Prospect Evaluation Methods

Most prospect research is stuck in 2010. Here are 5 techniques that actually work in today's environment: 1. Behavioral data mining > wealth screening: Instead of just looking at capacity markers, analyze digital engagement patterns. Donors who consistently open emails about specific programs are signaling interest. We've found these behavioral signals predict giving 3x better than wealth indicators alone. 2. Social listening with AI tools: Set up automated monitoring of prospects' social media for life events, interests, and values alignment. The tools have become sophisticated enough to flag genuine opportunities without being creepy. 3. Collaborative intelligence gathering: Create systems for program staff, volunteers and board members to log prospect interactions in real-time. The collective intelligence of your entire organization is more powerful than any research database. 4. Relationship mapping visualization: Use software to visually map connections between current donors and prospects. These relationship webs reveal non-obvious pathways to new prospects that traditional research misses. 5. Predictive modeling for mid-level donors: Apply machine learning to identify which donors under $1,000 have major gift potential. The algorithms now accurately predict upgrade potential 18-24 months before traditional qualification methods. The organizations seeing breakthrough results aren't just gathering more data - they're gathering different data and analyzing it more intelligently. Which of these techniques have you tried? Let me know which one you'll implement next.

👉 Donor Prospect Research is the process of gathering donor data to help your nonprofit find high-impact major donors. Also known as prospecting or screening, this comprehensive process helps you identify potential major donors’ ability and willingness to contribute significantly to your cause. Unfortunately too often, major donor prospect research gets reduced to one question: “Who has the capacity to give?” That’s a mistake. Capacity matters. But on its own, it rarely leads to meaningful or sustained philanthropy. The most effective organizations take a more disciplined approach. They evaluate donors across these three distinct indicators that, together, tell a much more complete story: ⸻ 🔹 Philanthropic Indicators These reveal behavior. Has this individual demonstrated a pattern of giving? • Past donations to your organization or similar causes • Average gift size • Giving frequency and recency • Lifetime value across organizations This is where you begin to understand generosity as a habit, not a one-time action. ⸻ 🔹 Capacity Indicators These reflect ability. Can this individual make a significant gift? • Real estate ownership • Stock holdings • Business affiliations • Political giving history Important, yes. But incomplete without context. ⸻ 🔹 Affinity Indicators These signal alignment. Does this individual care about your mission? • Event attendance and engagement • Volunteerism or board service • Personal interests and values • Connection to your cause This is often the difference between a donor who can give and one who wants to give. ⸻ Where these three intersect is where real opportunity lives. That is your viable donor or prospect. ✔️ Not just someone with wealth. ✔️ Not just someone who gave once. ✔️ But someone who has the capacity, the inclination, and the affinity to donate. ⸻ When these three indicators are aligned, fundraising becomes more than outreach, it becomes strategy. You stop guessing. You start prioritizing. And your team spends time where it matters most. ❓Which of these three indicators is your organization relying on too heavily, and which one are you underutilizing? Thomas Claffey Philanthropy Solutions Group #FundraisingStrategy #ProspectResearch #NonprofitLeadership #MajorGifts

Don't go to a conference, collect business cards, and then a week later start emailing people about your #syndication. Not only is it poor form, but also unless it's a #506C or #RegA exempt deal, then you generally must have a pre-existing substantive relationship with your investors. The #SEC has given us guidance on this -- how to take a complete stranger that you just met at a conference and establish a Substantive Relationship. Let's go through the 8 steps... 1️⃣ Questionnaire: Start with sending them a detailed questionnaire that gets as much information as possible about their level of sophistication and experience. Have they syndicated before? Do they want immediate cash flow or long-term appreciation? What's their investment philosophy? 2️⃣ Talk to Them: Either a phone call, coffee, lunch, whatever. The more calls, the better, but at a minimum 1 or 2 meetings to find out whether they are sophisticated and your investment is suitable for them. Go through the questionnaire and let them know about you and your philosophies when it comes to syndications. 3️⃣ Investment Goals: Find out their level of investing experience and sophistication, investment goals and strategies, financial suitability, risk awareness, and other topics designated to assist you in understanding the investor’s sophistication. 4️⃣ Offline: Send an introductory email to answer questions they may have about you, your website, and potential investments. 5️⃣ Encourage: Get them to explore your website and ask questions about your investment strategy, philosophy, and objectives; 6️⃣ Minimum Investment: Advising your prospects that there will be a significant minimum investment in every deal which will be no less than $50K and in some cases significantly higher. 7️⃣ Foster Interaction: Generally foster interactions both online and offline between you and your prospective investors. The SEC is very clear that it is the quality of the interactions and not the quantity that they care about. 8️⃣ Credit Report: Utilize 3rd party credit reporting services to confirm a prospect's identity and to gather additional financial information and credit history information to support suitability. There is no "3-touch" rule or 30-day window. The SEC is far more concerned about the quality of the interactions between you and your prospect.

