We’ve been arguing about this ever since 1995, when I got into fundraising consulting. Plenty of people clutch their pearls at the very idea: “Sales is nasty! Fundraisers are pure of heart!”
Here’s the thing. Selling and fundraising do the exact same job: they generate income. What differs is how they operate and what the income is for. (Sasha Dichter has a great post on this, and it’s worth a read.)
Without income, no organization survives. Not a nonprofit, not thhe local diner, not a software company, not even the federal government. Even with no paid staff, you need supplies, software, registration fees, and of course, snacks.
Take two dreams
Say you open a little coffee shop. You’ll pay for the beans and the food, plus insurance, furniture, and utilities, even if you’re the only cook, server, bookkeeper, and janitor and you don’t pay yourself a dime. (Please don’t do that.)
Now say you open a little animal rescue. You’ll need feed, vet care, land, property taxes, charitable registration in most states, and a dozen other things, again even if you don’t pay yourself. (Please don’t do that either.)
Both also need money to get noticed. “Free” social media still costs you time. If nobody knows you’re there, nobody buys your coffee or adopts your animals.
If you can’t bring in enough to cover all that, your dream won’t last long. The coffee shop’s income comes from selling coffee. The rescue’s comes from individual donors, grants, corporate sponsors, and more. The sources are different, but the job is the same.
That’s why I see fundraising as a specialized form of selling. Once you see it that way, I hope you’ll feel a little less reluctant to make that first call, or even the proverbial ask.
What I learned from selling mainframes
Many of you know I used to sell mainframe computers, typically six- and seven-figure deals. When I compare that work with what major gift officers do, the overlap is hard to miss.
| Corporate sales reps need to… | Major gift officers need to… |
|---|---|
| Identify prospects who need what we sell and like how we sell and support it | Identify prospects who care about our mission and how we deliver on it |
| Cultivate relationships for long-term satisfaction | Cultivate relationships for long-term satisfaction |
| Ask for the order | Ask for the gift |
| Accept the prospect’s decision graciously, yes or no | Accept the prospect’s decision graciously, yes or no |
| Keep the relationship going: solve new problems, offer innovations, earn future purchases | Keep the relationship going: show mission impact, share innovations, earn future gifts |
| Turn happy clients into ambassadors for the company | Turn happy donors into ambassadors for the mission |
| Respect the client’s interests, budget, business health, and future vision | Respect the donor’s interests, capacity, financial health, and charitable priorities |
| Get up tomorrow and do it all over again | Get up tomorrow and do it all over again |
Look at it this way, and fundraising and sales don’t seem so different after all, do they?
If this got you wondering how your own fundraising “sales process” stacks up, the Leaky Bucket Assessment will show you where you’re strong and where you’re losing ground. It only takes about seven minutes, and it’s free.
