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Donor Relations, Major Donors

Engage Your Donors On LinkedIn

by The Timothy Group
August 18, 2020

Advancement professionals can no longer say, “I don’t need LinkedIn to help me find or engage with donors.” How we connect with donors has changed and there’s no going back. Don’t put it off. Engage your donors on Linkedin daily.

LinkedIn is a necessary tool when it comes to building your personal brand, establishing authority and credibility, researching and recruiting new volunteers, donors and employees, and building stronger relationships with your current constituents. It’s a vehicle to share your knowledge and experiences so that your connections keep you top of mind.

As an advancement professional, it’s a place where you can check in on your donors wherever you may be in the world, see what they’re up to, and celebrate their successes and achievements.

Here’s how you can apply the 6R’s of Donor Engagement on LinkedIn:

Research and Recruit

(1) Who do you know?

Dig into your donor list. Begin building your LinkedIn network. Sync your profile with your email address book. This enables LinkedIn to suggest people you could connect with. It’s also simple to use LinkedIn’s search bar to look for your major and prospective donors’ profiles. Personalize your connection request with an encouraging note or a reason they might like to connect with you.

(2) Why should they know you?

It’s important that your profile is complete, and your photo is current and professional. Add links to your organization’s company page, articles, enews, or publications.

(The last thing you want to do is look like you don’t know what you’re doing – here is a list of 25 things you’ll want to avoid.)

Relationship

Building donor relationships is a marathon not a sprint. Just as you would phone calls or email messages, dedicate time daily to engage on LinkedIn. A good rule of thumb is to set 15 minutes aside each morning. (Watch going over, it’s easy to do!)

(1) Check your donors’ posts often.

Engaging with your donor connections puts your profile directly in front of their networks; and all it takes is a “like” or comment on their posts. A simple, “Great thoughts” or “Thanks for sharing” can help expand your reach and it’s simply the considerate thing to do when someone’s thoughts or content resonate with you. Commenting with your personal insights or questions will increase engagement and exposure even more.

(2) Often post yourself.

Posting often creates additional opportunities for engagement, thus syndicating your content across home page feeds everywhere. Don’t be concerned about annoying people by posting every day. LinkedIn’s algorithms are tricky, and your network isn’t likely to see every post (A great idea is to publish articles natively with LinkedIn’s newsletter tool which does notify your network.)

Posting the answers to these questions will help you turn your followers into donors:

-What knowledge, insights, information, experience, or stories can you share?

-How can you draw your followers closer to your mission and vision?

-What posts could you share from your organization along with your own personal comment?

Important note: Watch your approach. Stay away from blatantly “selling” what you do or putting out the “ask.” LinkedIn is a professional network for independent thought – not a storefront, lemonade stand, or collection plate.

Request

If there is a prospective donor that you’ve connected with and would like to get to know more, use the private messaging feature to ask them if they’d like to connect virtually, by phone, or in person. This is the best place to make requests of a more personal nature.

Recognize

As you see fitting posts by your donors, “like” and comment by thanking them for what they do for the community or our society. Celebrate their work anniversaries, birthdays, milestones, successes, and achievements. Use the private messaging feature if you’d like to make your encouragement more personal. It’s also great to share their posts in your own personal feed along with an encouraging caption.

Lastly, endorse skills and post recommendations for your donors and connections if you’ve worked alongside them on campaigns, projects, or in service. This is a great way to recognize others and build rapport.

Report

If you have some exciting personal news or accomplishments to share, by all means, share it! Let your donors and connections encourage you! Remember, you are extending them the privilege of being there for you.

If your organization is in the middle of an exciting campaign or has its own exciting news, keep your donors and connections updated. Share posts and send private messages on progress.

It’s also favorable to share annual reports, video tours, photos, success stories, ribbon cuttings, media coverage, testimonials, and more.

LinkedIn is today’s way of accessing your supporters’ networks and “Rolodexes.” It allows you to draw supporters closer by engaging them on another level and in another place where they congregate. It’s about relationships, not rocket science. Don’t look back. Engage your donors on LinkedIn daily.

