In this episode we look at what are the key steps for growing your fundraising.

1. Ask Donors Only Once a Year (1:22) 

• This is how major donors organize their giving 

• Match your ask to their timetable

• Don’t nickel and dime your major donors by asking them for a big donation and later asking them for smaller donations or sponsorships. 

2. Treat Donors Like Partners (5:05)

• Poverty versus the Partnership Mindset 

• What does treating a partner look like

  • See  Episode #42 - Creating a 5-Star Donor Experience

• How to create a great thank you letter: 5-Sentence Thank You Letter

• Creating a 100 day plan for new donors, see Episode #35 - How to Never Lose a Donor

3. Add a Few New Partner Donors Each Year (12:00)

• You don’t need hundreds of new donors. A few can go a long way

  • Focus on warm leads 

  • Referrals - ask your donors for only one referral

    • Script to use: "Is there one person, who is like you, that I should talk to about supporting our work?"

  • Referrals have some of the highest close and retention rates for new donors

4. Have a Big Vision (17:49)

• Why is this important?

• If you are trying to figure out your Big Vision

  • Think about 1 year first 

  • Then 2, then 3

  • Book: Vision Driven Leader by Michael Hyatt 

5. Make a Compelling Pitch (23:06)

• Nonprofits are complicated and do lots of great things, but sometimes it's hard to explain everything

• How to talk about your work and make it memorable

• Watch an overview video of our 8-Step Pitch Template

• Read: The Ultimate Guide to Pitching Major Donors   

6. Execute on the Big Vision (30:17)

• Execution is just as important as a big vision

• Build trust with execution - show you are doing what you say

• Books on building systems for execution:

  • Traction by Gino Wickman

  • 4 Disciplines of Execution by Chris McChesney and Sean Covey 

7. Staff with Fundraising Specialist (33:04)

• Connector - the person who reaches out to prospects and works on securing a first meeting. 

• Closer - the person who meets with donors and makes the ask

• Cultivator - the person who manages the donor relationship throughout the year, ensuring they are getting a 5-star experience from the nonprofit.