April 10, 2008

Negotiating For That Big Gift

Negotiating gifts for your organization is not a game. Your prospective donor could have a very different amount in mind when thinking about a generous gift. But you should prepare yourself before the meeting to negotiate the best gift possible so that your organization and donor both win.

Your negotiations can make a huge difference for the final secured amount, according to Shaun G. Lynch, former fundraising consultant and marketing and fundraising professor from St. Lazare, Canada. During the recent Association of Fundraising Professionals International Conference in San Diego, Calif., Lynch referenced Harvard University Law School's Program on Negotiation research and described the negotiation strategies to incorporate in your asks.

Manage the Prospect
"You can very easily control what a person is thinking about and where their thoughts are going to go simply by leading them in that direction," he said. As a negotiator, you need to steer the conversation toward the dollar amount you want. Make sure to always go first and know what your mission is before you sit down.

Put it in Perspective
"What we are looking to do is to match the donor's philanthropic vision with the institution's mission," he explained. The need to establish for yourself the donor's anchor - or maximum gift - and the minimum gift with which you would be satisfied. You should use the anchor as a "baseline" to guide your thoughts. Try to negotiate an amount between the two. Start with a larger amount just to get the donor thinking about it and eliminate lower numbers.

Make Your Moves
You didn't arrange the meeting to sit around talking. The longer you wait to discuss the amount, the more uncomfortable the situation will be, according to Lynch. Once you put a number out on the table, wait for the donor to make a move -- no matter how long it takes. Be sure to listen to what the donor wants or thinks. Be prepared with a variety of responses to back up your number and what the amount would accomplish for the organization.

Continue the Discussion
Don't expect an answer right away. And, you shouldn't want one. "The best negotiations happen over a long period of time," he explained. Get your donor thinking about big numbers. Close your discussion with a time for a decision and dictate when you will get back to the donor. "Your objective in going into this meeting is not necessarily to get a yes, it's to not get a no."

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This article is from NPT Instant Fundraising, a publication of The NonProfit Times.

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