Perry M. Smith, Jr. is a teacher, speaker, TV, and radio commentator and best-selling author, and executive producer of four videos.
Hundreds of millions of television viewers worldwide came to know him during the 1991 Persian Gulf War for his more than 100 appearances as a military analyst on network television.
Smith served for 30 years in the U. S. Air Force. He commanded the F-15 fighter wing at Bitburg, Germany where he provided leadership to 4000 personnel. Later, he served as the top Air Force planner and as the commandant of the National War College. He flew 180 combat missions in the F-4D aircraft over North Vietnam and Laos during the Vietnam War.
In 2016, The General Perry Smith Parkway near the Augusta Regional Airport was opened. In 2021 in Atlanta, Smith was inducted into the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.
With so many folks in our area involved in raising and contributing funds for good causes, the checklist below may be helpful.
Incidentally, I have had the pleasure of assisting in several local fundraising campaigns, including the upper rooms at Saint Paul’s Church, the Fisher House on Wrightsboro Road, the Regional Boy Scouts, the Boys and Girls Clubs, Heritage Academy, Christ Community Health Services and Forces United.
RULES FOR SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISING
Getting Started
- Review and understand the mission of the organization that money is being raised.
- Be careful of templates. Techniques that work in one setting may not work in another.
- Setting deadlines will help to focus on priorities
- Set challenging fundraising goals (determine specifically what the money will fund).
- Make an early and generous contribution yourself.
- Be sure your answering machine gives a cell phone and email contact.
Staffing the Board
- Require every board member to make a specific “give or get” commitment (the requirement at the Augusta Museum of History is $2,000 each year).
- Recruit board members who have demonstrated a strong commitment to good causes. The more prominent the board, the easier it is to recruit new outstanding members.
- Staff must be prepared and willing to participate in all fundraising planning and activities. If not, ask them to move on.
- Do not tolerate incompetence among your staff.
Prospecting for Donors
- Do serious and ongoing prospect research to determine their interests. Businesses –are looking for marketing impact (remember people give to people, not always causes)
- Throw your net out very widely and include all parts of your community. Reach out to good friends throughout America.
- Remain very visible throughout the community.
- Publicize your projects widely. Newspapers like The Augusta Chronicle are very receptive to op-ed articles (650 to 800 words).
- Keep two lists: Those who have been generous in the past and those who have not.
- Don’t waste time going after individuals, businesses, or foundations that do not show any interest.
During the Campaign
- State the case, ask for the gift, and aim high! Always ask big. If you hope to get $10,000, ask for $100,000.
- Be bold but not brash. Always remember that you may need to go back and ask again.
- Thank each donor quickly (within 10 days of receiving the check or the pledge). Hand-written thank you notes are by far the best.
- Never prod someone soon after they have just contributed.
- Practice reciprocity – offer to support someone else’s good causes if he/she will support yours.
- Closely monitor budgets – err on the lean side.
- In annual reports, newsletters, and event programs, acknowledge every contributor (unless specifically asked not to).
Stay Positive
- Don’t get discouraged, lots of gifts take more than one request.
- Remind yourself often that your great cause may not be high on someone else’s priority list.
- Remind yourself often that generous donors are being asked to support worthy causes at least once a week. Understanding donor fatigue is important.
- Read and reread often, Mega Gifts, Who Gives Them, Who Gets Them by Jerold Panas. Also worthwhile are the books, Give and Take and Happy Money (Chapter 5).
Retired Major General Perry Smith is the author of seven books – his most successful, with 350,000 copies in print is Rules and Tools for Leaders.
