Live Webinar - Seven Secrets of Successful Solicitations
IMPORTANT: This is a live webinar. This webinar will be presented in the Victoria Foundation Boardroom (#109-645 Fort Street). You must attend this event in person. For a selection of pre-recorded webinars that can be viewed at any time from your computer please click here. All live and pre-recorded webinars are free for AFP members.
If you want a gift, you have to ask for it! That's easier said than done: people consistently rate asking for money at the top of the list of things they fear most. Whether you're an experienced solicitor looking for some new strategies, or new to the game and seeking help, this session will explore the art of asking for a gift. This session explores real, boots-on-the-ground situation and models what should come out of your mouth for a successful ask. As the great Wayne Gretsky said "You miss 100% of shots on goal you never take." Come learn how to take some new shots!
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this session, participants will:
At the conclusion of this session, participants will:
- Learn different strategies to use in varied solicitation situations
- Hear multiple ways to ask for gifts, and understand how to leverage the prospect's trigger points
- Understand how to effectively deal with a 'no' and help turn it into a 'maybe' or even a 'yes'
Anne Melvin has worked as both a volunteer and a professional in the field of development for the past two decades. In recent years, Anne specialized in planned giving, negotiating and closing gifts for various schools at Harvard. As Deputy Director of Gift Planning at Harvard College, she directed the marketing portion of Harvard's gift planning efforts for 12 years, revamping their approach to marketing and tripling its lead generation, as well as working with prospects and soliciting and closing gifts.
Anne is a member of the Planned Giving Group of New England and the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning. She speaks around the country to professional development organizations, specializing in marketing, donor motivation, gift planning, cultivating the donor, fundraiser training and gift solicitation and negotiation. She oversees and leads all the internal fundraiser training programs at Harvard's central fundraising office. She is a member of the Partners in Philanthropic Planning Leadership Institute. Anne Volunteers her time fundraising for her undergraduate institution, serving on the board of the Wellesley Education Foundation, and consulting on fundraising for a number of non-profits. She also trains fundraisers professionally across the nation. Prior to joining Harvard, Anne practiced real estate law in the Boston area. She is a cum laude graduate of Williams College and holds a J.D. from the Boston University School of Law.