You may be on the cusp of launching a capital campaign, an organizational funding initiative, or your annual fund drive. No matter what “campaign” you are seeking to initiate, there are three essential elements that can help ensure its success.
For the next couple of months, A Cause Greater will focus on these three elements:
- articulating a clear sense of purpose, or the campaign’s “why.”
- developing deep and committed relationships to support your cause.
- using time as your ally
Over the past 20 years, I’ve had the opportunity to personally lead three transformative campaigns raising more than $100 million in charitable resources, and I’ve consulted with countless organizations to help them do the same.
Last year, an executive director of a local non-profit reached out to me for help in developing a capital campaign. The organization had struggled for several years in getting the campaign off the ground. A recent attempt included a feasibility study (conducted by a national consulting firm) that suggested they could raise nearly $40 million from their constituency. After initiating a quiet phase, they realized that they might only be able to raise a fraction of that amount. Not the start they were hoping for.
After spending some time together, we realized that the call for support in the campaign lacked a sense of purpose and that the organization had lost touch with many of its donors. In addition, there seemed to be some distance between the organization’s leadership and their broader constituency. The executive director needed a plan, and fast. Unfortunately, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Our plan had to allow for enough time to develop the relationships necessary to achieve the purposes and desired outcomes of the campaign.
This scenario is very common. We all can get focused on fulfilling the mission of the organization, preparing budgets with staff, and producing agendas for upcoming board meetings. Focusing on “the tyranny of the urgent” is something that happens even the most seasoned executives.
But as leaders we have to remember that nearly 60 to 75% of our time must be spent on building the future value of our organizations, not on caretaking what we already have.
In my next series of blogs, we will unpack those three required elements of successful campaigns: purpose, relationships, and time. We will take a deep dive into how they intersect, how they influence each other, and how you can develop a plan that leverages all three in order to achieve a successful campaign, organizational initiative, or funding drive.
As a friend of mine likes to say, “Giddy up!”
If you would like to talk more about your organization and its funding needs, please feel free to call me at 616.516.9870 or e-mail me at lons@designgroupintl.com. I’m here to do everything I can to help you fulfill the mission of your organization.
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