1. Research. Identify those individuals who have the capacity to support your ministry. Discover who in your organization knows them the best and can introduce you.
2. Relationship. Invest time cultivating these donor relationships before asking for a large gift. Educate them about how your ministry impact lives.
3. Request. You must ask for a specific gift. Hinting is not enough; you must be straightforward and ask. “Big Rock” donors want to know what you want from them.
4. Recognize. Say, “Thank You” in an appropriate way.
5. Recruit. Encourage your new donor to open doors to others who might also support your cause.
6. Report. How your organization shows appreciation to donors becomes an important factor in whether your donor cultivation cycle keeps moving forward or grinds to a halt. Continue sharing compelling stories of changed lives.
You have an important decision to make. You can spend your time shifting around gravel, sand, and water, trying to squeeze in enough room for big rocks, or you can dump the jar and start over. Remember, if you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never fit them in. Resource: Stephen Covey, A. Roger Merrill, Rebecca R. Merrill, First Things First, New York, NY: Fireside, 1996Ron Haas has served the Lord as a pastor, the vice
