Interest Doesn’t Equal Intent
You’re at the end of the board meeting.
The results of the strategic plan have been shared.
The vision is inspiring.
Everyone is nodding along. Everyone cannot wait to see the plan turned into reality.
Then, someone brings up the tough question:
How will we pay for this? Our reserves are limited and we don’t bring in that much more in revenue than we spend each year.
So you decide to go into a campaign.
A period of time goes by and the CEO presents back to the board about what the campaign might entail, as the team has determined the true costs of making the strategic plan a reality.
The board nods. Seems right.
But no one says, and I’m in!
No choruses of, we will each do our part.
Because here’s the thing: interest doesn’t equal intent.
Excitement does not equal funding.
And you need funding.
I’ve seen it so many times. A donor is presented with an idea in a meeting with the CEO. An ask is implied but never stated.
Everyone leaves the meeting and the development director (who wasn’t necessarily invited to the original meeting) now has to close it.
But the donor goes quiet.
Or the donor says maybe later.
Or the donor says, show me what everyone else does, then I’ll consider it.
Why does this happen?
Because the idea is shared as an idea. Not as a plan.
The CEO has a lovely conversation with the top donor, but doesn’t really ask for a gift. Or state the costs to make the campaign a success.
Here’s the thing – no matter how busy your CEO is, they have to be involved in fundraising. Directly involved. Often, as the closer, not the initiator.
What do I mean by this?
The CEO is the principal. That is who everyone looks to for vision AND on how it will be executed.
The head of development – no matter how fantastic they are – is often not who the top donors seek to meet with to talk about these transformational gifts. They want to hear from the CEO.
Right now, we’re hearing a lot about the uncertainty of the economy.
But friends, when HAVEN’T we heard about an uncertain economy? My entire career has been talking about an uncertain economy.
Is it true that the K-shaped economy is influencing the perspectives of your donors? That wealth is getting increasingly concentrated at the top, and middle and lower-income households are feeling new pressure like they haven’t seen in a long time?
You bet.
So as you’re considering how to be successful and really get your strategic plan into action and launch a tremendously successful campaign, you need to consider the economic pressure your community is under AND who is actually doing quite well.
Your top (often older) donors might have more capacity than ever before.
This might be hard to register because your staff doesn’t feel that way (and maybe even your board doesn’t either).
But your campaign may only need 10-25 donors to secure most of the funding. And those folks, when targeted correctly, have the capacity now.
As the CEO, it’s your role to understand these economic factors. To understand what your donors care about. To know that they are thinking about what legacy they want to leave behind.
Finally, you must show stability for your organization and galvanize your staff to aspire for greatness.
The generations are changing. Wealth is transferring. This is not the time to have a timid ask.
Imagine this: What if you asked your top most committed donors without fear?
What would you do differently if you knew the relationship with the donor would only be strengthened?
What would you do if you made an ask amount so big that it didn’t just deal with a symptom but actually solved a problem?
That confidence in your vision is more important than the economy.
It’s more important than the exact words you say.
It’s even more important than putting together the perfect proposal.
So think for a moment about the real number that would change the trajectory of your nonprofit.
Are you hesitating?
What is that costing you?
Now pause for another moment with me.
Think of the next big donor you really want to meet with. Consider if you will have a lovely conversation with no big vision, or will you make a real ask with a real number tied to a real cost?
There is a difference. Choose the ask.