Have you ever known a nonprofit that doesn’t need or want to raise more money?

Yeah, me neither.

Think about this: before the introduction of the first iPhone, we didn’t know that we needed a device that would allow us to listen to music, and then have the music automatically stop when a call came through.

Now we can’t live without it.

How do you begin to grow your fundraising?

I think the same is true with fundraising. You need a solid development plan that may have strategies that you didn’t know you needed.

In my work as a strategist to nonprofits, I’m often asked the question, “So where do we start?”

Before anyone can tell you the answer to that, you need to understand the scope of your fundraising – past and present. With that clarity, then you can think about moving forward.

A comprehensive development assessment will help so that you may plan – and grow your fundraising with confidence that you have hard data to inform your decisions. An assessment will give you a historical analysis of how you’ve been raising money. It will show you, in black and white, how your various fundraising tactics have performed, illustrating their strengths and weaknesses.

Based on that data, you’ll have an understanding of your “best bet” options for growing philanthropic revenue, the weaknesses in your back office functions, how to deploy volunteer and staff resources, and what investments you might need to make over time.

I love assessments. It’s fun uncovering the stories that data reveal through the process. And more than anything, I love seeing the faces of board and staff when new ideas are uncovered for them.

I’ve seen organizations transform their fundraising, even getting rid of the dreaded gala or golf tournament – after completing a comprehensive development assessment.

A few years ago, I conducted a fundraising assessment of a community college district that had two separate colleges. As a result, we ended up consolidating two institutionally related foundations into a new, single entity. Both of the foundations had the sacred cows of fundraising: galas. One barely broke even and was primarily attended by insiders, while the other netted $40,000 in its final outing. That’s before staff time was calculated.

As we brought the two foundations together into the new entity, the chancellor of the college district agreed, at my urging, to put the sacred cows out to pasture.

A couple of months after we recovered from the final gala, we embarked on a new venture: a “middle donor” program.

What are middle donors, you ask? These are individuals who are giving at the upper levels of your annual giving program – between $500 and $10,000 for most organizations. They need more cultivation and stewardship than your smaller donors donors, but not the high level of attention you give to major donors.

We launched our program in February, using 1:1 solicitations by board members and our development director, as well as a series of house party events. The program was designed to attract donors between $1,200 and $10,000 a year.

One of our board members – a generous local business owner – immediately stepped up with $20,000 challenge pledge.

 In just five months – FIVE MONTHS! – we welcomed 59 donors to our program and raised more than $100,000.

We upgraded many existing donors to all-time high levels of giving and recruited many new supporters.

And what did it cost? The design and printing of a brochure – no more than $2,000.

When was the last time you had that kind of return on investment with a gala?

That’s what a fundraising assessment can do for your organization.

Take a moment and complete our fundraising assessment quiz, and then we’ll send you our GKollaborative Guide to Nonprofit Assessments.

Find out for yourself how you can boost your philanthropic revenue.