Major Gifts Made Simple is a step by step online training that walks you through our personal approach to fundraising from major donors.

Are you working one on one with your most committed supporters?

Are you confident there’s potential in your network but you don’t know how to unlock it? Do you feel nervous about the process?

Not sure where to start?

Major gifts fundraising one of the most satisfying, enjoyable and interesting forms of fundraising.

For someone passionate and committed about their non-profit, there is nothing more enjoyable than really getting to know a philanthropist who shares your goals and dreams.


I love...

  • to be the one who transforms a donor into a hero
  • matching passionate people to extraordinary causes
  • sleeping at night knowing that my charity can continue to do amazing, life changing work

Yet despite this obvious win-win, major giving is an area of fundraising which many UK charities are yet to explore.


I have heard charity leaders say that they:

  • have no idea how to start a major gifts programme
  • are nervous to broach the topic of philanthropy
  • feel worried about the upfront investment in time and money in the context of imminent financial pressure

Can you afford NOT to do this work?

Let's be real here.

With a reduction in income from events and retail and a ceiling on what can be achieved from trust fundraising, individual giving must become even more of a priority for charities wishing to survive this tumultuous time.

There are several myths and mindset blockages which prevent charity leaders from exploring this area. They include:
  • People don’t wanted to be hounded and respond better if you leave them alone
  • Our standard appeal mailings and newsletters are good enough for everyone
  • Why should we give someone special treatment?  We value ALL of our donors.
  • We don't have any major donors
  • We're not a popular, well established cause
  • We can't afford an experienced major gifts fundraiser to do this work
However, the truth is very different...
  • Many people crave a deeper relationship with the causes they care about
  • If people feel hounded then you're either doing it wrong or they're just not that into you (and that's ok - being polarising is better than being dull!)
  • No-one is saying that your standard appeal mailings aren't great or that you don't value every single one of your donors. But major donors are a different audience with different expectations.
  • If you have donors, then you already have major donors (and they have friends...).
  • You may not be a well known cause, but there will be people out there who love what you do and who have experienced first hand the difference you make. There's someone out there for everyone right?
  • Yes, major gifts fundraisers are hard to recruit and retain. But anyone can do this if they're willing to dedicate some time, stick to the basics at first and commit to high quality, consistent work.

The bottom line is that if you don’t ask them, another charity will get there first.

People want to help. Giving is a joy. You can start small, start simple and test the waters with minimal effort as you build confidence and start to raise funds.

Major Gifts fundraising is for EVERY charity.

I have raised millions for charities over my 20-year career. Now I’m ready to share my strategies for success so that you can replicate them.

Allow me to guide you...


Major Gifts Made Simple is our step by step online training that walks you through my personal approach to fundraising from major donors.

Our self taught, online training which will help you to develop a whole new, sustainable income stream for your charity (or seriously improve one which would benefit from an injection of brilliance).

This training will give you the practical, step by step actions you need to take, to move relationships with potential major donors forwards.

We will deliberately keep things simple, focusing only on the most important actions you need to take to raise so much more for your good cause.

My consistent approach to major gifts fundraising has generated millions for good causes.

I want you to enjoy the same success.

“We have secured two big gifts from new donors as a result of Caroline's support.”
Ann Eggington, Think Through Nutrition

This self-led course is for you if:


  • You do not yet have a major gifts programme in your charity
  • You have a modest major gifts programme but know it could be doing more
  • You're managing a major gifts fundraiser but have no personal experience of this area and would like to know more so you can support your team member better
  • You are committed to taking consistent action to develop donor relationships

This self-led course is not for you if:


  • You are an established major gifts fundraiser, raising plenty of money every year
  • You lack the resource to be able to commit regular, ongoing time to this work
  • You're expecting a financial return within 6 months from this product (you may be lucky if you're working with warm contacts, but you should expect it to take at least 12 months for cold contacts to make a gift)
"Caroline delivered extraordinary results for our places along the South Devon coast. The relationships she has helped us to build and the increase in fundraising skills of my staff are directly attributable to her efforts and will enable a healthy stream of income for many years to come."
David Ford, National Trust

By the the end of Major Gifts Made Simple, you will have:

  • identified genuine, potential major gift prospects for your charity or non-profit and will understand the qualities which indicate that someone might have potential to engage in a deeper, more meaningful way 
  • prioritised these prospects and created a workplan for your year ahead 
  • a detailed cultivation plan for each of your top prospects 
  • a clear and compelling case for support (using my tried and tested template)
  • confidence to make contact with prospects for the first time and several creative ideas for building relationships 
  • a roadmap for making the ask (awkwardness not included)

Using these tactics, I was able to grow income from major gifts from £40,000 each year, to £192,000 each year at one of my charities.

