Successful campaigns are built long before they go public, with pitfalls that can derail even the best plans before they get rolling. Here’s a guide to avoiding them, and keeping advancement and communications teams aligned from the start.
Kim Verstandig
Vice President for Fundraising & Senior Strategist
Once you’ve been through a big fundraising campaign or two, the critical role of each major phase becomes clear. The most successful fundraising teams peel back this architecture to build for success from the ground up:
A. Planning Phase
Duration: 1-2 years
Call it what it is, because “planning” is the key. This is where everything a campaign aims to do begins. Consider these starting steps the EARLY EIGHT:
Build campaign goals aligned with the institutional strategy.
Evaluate your team’s capacities—and fill in any gaps with hires or outside help. This includes your advancement AND communications team, because advancement is about relationships and relationships are about communication.
Take the time to align your advancement and communications leadership on goals, timing, and messaging. To succeed, a big campaign must be a team effort.
Ensure robust technological infrastructure to support fundraising success, including accurate and up-to-date databases, comprehensive wealth screenings, and data analytics systems to drive strategic decision-making.
Conduct a feasibility study to discern what you can realistically and ambitiously raise from your community, so you’re set up for success (and not the opposite).
Recruit your early campaign leadership from those in your community who possess the gravitas, networks, and time to open doors and capture the attention of other major donors.
Establish your working goal and gift pyramid (and start the conversations with the people at the top of the pyramid as soon as you can).
Finally, secure the board’s endorsement of your campaign plan. You’re going to need them behind you every step of the way.
B. Silent/Leadership Phase
Duration: 3-4 years (depending on how the fundraising is going)
This is the campaign’s critical fundraising and branding core, setting the trajectory for success. This phase happens behind the scenes as far as your community may be concerned, but it’s far from passive. It features critical fundraising, refining your campaign identity, building internal momentum, and preparing for a strong public launch. Call it the FOCUSED FIVE:
Continue your lead gift solicitations, including from the board and campaign committee.
Develop and pursue your individual strategies for top prospects.
Adapt and finalize your gift pyramid based on emerging results.
Develop your campaign brand (e.g., theme, logo, messaging, and brand guidelines).
Begin formulating your official public campaign case.
C. Public Phase
Duration: 2-3 years (depending on your fundraising pace)
You’ve reached 50-70% of your fundraising goal. You’ve got the upper tiers of the pyramid, and maybe a few other tiers too, largely complete. Now, it’s all about engagement. This is your broadest phase, where the entire community is invited to participate. Call these steps the ENDING ELEVEN:
Host a compelling campaign launch (on campus and regionally).
Share your campaign through your campaign case, campaign website, and other key outreach (all guided by your campaign brand guidelines).
Align messaging and branding across all materials (e.g., print and digital donor outreach, gift announcements, proposals).
Activate your internal champions by equipping faculty, staff, and students to share and support the campaign message.
Leverage institutional milestones (e.g., anniversaries, leadership transitions).
Solicit mid-level and participation gifts.
Engage every possible constituency and constituent with broad and compelling outreach that shows them the campaign is rolling and why their gifts and participation matter–and use participation challenges, countdowns, and community events to drive visibility and giving.
Recognize your donors with public events and announcements.
Steward your donors through personal outreach.
Announce and celebrate the conclusion of your campaign.
AND: Keep celebrating donors, beneficiary stories, and the difference giving made.
In the next post, we’ll take a deeper look at the Planning Phase, including what to tackle early, how to set realistic timelines, and how to ensure you’re truly ready before your campaign begins.
Need a partner for your next campaign?
Whether you're preparing to launch or already in motion, we can help. From campaign planning and counsel to case messaging, donor strategy, and communications support, our team works alongside advancement and communications leaders to make every phase count.