Article submitted by Pam Jacobs, Project & Digital Specialist

Major Donors

The Care and Feeding of Elephants

by The Timothy Group
August 15, 2020

Do you sometimes feel it’s not “spiritual” to ask for money – particularly from major donors? Maybe you’ve thought, “We shouldn’t ask for money. God will meet our needs.”

In this webinar (20 min), Pat McLaughlin will demystify the art of fundraising by presenting FOUR benefits to asking. Find out why asking for gifts is not only spiritual, it’s BIBLICAL. And find out how giving transforms the heart of the donor.

View Video
Donor Relations, TTG Answers

Building A Treehouse That Donors Will Treasure

by The Timothy Group
August 13, 2020

Be inspired as Jody builds a treehouse with his daughter and shares its relevance to building a ministry that touches the hearts of donors.

View JOdy’s Video

Jody Fausnight has worked in the fund development field for more than 25 years and has held the CFRE (Certified Fundraising Executive) professional fundraising certification since 2000. He has served as a director of advancement or community or public relations director with four non-profit organizations in addition to many years of consulting services provided to clients of various ministries in NY and PA.

Mr. Fausnight founded and chaired a regional development training conference for Christian school leaders in Pennsylvania in 2003 and has been a speaker for ACSI and networking roundtable regional events for development staff. He has served as a deacon board officer in his church for some years and is active as a committee leader, volunteer and merit badge counselor in the Boy Scouts of America organization.

A published author, Mr. Fausnight has expertise in Christian school recruiting, public relations, fund development, and major gift cultivation strategies and has grown ministry development programs from the ground up on more than one occasion. He has successfully raised many millions on behalf of numerous smaller organizations for which he has been employed or contracted for consulting.

Jody holds a B.A. in Business Administration with a minor in Mass Communication from Taylor University and an M.B.A. from Lebanon Valley College. In his free time, Mr. Fausnight loves to ski, run and travel to new adventures with his family. He is blessed immeasurably to help ministries find their development footing, whatever place they may be starting from — as emerging development operations or entering major capital campaigns.

Fundraising, Stewardship, Strategic Planning

The Ultimate Fundraising Power Tool

by The Timothy Group
August 11, 2020

I was reading a home improvement magazine recently and noticed an article, “Ten Basic Tools for Every Homeowner.” What do you have in that special drawer in the kitchen to help you do-it-yourself? First, you must have a hammer; not that a hammer will fix every problem, but sometimes it just feels good to pound on something that’s not working.

Don’t forget screwdrivers, pliers, an adjustable wrench, and a tape measure. If you’re going to hang your art piece, it helps to have a nifty electronic sensor to find the studs in the wall. A utility knife is another essential tool that will either solve your problem or make a bigger one.

I was somewhat disappointed not to find any power tools listed in the article. Maybe it’s my go-to, but I feel like they at least should have included a cordless drill for installing face plates on electrical outlets.

While you might be able to take care of all your minor household repairs with a few hand tools, when it comes to raising money for your organization, there is one ultimate fundraising power tool that you must have:

THE CASE STATEMENT & GIFT PROPOSAL

This solicitation power tool effectively tells your story to a potential donor. Here are 8 key elements to consider when writing your first fundraising power tool:

(1) The gift proposal must be professional but doesn’t need to be fancy. Colorful printed and digital brochures can be compelling, but they don’t raise money; they educate.

(2) Tell your ministry story — where you have been, where you are, and where you are going.

(3) Be optimistic, easy to remember, and brief.

(4) Communicate clearly what the donor’s investment will accomplish.

(5) Include information that will reach your donor’s mind and touch your donor’s heart.

(6) Share a story of how your ministry has met a need.

(7) Express a sense of urgency to complete the project.

(8) Describe your project and outline a simple budget for each phase of the campaign.

STEWARDSHIP PROFILE & SCALE OF GIFTS

An effective way of communicating the range and size of gifts you need is to include a suggested “Stewardship Profile.” Showing the summary budget and scale of gifts quickly conveys the scope and needs of your project. Major donors will scan your list to identify how they might be involved.

