Picking Rocks: A Season of Donor Cultivation

Synopsis: In the world of donor development, the first quarter of the year is focused on cultivating new donors. Cultivation is hard work. It is also necessary work. Those who serve in rural areas might be more familiar with the agricultural metaphor, but the process of cultivation in any field (pun intended) is a challenge that must be met. 

For one memorable season of my childhood, my siblings and I planted three acres of cucumbers. With our mom’s help, we secured a contract with a local pickling company that paid us for our crop. We started by selecting the three acres on our property best suited for cucumbers and set to work clearing it. Thankfully, it was an open plot without any trees, but it had lots of rocks. If you’ve never picked rocks, you don’t know what you’re missing! And there were plenty of rocks to pick on our little piece of Wisconsin farmland.  

Before we could even break ground, let alone plant the cucumber seeds, the big rocks had to be pulled up and removed. It was the step before the steps that would lead to a harvest. Taking a plot of ground from its natural state to harvesting a plentiful crop takes a lot of work. It takes intentionality, strategic planning, days of seemingly fruitless effort and perseverance.  

In the rhythms of donor relations, the first quarter of the year (January-March) is a cultivation quarter. In previous articles, we identified the three disciplines of donor development: cultivation; stewardship; and solicitation.  

Just like my childhood cucumber patch, there are steps you must take to get a plentiful harvest. First is finding the right field. Where can you go to find new audiences? Not just any audience, but audiences likely to include people whose hearts align with your ministry. It’s not enough to find people with money if those people have no interest or affinity for what you’re doing. Another word for finding the right field is “networking.” The process of gathering with people of like interests. This could be service clubs in your community, like the Rotary Club or the Lions Club. It could be the Chamber of Commerce or a business networking group like Business Networking International (BNI).  

Attending networking meetings is like picking rocks. It may not immediately produce a crop, but it gets you out in the field clearing the way for a fruitful future. Finding new people and new places to tell about your organization should be a primary concern during the first quarter of the year. While cultivation should be happening year-round, the first quarter is when it becomes a top priority. Starting the year this way fills your pipeline for follow-up and more refined cultivation of those potential donors you find throughout the course of the year. 

A note to Executive Directors who might be wondering how to keep your development teams busy during a season when you don’t do much solicitation (and soliciting during Q1 is discouraged). Look to see how many new audiences your development folks are finding and how many new prospects are being generated. These are the lead measures to focus on in the first quarter. The time to solicit will come again. For now, find new people who can give when the time is right. 

If you would like to learn more about the annual rhythms of donor relations and how to make the best use of your donor development time all year long, we can help. Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF) has helped many ministries increase donor generosity through our Mission Advancement Partnership process. Email Tim Kurth at Tim.Kurth@lcef.org, and let’s talk about how we can work together.