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FundClass Archive: January 2002, Capital Campaign

Note: Links to the documents referred to in this exchange can be found at the bottom of this page.

This is a reality check. I am essentially a good grantwriter, with occasional forays into direct mail letters. I have run one Capital Campaign for $364,000 and it was successful. I essentially managed the work of the solicitors/fundraising committee, help set the $ goals, contributed to the Case statement, outsourced the development of the campaign literature to a local bank as an in-kind contribution, wrote any proposals (my forte) and other solicitation letters, helped id the giving levels and gifts, set up a Recognition committee to honor the donors at a special event, got the organization to secure an artist to create a permanent plaque to honor big donors, etc.

I may soon be in a position to run a much larger campaign with a client I have very successfully written grants for over the past 2 years. This goal may be $2 million. They are smart people, dedicated and seem to have a good board. I have used your info, Capital Quest, Tony Poderis etc, to create an educational document for the client, regarding what is entailed in a Campaign. It was not a pitch for the job nor a Campaign Plan, yet. If you like I can send it as an attachment to you to look over. Let me know. It is about 6 pages in total.

The group is a small to medium (24 full and part time staff) non profit veterans outreach organization with a strong focus on homeless, drug addicted vets; getting them off the street, into area rehab and then temp housing with a strong employment/training program. The organization has solid programs, capable staff and a good to great rep in the vets and homeless networks.

Is it realistic to think that together (myself, possibly another fundraising/marketing consultant colleague and key staff/board can do this Campaign? Especially given that I have done one campaign? I am a fast learner and very thorough. But not wizened in this area.

I understand all the basic steps (I think) including a feasibility study. And Kim I do like your idea about testing out feasibility early in the plan by approaching key donors.

I am ready to take the plunge but I thought a reality check would be good.

Along with this I have ruminating over how to price such a venture? I currently get an hourly fee for my grantwriting, which works well for me. Can that be done in a CC? I would not have a clue how to estimate a package deal. I do not want to get stuck with lots of free hours of work. What do you recommend?

With appreciation and warm regards,

MacClurg

Quite a few requests to see the document were expressed. Links to those documents are at the bottom of this page.

Wow, MacClurg, did you touch a nerve! You ask us for advice and we all want to see what you've done and how you do it. Why not just send the document to the list?

To try to address your questions: I think you've got all the moves. You've not only had experience, but you're a clear thinker and good organizer. I wouldn't worry about your ability to tackle the project. (By the way, I have a feeling that the time is ripe to revisit veterans issues. If your organization is as competent as you say, I suspect you'll be successful. You can definitely make a strong case.)

Whether you have enough bodies to do the work depends mostly on timeframe and the level of commitment of the board. But I don't see any reason why two people with staff support and at least a couple of dedicated volunteers can't do a campaign of this size. Here's how to get a sense of time: Do the gift pyramid that Kim discussed earlier and break the campaign down into the number of gifts needed. Figure you'll need at least one lead gift of 10-15% of the goal and distribute the others with an eye to your organization's giving history. How many do you need all told? Now, multiply by 4, and that's approximately the number of prospects you should have. (If you don't have them, you'll need a major p.r./awareness component to the campaign and should think about delaying the start until that can begin to take effect.) Now, figure that each worker can cultivate about 15-25 prospects each month (some contact) and solicit face-to-face another 5-10, These are conservative figures taking into account that you will be engaged in lots of other areas that will rob your time and that your volunteers and coworker are part time. Maybe you'll want to ramp up to that solicitation goal over a several month period. At any rate, you can use these rules of thumb to get some idea of how many people your team has the capacity to cultivate and bring to closure each month and therefore how long the campaign may take. For a targeted campaign of this size, I'd hope your answer will be no longer than about 18 months.

Of course, if you have a lead gift at 25-50% of the goal, it's another ball game.

Pricing your services? This is a tough one, and you may want to pose the question to the Charity Channel's consultants list. Get info at www.charitychannel.com/forums. (By the way, they provide good resources on many topics.) One strategy I have used is to negotiate a half-time or part-time contract. That clarifies up front how much time you will devote to this client. Keep in mind that there are no half-time jobs in the nonprofit arena, only half pay ones ... ! You can set your rate significantly higher for this work as compared to your grant writing. Would someone chime in with a percentage increase based on your staff salaries? Another way to look at it: the going rate for major gift/consultants will range from perhaps $900 to over $2000 per day. I generally offer a 15-25 percent discount for extended contracts.

Let us know how it works out.

R. Gordon Talley

Capital Campaign - What is a Feasibility Study
Capital Campaign Outline and Timeline
Abstract of Capital Campaign Outline and Timeline

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