Practice Notes

Prospecting Beyond the Next Proposal

One fundraising rule of thumb has stayed with me: the best time to fundraise is when you don’t urgently need the money. Having some breathing room allows you to build relationships, understand a funder’s interests, and talk about what your organization is working toward before an immediate financial need drives the conversation.

Too often, I’m invited to support fundraising when an organization’s future is already at risk. By then, there is enormous pressure for every conversation and proposal to produce funding quickly. That is a tremendously difficult place for anyone to work from.

Many of us know this urgency all too well. We work within a fundraising ecosystem that leave organizations stretched, with little time to look beyond the next deadline. Planning ahead takes capacity, too. One manageable starting point is to keep a few relationships moving at different stages.

A Tiered Approach

Think about your prospects in three groups, with a different kind of attention for each:

Ready for an ask. These are funders with whom you have strong relationships, clear alignment, and a realistic opportunity to seek support. Your next step might be a renewal conversation, a proposal, or a discussion about funding an emerging priority.
Building trust. These are funders with shared interests who may not be ready or able to support your work now. Make room for conversations about what you are each learning, the needs you are seeing, and where your priorities connect. A thoughtful update or an invitation to see the work can help a relationship develop over time.
Exploring a connection. These are potential funders you are still getting to know. Focus on a small number whose giving suggests a meaningful connection to your work. Learn enough to decide whether an introduction or further conversation would be worthwhile.

These groups can change over time. The point is to give each relationship an appropriate next step and keep future possibilities in view while pursuing current opportunities.

Questions To Bring To Your Team

What work will need funding six to twelve months from now, and when should those conversations begin?
Where do we already have enough trust and shared interest to discuss an ask?
Which relationships deserve attention even when there is no proposal to submit?
What would help us assess whether a funder is a good partner for our work?

A Simple Planning Practice

Set aside 1 hour to review a short prospect list. For each funder, reflect on the relationship stage, articulate one concrete next step, who will take it, and a benchmark date.

Start with the proposals and conversations already underway, then choose one or two relationships to nurture for the future. Keep the list small enough that your team can follow through.

Over time, this practice will deepen, evolve and grow, and can give you more room to plan, and help ensure that an urgent need is not the first occasion for a conversation.