Annual Giving Cohort
A Data-Driven Strategy for Fundraising
Are your fundraising goals increasing but you're not sure how to meet them?
Did you fall short of your annual giving goals last year?
Have you seen an increase in new donors and want to ensure they become repeat givers?
Are you concerned about whether your donors are being stewarded effectively?
Would you like to join a cohort of nonprofit professionals to learn and share alongside each other?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, then join The Sollog Group and a cohort of your peers for either our Spring or Summer session. Over four intensive 2-hour strategy and training sessions, together we will create an annual giving plan that is based on your real data. We will walk you through what you need to know in order to segment your list, create effective messages, and track activity. At the conclusion of our time together you'll have a ready-to-go Annual Giving Plan tailored to your organization and your donors, based on an understanding of what actually works for you. Your Mission. Fully Funded.
Spring Cohort
When: Monday, May 15th - Thursday, May 18th from 11:30-1:30 p.m. In addition to the four intensive training sessions, participants receive three virtual check-in sessions. These must be used within 12 months of the last session.
Where: Live training will be conducted via Zoom. Sessions will be recorded for participants to review or for those who must miss a session. A Google drive folder will be created for interaction between instructors and attendees throughout the training period, including the homework for each session.
Cost: $675 (registration closes April 30th)
Summer Cohort
When: Mondays from 1:30-3:30 p.m. on July 10th, 17th, 24th, & 31st. In addition to the four intensive training sessions, cohort participants will also receive three virtual check-ins to be used within 12 months of the last session.
Where: Live training will be conducted via Zoom. Sessions will be recorded for participants to review or for those who must miss a session. A Google drive folder will be created for interaction between instructors and attendees throughout the training period, including the homework for each session.
Cost: $675 (registration closes June 23rd)
Trying to decide if this is for you? We've found participation in this cohort is best suited to those with a fundraising CRM, an operating budget of less than $2.5 million, and a small development office. Cohort participants understand a robust annual giving effort is the foundation of any development program, even if they have struggled for years to develop it. Please note the investment of time and effort needed to maximize the benefit for you and your organization.
With ever-increasing fundraising goals, decreasing resources, and the need for donor-centered strategies, now, more than ever, nonprofits need to identify and focus on donors with the greatest likelihood of supporting their organization. If this sounds familiar, we hope you'll join us!
I attended The Sollog Group’s Annual Giving Cohort in 2019. The sessions were very informative and helped me to better understand ways in which I can use data to determine the direction to take with my annual fund development plan. Nick and Amy presented clear examples of best practices around solicitations and stewardship efforts, and while this cohort was centered around Annual Giving, they also demonstrated ways to use data to analyze and refine other aspects of my development plan, for example, how to identify those that are my best and most loyal donors. They were ready and willing to extend their advice and share their extensive expertise around other subjects as needed. I would highly recommend this cost-effective cohort to any development professional -especially those in small or one-person development offices that need a little ‘refresh’ on their development plan!
– Elaine Hinckle, Director of Development at Sacred Heart Center
Session Details
1 - Understanding Data
Understanding your data to set yourself up for success
Analyzing your past results
Donor retention and acquisition
2 - Segmentation
Deep-dive into segmentation and why it is important
Segments to focus on during these unusual times
3 - Messaging & Vehicles
Understanding the ins and outs of messaging and solicitation vehicles
Stewardship and its role in your overall plan
Donor-centric multi-channel plans
4 - Reporting & Tracking
Creating a system for tracking results
How to report out to key stakeholders
Pulling it all together into an actionable plan
FAQ's
Who should attend? We recommend that you send the primary individuals responsible for your annual giving efforts and gift entry. If that is the same person consider including your director of communications, development, finance, or a development/fundraising committee member.
What does the time commitment look like outside of sessions? Homework is meant to augment the work done during the sessions and will lead to the creation of concrete and actionable plans for your annual giving program. It should only take 1-2 hours between each class. Time will depend on how well you understand your database and its capabilities. If you need to export data and do a great deal of manipulation in Excel it could take longer.
What will I have following the completion of this fundraising cohort?
A better understanding of what data you should collect on your donors and how it can be used
Knowing the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) you should track throughout the year in order to assess your program
A data clean-up plan
A segmentation plan
A stewardship plan
A system for reporting out and tracking progress towards your goal