Fundraising Training

Lesson 1 • The Development Office Structure

Describes how fundraising teams are organised and how roles interact. Helps students understand their professional context and career pathways.

Lesson 2 • The Philanthropic Ecosystem

Maps the relationships among not-for-profit organisations, donors, foundations, and government. Establishes the landscape students will navigate throughout the course.

Lesson 3 • Ethics and Donor Rights

Introduces professional codes of ethics and the rights donors hold. Establishes the ethical framework that governs every technique taught in the course.

Lesson 1 • Assessing Organisational Readiness

Evaluates internal capacity, leadership commitment, and infrastructure before launching campaigns. Prevents common failures caused by premature fundraising efforts.

Lesson 2 • Creating a Fundraising Calendar

Structures annual fundraising activity into a coordinated timeline. Ensures campaigns, appeals, and stewardship touchpoints are sequenced for maximum impact.

Lesson 3 • Setting Fundraising Goals

Teaches goal-setting methods tied to programme budgets and organisational plans. Connects financial targets to mission outcomes for compelling donor communication.

Lesson 4 • Measuring Fundraising Performance

Introduces key metrics and evaluation frameworks for tracking progress. Builds the habit of data-driven decision-making that runs through all advanced chapters.

Lesson 1 • Prospect Identification Methods

Covers techniques for discovering new donor prospects from internal and external sources. Feeds the pipeline that sustains long-term fundraising growth.

Lesson 2 • Assessing Donor Affinity

Evaluates a prospect's connection to the organisation's mission and community. Affinity combined with capacity determines true major gift potential.

Lesson 3 • Wealth and Capacity Research

Teaches methods for estimating a prospect's financial ability to give. Prevents wasted effort by focusing solicitation on appropriately sized asks.

Lesson 1 • Moves Management in Practice

Applies a structured system for advancing each donor through cultivation stages. Ensures no prospect stalls due to lack of intentional relationship management.

Lesson 2 • Engaging Donors Through Storytelling

Uses narrative techniques to connect donors emotionally to mission impact. Storytelling is the primary tool for moving prospects from awareness to commitment.

Lesson 3 • Designing Cultivation Touchpoints

Plans meaningful interactions that advance the donor relationship over time. Each touchpoint is mapped to a cultivation stage and donor interest profile.

Lesson 4 • Principles of Donor-Centred Fundraising

Shifts focus from organisational needs to donor interests and values. This mindset underpins every cultivation and stewardship strategy in the chapter.

Lesson 1 • Written Appeals and Direct Mail

Teaches the craft of persuasive written solicitations for mass and targeted audiences. Connects written appeal strategy to the broader annual fund programme.

Lesson 2 • Structuring the Solicitation Meeting

Outlines the flow of a face-to-face gift conversation from opening to close. Students practise each phase to build confidence and handle real scenarios.

Lesson 3 • Determining the Right Ask Amount

Calculates appropriate gift amounts using capacity, affinity, and giving history. A well-calibrated ask respects the donor and maximises gift potential.

Lesson 4 • Digital and Phone Solicitation

Adapts solicitation principles to email, social media, and phone outreach. Students learn channel-specific tactics that complement in-person solicitation.

Lesson 1 • Impact Reporting to Donors

Shows donors how their gifts created measurable change in the community. Impact reporting is the strongest driver of repeat and upgraded giving.

Lesson 2 • Acknowledgment and Receipting

Establishes timely, meaningful gift acknowledgment as the first stewardship act. Proper receipting also fulfils regulatory documentation requirements for donors.

Lesson 3 • Donor Recognition Programmes

Designs recognition systems that honour donors at every giving level. Recognition reinforces identity as a philanthropist and deepens organisational loyalty.

Lesson 4 • Lapsed Donor Reactivation

Develops targeted strategies to win back donors who have stopped giving. Reactivation is more cost-effective than acquiring entirely new donors.

Lesson 1 • Stewardship of Major and Planned Donors

Designs high-touch stewardship for donors who have made or committed transformational gifts. Exceptional stewardship at this level generates referrals and additional gifts.

Lesson 2 • The Major Gift Cultivation Cycle

Maps the extended timeline of relationship-building required for transformational gifts. Students learn to sustain engagement over months or years without losing momentum.

Lesson 3 • Introduction to Planned Giving

Introduces deferred gift vehicles and how to open planned giving conversations. Students learn to identify prospects and partner with legal and financial advisers.

Lesson 4 • Defining and Qualifying Major Gifts

Establishes major gift thresholds and the criteria that distinguish major from annual donors. Proper qualification focuses limited relationship-management resources effectively.

Lesson 1 • Fundraising Event Management

Covers the full lifecycle of a fundraising event from concept to post-event reporting. Students evaluate event ROI and decide when events are the right strategy.

Lesson 2 • Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Programmes

Trains supporters to fundraise on the organisation's behalf within their own networks. Peer-to-peer dramatically expands reach without proportional staff cost.

Lesson 3 • Giving Days and Crowdfunding

Leverages time-limited giving days and online crowdfunding to acquire new donors at scale. Students design campaigns that maximise matching gifts and social sharing.

Lesson 4 • Capital and Comprehensive Campaign Planning

Introduces the phases and governance structures of large-scale fundraising campaigns. Students understand feasibility, quiet phase, and public phase sequencing.