April 5, 2007 | Read Time: 1 minute
NEW BOOKS
Capital Campaigns
by Stuart R. Grover
“Nothing you do in your life will ever give you more personal satisfaction than leading a successful capital campaign,” writes Stuart R. Grover, a nonprofit consultant. “It will be your chance to be a hero, even if that is the furthest thing from your mind.”
The book provides amateur fund raisers — board members, volunteers, employees of small groups — with the basic knowledge to run a capital campaign.
The book includes commonly accepted guidelines — for example, that organizations can expect to spend 5 to 15 percent of the campaign goal on staffing and other fund-raising expenses, and that half of what the campaign raises usually comes from about a dozen gifts.
In the first section, Mr. Grover provides a framework for planning a campaign, from a feasibility study to Web sites and other materials to knowing where to find the best potential donors. The second section deals with the campaign itself: raising the biggest gifts, seeking money from foundations and companies, and reinvigorating campaigns that have lost momentum.
The final part of the book discusses what to do when a campaign ends, including maintaining relationships with donors. Appendices include samples of budgets, organization charts, pledge forms, and other materials.
Mr. Grover emphasizes transparency at all times — both during the campaign and after, when supporters expect to see results. “You have to be willing to share your outcomes with your donors,” he writes. “That’s what they’ve paid for.”
Publisher: iUniverse, 2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100, Lincoln, Neb. 68512; (800) 288-4677; http://www.iuniverse.com; 201 pages; $17.95; ISBN 0-595-41472-9.
