How to Create a Cultivation Event (and how to parlay one into donations)
Events….I know, I KNOW. They take up time and energy. Compared to verticals like major gifts, they are less efficient at raising money. Yet, events remain a well-liked entry point, especially for newbies to your organization.
I’m a big fan of mapping out what 6-9 months following a fundraising event looks like at an organization (blog post coming soon!) and when I work with clients, I generally have them come up with 1-2 cultivation events - or in-person experiences - that they can invite donors to. THESE ARE NOT ABOUT RAISING MONEY. They are about 1) getting people to experience your organization first hand 2) Connecting with your donors and starting to build those relationships and 3) Having a reason to reach out at all.
There are many, ways to do a cultivation event, but I’ve listed my top three below. For newbies to cultivation events, they can be confusing, “Why would I waste an event and not ask for money?” or “What would we do to fill the time?”
For this weeks freebie, I’ve included some sample timelines to give you a sense of how you can run your next cultivation event.
THE ON-SITE TOUR
A lot of times when I meet with my clients - I refer them to the movie Moneyball where Jonah Hill’s character tell’s Brad Pitt’s character to, “Get on base.” What he is referring to is that statistically, you have a better chance of scoring a run (or winning the game) the more times a player gets on base. How you get on base doesn’t matter as long as you get them there.
That would be my point with the on-site tour: get them on base.
One could argue that if you can get donors to see, smell, hear, and feel your program first hand - you have a good chance of bringing them in as a supporter. Chances are your program is impressive and if it’s challenging to show off - I’m sure that your staff is a bunch of rockstars who can sell your program.
There are a lot of ways to do on-site tours. You could have a standing monthly opportunity or maybe once a quarter you offer “Drink & Discover: Join us for some refreshments and learn about our program. Depending on your organization perhaps you do a tour of your space or a mock session (ie: job interview, meeting with a coach, sample tutoring session, walk some dogs, etc).
Here are some things I would put in place first:
Develop a script of what you want to say
Put together a Run of Show - Check out these samples {FREE DOWNLOAD}
Get your program team on board
Look 6 months out - who do you need/want to be talking to today to secure a gift down the road?
THE JEFFERSONIAN DINNER:
Back in the day, Thomas Jefferson liked to host dinner parties. Who knew he was sucha hostess-with-the-mostest? Being the interesting intellect that he was, these weren’t just any kind of dinner parties. He believed in dialogue and disagreement all over a great conversation. Today, we refer to these dinners as: Jeffersonia Dinners.
A million years ago when I was working at Chrysalis, part of my job was to organize and curate these types of gatherings. The results were fascinating. I was always surprised at how willing people were to attend. Unlike large scale events, people genuinely made an effort to clear their schedule to make it. People must be craving a quality conversation. It was also the best way to get some truly great, uninterrupted time with the donors. I would learn about them, their values and their interests in one evening. I’d also be able to gauge their real interest in our organization OR if they were just there because their friend asked them to be (no hate - a lot of philanthropy is done this way).
Key ingredients: A true advocate to the organization willing to introduce their network to the organization and serve as the “host”.
Time Required: Middle of the road. Most of the time required will be in planning with the host on the list of people to invite, follow up, and crafting the perfect set of table questions.
Cost: This can depend on if the host is willing to cover some, all or none of the costs of food, drinks, and venue if needed.
Bottom line: if you have a board member, donor, or close friend to the organization that wants to take the lead on this type of event - take them up on it.
A SALON STYLE EVENT
Different from a tour - a salon style event is an opportunity to gather a group of donors around a topic that highlights your program (or a specific element of your program). These could take the form of a Q&A with the Executive Director, a “Lunch & Learn” or a “Breakfast Chat”. Unlike a tour, this would be a setting where you would have a topic for discussion. Perhaps it’s a panel being moderated with some clients from your program or it’s a participant from your program sharing their personal story in connection with your organization. It could even be hearing from a fellow donor - the world is your oyster and the topics of discussion are endless! The key for these are to keep them short and sweet (1 hour max) and offering a little light refreshment never hurt either.
THE VIRTUAL EVENT
Time is so precious. While people have the best of intentions and desires to see your program up close - the hustle and bustle of life can make that super challenging. Throw distance and traffic into the mix - it’s just hard. When I worked at LIFT, we would host digital gathering opportunities for donors to hear from our Executive Director and/or Board Chair. Here, we would give a status update on a variety of topics or deliver a “state of the union” of sorts. We would always leave about 10 minutes for Q&A too (FYI - always have a few questions ready to go in case the audience is shy). These could be done on a simple conference call or you could open up a Zoom line. Again, this could be easy peasy, fast, and inexpensive but all your donors really need to be engaged.
The Follow Up
Most important from any cultivation event is what you do after. Are you going to hope and pray someone reaches out to you? You better not! My advice would be to use this as an opportunity. Some ideas of how to follow up:
Follow up with a thank you email
Ask questions about what they learned, liked, or didn’t like
Find out if they can see themselves getting more involved (perhaps as a volunteer or as an advisor)
Ask if they have any other friends or colleagues that might be interested in attending a cultivation event
I’m often asked what to do if the donor doesn’t reply to your follow up and I tell them: keep following up. My dad once told me that the person who continues to follow up is the person who gains his business. Not because he is putting them through a test, but because he is busy and he appreciates them continuing to make the effort. Yes, be mindful about how many times you follow up and how far apart you space them out (no one likes a hound), but by you putting in the work - come time to ask for a donation - your efforts will be rewarded.
I’m curious, what cultivation events have worked well (or not so well) for you?
xo,
