major gift proposal wasn’t fully funded. Perhaps you received a “not right now” answer from another prospect. And, perhaps, there are at…
Author: Jason McNeal
I provide leadership, advancement and fundraising consulting services to educational, healthcare, and non-profit organizations.
The Myth of Quality Time
My wife and I are parents of an eight year old and a six year old. When I was studying the family-work dynamic in graduate school, I became very familiar with the research and positions associated with the “quality time versus quantity of time” argument of child rearing. You know the argument. The idea is…
Showing Interest vs. Seeking Interest
If you think your job is to get donors and prospects more interested in your institution, you’ve got it backwards. You will close many more gifts by showing authentic interest in your prospects than you will by working to get them interested in your institution. It’s our job to show interest, not seek it. When…
Engaging Volunteers To Raise More Money – Webinar Opportunity
For many institutions, utilizing volunteers in the development process is not always easy. The problems with volunteers can seem to outweigh the benefits. They take precious time, energy, and resources to manage and they don’t always do what they are supposed to do (much less what we want them to do!) But, there are many…
Gifts That Santa Gives
If you observed Christmas and practiced the tradition of Santa Claus when you were growing up, here is a simple question for you: Were the presents that came from Santa wrapped or unwrapped? From my days studying family dynamics and sociology, I recall it is not uncommon for a young married couple to have a…
It Wouldn’t Hurt To. . .
How many times have you heard someone suggest a last minute add-on to a direct mail solicitation, event agenda, or phonathon or visit script using this phrase? The problem with this statement is that almost always works. We think to ourselves, “yeah, that wouldn’t be a bad idea.” But ask yourself this, is it wise…
The Quality/Quantity Dilemma
Is quality more important in our work? Or is quantity king (or queen, as it were)? Quality, of course, suggests that we do only a few things – but do them exceptionally well. Quantity, on the other hand, suggests that we attempt as much as we can with less concern about being world-class. Both characteristics…
Remind Them Of Their Memories
The sliding door of the elevator closed and, after pressing the button for my floor, I looked up and saw a black and white Hampton Inns “advertisement.” I put quotes around advertisement because if you stay at Hampton Inns, you know that these messages in their elevators are quirky, interesting, fun, and not your typical…
Instant and Archived
Today, every direct mail letter, every video, every tweet, every status update, every event script, every message (basically), is expected to have relevance to the happenings of the moment. We can’t talk about what our institution did last year, or even last fall. Those messages have already been heard. The world seems to be in…
Our Vision or Our Donors’ Interests
When preparing a case for support for a major gifts initiative or campaign, institutional leaders will typically travel down one of two paths. Either they will present donors with a vision for the institution’s future and list the specific priorities which need funding in order to achieve that vision or they will present a list…