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Campaign Solicitation Kits: "For Want Of A Kit A Campaign Was Lost?" for want of a shoe, the horse was lost; for want of a horse, the rider was lost; for want of a rider, the battle was lost." --- B. Franklin: Poor Richard's Almanack -- 1733  "A little
neglect" of the packet of information we produce to support our
fund-raising campaigns "may breed mischief" as solicitation kits are
the support mechanism for solicitors in the field. When solicitors sit alone at
the phone, preparing to call prospects for an appointment, all they have to
fall back on for inspiration and guidance is the packet of materials they
received at the campaign kickoff meeting. For this reason the solicitation kit
must:
The kit instills
confidence by looking thoroughly professional and by providing data on other
successful campaigns --- reporting, for example, how much the annual campaign
raised the previous year and explaining how the goal was achieved. It helps
solicitors answer questions by supplying comprehensive background information
on the organization and the current campaign. A solicitation kit is easy to use
when it is well organized, contains support materials and tools designed for
the current campaign, and eschews extraneous materials. There is a temptation
to put every printed piece available into a solicitation kit.
Resist that temptation.
A packed solicitation kit is not a useful tool. It requires solicitors to
expend too much effort sorting the wheat from the chaff, and its sheer size can
be intimidating. The first step in
organizing a solicitation kit is to understand that it has two parts: support
materials and information needed by the solicitors and materials and
information to be given to the prospects. At a bare minimum a solicitation kit
should include the following:
The first six of these
items fall into the category of support materials and information that
solicitors use to do their job. Items seven through eleven are materials and
information that solicitors can put into the hands of prospects. Let's review
each document separately.The case for
support stresses the purpose of the specific campaign, explaining why the
program, service, endowment or the expenditure is necessary, delineating who
will benefit from it and how, and calling attention to the immediacy of the
fund-raising effort.An organization's most
recent annual report contains information on recent accomplishments, a
copy of the mission statement, and financial data.A typical campaign
committee organization chart should contain both position titles and the
name of the person in each position and an alphabetical list of all
participants in the campaign. Volunteers like to know who else is taking part,
as such information can be useful to them during the campaign and later in
social and business situations.A solicitor job
description advises that the solicitor's primary responsibilities are to
contact chosen or assigned prospects, present the case for support, answer
questions, and request a suggested donation. Ideally, a solicitor will be
assigned five prospects. While there are exceptions to this rule, keep in mind
that solicitors are volunteers. The fund-raising campaign is not their only
responsibility. Never saddle a volunteer with an excessive amount of work. The
solicitor reports to the person he/she is accountable to and keeps him or her
informed of progress.The campaign
calendar delineates the timing of meetings, kickoffs, events, press
releases, money-raised milestones, celebrations, and just about anything else
that it is anticipated will happen during a campaign. It is the time line of a
campaign and another yardstick used to measure progress. It is a schedule of
deadlines. (Examples available --- see end of article.)The prospect profile
and report form is a one-page document which performs two functions. It
first provides information about a prospect to the solicitor, and then becomes
the solicitor's outcome report to campaign leadership. Solicitors should
receive a profile of every prospect assigned to them that includes the
following information:
The form should leave
blanks for reporting the results of the solicitation, including the following
information:
The prospect profiles
and report forms are the most important documents in a solicitation kit. On a
single sheet of paper are the facts needed to prep solicitors for each contact
and a place to record and report results. The more complete the data a
solicitor is given, the greater will be the confidence level of the solicitor
and the greater the likelihood of a successful solicitation. The more complete
the solicitor's report, the stronger the organization's understanding will be
of what happened during the solicitation and the better its data for future
solicitations.While prospect profile
and report forms will vary somewhat in the information they contain and their
appearance according to the dictates of the campaign, the concept of the form
will remain the same. (Example available --- see end of article)The one-page
description of the organization should be developed out of standing public
relations material tailored to stress aspects which advance the current
fund-raising campaign.Additional support
materials can consist of pamphlets, newspaper clippings, letters of praise,
documentation of awards, and so forth. Just about anything which shows the
organization in a good light can be included.A suggested proposal
letter should also be included in the solicitation kit. It should:
Including the amount of
the suggested gift in the proposal letter accomplishes two things. It prompts
prospects to begin thinking about the size of their gift early in the process,
and it eliminates any potential discomfort a solicitor may feel about having to
introduce the suggested gift in person.Often the proposal
letter is sent out over the signature of the chair of the campaign or that of a
division chair. In those instances the proposal letter is included in the
solicitation kit for informational purposes only. When the proposal letter is
to be sent out by the solicitor, the sample serves as a model outlining the
case for support, which will be augmented by information found in each
prospect's profile. (Example available --- see end of article)The key is getting the
case for support up front, including specifics showing that you value the
prospect's past efforts, letting the prospect know how much he/she is being
counted on for, and relating who will be making the contact to ask for the
contribution.The proposal letter
should go out on either campaign stationery or the chair's own
professional stationery, whichever is more likely to impress the prospect.
Campaign stationery is a useful tool for a solicitor to have, and a small
supply should be included in the solicitation kit. If stationery hasn't been
designed for the campaign, the organization's regular stationery can be used.
Solicitors can then make the decision to use their own stationery or that of
the organization when writing to prospects.The final item in the
solicitation kit is the pledge card (or envelope), which is the means to
obtain the donor's written promise to pay. Include one for every prospect the
solicitor is to contact. It is the solicitor's responsibility to pick up the
pledge card and then forward it to campaign headquarters. Sometimes the pledge
card will be accompanied by payment, but space should be provided for donors to
indicate a date by which they will pay. A typical pledge card should obtain the
following information regarding a donor's gift:With a volunteer force
recruited and a solicitation kit ready to be distributed, you are now ready to
begin the actual campaign."For want of a
nail" a battle campaign could be lost. For want of a solicitation kit you
might not actually lose a fund-raising campaign, but you could surely weaken
its effectiveness.Those are my views on
the subject. What are yours? I welcome your comments and suggestions:
tony@raise-funds.com Note: Additional resources are available on my website relating to solicitation kit materials. You may access them by using .pdf and/or .html methods as follows:
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