Be more bee with your prospect strategy
I met a director of a social enterprise recently who was curious about whether they should cold call potential corporate supporters.
My response was a very cagey "hm, yes, that might work"
A random approach out the blue at the right time can spark a conversation that leads to exciting new things. As the old sales saying goes - fling enough muck against the wall in the hope some sticks.
There’s no other dopamine rush like doing it that way, but I’ve learned that the approach is risky and should only be a small part of your strategy to build new partnerships.
The magic happens when you join the dots. Like our friends the bees, you should use a research process and learn from communication with your close network.
I have always been energised by action, so I understand why it’s tempting to step in and hope for the best. However, my experience has taught me that missing a link or connection is an opportunity missed that could have led to a better quality conversation and much more likely to lead to a better outcome.
Over the years, I’ve learned how to slow down and literally take stock. I've built a process which helps being more focussed and I now love helping people discover this for themselves.
Take time to research
When you take even a short amount of time to research a business, you should start to find nuggets of information.
You can learn who else is connected to a prospect - trustees, volunteers, your team, supporters and people who use your services. You spot good matches in their priorities or personal passions. You can uncover stories that help you shape an approach that feels relevant rather than stiff and unnatural.
It’s about asking questions like, who already knows this business? Who could help with an introduction and what messaging would work best to make this approach stronger?
Your home team can help build your pipeline
One of the big shifts for me when I started working in corporate partnership development was taking time to learn from your colleagues, trustees and anyone else who is happy to offer helpful information when you are building a pipeline of prospects.
When you start filling your list or pipeline of businesses you feel are aligned to your cause, spend time talking to others about them. When you start involving your nearest and dearest in your charity, corporate fundraising stops being a transactional exercise and you start seeing it for what it really is. It’s all about relationships.
A trustee could make an introduction, a volunteer could share a connection, a team member could offer valuable insights. It pays to pull together to build a clear picture.
Please remember that if anyone has been kind enough to make an introduction or share a useful nugget with you, keep them updated on how your approach is going. Even if you didn't get far, keeping them looped shows that you value their input.
Learn to love the process
Building a process takes time but it doesn’t slow you down. It’s the very opposite, helping to give more confidence and increasing your chances of better results. I’m excited to share this with community charities who want to develop new corporate partnerships.
When the your energy and passion you have for your cause is blended with insights and some planning, you won't need to make cold calls because you are now making connections.
If you think it's time to grow your corporate partnerships but don't know where to start, book a free 45 minute exploratory chat with me.