Fundraising can take on many different approaches. While you never want to one-time donations or contributions from those who have only a little to spare, it makes sense to have someone who can help cultivate a group of sponsors who consistently provide major gifts. This group can include individuals as well as corporate entities. Here are some of the advantages that your organization will enjoy thanks to maintaining a major gift fundraising effort.
Establishing More Accurate Annual Budgets
Operating budgets must be based on factual data if they are to succeed. While you may have hopes for the amount of funds that will come in, it pays to base your plan for operating on what you know. Major donors who pledge to provide a certain amount of financial support each year are one of the resources that you can usually depend on.
You’ll still depend on fundraising campaigns to supply part of the revenue needed to operate. With major donors making pledges, it’s easier to make more modest predictions about how much money those campaigns will raise and budget accordingly. The result is that there may be a surplus at the end of the year that can be used to do something extra in the year to come.
Identifying Additional Services and Support That Your Organization Can Provide
With more accurate ideas of what sort of income to expect, it’s easier to look around and see what sort of additional services would benefit your targeted group of recipients. For example, adding a meal delivery program to what you already do for cancer patients may now be feasible. Perhaps you can now spend more of the budget on providing transportation to and from medical appointments.
Thanks to the major donors, it’s no longer about covering the basics. It’s also about conducting studies to determine other areas where your clients need support and figuring out how to help with those issues. You may find yourself in the happy position of being able to do more for them than ever.
Adding to Your Work Force
One of the other potential benefits of having a steadily growing group of major donors is that you can add staff to the organization. That translates into more people to help your clients, get things done sooner rather than later, and in general make the organization a greater force for good in the community.
Time and attention devoted to major gift fundraising has a way of providing immediate and long-term benefits. As those donors continue to provide support from year to year, the financial stability that’s created allows the organization to help more people. That’s a reason to be grateful as well as proud of the achievements.
Cultivating a More Prominent Presence in the Community
A side benefit that you may not think of immediately is the enhanced presence your organization enjoys thanks to the association with those major donors. Others in their business and social circles are more likely to hear of the connection and decide that they also should donate on some sort of basis. That may be in the form of offering donations when you have a campaign or providing an annual pledge.
Association with those major donors could motivate others to think well of your organization. If a certain donor chooses to donate to your cause, it must be one worth considering. At the least, your organization gets to enjoy a higher profile and a greater chance of more donations coming in.
There’s no downside to ensuring you include major gift donations in your overall fundraising approach. Talk with an expert to find out how to make this happen. Doing so will benefit your organization for many years to come.