What if I told you that you can exponentially multiply the impact that every person and every dollar has on an organization? Any organization. Particularly in the fundraising space.
BEFORE: 1 person = 1 person BEFORE: $1 = $1
AFTER: 1 person = 10 people AFTER: $1 = $10
Let me share a perfect example of how this worked in the real world.
Dr. Timothy Beard, president of Pasco Hernando State College (PHSC) asked for my company BrightDot’s help to turn a modest development budget into a donation that was more than ten times the funding available to build the campaign. We were able to institute our 95/5 Strategy by building the campaign around a specific outcome – the naming rights for their Baseball Stadium.
“Our funding pool got much smaller when we became laser focused,” explains Dr. Timothy Beard, PHSC President. “We were able to exert far less effort and resources with far greater results once we understood and implemented the strategy.”
We were able to define and hone our prospect list by building a specific “ASK” that was designed for a specific target – a local company. We positioned the campaign so the benefits for the company were easily seen, the marketing value was recognized, and the impact their contribution would have on lives for years to come was understood.
The Multiplier Effect has continued to work as if by magic, providing continued funding for PHSC through events, sponsorships, and experiences that have enriched thousands of lives over the years.
WHAT WE KNOW
- The majority of fundraising staff come from lower to middle class families, like me.
To learn to spend from another, wealthier wallet (not our own) involves a major shift in perspective. This can be learned. We know this because over 70% of BrightDot clients received their largest gift ever after training. Staff, volunteers and supporters started asking for 10X their normal ask. And guess what? They get it.
- The 80/20 rule no longer applies.
With the great increase in VERY HIGH wealth individuals, we’ve seen a steep decline in middle class donors – even a decline in donations from wealthy people! In this new world, the rule is 95/5. You’ll receive 95% of your donations from just 5% of your supporters. But this is good news. Why? Because your reach becomes much smaller, and you can spend more time engaging the donors who will write a check. A very big check.
- In a nonprofit without money, mission doesn’t matter.
It doesn’t matter because all the passion in the world can’t help you feed a hungry family if you don’t have the funds to buy the food. Far too many leaders of the hundreds of nonprofits we’ve met are not trained in how to run a business. REVENUE – COSTS = VALUE
Running a nonprofit is not easy. It cannot, must not, be run like a hobby. If you want to serve the masses, then you must first serve yourself and learn how to ask for the funding to make it possible.
9 out of 10 development officers tell us that what’s holding their organization back is the lack of funds.
We beg to differ.
What we have found is what is holding the organization back is their leaders. Their staff, volunteers and boards who are not trained effectively to make the “ASK.”
To become a multiplier, certain skills, audacious confidence, and processes must be learned and put in place to create a culture of growth. This must be done first, in order to build an organization of multipliers.
A multiplier exponentially increases the impact of every dollar and every person in that organization.
Building an organization and board of multipliers can be learned. Over 70% of BrightDot’s clients have received their largest gift ever after learning effective skills and the language that’s most likely to get a ‘YES’ from prospects.
We know this because we teach it every day.
Help create a culture and community of multipliers for your favorite organization by investing your donation into teaching these skills to them and your donation will impact that organization ten times more than writing a check and hoping your money is spent in the most impactful way.
By doing this, YOU become the multiplier who creates new multipliers.
