Over the years, I’ve struggled (and watched as others have struggled) with how to title development officers. What is the appropriate title for those folk whose primary role it is to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward donors? “Fundraiser” of course lost out some years ago when people thought it was too narrow, and more importantly,…
Author: Jason McNeal
I provide leadership, advancement and fundraising consulting services to educational, healthcare, and non-profit organizations.
The Primary Focus of Leaders
As a leader, what do you love? On what factors of your work does your mind most freely gravitate? On what issues do you most enjoy working? The answers to these questions, taken together, will serve as a strong predictor of your success as a leader. And, if your answer to each is not…
What Should We Give Donors?
Donors give us financial gifts – both big and small. But what do we give them in return? More and more I see organizations providing donors with transactional gimmicks. Make a gift, get a calendar. Make a gift, get a ticket to an event. Make a gift, get a magazine subscription. Not only do such…
The Courtship of Donors
In the second part of the Urban Legends of Fundraising, I talked about how asking for a major gift was similar to asking a girl to marry. In both instances you have the best opportunity for an affirming response when: you don’t ask too soon in the relationship; you both know the ask is coming…
Caught vs. Taught
According to Bersin and Associates, companies and organizations are spending well over $50 billion per year on formalized professional development programs for employees. These programs are designed to teach everything from basic computer skills to nuanced leadership strategies. Why do organizations make such huge investments in their employees? In large measure it is because they…
Value-Added Discovery Calls
Clients regularly ask me what they should be accomplishing during major donor prospect discovery calls. Most understand that leaving a discovery visit with a clearer sense of financial capacity and a gauge of closeness to the institution are important. However, many clients want to know the other areas that are important to probe. In addition…
It’s Always Personal
Today it seems we constantly are bombarded with claims about “personalized” or “individualized” customer service or patient care. Take a look at a hospital billboard on your local highway and it appears they will create a care regimen just for you. Or head to a university’s website, even one with over 25,000 students, and it…
The Importance of Donor Loyalty
Most non-profits have established their development programs to focus on donor capacity. For instance, most organizations have giving societies based on gift amount. Give a $1,000 last year and you are a member of the “Chairman’s Circle.” Few non-profits, though, put a focus on donor loyalty – or recognizing those donors who give consistently regardless…
Sailing Into Blue Oceans
What if your institution could attract new donors unlike any other? What if the programs and services you offered were so compelling that you really had no competition? These are two of the questions Blue Ocean Strategy by Kim and Mauborgne encouraged me to think about. If you’ve not read Blue Ocean, I would highly…
Reversing The Script
How do you ask lybunts, sybunts, and others to support your work during phonathons? Does the outline of your script look something like this? Introduction Rapport Building Make Case for Support Make Ask Ask to Send Pledge Card Ask If They Want to Pay with Credit Card Thank Them for Their Commitment and/or Time I…