Stop Prospecting

I hear this all the time from non-profits, “Where do I find and meet major gift donors?” How would you answer that? Perhaps something like this;

• “I was just at (insert any meeting) and I met this really great woman who is very connected here in the community. And she is very wealthy I think a doctor’s wife. She expressed a lot of interest in what we are doing. Meet her for coffee and….”
• “I’ve been thinking about tapping the Christian Business Association here because there has to be a number of very wealthy people who are in that group who would be interested in our mission.”
• “Our advisory board has a lot of very influential people on it who know a lot of good prospects for our major donor program. Meet with each of them to make a list of folks they know, then contact those folks and ask them to support us.”

You Don’t have a Deficiency |

Well, I believe your major donors aren’t at your local Econ club or at any other gathering of people of notoriety or wealth. You may think they are but I think all of these ideas are a waste of time in finding large committed donors for your cause. I think the answer can be found when Jesus called out one of his disciples in a similar exercise;

When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” – John 6:5-7

The feeding of the 5,000 is an amazing miracle but what gets buried in this incredible story is that it was all a test.  Jesus was setting Philip up for a spiritual lesson. Why Jesus picked on Philip I’m not sure but he called him out and wanted to find out how much Philip understood about who He is and what He does. Philip immediately thought the solution to the problem was to go out and buy food. He immediately assumed he had a deficiency so he needed to add to his current resources. Jesus then shows him and me that 5+2 doesn’t equal 7 but 5,000 with a remainder! I fall into this same trap of thinking that what I have is not enough when I have a pressing need.

Maximize your current Resources |

It’s the same way with fundraising or sales. You see, it is very rare to find major donors in any of those places listed above. It’s hard work cold-calling accounts. Yes, they do pop up every once in a while, but overall it is a waste of time that doesn’t bear fruit. Instead of looking to add to your donor list apply the loaves & fish story to your existing donor file! That is where they are. Scores of them. Maybe 5,000. They are sitting right in your file on your computer.

I say this because sitting in your donor file are people who have already said “yes” to your request helping support your mission. And that simple tiny little “yes” is a very significant clue that they are on board with you. What I’m saying is your best use of time that will produce the greatest fruit is only talking to people who have already agreed to support you, to volunteer their time, to advocate for you through social media, etc.

This is true of sales as well. Cold calling is hard selling but connecting with those who have come to you or first expressed an interest in your product or idea as a solution to their problem is relationship selling. Inbound marketing serves as a filter to help you target much better.

Question |

Grow your faith today and learn from Philip’s test– trust in Jehovah-Jireh who has given you more than enough. What resource(s) have you been overlooking?