Top tips on fundraising
Howard Lake | 19 October 1996 | News
Fundraising director and consultant John Baguley shares his top 10 tips for fundraising.
John Baguley, former Director of Fundraising at Amnesty International UK and founder of the International Fundraising Consultancy, has shared his top Ten Principles of Fundraising.
10 tips to improve your fundraising
- To maintain your competitive edge you must innovate faster then the rate at which your external environment is changing.
TEST, TEST and TEST again.
It is only by constantly trying out new ideas and improvements that your fundraising will remain competitive. - 80% of your income should come from 20% of your supporters.
Learn who they are, treat them like your closest friends, invite them to visit and discover exactly why they give and how they would like to help in future.In time they will introduce you to your greatest benefactors. - SAY “THANK YOU” FOR EACH DONATION – FAST
It is a common courtesy to thank those who have helped you. Do not ignore the small donations they deserve your attention and often lead to larger gifts. But, naturally, you will respect the wishes of those who ask not to be thanked. - Speed is impressive. Donors believe your programme work is as good or bad as the image you present to them. It should be efficient and effective.
- FACE TO FACE is the most effective way to fundraise.
Countless charities, non-governmental organisations, religions and political parties have been built on the simple process of asking people to give door-to-door, face to face, day after day.Your supporters can be a huge resource to replace those falling returns from direct mail acquisition programmes.
The largest donations are given face to face when the request is made by a colleague who has given a large donation themselves. If you have not given you cannot ask! - PEOPLE GIVE TO PEOPLE not organisations.
You will not raise a cent for your multi-million dollar new hospital wing unless you can show the benefit that individuals will receive.Personal details, personal lives and the drama of effective giving to help real people is what motivates donors.Effective giving enriches the lives of donors too! - IF YOU DO NOT ASK YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE!
Donors have choices and they will choose the organisations that make the best case to them, in their media when they are ready. Making it easy for donors to give has been proven to increase the response.Put a direct response device on everything your organisation produces; a phone number on posters, a coupon on advertisements and your address on those bookmarks.
Some people give to direct mail requests, some love phone calls others are moved by advertising. So, you must try everything to reach all your potential donors and try it all year round. - THE 30 SECOND RULE
First impressions count. You have under 30 seconds to make a impact. In that time you must reach their hearts and win them to your cause.
Donors are intelligent, caring and rightly sceptical. Don’t patronise them or insult their intelligence but make your proposition clear and straightforward.
If you cannot do that you cannot fundraise. - ASK FOR THE RIGHT AMOUNT
Asking for small sums from rich donors inoculates them from giving larger amounts. Asking large sums from donors who give small sums devalues their gift.
Do your homework and ask for the right sum, but encourage the donor to give more each time. If you are asking many people at once use a range of tick boxes.
Never leave the donor uncertain how much you would like them to give. - PLAN EVERYTHING
There is no magic in fundraising. Success is a combination of sound techniques and careful planning for a real need.Plan in plenty of time, with adequate staff and volunteers but equally important make sure your organisation can handle the fulfilment and analysis of the response – accurately and fast.
More money has been lost by poor administration then poor fundraising. - BE HONEST!
You may be the darling of the media today but tomorrow those investigative journalists will be going through your operations in minute detail.
Always check the details in every aspect of your fundraising. It is so easy for the agency copywriter to make a slip or the wrong caption to be added to a picture. If you say the donors money will be spent on something, it must be spent on that only or returned. Unless the donor gives permission for it to be used elsewhere.
The integrity of your fundraising must be as high as the integrity of your programmes – this you owe to your donors.
The International Fundraising Consultancy
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- John Baguley receives lifetime contribution award at IoF National Fundraising Awards (13 December 2016)
- New John Baguley book tackles issues of charity management (25 October 2017)
- Fundraising TV – taking us by surprise! (13 July 2017)
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.