You’re all set for 2024. You’ve created your table of gifts and know exactly how many donations you need to reach your fundraising goal. But you still need to figure out how many prospects you need to cultivate to achieve your target number of gifts. We’re here to help.
What relationship do they have with your organisation?
When assessing your prospects, the types of relationships they have with your organisation usually fall into the following categories:
- Cold
- Cool
- Lukewarm
- Warm
- Hot
- Red Hot
Conversion rates from cold and lukewarm prospects are much lower than from hot and red hot ones. During the research phase, it’s important to identify as many warm and hot prospects as possible to avoid the challenge of moving people from cold to hot.
Define your prospect categories
Cold prospects
They can afford to give, but you don’t know yet if they are interested in giving. Generally speaking, your organisation won’t be on their radar yet.
Cool prospects
They can afford to give and have given to your kind of cause in the past. You might feel they ought to give because they’re aligned with similar causes.
Lukewarm prospects
They have the ability to give and are already on your database. Your lukewarm prospects might comprise alums, members, mail donors or other audiences.
Warm prospects
Given the proper treatment, you think they will give. You may already have screened them, and you have a plan to reach them.
Hot prospects
You have met them, they are interested, and they can make a significant gift. A further meeting with your organisation may be imminent.
Red hot prospects
Potential donors whose behaviour indicates a major gift is likely soon. They will usually be your top 20 or so prospects.
Mapping this to your prospect pipeline
How does that translate when you look at the numbers in a pipeline against your table of gifts?
Some organisations may find that they have a 3:1 conversion rate from hot prospects to gifts received. However, depending on your approach or the time you’ve spent cultivating them, this could be 2:1 or even 5:1 or 6:1.
Look at past behaviour to predict future giving trends. If this is your first time creating a prospect pipeline, use 3:1 as a base conversion rate, monitor your progress and adjust as necessary.
Lessons from 2023 for your 2024 major gifts pipeline
Join Kerry Rock for a free webinar on Wednesday 31st, January sharing lessons from 2023 for your 2024 major gifts pipeline.
This will cover:
- New insights into wealth in the UK
- Where the opportunities are
- Who’s best placed to donate
- How we’ve been identifying new potential donors
- What we’ve learned about major donors
- How can we use this insight to refine plans for 2024
There’ll be time at the end to get your questions answered.