Providing you are committed to dedicating time and energy to engaging consistently and regularly with your major donors, you will see a significant return on your investment too.


​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Caroline Danks MInstF


Caroline Danks has worked in the social good and non profit sector since she was at school and used to volunteer for her mum who was also a fundraiser.


Aged 21, armed with a music degree and a realisation that she was unlikely to be the next Britney Spears, Caroline secured a job at Centrepoint and never looked back...


In 2006, Caroline moved to a much smaller charity, taking on and trying out many more fundraising specialisms including community, corporate, events, grants, individual giving and (following a chance encounter with a personal contact who wanted to support homeless people in the local area), major gifts.


Caroline fell in love major gifts fundraising and has been building on her major gifts experience over the years, raising funds for both multi-million pound capital appeals and sustainable annual revenue. She has met all sorts of interesting characters, heard their stories and facilitated their philanthropy for the mutual benefit of both donor and charity.


Between 2012 and 2015, Caroline managed the campaign for the restoration of the National Trust's Castle Drogo in Devon which raised over £7 million and was directly responsible for the major gifts element of the campaign.


She has also:
  • Started a major gifts programme from scratch for a small charity (which had a grand total of fourteen regular givers when she started)
  • Increased total giving for the National Trust in the South West from high value donors (£1,000 +) from £40,000 in 2013 to £192,000 in 2015.
  • Helped many clients to secure five and six figure gifts for core costs


She is currently working for a hospice, setting up both major gifts and mid-value programme from scratch, supporting and building knowledge within their team and laying the groundwork for a multi-million pound endowment appeal.


Caroline lives in Devon and runs LarkOwl with her partner Tony. They provide consultancy to charities to help them generate more income from high value fundraising and commercial sources.

In her spare time she likes swimming in the sea, experimenting with vegan cookery, reading books on personal development (not 'self help'), getting up early in the summer, sleeping in during the winter and playing Exploding Kittens and MarioKart with her family.

What you'll learn in the course

Lesson One
  
Identify

We will teach you to identify whether or not someone might be a major donor prospect. Our ratings system will help you to prioritise your best prospects and will help you to identify missing information. We'll advise on what information you need to gather and what information NOT to gather in the context of GDPR.


Lesson Two
  
Plan

Our template gift table will help you to set a suitable target. We will help you to prepare a case for support, so you can go into donor meetings confident about what to say. We'll give you our cultivation planning template to help you set a vision for your most promising prospects.


Lesson Three
  
Relationships

We'll give you a template for mapping out connections with trustees and senior leaders. Our strategic questions and guidance for making phone calls will help you to secure more meetings with the right people. Our bank of suggestions for creatively engaging with your donors will help you to build strong and enduring relationships.


Lesson Four
  
Ask

We will tell you the steps you need to take before you ask for money. We will show you, step by step how to ask for three different types of gift (the repeat gift, the first gift and the transformational gift). We'll tell you exactly what to do if they say 'no'.




Bonuses?

We will give you tools, scripts, templates and more so you’re not starting every activity from scratch (hence the ‘made simple’).


These include:

  • CIC ratings document
  • Template case for support
  • Major Donor Fundraiser KPI’s
  • Gift table spreadsheet and cultivation planner
  • Real life examples of cultivation and stewardship
  • A bank of strategic questions to ask
  • Glossary of technical terms (aka jargon)
  • PDFs of slides

You'll be able to connect directly with us throughout your learning, ask your questions, share your wins as you move through your learning journey.

Enroll in Major Gifts Made Simple today!


What's included:
  • Four lessons with four videos each
  • Downloadable templates and resources for each lesson

Your Investment: £240

Enroll Now!

 includes VAT 
We can't WAIT to help you raise more money from major gifts.