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How to prep for your next big ask
There’s a ton of information out there about how to ask for a donation. Here’s a 52-page report from AFP (link removed – report now offline) on the subject that talks about a lot of stuff. But, sadly, only a few sentences in the entire report actually focus on the moment of truth— when you ask for the money.
So I thought I’d help with what I believe is the simplest way to prep for your next big ask.
- Print the cheat sheet below
- Review your notes about the prospect (his/her wants, needs, desires and philanthropic goals)
- Think
- Think some more
- Write your answers beside the questions
- Think some more
- Possibly talk to your friends about your answers (the experienced and successful ones)
- Talk to some donors about your answers to get their perspective
- Think some more
- Practice out loud
Did you just say to yourself, “Nah, I can wing it”? Don’t!
Lawyers practice law.
Doctors practice medicine.
Heck! Basketball players practice.
True professionals prep. Print it out!
Congratulations… you’re ready!
Related Posts
>> New tool helps determine your asking style so you close more gifts
>> Are we sometimes asking donors the wrong questions?
Reccomendations from other nonprofit blogs
>> Have asking anxiety? Do these 5 things
>> 7 tips on asking for donations — It’s intimidating, we get it
>> The do’s and don’ts of soliciting charitable donations
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Feeling like your job is getting harder because donor expectations have changed and competition for the charitable dollar is growing?
Finding that the old orthodoxies and conventions espoused by so-called experts in online echo-chambers and at conferences don’t work anymore?
Want to help more people make impact by facilitating their acts of philanthropy but feel like too many obstacles keep getting in your way?
Then this book is for you.
Engagement Fundraising was developed from the perspective of a donor who discovered firsthand that the impersonal, spray-and-pray approaches of his beloved charity were not only offensive but also wasteful and ineffective. So he took action. And now, you can too.
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