Your capital campaign is swimming along… until it isn’t.
What do you do when your campaign hits a hurdle – or worse, a significant crisis? Every hurdle is one that can be overcome, and in this blog series, we’ll unpack how to either avoid or recover from those pain points.
The last few months, we’ve been talking about campaign planning, campaign communications and how to best prepare your church for a capital campaign. But some things you can’t fully plan for are the pain points or hurdles we’ll discuss in this series.
In the last post, we discussed what to do when you lose a pastor or your campaign’s key leadership. The loss of a financial commitment is one of those crisis moments. What happens if you have a major donor back out? How do you handle it if you lose your financing for a portion of the project?
No matter how significant a monetary impact it has, don’t panic. If your campaign project has the buy-in and support of your congregation, you will get past this hurdle.
Take these steps:
1) Regroup with your key campaign planning team. Be open about the impact the loss of this particular financing or gift has on the overall campaign goal, and engage them in discussing options. Put all the possibilities on the table and brainstorm other finance, donor and lending opportunities.
2) Communicate directly to your key major donors. Inform them of the change in what’s been committed and invite them to work with you through alternative funding options. Sometimes the urgency or need opens the door to a donor or stretch gift you might not have received.
3) Rework your project into more manageable chunks and phases, timing out the project in a way to provide additional time to raise the needed funding. Or restructure it to re-align the project to a different campaign goal. Again, seek the input and expertise of your key board members, campaign volunteers and donors.
Conclusion
Finally, don’t forget to tap into the creativity and connections many of your members bring. Those who work in finance, banking or construction might have ideas about how to tackle the project with a new funding model. Sometimes a denominational or church-related foundation can be helpful with creative financing options. Sometimes local banks can compete against the terms of larger lenders.
Your congregation can be a wealth of knowledge and innovative thinking. Involve and invest in their trust by tapping into them as you navigate the hurdle of a major change in your financial pledges and commitments. Ask for help, and you’ll find people are willing to extend themselves and help find solutions.
Coming up in this series, we’ll talk about how to overcome challenges to your campaign’s costs and how to handle shifts in your congregation that impact your campaign goal.
Capital Campaign Crises: Overcoming Hurdles and Pain Points
You’ve launched your campaign, and the pledges of support are flowing in. So what do you do when your campaign hits a major snag?
This guide outlines strategies for overcoming campaign hurdles and pain points – the most common issues that impact a launched campaign.
- What happens if your pastor resigns?
- If you lose a major donor or financing?
- If your project costs are spiraling?
Learn the steps to keep your campaign on track when a crisis hits.
Considering a Capital Campaign?
Capital campaigns are a daunting task, even under the best circumstances. If you’ve been considering — or putting off — a capital campaign to raise funds to grow your church or expand your ministry, the solution is here.
ACS Technologies® teamed up with Non-Profit DNA to offer an extensive and comprehensive consulting service to help make your upcoming capital campaign a success. This partnership gives you access to highly skilled, knowledgeable fundraising experts. They will help with your campaign — every step of the way.
Visit Capital Campaigns on our website to request your consultation today!
Tim has over 30 years of experience in Church, Non-Profit Administration, Management, and Fund Development. Serving as an Executive Pastor and Chief Development Officer in growing Churches and Non-Profit Organizations. He has provided a wide range of expertise and resources. Tim serves as the Founder and CEO of Non-Profit DNA. A boutique firm committed to helping nonprofits and churches. By building their capacity through fundraising, leadership, team building, staff recruiting, and coaching.
