Major Gifts = Major impact
Major Gift opportunites provide higher returns on your fundraising initiatives. Add Major Gifts to your portfolio to maximize your impact.
Have you been tasked with asking a donor to make a major gift to your organization?
Are you considering adding a major gift offering?
Investing your fundraising time and energy in major gifts is beneficial. Though gift amounts may fluctuate based on your organization’s size and needs, they provide a high return on your outreach efforts.
As you step into the world of major gifts, I’m happy to preview their benefits and items to consider.
Major gifts provide:
A unique, strategic, impactful opportunity for donors to fund priority projects, programs, and campaigns aligned with their personal connection to your organization’s mission.
A donation beyond an annual gift, sourced from a donor’s individual assets and paid over 3-5 years.
The most effective way to secure large donations that will sustain and grow your nonprofit’s mission.
Connection is Key in Major Gifts Programs
Major gift programs succeed when rooted in your organization’s donor relationships.
Many believe that the majority of gifts come from a small portion of donors in nonprofit fundraising. Though donor wealth plays a role in fundraising, nurturing connections is essential as well. If you spend time meeting with, learning from, and earning the trust of donors, you will know more about their investment in your organization’s mission.
Consider these questions about your donors:
What are the donor’s motivations?
What is their connection to your organization’s mission?
What impact would your donor like to make?
How can your nonprofit be the agent for this impact?
By Design, Not Random
According to Bill Sturtevant, co-founder of the Institute for Charitable Giving and a fundraising expert, major gifts do not happen by accident; they happen by design.
A major giving program is a set of steps, or a system, that allows a nonprofit to build relationships with a group of people or organizations that have the ability (often called capacity) and the interest (often called inclination) to make large gifts.
Small nonprofits can design a major gift program. No need for an entire team; one designated development officer is all that is required.
Consider these 3 concepts to establish a major gifts program:
Decide what a major gift is for your nonprofit.
There is no one-size-fits-all definition of what constitutes a major gift. Some organizations define a major gift as $1,000, others as $10,000 or $100,000. It depends on the organization. Factors to consider: the typical annual gift amount multiplied by ten and the needs of your organization.
Designate a staff member to lead or carve out a portion of a role to focus on major gifts.
Major gifts take time to cultivate and require a disciplined approach. While it is ideal to have a full-time role devoted to this endeavor, it may take time and resources to add this role. In the meantime, allocating a percentage of a current development officer’s role or a percentage of the executive director’s role to this work will pay off and can later make the case for a full-time major gifts officer.
Determine who in your current donor base or who within your broader network may have the capacity to make a major gift.
It may seem daunting at first to cull through your list of current donors or those in your broader network who may become donors, but it’s also important not to fall prey to analysis paralysis. Focus on recency of giving (who gave within the last year), frequency of giving (who has given consistently over the past three to five years), and capacity to give (who has the financial ability to increase their giving).
Those in your broader network may include board member affiliations, volunteers who have not yet given, funding organizations in your community, or beyond that, that have an aligned mission or strategy.
Assign these donors to your major gifts lead - this will be their initial portfolio. If you have limited staff time devoted to this, start with a short list of five to ten current donors.
As you begin nurturing your donor network, remember to remind your donors of the impact, community connection, and tax benefits that result from making a major gift.
Major gifts have the power to transform your nonprofit’s mission and amplify its impact in ways smaller contributions cannot. These significant donations, given thoughtfully by donors who deeply care about your cause, provide both financial stability and growth opportunities for your organization. By implementing a structured major gifts program, nonprofits can build meaningful relationships with donors, align their passions with the organization’s goals, and ensure a sustainable future.
Through careful planning, genuine connections, and ongoing stewardship, major gifts can create a lasting legacy for your nonprofit and its donors alike. When done with intention, major gifts not only secure the resources needed to drive change but also foster a community of dedicated supporters who are invested in your mission's success. Major gifts truly equal major impact.
If you found this helpful, your organization can join me for a deeper dive into developing a Major Gifts Program by purchasing my Major Gifts for Major Impact Workshop. I look forward to guiding your journey!
Book a call to discuss my specific strategies and support offers.