In 2012, I closed my first General Motors dealership, and by 2015, I had closed 47 more. Here's what made it possible. I developed a systematic approach to prospecting that focused on deep research of decision-makers. Before any meeting, I gathered extensive information about: • Their position and influence in the company • Personal and professional preferences • Past business decisions and patterns • Company pain points and needs • Contact information and availability This preparation allowed me to walk into meetings with confidence and credibility. When I arrived at a dealership and asked for a specific person, I could demonstrate my knowledge of their business immediately. The key elements of my success were: 1. Thorough background research 2. Following a repeatable system 3. Building rapport through shared knowledge 4. Presenting solutions based on actual needs 5. Understanding the decision-maker's perspective This method became the foundation of My 5WH Simple Selling System and the community Project 2740, where we teach others to replicate this success across different industries. The process isn't about convincing people to buy - it's about understanding their needs and providing relevant solutions. Success in sales comes from preparation and research, not from persuasion tactics. When you understand this principle, you can achieve consistent results in any industry.

The question I get asked most: “Scott, how should I qualify prospects?” Here’s my answer: 1/ The ValuePrompter This involves assessing four critical areas: - Vision Match: Do you have a clear understanding of the Business Issues you’re solving for the prospect? Do they agree the key problems getting in the way of achieving their Business Issue can be solved by your solution(s) and is the best way to solve them? - Quantified Value: Can you quantify the value of solving their problem(s) in a way that justifies the investment? This involves providing numbers, such as potential cost savings, productivity gains, or revenue increases. - Power: Do you have access to ALL the people who can say “yes” or “no”? - Plan: Is there a clear, Mutual Plan for how the deal will move forward? A well-defined action plan ensures everyone is aligned and knows the next steps to the resolution of their Business Issue. NOT ending at your contract execution. Don’t waste your time on prospects that won’t go anywhere. Use your best judgment, not happy ears to determine if you can get these elements understood for all key players! Apply this criterion early on in your sales process and make sure there’s a mutual fit. P.S. Follow me for more content like this.

Still using BANT as the only qualification method? I have bad news for you... BANT is good, but not comprehensive enough to qualify the leads. And if you don't qualify the lead early enough, you get a risk of spending much time with zero result. What you could do to additionally qualify your leads early? → try to apply MEDICC For me, the best methodology so far. → assign homework Send prospects relevant materials (videos, articles) and see if they engage. If they don’t, they’re likely not serious. → focus on business needs first Instead of asking when they can sign, ask when they need results. This reveals their priorities and urgency. → pre-research Know your prospect’s business inside-out before you even reach out. Tailored conversations go a long way. → segment leads Group prospects into A, B, and C categories to prioritize follow-ups and maximize your resources. → create urgency Emphasize how quickly your solution can solve their pressing problems or highlight limited-time offers. → survey lost leads Learn from past deals that didn’t convert and refine your qualification process. Start qualifying early, and focus on deals that matter. PS: what qualification methodologies do you use?

If I dropped 100 leads on your lap today…how many would your team realistically close? An “abundance” of leads can hurt you (if you're left guessing who to call first). You don’t have a system for prioritizing the list… So you waste time with the tire kickers and leave the hottest prospects waiting days for a call (after that, they just move on).  Nothing kills your sales velocity like sitting around wondering who to call next. That’s why we built a weighted lead scoring matrix that eliminates ALL guesswork. It's simple math that makes sure effort is ALWAYS spent in the right places. Here’s how you score leads and rank them by potential: Start with financial capacity - this carries the heaviest weight at 30%.  Can they invest? Have they invested before? What's their budget looking like? Timeline comes next at 20%. The urgency factor.  Are they ready to pull the trigger now or just window shopping? Act like you’re an emergency room doctor & start with the guy that’s bleeding out on the carpet. Then we look at niche match (20%).  Do they align with our ideal client profile? Have they played in this space before? The final pieces are problem severity (15%) and decision authority (15%).  How badly do they need a solution… and can they actually say yes? Each prospect gets scored across these categories. The math is straightforward: Score 8-10? They go straight to a closer.  Score 5-7? They meet with a setter first. Score 1-4?  Into the nurture sequence they go. The day we implemented this, our close rates shot up across multiple industries. Your sales team's time is precious. Don’t force them to chase “maybes.”  Give them a scoring system that tells them exactly who's ready to buy.