Fundraising Principles and Practice, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER FOURTEENMAJOR GIFT FUNDRAISING

Robert F. Hartsook and Adrian Sargeant

Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Describe the extant research into major giving and the motives of major givers.
2. Explain the process of major donor recruitment and development.
3. Conduct simple prospect research.
4. Prioritize prospects by linkage, ability, and interest.
5. Develop and utilize a gift range chart.
6. Understand how to close a major gift.
7. Understand the significance of appropriate donor recognition and stewardship.

Introduction

Major donors are individuals who make sizeable personal contributions. Major gifts are, broadly speaking, those that are large relative to the majority of the gifts the organization receives. The definition of a major gift varies from one organization to another — for some it may mean a gift of $10,000, for others a gift of $10 million. As a general rule of thumb, Heetland (1993) argues that major donors are generally a nonprofit's best 100 or so prospects. We concur, although there are always exceptions. The major educational and health institutions have substantially larger major gift programs and teams of dedicated fundraisers.

Knowles and Gomes (2009) suggest that major gifts are significantly more than a nonprofit's typical donation. Determining an appropriate threshold for the label can be achieved by looking at the current donor ...