Here is an example:

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

Purchase Land   $1,500,000
Building addition   6,000,000
New Program   1,000,000
Annual Fund for 3 years   1,500,000
Total   10,000,000

STEWARDSHIP PROFILE

Proposed Scale of Gifts for the Campaign

Giving Units   Gift Amount   Total
1   $1,000,000   $1,000,000
2   750,000   1,500,000
3   500,000   1,500,000
6   250,000   1,500,000
15   100,000   1,500,000
20   50,000   1,000,000
40   25,000   1,000,000
40   10,000   400,000
60   5,000   300,000
80   2,500   200,000
100   1,000   100,000
Numerous other gifts …        
Total       $10,000,000

THE ULTIMATE ASK

The final tool in an effective gift proposal is the call to action. Ask your donors to help your ministry in 4 ways:

(1) “Would you pray for the success of our campaign?” As a ministry leader, you understand the necessity of prayer. Enlist your donors for their prayer support.

(2) “Would you consider a generous, sacrificial gift to this project?” Ask this question to get them thinking how they might get involved, but come back and expand upon it, after you ask the next questions.

(3) “Would you consider volunteering your time as a ‘friend-raiser’ by introducing your friends to our ministry?” Some of your greatest opportunities could come by networking with your current donors. Remember: proposals don’t raise money, people do.

(4) “Would you consider remembering our ministry in your estate plans?” Be gracious but ask boldly. You do not have bequests because you do not ask.

The last page of your leadership proposal has one purpose — to request a specific amount for the campaign.

Ask them, “Based on the need presented and your appreciation of our ministry, would you prayerfully consider a gift of $1,000,000?” Ask for a specific amount. Major donors anticipate an “ask.” They want to know what you want.

The leadership proposal is the ultimate fundraising power tool that will help you focus your conversation on why you are meeting with the donor in the first place — to ask for their financial support. If you add this power tool to your fundraising toolbox, you will become a master craftsman as you build your ministry.

 

Ron Haas has served the Lord as a pastor, the vice president of advancement of a Bible college, a Christian foundation director, a board member and a fundraising consultant. He’s authored two books: Ask for a Fish – Bold Faith-Based Fundraising and Simply Share – Bold, Grace-Based Giving. He regularly presents fundraising workshops at ministry conferences and has written fundraising articles for At the Center magazine and Christian Leadership Alliance’s Outcomes magazine.

 

Development, Donor Relations, Strategic Planning

Six Things Your Board Should Be Doing

by The Timothy Group
August 4, 2020

I am guessing that most of you either answer to a Board, serve on a Board, or at minimum, work for an organization that has a Board. Whether called directors, members, trustees, or governors, the bottom line is they are generally charged with providing the governance – legally, financially and ethically. Charged with seeing that the organization proves successful. Non-profit organizations or ministries are no exception.

What Does Your Board Do?

But is that ALL they do? We hope not. The role of serving as a board member is way more important than that. These members are in a position to provide influence. They are asked to serve as a cheerleader and give their time, talent, and treasure. They are also tasked with persuading others to give, to volunteer, and more.

How Well Does Your Board Perform?

Many boards struggle from time to time to fulfill these roles effectively. A strong, functioning and supportive Board can be the CEO’s best friend. A poorly performing or disengaged board can be their greatest headache.

I was recently talking with a friend who serves as the executive director for a small non-profit organization. When referring to his ministry’s future plans, he said, “I’m more and more convinced that I cannot build core competencies within the organization and it does not reside at The Board level.”

What was he really saying? Most likely he’s saying, “My organization needs to grow. There are things we do well and things we don’t do well. I have gaps within my small team and we could do so much more if only______. I need help. One place I can look to is our board, but I don’t see the time, talent, or treasure there either.”

What Should Your Board Be Doing?

So, let’s look at the opposite scenario. If (some of) the needed “competencies” did exist at the board level, what would these look like? Here are 6 things that your board members should be doing to help their organization grow and flourish:

(1) Engaging donors on behalf of the organization.

VIEW MAJOR DONOR ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY REVEALED

(2) Cultivating relationships through invitations; soliciting their support at the right time.

(3) Utilizing specialized skills or experiences to benefit the organization (accounting, financial planning, legal advice, strategic planning, counseling, etc.).

(4) Making calls (virtual and phone) to thank donors especially at year-end.

(5) Presenting on behalf of the organization at churches, service clubs, and the like – serving as an “ambassador.”

