It’s interesting that so many people think that fundraising is about donor groups — individuals, foundations, corporations, even the governemnt — and success to getting support is based on techniques: direct mail, telemarketing, email, endless proposal writing. It’s a sales job.
As I remind my students, the secret to fundraising is building relationships. Pure and simple. And that’s the fundamental difference between commercial interests and charitable endeavors. Donors are seeking a relationsihp of shared convictions, and one that is personal, responsive, and ongoing.
We’ll succeed far more if, rather than being viewed as salepeople, donors see us as partners, people who share their concerns for a cause bigger than themselves. And for us who raise money, we will give up that tired, inferior belief that we are supplicants and modern day versions of Mae West, “depending on the kindness of strangers.”
