What do Major Donors really want?

What do you think wealthy donors most prize when they weigh up whether to make a major gift to a charity??

Of course, I agree that every supporter and donor is different.?And that paying attention to why someone cares, and being able to adapt what you say is an invaluable element of fundraising…

But it's also true that there are some clear patterns in what makes the difference as to whether most High Net Worth Individuals make a transformational gift…or not.

The person I’ve learned most from in this area is Tom Hall. He is Managing Director, Global Head of Social Impact and Philanthropy at UBS.?

One reason he’s been able to gain such valuable insight is sheer volume: over the last decade he has had conversations about philanthropy with more than 4000 wealthy people.?

That’s an average of at least 7 conversations with a millionaire or billionaire, every week, for ten years!?

And following these conversations he’s witnessed numerous game-changing gifts being made.

And like any good fundraiser, he has done his best to listen, notice and remain curious about why these donors do what they do, and how they make decisions.

In so doing Tom told me he has noticed a clear pattern that has more affect on whether or not they decide to give, than anything else. Excitingly, knowing this pattern gives you a massive advantage if you want to put your charity in a position to grow high value income.

In our new episode of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, Tom shares what this Key Factor is, and we offer practical tips to help charities make progress in this area:

I hope you find this a helpful resource. Do let me know what you think.

P.S. Lots more free fundraising help

There are plenty more where that came from! There are more than 150 episodes of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, on a range of fundraising topics, from IG to Partnerships, Trusts to Major Donor fundraising; Digital to Leadership, and lots more. They are chock full of real examples of fundraising success, with practical tips to help you apply the techniques in your own charity.?

To subscribe today, check out your favourite podcast platform, for instance here they are on iTunes?and Spotify.