For long-term sustainability and even deeper impact, quality always beats quantity. You want the right donors to support your mission– people who are passionate about your work and have the resources to financially support it.
The same thing applies to your charity, NGO or nonprofit’s overall sustainability. Successful development hinges on identifying and cultivating relationships with high net-worth donors who are perfectly-aligned with your mission.
But how do you find them? Network in their circles? How do you attract and retain them?
Here’s 7 practical tips:
A Little Digging Goes A Long Way
Wealthy philanthropists are bombarded daily with donation requests from charities, NGOs, nonprofit organizations and social enterprises. Luckily with philanthropy growing, the habits and preferences of these high net-worth donors have been surveyed, helping you keep your requests from the recycling bin.
A recent Carnegie Corporation survey of high net-worth philanthropists shows that they want fundraisers to research which causes they care about most and what motivates them to make a contribution.
Start by aligning your organization’s values and beliefs with theirs. Find any information on foundations they’ve created or joined and its main purpose. Are they interested in helping environmental causes? Socioeconomic inequality? Education? Then, approach those who connect with your purpose and love the work you’re doing.
If you can’t find anything, comb through their social media accounts or search for past fundraising events they’ve attended for clues.
Get To Know Them
Once you have a shortlist of affluent potential donors, it’s time to get to know them. Oftentimes, fundraisers are so focused on the ‘ask,’ they skip over the relationship cultivation. Donors don’t want to feel like a means to an end– they want to feel like they’re involved with your mission. They want to know they’re making a sizable impact to a cause they support.
This step can take time and patience, but if you know how to have an authentic conversation that lands your ideal donors, you’ll increase your chances of hearing a ‘YES.’ You can find the exact steps to having an authentic conversation in my Ideal High Net-Worth Donor Training here. <LINK TO SALES FUNNEL>.
Don’t Skimp On Information
Ultra-wealthy donors don’t just want you to know what they care about, they also want you to know WHY they care about it. Do they have an autistic child? Is their grandfather from an impoverished war zone? Go the extra mile to find out why they might care about your cause.
Then, once you’re confident they’ll find your mission valuable, offer tangible information about the impact you’re achieving. What development projects did your donors make possible last year? How many people were helped? How many trees were planted? What are your specific goals for the next 2 years if you received a contribution of $50,000, $100,000, $2,000,000?
Offer Them A Personal Tour Of Your Mission
Although numbers can be persuasive, nothing impacts a potential high net-worth donor more than an on-site visit to your offices or the places you’re impacting.
A conversation where your mission is currently in-action allows them to visualise the impact their contribution will make. Plus, if your charity, NGO or nonprofit is connected to the heart of its purpose, your passion and dedication will be noticeable, inspiring them to be part of your work.
Don’t Forget About The People You Know
Many fundraisers forget that their best connections are sometimes the closest. If you’re looking for people who are aligned with your work, look no further than your own board, trustees, volunteers and donors.
These people are already aligned with your organization’s intent, values and beliefs and might have long-standing relationships with potential high net-worth donors.
Let ‘NO’ Roll Off Your Back
As a mission-driven organization that relies on fundraising for development, it can take countless no’s to get to a yes. If your team members are easily defeated by rejection, it’s extremely important to fuel their passion, energy and determination through purpose.
Purpose isn’t just the reason for your organization’s existence– it’s the rocket fuel that keeps your fundraisers going when the work gets tough. It’s the deep-rooted motivation that keeps them returning day after day, changing the world.
Without a genuine connection to the heart of your purpose, your team members can find fundraising (and landing major donations) impossible. As an international keynote speaker, you can see how I help nonprofit organizations, charities and NGOs do that here: <LINK TO WORK WITH ME PAGE>
Strengthen Your Relationships With High Net-Worth Donors
Once you’ve landed an affluent benefactor, it’s just as important to maintain the relationship in order to keep them. Keep in contact with them regularly. Show them the impact their contributions have created. Be specific. Tell them how their $75,000 saved animals from illegal poaching. Share how many poverty-stricken children accessed quality education tools with their funds.
With my clients, I offer a detailed Impact Report so this step is simple, practical and extremely effective. It compiles ALL the compelling information major donors want so they see the results of their contribution, stay involved and get excited to give BIGGER donations for future objectives.
This keeps you top-of-mind when you ask for future (and larger) donations and gives them a sense of meaning and purpose in their own lives. They want to help you change the world. Show them how you’re doing it together.
Find, Attract And Retain High Net-Worth Donors
Even the most successful mission-driven organizations can struggle with finding, attracting and retaining high net-worth donors.
That’s why it’s important to ignite passion, clarify purpose and sharpen your vision regularly. Bring in outside experts to inspire new ideas. Host workshops to strengthen your weaknesses. Encourage team bonding with positive events for your staff and volunteers. Just one of these can give your team members the skills and energy to land a 6 or 7-figure donation.
I know, because my work with charities, NGOs and nonprofit organizations has helped global changemakers achieve more than they ever thought possible with high net-worth donors. Organizations like WWF UK, The Warwick Project, The Learning trust, Article 25, The Ella Foundation and more are achieving BIGGER goals with my help.
If you’d like to magnify your impact like they are, start with my Ideal High Net-Worth Training System here where I share my blueprint to land high net-worth donors who are perfectly-aligned with your purpose.