Yes, it does.
To be honest, I was tempted to leave this article there. I thought it would be amusing but true. Cold major donor outreach does work. But of course, that’s not the complete story.
The full answer is: Yes, it does… so long as you do it right. Let’s take a look at cold major donor outreach and how you can use it effectively at your non-profit.
What is Cold Major Donor Outreach?
Cold major donor outreach is exactly what it sounds like. It is calling, emailing, or mailing donors who have the capacity to give a major gift to your organization, but who have never given to your non-profit or been approached by your fundraising team.
This type of major donor outreach is akin to low-dollar donor outreach done through direct mail prospecting. In direct mail prospecting, you rent a list of people who you think might be a good match for your non-profit, because they support similar organizations or purchase products, read magazines, or are members of clubs that make you think they care about your mission.
Similarly, cold major donor outreach is getting in touch with people who have never supported your organization but who you think care about your mission to try and begin a relationship with them. These are prospective donors you have researched, and through that research, you believe they are likely to be interested in your work and that they are aligned with your non-profit’s values.
Does it Really Work?
Many non-profits shy away from this type of major donor outreach because cold calling donors makes them anxious, and they don’t think it will work. In my experience, however, nearly 100% of the country’s largest non-profits engage in some sort of cold major donor outreach. The reason they do it is because it works.
Of course, cold outreach should not be the primary way your organization is filling its major donor pipeline. Ideally, you are using direct mail prospecting, online direct response prospecting, or another type of low-dollar donor prospecting and then wealth screening and upgrading a percentage of those low-dollar donors to major donor status over time. Hopefully, you’re also using your board and other friends of the organization to offer referrals to new donors, as well as engaging in networking events and other strategies to meet new major donors who care about your mission.
But cold major donor outreach can be effective as part of a robust fundraising mix.
The Rules of Successful Cold Outreach
There are three key rules you need to follow if you want to be successful with cold major donor outreach:
#1: Start With Warm Major Donor Outreach
Before launching cold major donor outreach, you need to be proficient in warm major donor outreach. The best place to find your next major donor is in your own donor database. This means that your non-profit needs to be screening its current low-dollar and mid-level donors to see who has major donor giving capacity and then cultivating those donors to turn them into major donors. Don’t start cold outreach until you have a system in place to do this effectively.
#2: You Have to Be Persistent
If you want to be successful with cold major donor outreach, you need to be persistent. Really, really persistent. You may have heard the old sales adage that it takes seven calls to get through to a sales prospect. Cold donor outreach is like that. You need to be willing to send letters and emails and make calls over and over again until you get through (or until the prospect agrees to meet or says “no!”). Cold donor outreach takes persistence, consistency, and a thick skin.
#3: It’s a Numbers Game
Much like grant fundraising, cold major donor outreach is a numbers game. You won’t get responses from every or even half of your outreach targets. In fact, you’ll be lucky to get a response from 1 out of every 8 or 10 of your prospects. That doesn’t mean it’s not a worthwhile endeavor… instead, it means that you need to be reaching out to more major donor prospects! If your success rate is 1 in 10 and you want to meet with 10 new major donors this year via cold outreach, you’ll need to target 100 prospects. (Your success rate may vary, so track it and you’ll know!)
An Effective Cold Outreach Strategy
When it comes to cold major donor outreach, your goal is to set up a meeting or phone call with the donor. And the goal of that meeting or phone call is not to ask them for a gift… it is to introduce yourself and your non-profit and see where the donor’s interests align with your organization’s interests. Remember, these are major donor prospects, not low-dollar prospects. Your goal is to build a lifelong relationship with a percentage of them, which could result in immense value for your organization (and a fulfilling relationship for your donor).
Here’s the process we use for cold donor outreach, which we have found to be effective:
First, research donors who have an affinity for your mission and support organizations doing work in the same mission field.
Second, send a meeting request letter (MRL) via snail mail or email (I prefer snail mail, at least for the first contact) telling the donor a little about your organization and why you think it would interest him or her and asking to set up a time to tell them about your work.
Third, follow up with each prospect many times via phone and email to try to set up the meeting.
If you’re dealing with a gatekeeper (administrative assistant or other person who is not allowing you to reach the prospect), try the tips in this article. You can also try the “lumpy mail” suggestion in that article to reach donors who are nonresponsive, even if there is no gatekeeper.
Ultimately, if the donor does not respond after seven or eight tries, you can put them on “hold” for a short period (4-6 months) and then try the process all over again.
The number one thing that dooms cold outreach is an unwillingness to do the follow-up calls. Many fundraisers start out enthusiastic about cold outreach, and they are fine sending out the MRL and following up by email, but they get cold feet when it comes time to make the calls. This type of donor outreach does not work if you’re not willing to pick up the phone and call the donor (85 %+ of your calls will result in reaching voicemail. If that’s the case, leave a message and call again in a few days).
Cold major donor outreach does work, but it takes time and persistence. If you have the bandwidth at your non-profit, cold outreach can be an excellent part of a well-rounded major donor strategy.
Do You Want to Build a Stronger Major Gifts Program for Your Non-Profit?
If you’d like help building a stronger and more successful major gifts program at your non-profit, we can help.
We’ve worked with dozens of non-profits to help them find, engage, and solicit major donors and build thriving major donor pipelines. You can outsource much of your work to our team of experienced consultants, who can handle your donor research, send out your MRLs, and help keep track of your major donor outreach.
Want to learn more about how we can help? Click here to see what we can do to help your non-profit grow and thrive!
