Orlando Union Rescue Mission

Baby Boomers will give away $25 trillion in the next 25 years. Get your fair share.

Baby Boomers are the wealthiest generation of Americans ever — AND the most generous. And right now, they’re in the midst of the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in history. Before it’s done, Boomers will hand down or give away more than $25 trillion. Many of them are your donors.

This is a huge opportunity. Those organizations with well-managed development programs will benefit through planned giving, bequests and cash gifts. This case study reveals how Masterworks helped Orlando Union Rescue Mission implement an effective and professional major-donor development program with immediate and remarkable results.

The problem.

Orlando Union Rescue Mission had an effective marketing department. Results from general-donor fundraising were strong and net income was on the rise. But the organization was doing little to specifically solicit gifts from major donors.

The marketing director had a limited background in major-donor development and no budget to hire an experienced major-donor representative. But she was anxious to learn. She knew there was, in her words, “lots of low-hanging fruit” — many donors in the community who were capable of making sizable gifts but had never been asked (or asked in the right way).

Building a successful strategy.

To help this director expand and enhance her major-donor development program, Masterworks suggested she participate in our three-day Asking Institute. This comprehensive training experience, led by our veteran consulting staff, walks marketing professionals through all aspects of major-donor fundraising.

From a biblical perspective on ministry fundraising to very specific strategies for improving your development results, the Asking Institute provides you with the expertise you need to achieve success in your major-donor fundraising.

This director left with more than just fundraising theory. She took home with her a step-by-step plan for implementing a major-donor program from the ground up — not to mention a renewed enthusiasm and confidence to get started right away.

Confirming the strategy’s success with results.

When this director returned to her job following the Asking Institute, she was able to immediately begin working on:

• Integrating major-donor efforts into her overall development program.

• Developing a well-thought-out, formal plan for cultivating major donors.

• Identifying, classifying and building relationships with major donors.

• Assembling a “touch point“ calendar for regular and meaningful communication with major donors.

• Identifying the top major donors for an integrated year-end giving strategy.

What’s more, as a result of the training, she felt more confident inviting wealthy givers to partner with the Mission. The training manual and other resources helped equip her to make and follow up on solicitations. Today, she feels good about the newly laid groundwork for an ongoing program that will allow her to cultivate solid, mutually beneficial relationships with donors who want to support the Orlando Union Rescue Mission’s ministry to hungry and homeless people.

The director was also able to develop and implement the Mission’s first-ever, major-donor, year-end strategy, which raised more than $200,000. That’s more than twice what they raised from major donors in previous years.

Best of all, within two weeks of returning from the Asking Institute, Orlando Union Rescue Mission received an unexpected $69,000 gift that was the direct result of their new focus on major-donor development!

To learn more about how Masterworks can help you with major-donor fundraising, contact Corey Gordon This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or by phone at 360.865.2205.

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