Winning Gifts: Make Your Donors Feel Like Winners

by Thomas D. Wilson

The secret to getting gifts and making donors feel like winners. Know the best approaches to people-centered fundraising. Understand the role of executive director, fundraisers, program managers, and volunteers in the win-win framework, the importance of listening, the case for a donor-centered approach, and the direct ways these concepts can be applied in a variety of fundraising settings. Includes numerous real-world examples taken from the author's own experience as chief philanthropy officer in nonprofits and as a leader in a well-known national nonprofit consulting company.  
Thomas D. Wilson is the vice president and western regional manager for Campbell & Company. His career in fundraising spans more than 25 years and includes building successful campaigns from inception, reinvigorating stalled initiatives, and board/staff training.

338 pages, Hardcover

First published December 20, 2007

Reviews

[Carolyn Appleton]

I like this book so much that I have purchased several autographed copies of it for nonprofit volunteers with whom I have worked over the years. I can't say it better than this quote from Tom Wilson himself, from the book:

" … Too often in our field of philanthropic fundraising, the bottom line – the fundraising goal – becomes the only line. The need to fund institutional priorities to meet the plans of a president or a board of trustees becomes more important than presenting a winning gift concept to a donor. Ideally the philanthropic fundraising professional will be able to balance the urgent, immediate needs of the institution with the lifelong, personal values of the donor. If done correctly, fundraising is the job of presenting attractive opportunities to donors.”

I met Tom during the 2008 AFP International Conference in San Diego, and found his presentation riveting. Happily, when he next visited Texas, I was able to entice him to come to Corpus Christi where I was living at the time, to speak to our local AFP chapter. Not only did local fundraising executives attend the presentation at IBC Bank, but a few donors joined us as well.

I recommend this book highly, and have posted it also on my "Fundraising Resources" blog under, "Words of Wisdom in Challenging Times": http://fundraisingresources.wordpress....

[Kari]

As my library gets ready to launch a capital campaign, I found the advice in this book to be right on the money. Thomas Wilson writes clearly, and with some humor. He outlines 6 steps fundraisers should follow to get the most positive results when asking for money, whether it's for an annual fund, a capital campaign, or planned giving. I'm ready to go out and raise some money now!