In the late 1800's, a motivational speaker gave a speech over 6,000 times. His name was Russell Conwell and his traveling lecture was titled Acres of Diamonds. He later became the founder and first President of Temple University.
It's an awesome speech. But it's kind of long. So I'll summarize it for you by saying that you have acres of diamonds right beneath your feet. What I mean is this:
You can find all the money you need to fund your mission very easily. It's in your database! Look in there and you will find:
- Yearly and monthly supporters you can upgrade to become mid-level donors
- Mid-level donors you can upgrade to become major donors
- Major donors you can ask to introduce you to other major donor prospects (their friends)
- And, all of the groups above are very capable of making legacy gifts
So how can you upgrade them and motivate them to give more? It's simple:
- Thank them
- Engage them
- Involve them
- Provide valuable offers that deliver benefits for them
- Make them feel good
- Show them appreciation
- Ask them for advice
- Give them good "customer services"
Before you spend tons of money looking for new supporters, shore up your base right beneath your feet already— in your database.