(6) Writing and sharing content, resources, and invites as posted to their organization’s website and social media accounts.

The key here is that not only can board members provide a level of expertise, but they can save their organizations precious dollars otherwise spent on hiring or outsourcing. This creates a “win-win” for both the board member and the organization being served.

What Is One Thing You Can Do To Inspire Unification?

You may want to consider inviting leadership and board members to participate in a shared book review or group study using “Ask For A Fish” by Ron Haas. It was written with board members in mind. Click here to review and order our copies today.

Author: Pat McLaughlin. Learn more about Pat and his published books.

Donor Relations, Fundraising, Major Donors

Maximize Your Donor Outreach Strategies With Wealth Screening

by The Timothy Group
August 4, 2020

WealthEngine (WE) is a screening tool that we use at The Timothy Group to assist our clients in researching, profiling, and categorizing donors into the proper brackets. Wealth screening is a helpful tool to maximize your donor outreach strategies.

WealthEngine was developed over 20 years ago to help clients in both the commercial and non-profit markets expand their audiences and increase their revenue. The WealthEngine components are Wealth Search, Wealth Screening, Prospect Research, Analyze, Model and Integrations.

Using breakthrough technology, the WealthEngine 9 (WE9) platform consumes trillions of points of data to create more than 250 million pre-scored profiles complete with scoring and insight into prospect propensity, capacity, and intent. WeathEngine calls this Engagement Science™.

View Short Clip

Fundraising organizations and agencies (like us) using the WealthEngine platform because it leads the market in delivering the best wealth intelligence and prospect research. See published case studies.

The Timothy Group offers the following three WE components to our clients:

Individual Wealth Engine Searches

Individual WE Searches pull together data from 60 sources to look through 300 million profiles and 122 million households and also provides valuable insights from the data. Some of these insights include net worth, income, assets, real estate, and charitable giving. WealthEngine also has a system developed in order to rate each search, providing a consumer-friendly approach to the data analysis. Using a “ratings and scores” method,

WealthEngine breaks down each search into the following 2 main attributes:

(1) Wealth Insight Scores include Propensity to Give (P2G), Estimated Spending Capacity, Total Assets, Net Worth, Cash on Hand, Estimated Annual Donations, and Gift Capacity Range.

(2) Wealth Attribute Ratings include Gift Capacity Rating, RFM, Planned Giving—Bequest, Annuity & Trust, Influence, Inclination/Giving, and Inclination/Affiliation.

They are also able to provide demographic and lifestyle attributes for each search to help focus your donor criteria.

Batch Wealth Engine Screens

Batch Wealth Screens help by utilizing your current contact database and integrating it with the WE “rating and scores” method in bulk. Using the same data key points as the wealth search, screens will help you identify, segment, and prioritize your current donor base. These screens are also useful in identifying inaccurate information in your current database and updating that information for you. With results delivered via the cloud, you can rest assured that your contacts personal information is safe and secure. Using wealth screens can help you really maximize your donor outreach strategies.

Prospect Research

Prospect Research can help identify targeted custom audiences who may not be in your database yet. Using criteria and attributes based on income, work and home residences, donation preference, etc. you can develop a segmented contact list of donor prospects who may have giving interests similar to your ministry. These prospects should end up being very receptive to your mission and will have many goals in common.

The attributes available to use for segmentation include identity, wealth, giving, real estate, demographics, life events, lifestyle, interests, professional, vehicles, organizations, buying and technology. You can also use the criteria from successful past or current donors to create a look-alike model to base your prospecting from. By understanding past donor success, you can prospect to people with characteristics in common with your best donors.

All screens are completed and delivered digitally and can be completed in a day’s time as folows:

(1) We send the search template to you via email.

(2) You complete the template and send back.

(3) We submit the template and are notified that the results have been received.

(4) We process the results and then send them to you digitally.

(5) After you receive the results and have a chance to review them, we are available by phone to discuss the results with you. This phone conversation generally ranges from 30 minutes to one hour.

We would love to be of assistance to you through the use of WealthEngine. Please contact us if you have questions about the process. You can also check out the WealthEngine website at www.wealthengine.com.

Author: Jessie Blodgett, Marketing & Operations Manager of The Timothy Group

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