How to: Take Capital Campaigns for Grant-ed (Please!)

When I first landed in a grant writing role where capital campaigns were part of the job description, I was equal parts excited and terrified. It was giving major figure it out energy. Sound familiar?

So, when Amanda and I got to interview Steven Shattuck, Director of Engagement and Technology at Capital Campaign Pro and author of “Robots Make Bad Fundraisers”, I had questions, and deep longing to time travel back to that first white-knuckle role with all the great research he explained.  His team’s Capital Campaign Benchmark Study analyzes nearly 700 campaigns and delivers real data instead of just anecdotes.

Grants play a massive role in capital campaigns, something that doesn’t get nearly enough airtime. Ninety-one percent of campaigns in the study had at least one foundation gift. A capital campaign can open doors to foundations that would never fund your general operating work because capital investment is their mission.

We also talked about what actually derails campaigns. Leadership departures mid-campaign and unexpected site or environmental issues are the two biggest culprits. The avoidable stuff comes down to skipping the feasibility study, not staffing up, and not getting genuine board buy-in before the campaign begins. And by getting board buy-in, I mean making sure you educate board members about their roles and responsibilities in the campaign and their willingness to perform such.

Other data tidbits included that organizations raising under a million dollars annually had success rates in the same 94 to 95 percent range as everyone else, and they reported higher rates of organizational growth benefits on the other side. First campaigns, for smaller shops, can be truly transformative.

Check out the full conversation, including Steven’s take on:

• the pyramid model
• the “donor sombrero”
• how to not burnout grant writers and other staff members during capital campaigns

You’ll find it in the most recent episode of Fundraising HayDay.

Grab the free benchmark study at capitalcampaignpro.com/research. Steven personally promised that no salesperson will call if you do.