Fundraising- The 20 Biggest Fundraising Mistakes, Part I

David Lansdowne is a professional fundraiser who wrote a book entitled “The Relentlessly Practical Guide to Raising Serious Money.” Guidestar has available two articles based upon excerpts from the book which identify 20 of the biggest mistakes fundraisers can make.

Here’s what is covered in the first article:

“Call them what you will—gaffes, blunders, oversights, or errors—mistakes creep into everyone's professional life. But in fundraising—unlike other fields—where thousands if not millions of dollars are often at stake, mistakes can be especially hazardous.

Who hasn't forfeited a significant gift, or received but a token one, due to some serious miscalculation?

While there may be hundreds of them, 20 potentially costly fundraising mistakes stand out. They can't really be ranked, since circumstances alter their impact. But here they are in an effort to ward you away from them.

1. Thinking Your Organization Will Attract Support Simply Because It's a Good Cause …

2. Thinking That Others Can Raise the Money …

3. Believing That Because People Are Wealthy They Will Contribute to You …

4. Thinking You Can Whisk Wealthy Prospects In at the Last Minute …

5. Failing to Research and Evaluate Prospects …

6. Failing to Ask …

7. Thinking That Publicity Will Raise Money …

8. Failing to Recruit the Right Trustees …

9. Believing You Can Raise Money by the Multiplication Table …

10. Failing to Have Deadlines …”

The article discusses each of the mistakes and provides suggestions on how to avoid them. If you would like to read more, just click on the title to this post.