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Two Paths to Opening Doors with Donors

Two Paths to Opening Doors with Donors. Strategic Prospect Research. 2011 Annual AFP Statewide Conference INSPIRE YOUR PRACTICE July 22, 2011. Who We Are. Kassy Rodeheaver. Jenny Flynn. Librarian Grants &Nonprofit Info Center Pima County Public Library Kassy.Rodeheaver@pima.gov

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Two Paths to Opening Doors with Donors

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  1. Two Paths to Opening Doors with Donors Strategic Prospect Research 2011 Annual AFP Statewide Conference INSPIRE YOUR PRACTICE July 22, 2011

  2. Who We Are Kassy Rodeheaver Jenny Flynn Librarian Grants &Nonprofit Info Center Pima County Public Library Kassy.Rodeheaver@pima.gov www.library.pima.gov/grants Associate Vice President Foundation Development and the GIFT Center University of Arizona Foundation jflynn@al.arizona.edu www.uafoundation.org/giftcenter

  3. What will we do today? • Discuss the what and why of prospect research • Review how affinity and capacity shape giving and thus prospecting • Introduce two complementary paths to strategic prospect research • Identify and “red flag” common prospect research pitfalls • Explore the two paths with examples, exercises, action plans, and resources to make the best use of your limited research time Disclaimers—Our focus today is on major gifts. And, lots of info! PowerPoint with links will be available.

  4. Pop Quiz! What is prospect research? • Creepy stalking—you might get arrested! • Spending hundreds of hours watching episodes of Oprah so you can get to know her as a potential donor • Learning more in order to match your organization’s mission with like minded people who support you already or may wish to in order to achieve their philanthropic goals

  5. Why Do Prospect Research? SAVE TIME • Save time when you identify best prospects (strategic rather than scattershot) • Speed up relationship process by getting to know the people you are approaching, know their affinity, perhaps increase it

  6. Why Do Prospect Research? OPPORTUNITY FOR ABUNDANCE • Widen your pool of donors • Broaden the scope of your attention so you don’t miss prospects

  7. Why Do Prospect Research? OPPORTUNITY FOR MORE AND DEEPER CONNECTIONS • Get to know a prospect through his/her connections and interests • Learn common interests and shared history; match projects with interest and passion

  8. Two Paths Overview**Spoiler: They end up in the same place! More prospects and more gifts! Path #1 = Friendraising and network building your way to prospects and ways to connect  working through people Path #2 = Proactively seeking new prospects and relationship-building information about current donors  working through data

  9. Who are the donors to your organization? • First, let’s talk about the donors already supporting you. • Show of hands, do you currently have donors to your organization?

  10. Who are the donors to your organization? • How are these donors connected to your organization—why do they give? • Who gives the most (what type of person)? • Jolie or Garden Lady?

  11. Affinity and Capacity Impact Giving Potential • Higher the affinity—greater likelihood to give (Garden Lady) • Higher the capacity—greater potential amount to give (Jolie)

  12. What do affinity and capacity mean for your organization? • High Affinity/High Capacity = Best prospects for now and future • High Affinity/Low Capacity = Good small gift prospects with potential for future • Low Affinity/High Capacity = Consider carefully before pursuing • Low Affinity/Low Capacity = Don’t worry, there are other • fish in the sea

  13. What do they mean to a donor? High capacity, low affinity “If I let $100 fall out of my pocket, will you stop chasing me?” High affinity, low-to-moderate capacity “Hello? Can anybody see me?”

  14. What do they mean to a donor? Low capacity, low affinity “Whatev, I’ve got yogurt.” High affinity, high capacity “This is important to me, but I need to partner with a good organization that I can trust and that shares my vision.”

  15. Pitfalls in Prospect Research • Overemphasizing capacity (Oprah Effect) • Ignoring affinity • Do no research • Usual suspects only • “Everyone should care” fallacy • Too much time spent/unfocused • Unimportant/irrelevant details • Make no use of the information

  16. By contrast, through strategic prospect research, we: • Identify and learn more about high capacity, high affinity prospects • Find ways to connect to those prospects • Begin to “see” the relatively invisible high affinity, moderate capacity donors who build your base • Begin to build greater affinity—the research process leads right into qualification and cultivation through friendraising

  17. Two Paths: Friendraising • Path #1 = Friendraising  working through people • Path #2 = Proactive research  working through data

  18. What is friendraising? Friendraising: Forming and sustaining relationships around mutual interests in a way that advances your organization or cause. Friends of Gorilla Conservation run in London

  19. “I have friends. What I need is MONEY!” Pssst. Yeah, you. You can have BOTH. In fact, they are connected.

  20. Friendraising and Sustainability “Many organizations lose up to 60% of their cash donors after the first donation.”* Friends tend to be more loyal. Friendraising is not only a prospecting strategy; it’s also a sustainability strategy. *“Building Donor Loyalty: The Antecedents and Role of Commitment in the Context of Charity Giving,” by Adrian Sargeant & Dr. Lucy Woodliffe. Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing . Volume 18, Issue 2, 2007.

  21. Okay, but where do I begin? Begin where you are, with what you have right now.

  22. Breakout: Asset Interviews Using the Fundraising Assets worksheet provided, interview the person sitting next to you. Complete, for both partners if time permits, the “organization’s mission,” “active volunteers,” and “other friends” boxes in 5 minutes. Take form back to your own organization and finish with a buddy.

  23. Breakout: Asset Interviews Follow up questions: • What are some examples of assets you identified? • Anything unexpected emerge? • How can you use those assets to increase your pool of friends and to identify prospects? One way is the…

  24. …Mini Discovery Campaign! The asset exercise helps you identify your base of support and build from there. Friendraising is an ongoing activity. One way to get it kickstarted is the mini discovery campaign. It: • Helps you to tackle a specific issue with help from your friends • Surfaces important information; identifies prospects • Builds affinity

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