The Essential Major Donor Toolkit: A Guide for Nonprofits Pursuing a Major Donor Strategy

When I was hired as Executive Director of the Oregon League of Conservation Voters (OLCV) in late 1996, I had never raised a dime. The board probably shouldn’t have hired me.

Yet, they did. And it became quickly apparent that fundraising was Job One. OLCV had just two permanent employees at the time (me and a half-time office assistant), along with one other employee on a short-term contract for the legislative session. In contrast, I had big ambitions for the group to become a force on behalf of clean air, clean water, and a healthier environment. I knew that would take money. A lot more.

And so I just threw myself into fundraising. I got myself training. I read books on the topic. I forced myself to stretch outside my comfort zone to call donors and meet with them in-person. I worked with the board (which was thankfully open to it) to play their part.

It worked. The organization grew. I did some things clearly right and others that, in hindsight, I grimace to think I did.

At various points over the next decade, I received further training and more than once I found myself having markedly more success as a fundraiser based on applying the lessons I learned.

I left OLCV a dozen years after I started having grown its budget 10-fold, with a staff of 10. We were not a large organization, but we’d made the transition to “medium sized” based on a relentless focus on building relationships with and securing donations from individuals.

Since I left OLCV, I’ve worked as an organizational development consultant, with a focus on strategic planning and fundraising. As a consultant, I’ve learned even more about fundraising from talking with dozens of nonprofit fundraising professionals working in the trenches to hear their stories and review data.

This book is my attempt to succinctly lay out what it takes for any small or medium sized nonprofit to systematically pursue major gifts from individuals. I hope it proves to be a worthwhile companion to my other E-book, Why Organizations Thrive: Lessons from the Frontlines for Nonprofit Executive Directors.