Fundraising for Nonprofits: A Transformational Approach

Every nonprofit we've worked with over our combined 64 years of experience, lives in possibility.

The possibility of the difference they can make, the lives they can touch, and the impact they can have.

Their visions are big and bold and compelling.

We believe nonprofits are uniquely positioned to turn those possibilities into realities… more so than commercial enterprises or governmental bodies can do. Nonprofits are the most willing, committed, and intentional about solving the world's greatest and most intractable problems.

Problems like...

• Hunger and food insecurity
• Debilitating diseases like Alzheimer's, cancer, and multiple sclerosis
• The damaging effects of systemic racism
• Physical abuse of people and animals
• The devastating impact of climate change

These are some of the most defining issues of our time and we need solutions to solve them NOW.

But there's only one thing standing in the way...

MONEY.

It has been said that… "There are many more important things than money… but they all cost money."

Those of us who have the privilege of working in the nonprofit space are able to focus on the "many more important things" every single day.

It is some of the most rewarding work we will ever do.

And yet, at the same time, many nonprofits are challenged by incremental, stagnant, or even negative revenue growth, putting their organization, their staff, and their mission at risk. 

Consequently, nonprofits all too often can't make the impact they need to make, at the level and at the speed they need to make it. 

The pain of this is felt the greatest by the dedicated and passionate team members who pour their hearts and souls into the mission every day.  They end up feeling stressed, frustrated, fearful and heartbroken when they can't make the difference they want to make, as quickly as they want to make it. 

At TGP Consulting, we set out to change all that by providing a solution that enables nonprofits to raise WAY more money and do WAY more good. 

But before we talk about the solution, we need to understand the problem. 

The Problem

Why is it that so many large, and even prestigious, organizations are struggling to raise enough money?

We believe there are ten main contributing factors: 

1. A heavy reliance on the art of fundraising, where fundraisers primarily rely on artful elements like intuition, charm, and a sense of timing.  
2. Looking to extrinsic motivators, like "the right" case materials to convey the importance of the mission.
3. Too much dependence on fundraising "superstars.".  
4. A lack of training and models for new, inexperienced fundraisers.  
5. Spending too much time going after gifts that are too small to be transformational enough to move the needle on the mission in a significant way.  
6. A lack of clearly-defined business processes, where everyone does things differently.  
7. A lack of the right tools for fundraisers to effectively perform their jobs, resulting in a heavy reliance on Excel spreadsheets and Word documents. 
8. A deeply ingrained "my donor" mindset, causing fundraisers to "wall off" their donors, creating winners and losers within the organization.
9. A reluctance of program staff to support fundraising efforts, because even though their input is vital, program staff often receive little or no recognition for the work they do to support fundraising.
10. Prioritizing recruitment of board members with domain expertise or name recognition who are willing to give meaningful advice but not always willing to give or get meaningful gifts.  

Does any of this sound familiar?

All of these problems make it increasingly difficult for nonprofits to raise the kinds of funds that are necessary to solve the problems you're here to solve and make the kind of difference you are here to make. 

The Solution 

The solution we created, born out of direct experience supporting organizations who have doubled their revenue, is what we now call - The Transformational Giving Playbook.  It is a completely new comprehensive approach to fundraising that:   

• Brings the entire organization together around a common set of values, goals and leadership principles.   
• Pairs the best of what our clients know about the art of fundraising with what we know about the science of fundraising.   
• Puts the donor's motivations and aspirations front and center, and not just the organization's mission.   
• Makes everyone a winner.   

Why It Works

So, why does The Transformational Giving Playbook work to help nonprofits raise more money and do more good?  Why does it have the potential to transform your high-touch fundraising from incremental gains year over year, to exponential growth? 

It works because it addresses all the reasons that have contributed to the problem of incremental, stagnate and negative revenue growth across nonprofits.

The Transformational Giving Playbook enables you to go FROM…

1. A heavy reliance on the art of fundraising, where fundraisers primarily rely on artful elements like intuition, charm, and a sense of timing... TO elevating the art of fundraising by leveraging science and proven strategies, along with innovative technology, research, tools, and clearly defined business processes.   
2. Looking to extrinsic motivators, like "the right" case materials to convey the importance of the mission... TO a focus on understanding and aligning to the intrinsic motivations and aspirations of the donor and demonstrating how the mission and apparatus of the organization can help the donor fulfill both, in a way they never could on their own.  Ultimately, this makes a far more compelling case for donors to give at capacity. 
3. Too much dependence on fundraising "superstars," which can leave an organization vulnerable when they leave... TO positioning "superstars" as mentors to their peers, sharing their best practices, and leading knowledge-sharing sessions.   
4. A lack of training and models for new, inexperienced fundraisers, leaving them to figure things out on their own... TO equipping fundraisers with the skillset they need to be successful - through training, mentorship, step-by-step roadmaps, and skill-building.   
5. Spending too much time going after gifts that are too small to be transformational, which means fundraisers won't generate the transformational gifts required to move the needle on the mission in a significant way...TO prioritizing the time, energy and efforts of the Development department on donors who have the capacity to give truly transformational gifts.
6. A lack of clearly-defined business processes, where everyone does things differently, which ultimately puts the organization and donor relationship at risk... TO clear business processes, standards, expectations, accountability, and coordination designed for everyone to win.
7. A lack of the right tools for fundraisers to effectively perform their jobs, resulting in a heavy reliance on Excel spreadsheets and Word documents, which makes fundraising less effective... TO a comprehensive set of leading-edge tools provide consistency, transparency, and effectiveness in the fundraising efforts across the organization.
8. A deeply ingrained "my donor" mindset, causing fundraisers to "wall off" their donors, creating winners and losers within the organization...TO creating a unified donor experience that significantly grows revenue across the whole of the organization.
9. A reluctance of program staff to support fundraising efforts, because even though their input is vital, program staff often receive little or no recognition for the work they do to support fundraising... TO creating a culture of philanthropy where every staff person is recognized and rewarded for how they contribute to the financial health of the organization.
10. Prioritizing recruitment of board members with domain expertise or name recognition who are willing to give meaningful advice but not always willing to give or get meaningful gifts...TO prioritizing recruitment of board members who are willing to make a significant financial commitment, and bring other transformational gift donors into the fold.   

All of this is what enables nonprofits to go FROM incremental, stagnant, or negative growth, where your organization is struggling to raise money for your mission - TO exponential growth, where you are raising significantly more money through a focus on six and seven-figure transformational gifts, which ultimately provide the capacity to do WAY more good. 

The Book

We're thrilled to announce that Lisa and Pam have taken everything we've learned about transformational gift fundraising, and published it in our new book, The Transformational Giving Playbook: The definitive guide for nonprofits that want to exponentially grow their revenue and impact through six and seven-figure gifts. (Note: This links to the updated edition)

Our sincere hope is that The Transformational Giving Playbook will radically change the way nonprofits approach transformational gift fundraising and invite life-affirming transformation of their donors, their teams, their organizations, and their missions.

Lisa, Jeremy and Pam