Balancing the art and science of fundraising: An artistic approach to establishing and maintaining successful relationships with donors

Jeri Pat Gabbert

Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing, 2018, vol. 3, issue 3, 241-249

Abstract: This paper discusses the shift in the higher education landscape which has placed an increased emphasis on philanthropy to fill the gap left from decreased state appropriations and fewer tuition dollars. The paper discusses how, in order to maximise fundraising outcomes, institutions must invest in their advancement operations and ensure they are appropriately staffed to raise major gifts, with a key focus on hiring and retaining front-line gift officers. Accomplished fundraisers can effectively balance the art and science of the profession. They utilise scientific research and data-driven analytics to drive strategy and prioritise donors as a basis to artfully navigate conversations with donors. This paper emphasises the importance of establishing and maintaining relationships with donors in order to optimise fundraising outcomes, successful fundraising professionals apply the artistic elements of emotional intelligence, versatile communication, listening and planning in their personal interactions.

Keywords: higher education; philanthropy; advancement; fundraising professional; relationship building (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: M3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://hstalks.com/article/88/download/ (application/pdf)
https://hstalks.com/article/88/ (text/html)
Requires a paid subscription for full access.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aza:jeam00:y:2018:v:3:i:3:p:241-249

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing from Henry Stewart Publications
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Henry Stewart Talks ().