Spinning Gold from Straw: A 1,800% Return On Investment

Spinning Gold from Straw
Fundraising campaign raises 750% of goal

Coming out of COVID in fall of 2023, Colleen Walters, the Executive Director of Lakeshore Little People’s Place knew some things needed to change.

“We were able to make it through COVID with some financial boosts and the grace of God,” said the director of the Christian nonprofit childcare center based in Holland, Michigan. “But I knew we needed a more sustainable approach to building revenues to last into the future.”

Partnering with me, Colleen and I worked together to build a plan for a first-ever holiday appeal to Lakeshore Little People’s Place supporters and contacts.

With a relatively small database and contacts spread hither and dither, I guided Colleen through a carefully crafted step-by-step process to meet their short-term fundraising needs while also structuring the nonprofit for long-term success – an eventual database and ongoing supporter asks and involvement. A thoughtful donor appreciation and engagement strategy was also developed.

The year-end fundraising goal got a boost after I coached Colleen in cultivating a matching donor to amplify donor response to the mailing. The donor agreed to a generous match and work began.

Guiding Colleen through the steps to build a contact spreadsheet for use in the short-term while also being constructed for an eventual import into a formal database or CRM program, over 200 contacts were developed. I collaborated with Colleen to craft a rich story-driven letter as well as an engaging insert to highlight the matching challenge, plus a reply piece to include in the mailing. Driving all this work was a helpful online task list I developed to guide who needed to do what and when so that all pieces fell into place at the right time.

“This task list was invaluable,” says Colleen. “I could easily see exactly what needed to happen and when, which helped me to prioritize tasks, visualize a clear timeline, and prepare for all the steps along the way.”

The campaign was a massive success, exceeding fundraising goals by a massive 750% and providing LLPP with a stunning return on investment of over 1,800%.

In hiring me to guide her in this campaign, Lakeshore Little People’s Place rejuvenated the support of donors who had given in the past, reached and connected with brand new donors, and was able to generate an extraordinary return on investment that exceeded initial goals.

Does your nonprofit want to see fundraising results like this? I can help! Let’s talk about your fundraising or organizational development needs!

Learn more about the fundraising work I do for nonprofits here.