If you’ve been raising major gifts for a while as part of your annual fund (as I’ve encouraged my readers to do for years now), it might be time to consider a capital campaign.
This post dives into three reasons to have a campaign, as well as three reasons NOT to have a campaign.
3 Reasons NOT to Have a Capital Campaign
Let’s begin by looking at three reasons you shouldn’t have a campaign — at least, not yet.
1. To build your endowment
Like many organizations, I’m sure you want to grow your endowment. However, growing your endowment is not a compelling reason for most donors. Instead, wait for one of the reasons TO have a campaign (see below), and then add an endowment component to your campaign plan.
In other words, when raising money to help your organization take a leap in growth, endowment growth can be one component of a bigger case for support.
2. You are celebrating an anniversary
While your organization’s 25th anniversary maybe cause for celebration, it is not reason enough to have a campaign. Campaigns are forward-looking, so come up with something compelling about the next 10 years, not the last 25 years.
3. You can’t pay your bills
This is probably the number one reason NOT to have a capital campaign. No donor is going to give to help you make payroll or pay your electric bill. They know full well that you will be back next month
Organizations with a strong donor base and a track record of success are most likely to have successful campaigns. This would not be you if you cannot pay your bills.
3 Reasons to Have a Capital Campaign
Now let’s consider why a capital campaign could be an obvious next step for your organization.
1. You are ready to take your organization to the next level.
This is the most motivating reason for donors to give big. Your case for support will demonstrate that you are ready to serve more people, provide more services, and have a bigger impact. By definition, a capital campaign should propel you to the next level of effectiveness.
2. You have outgrown (or are losing) your current space.
Many organizations are motivated to have a campaign when they need a new building or space to provide more (or better) programs and services. This is another great reason to have a campaign.
3. You identify a need for a new program or service.
You don’t need to build a building (or renovate one) to have a capital campaign. If a new program, project, or service will propel your organization to the next level, you should have a campaign.
Moving From Major Gift Fundraising to a Capital Campaign
If you have been successfully raising major gifts, you are in a strong position to consider a capital campaign.
On the other hand, if you haven’t raised major gifts yet, don’t panic! You can still have a successful capital campaign.
While it’s great when an organization does have experienced staff and volunteers when it comes to asking for major gifts, a capital campaign is often the kick in the pants those nonprofit leaders need to accelerate a real major gifts program.
So don’t make the mistake of thinking simply because you haven’t raised major gifts that you can’t have a campaign. A campaign maybe just the motivation needed by your organization to get started.
You Might Consider a Mini-Campaign
If you’re not quite ready for a full-on capital campaign, consider a smaller campaign. Mini-campaigns are in vogue!
More and more, organizations are launching mini-campaigns for anywhere from $100K to $3Million. These mini-campaigns are generally for smaller initiatives, and they are great practice for a larger campaign down the road.
A mini-campaign will get you into campaign mode and into the practice of asking your donors for increasingly larger gifts. It’s a great opportunity to test systems and procedures, like your donor management system, online giving and pledge collection, as well as improving your stewardship process.
Get Started by Testing Your Case for Support
If you are seriously considering a capital campaign (or even a mini-campaign), you’ll probably want to start with a feasibility study — to test your case for support and the amount you want to raise.
TIP: Don’t do a feasibility study if you are only vaguely thinking about a new program or project. A feasibility study is an opportunity to test a fully-thought-through vision of the future of your organization. That doesn’t mean there’s no room for changes to the plan, but you’re not presenting half-baked ideas.
A feasibility study is also a wonderful opportunity to build relationships with your biggest potential donors. However, most organization miss the opportunity to build those relationships by sending in an outside consultant to meet with those donors.
Instead, I encourage you to try a new approach to feasibility studies. This new model enables you to take the time to learn how your donors really feel about your organization and your vision for the future.
To learn more about capital campaigns, check out the Capital Campaign Toolkit blog. You can also feel free to pose your capital campaign questions in the comments below.
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