Fundamentals for Large Donor Asks

The larger-capacity donor can be a different breed than your regular monthly partner. Most tend to give larger "special gift" amounts (via check) and don't tend to commit to any regular, recurring giving (i.e. monthly). They're efficient in how they spend their time with you and are interested in hearing how this investment will impact the Kingdom and, after the gift, interested in their ROI or "return on investment."

Example from the field: We have a large donor (who has now given the most out of anyone) who at first said no. They think differently. They wanted to see us get closer to finishing our support goal before they gave. They got joy out of being the hero that put us across the finish line. They wanted to hear from God and see God do crazy things as they gave crazy amounts.

Fundraising guru Jerold Panas literally wrote the book on large donor fund development. *His book, “Asking,” is still one of the best ones out there. Here are a few key concepts from his lifetime of fundraising among large-capacity donors. 

1. Do your homework before the meeting. 
   • Click for formulas.

     Formulas for determining what amount to ask a large-capacity donor to consider giving:

     • Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a number that will inspire faith-growing generosity. 
     • Age x annual income x .01 = what they will give over a 3-year period.
     • Net worth x .4 = what they will give over a 3-5 year period.
     • You can research if your donor is on the board of any companies or non-profits.
     • Look at the annual reports for the non-profits and see how much your donor is giving. You can make an ask in the ballpark of this gift.
     • Look at the other board members your donor serves alongside and see if they’re someone you’d like them to introduce you to.
     • Look up their house on Zillow and when they purchased it. This gives a good indication of their income level as well as if they might be getting toward the end of their mortgage (which frees up finances for giving). 
2. Schedule a quick meeting on their turf.
   • But plan for it to run long...

     • Meet on their turf (office, boat, golf course, country club, coffee shop near them, home). 
     • Ask for a 15-minute meeting. But block out an hour in your schedule. This meeting will run longer if the donor is interested. 
     • Don’t plan to go through a slide deck. You can bring your Reliant brochure or an ask letter instead. This will also be your leaving piece. 
3. Listen your way to the gift.
   • Your job in the donor appointment is...

     Your job in the donor appointment is to get your donor talking in order to discover what they care about. Look for bridges to link your ministry to where God's moving in their heart. Your donor should be the one talking about 2/3 of the time. This also means your "45-minute presentation" needs to be narrowed down to a 10-15 minute pitch that you scatter within this conversation. 

     • Sample questions:
     • What are some of the giving initiatives you've had in the past that you're really passionate about? 
     • What’s the change you feel the Lord is calling you to make in the world?
     • What are some of your philanthropic goals for the coming year? / What are some of your giving goals?
     • What return do you tend to want to see on the non-profit work you do? 
     • *It helps for you to talk about how you're investing in people/ the work of the gospel, and the return you see. 
4. You're not asking for money, you're offering opportunities to invest in something they care about. 
   • Fund development is about...

     Fund development is not about the money, your ministry vision, or your needs. It's about giving people an opportunity to invest in something they care about. Your job is to draw out the donor’s heart, listen for what God is doing in them, invite them to take steps toward that growth, and connect them with giving and serving opportunities with things they care about (whether it’s your ministry or not).

     Here are some phrases that tend to resonate with higher-capacity givers:

     • High-impact
     • Sustainable impact
     • Engaging with greater intentionality
     • Major goals take major gifts to get there
     • Experience the joy of greater generosity
     • Harness the innovation around us to experience greater impact and reach. 
5. If the donor is aloof or difficult to get a hold of, ask for advice. 
   • If you want money, ask for...

     Example: We needed to raise $24K at end of year. The Lord led us to think of a matching challenge. We just needed to find a donor (or donors) to put up the $12K match amount. Instead of asking a high-capacity donor for funding, we asked them for advice, "Who do you know that we could ask for this?" They said they'd get back to us in a couple of days. A few days later, they called and said they felt the Lord was asking them to put up the match. We were off to the races!

     If you want advice, ask for money. If you want money, ask for advice.

6. Encourage them to pray about it. 
   • When offering a giving opportunity...

     When offering an opportunity to invest in Kingdom work, you don’t want them to give because they feel obligated or emotionally tugged. You don’t even want them to stroke a check just because they can, and it’s a number they feel good about. You want them to give because they’ve spoken to Christ and heard His direction for the money He’s entrusted to their care. Our job is to encourage our donors to have these conversations with the Lord and disciple them toward joyful generosity.

     • Here's what this might look like: Give the total dollar amount you need to raise this year ($100k). Tell how much you've raised so far ($30k). Show how much you have left to raise ($70K) Ask how much of that chunk they want to bite off. Encourage them to take time over the next 24 hours to prayerfully take that decision before the Lord (their Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer); asking Him to lead them in joyful generosity. Tell them you'll pray over them during this time. Make a plan to talk again in 24 hours. 
7. After the gift: Thank, Share, Connect, Offer. 
   • Donor Stewardship looks like...

     • Remember, the first gift is a testing gift; they want to discover what their ROI (Return on Investment) will be. This is why it's crucial to share the impact their gift made. See the OFFER, THANK, SHOW, CONNECT cycle below. 
       
       

     • MTD stewardship is the relationship-building and communication that takes place after a ministry gift has been received.

       Stewardship involves thanking donors, updating them on the impact of their gifts, keeping them involved, and offering other opportunities to give. Generally, this can be accomplished in a OFFER, THANK, SHOW, CONNECT cycle twice a year.  This ongoing view of MTD leads to a strong and stable support base and only takes about 2-3 hours a week. 

       • After a gift, THANK donors for their giving. The general standard is a handwritten thank-you card and a phone call. (Other ideas HERE.) No financial ask. 

       • A month or two later, SHOW the donor how their gift made an impact. They need to know they made a difference. No financial ask. 

       • A month or two later, CONNECT with a call or text to pray/care for the donor. No financial ask. 
       • A month or two later, OFFER another giving opportunity. This rhythm of bi-annual giving opportunities helps to maintain engagement with those larger-capacity donors who generally only give when asked. A spring/summer ask, along with an End of Year Ask, can add a healthy, annual rhythm of encouraging current donors to increase their recurring gift amount. The structure of the OFFER ask can include a general letter with a note to about 20 key folks that you'll be calling. Call to ask if they read your letter and if the Lord is leading them toward involvement in this need. Plan to follow up.
         
         
     • More on the OFFER, THANK, SHOW, CONNECT cycle here: Annual Stewardship Plan & Timeline 
       
       
     • Additional resources for long-term discipleship and development of your large-capacity donors can be found at Generous Giving. They provide both resources and events that foster joyful generosity. 

Additional resources:

• National Christian Foundation info on non-cash gifts and donor-directed funds. *Sign up for their e-newsletter. 
  • NCF Giver Research Project
• Generous Giving helps you disciple your donor toward joyful generosity. 
• Generosity talk by Tim Keller
• Win, Keep and Lift Major Donors. Article by Support Raising Solutions