How To Have A Better Donor Meeting
Did you know that you can actually fail a donor meeting before it even happens? No, I’m serious – you can really screw up before you even sit down.
HOW??
By not preparing properly.
I know, this may seem tedious and you are super busy.
But, can you change your mind a little and think – this is an opportunity for me to brag about how great the work I do to someone who cares about it and also wants to make a difference? PLUS – I get to learn more about someone else in the process? WIN.
So, what does preparing for a meeting include? There are four parts – and yes, you need all four.
Know what is going on at your organization. Even if you are the executive director or founder who is intimately involved with everything, think for a moment what do you want to share? What is new? What is exciting? What recent success story can you share? Is there a new hire that is bringing incredible expertise to the issue?
Be ready to sell.
Know your story. Why are you involved in the work? What brought you in? Why do you like working for this organization?
You might be surprised how frequently you’ll get asked this question.
Know who you are meeting with. Know their giving history. Find everything you can on the relationship with the donor. Has someone met with them before and written up notes in your database (hint – you should be writing notes in your database after every meeting. People love when you remember details they told you!). Look at their LinkedIn and Facebook pages. What is their business? What can you learn about their family? And if nothing else – google them.
Be ready to ask them questions as most of the meeting should be them talking and YOU listening!
Know what you want to talk about. Is this meeting to thank them? To ask them for a gift? To get to know them? To seek advice? Maybe all of the above. Whatever it is, make sure you have a plan ready and it is proportional to the time you have together.
You should be in control of the meeting. You should know what you want to achieve from your time together and be prepared to go after it.
By doing this preparation, I can assure you that you will have a better donor meeting.
Need help in asking for the meeting or what to say when you follow up? Sign up for my emails here and you’ll get a free template from me so you can just copy and paste.
Want to talk about what to say in your meeting with a donor?