Initially posted in March 2014, up to date in March 2023

One of the crucial pleasurable features of main present fundraising is getting to construct relationships with donors—relationships that final past one donation and stay sturdy even when it’s challenging for donors to give. However usually nonprofits squander the relationship-building alternatives given to them by not doing any analysis.

Conducting thorough donor analysis lays the muse for attending to know your donors as folks first and supporters second. On this information, we’ll take a more in-depth take a look at the donor analysis course of and methods to compile donor prospect profiles that may inform your interactions with potential donors.

What’s a donor prospect profile?

A donor prospect profile is a donor management device that organizes all the data a company gathers a couple of potential donor.

In keeping with DonorSearch’s guide to prospect profiles, this will embrace particulars in regards to the particular person’s:

• Neighborhood involvement
• Hobbies
• Household
• Schooling
• Profession and employer

You too can use a prospect profile to maintain observe of interactions with a prospect. Consider it as a residing doc that you just’re all the time including to if you get new data.

7 Instruments You Can Use to Create Prospect Profiles

Making a profile for a potential new major donor begins with conducting thorough analysis, and to take action, you’ll want the precise instruments in your aspect.

Beneath are eight instruments you need to use to get a fuller image of who your potential donors are.

Earlier than we get began, a phrase of warning: the purpose of analysis isn’t to snoop. We’re solely going to take a look at publicly out there data, nevertheless it nonetheless would possibly really feel intrusive. Your integrity is all the time value greater than the largest donation an individual may give. All the time. (Click here to tweet that.)

A great observe is to run your self by means of the prospecting device first that can assist you see what comes up and the way correct it’s. Once I just lately ran myself by means of the steps outlined beneath, I used to be shocked to see myself listed on the boards of nonprofits I’d utterly forgotten about. It’d been over a decade for the reason that organizations closed, however they nonetheless confirmed up on the listing.

1. Your Donor Database

The very best place to start out your analysis is in your personal database.

For every potential donor, take a look at:

• Their primary handle data (equivalent to metropolis or state)
• The “notes” on their information
• The “actions” or “interactions” tab
• The “relationships” or “associations” tab

This data is just pretty much as good as the continued record-keeping of main present officers. In my expertise, main present officers and nonprofit leaders rely far an excessive amount of on their reminiscence when working with main donors. Most appointments and interactions must be documented. One shopper known as this the “hit by a moose” plan: what would occur in the event you have been hit by a moose? Might your nonprofit choose up the place you left off? (For these of you not in rural areas, in the event you’re hit by a moose, the moose normally wins.)

Be persistent and tenacious in recording all of the pertinent data in your prospect profile.

2. WhitePages.com

Should you don’t have the prospect’s handle or telephone quantity, WhitePages.com is a good place to look. (Once more, strive looking your self first to see what addresses come up.) This data helps fill out their profile and is required to do the extra detailed wealth screening later.

3. Google

Among the best donor analysis instruments is Google. Looking out a prospect’s title tends to drag up numerous data. Relying on the prospect, one can find company bios, alumni notes, and even group volunteer lists. You possibly can refine your search by placing the title in quotes, including a location, or looking their title and their enterprise title collectively.

Whenever you copy and paste any useful tidbits onto your prospect profile, embrace the URL of the reference so your staff can rapidly learn extra. I like to avoid wasting useful webpages as a PDF and add them to the prospect’s file on my laptop or my nonprofit’s shared server. This fashion, anybody can see the supply materials even when the webpage is eliminated sooner or later.

I additionally do a picture search on Google. As soon as I discover a photograph that appears to be correct, I put it aside to the prospect’s folder within the shared drive and paste it into the highest of their prospect profile. It’s a lot simpler to speak with a donor when you might have a face to place to their title.

4. Wealth screening device like DonorSearch

Wealth screening instruments like DonorSearch, WealthEngine, or iWave pull collectively all types of publicly-accessible wealth data and indicators: actual property holdings, inventory holdings, directorships, airplane or yacht licenses, and many others. In addition they report on prospects’ charitable giving and lists if persons are on boards of foundations as listed by Guidestar. And it will provide you with a prompt vary to ask for a donation based mostly on the prospect’s capability.

However watch out. Many wealth screening instruments solely concentrate on whether or not a prospect has the monetary means to donate, not in the event that they’d be desirous about making a serious present. And so they don’t allow you to customise the report, eradicating listings don’t belong to the donor. Right here’s the place DonorSearch shines! They assist you to take away listings in a profile that to be inaccurate. They even rating data reliability based mostly on their expertise doing this type of analysis.

Extra importantly, DonorSearch is weighted extra towards demonstrated philanthropy than towards wealth. They’ve all of the wealth indicators and so they will provide you with an estimated capability based mostly on wealth. However they’ve a way more full listing of presents the prospect has made. So in addition they recommend a present ask stage based mostly on the giving, not simply the wealth. A prospect might have the aptitude of creating a $25 million to $50 million present. But when the best present they’ve ever given is $100,000, it’s higher to contemplate asking at that stage, a minimum of at first! Plus, an perceived means to offer could also be based mostly on the worth of their home. However I’ve not but met a donor who’ll promote 1/10 of her home to help your nonprofit.

No matter device you utilize, make sure to add a PDF of the profile to the shared drive. And jot down any gadgets of observe on the prospect profile sheet.

5. Zillow

Placing the prospect’s handle into Zillow may also help you discover an estimated value of their home (or homes you might have found within the property listings in WealthEngine or DonorSearch). This may be helpful to incorporate on the prospect profile.

6. GuideStar

Should you’ve found clues that point out the prospect might have their very own basis, wanting up their Type 990s on GuideStar may also help you get a extra full sense of their giving.

The Type 990s listing each what organizations they’ve supported and the way a lot they gave to every. Jot any worthwhile data onto the prospect profile.

7. Matching Present Database

Some prospects may match for an employer that gives present matching as a part of their company philanthropy efforts. Realizing which prospects are eligible for matching is effective, as employers will usually supply a 1:1, 2:1, and even 3:1 match.

Leverage a matching gift database to test prospects’ eligibility and report it in your prospect profiles. Then, when the time comes, be certain to teach your donor about matching presents to allow them to submit the required data to get their donation doubled!

Robust Donor Relationships are Well worth the Effort

Your nonprofit’s relationship with donors is value taking time to get proper. Utilizing these instruments to arrange a prospect profile may also help you concentrate on what’s vital to particular person donors and discover the simplest methods to communicate with them.

Creating prospect profiles may also assist your nonprofit leaders. One of many high nonprofit CEO fundraising frustrations is just not being correctly ready for a gathering with a serious donor. Donor profiles like these will assist your leaders be their finest of their conferences!