Spring into action

Like so many other things, fundraising follows an annual cycle.  Starting in the summer, as most of our fiscal years do, the calendar starts slowly.  Many donors are on vacation, staff tends to take some of this time off and education is certainly not immediately on the mind of the majority of us.  With the cooling of the air in September, comes a warming of the fund raising that continues through the Holiday Season.  January starts off in much of the country with freezing air and snow and fundraising efforts often reflect that with minimal returns to many appeals.  March weather also reflects the fundraising success coming in cold and blustery and ending with the chirping of birds and warming breezes.

Like your house though, things can be done to help warm those returns even in the coldest seasons.  This is a great time for small targeted efforts that have low overhead and cost and tightly focused expectations.  Often these can center around a faculty member or tribute based (in honor or in memory of) efforts.  Ask alumni to give in honor of a favorite faculty member, especially if that faculty member is doing something of interest - recently published or honored, or conversely has passed away.

These efforts can often be done in house to small lists of prior students and responses regularly exceed 10%.  The cost is low, the response rate is high and while the time investment can be large, the net effect often makes sense.