The Fundraiser Coach
MAY 4, 2025
Welcome to my B.R.I.D.G.E. blog series, a six-part guide for building stronger, more sustainable donor relationships. Each post explores one part of the B.R.I.D.G.E. Framework , my connection-based approach to major gift fundraising. So far in the B.R.I.D.G.E. series, we’ve talked about connection , rapport , and aligned asks. But what happens after the meeting or the gift?
The Fundraiser Coach
APRIL 13, 2025
Welcome back to the B.R.I.D.G.E. series! If you missed the last posts, we began with Build Connection and Establish Rapport. Today, we step into the part many fundraisers both anticipate and avoid: Invitation to Action or the Ask. It’s time to Invite to Action Inviting isn’t demanding. It’s not persuading or convincing. It’s just that: an invitation.
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The Fundraiser Coach
APRIL 2, 2025
This is post # 2 of my B.R.I.D.G.E. framework series — a practical, connection-based framework to help fundraisers deepen donor relationships and secure more major and transformational gifts. If you missed the first post on how to Build Connection , you can read it here. Today we’re moving to the second step: Establish Rapport —the one that too many fundraisers rush through, or skip entirely.
The Fundraiser Coach
MARCH 30, 2025
Build Connection: The First Step in Securing Transformational Gifts Welcome to my B.R.I.D.G.E. blog series, a six-part guide for building stronger, more sustainable donor relationships. Each post explores one part of the B.R.I.D.G.E. Framework , my connection-based approach to major gift fundraising: B uild Connection R apport – Establish or Reestablish I nvite to Action D eepen the Trust G uide the Conversation E xtend the Relationship Whether you're a major gift officer, are managing an
The Fundraiser Coach
MARCH 24, 2025
After writing my last post, The Time We Got the Big Ask , I read it aloud to my partner, the collector and donor at the heart of that story. We recalled how well they made the Ask: how the fundraiser and the head of special collections were pitch-perfect. It was one of those moments fundraisers hope for: a meaningful, values-driven Ask that connected on many levels.
The Fundraiser Coach
MARCH 17, 2025
Every major gift fundraiser has imagined it: the moment you’re sitting across from a donor, and a carefully orchestrated conversation builds toward the Ask. I’ve been on the asking side countless times. But last year, I found myself on the receiving end. My fiancé has spent 50 years collecting rare first edition books on Pacific exploration — journals, maps, and atlases from explorers like Captain James Cook and Captain George Vancouver, Canadian overland explorer Alexan
The Fundraiser Coach
FEBRUARY 2, 2025
One of the biggest challenges we face as major gift fundraisers is balancing two distinct ways of thinking: our internal, metrics-driven mindset versus the donor-focused approach that builds relationships. In the office, we're measured by revenue, the number of donors engaged, meetings booked, and Asks made (and successfully closed!). These are essential benchmarks, but when we sit down with donors, they’re not thinking in those terms.
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