A board member recently asked me how her organization could raise a lot of money, quickly, and without doing any work. She was serious. I almost laughed out loud.  

The importance of asking, and why people don’t do it

There are many reasons why non-profit organizations do not raise as much as they could. One reason is that asking for gifts, often falls to the bottom of a long list of urgent, but ultimately not as important, work. Even experienced fundraisers can get sidetracked with tasks, other than asking, including planning events, writing newsletters, managing databases and updating websites etc. While extremely important, these tasks do not lead directly to any additional income for the organization.

It is simple but true. You don’t get without asking. 

I know that sounds obvious, but, I also know many smart hard-working fundraisers who get so caught up in day-to-day tasks that they actually “forget” to ask.  Sound familiar?  While these day-today tasks are critical components of a small development office, you can’t raise money if you don’t ask. 

Counting your asks: a key to raising more money

Most people know how much they ultimately raise at the end of the year, but not how much they ask for or how frequently they ask.  Here are some simple questions to ask yourself about your fundraising to get you on track to raising more money:

Do you know how many times per year you ask for gifts?

Do you know how much you ask for (in total) every year?

Do you know the difference between what you ask for and what you receive?

Most importantly, do you know how much more you could raise if you asked more frequently and in more efficient and effective ways?

If you answered “no” to any of the above, you need a plan.  Not a lengthy, complicated plan, but a simple, basic development plan that tells you where you’ve been and where you’re going.

And while I share my system for counting asks in my book 50 Asks in 50 Weeks, you’re more than welcome to count any way that works for you.  The key is to be consistent from year to year. You can do this by knowing the answers to some simple questions, such as:

How many grant applications do you submit?  How many do you receive?

How many bulk mail solicitations do you send?  How is the return?

How many individuals do you ask (in person)? How many gifts do you get?

Creating a plan

Knowing the answers to these questions will help you develop a plan to ask more frequently and more strategically. There are no “right” or “wrong” answers – only your answers.  Be truthful with yourself about how often you are making an ask – and the quality of that ask. Cold calling won’t do the trick, because it’s not effective - so it’s not just about quantity – it’s about quality too.

Below is a simple grid to help start organizing your asks and creating a one page fundraising plan to tack above your desk.  It shows you in the simplest terms, how often you’re asking. 

Are you asking enough to raise the money your organization needs? Do you have a plan to get there? You can also download the grid here.

Now it is time for you to get started and conduct 50 asks in 50 weeks in 2015! Good luck.

Amy Eisenstein, ACFRE, is a respected author, speaker, and fundraising consultant, as well as the owner of Tri Point Fundraising, a full-service nonprofit consulting firm. Her specialty is simplifying the fundraising process for her followers and clients. www.tripointfundraising.com