Is the Prospect Profile Dead?
When I started doing prospect research, profiles were king. I spent my first few years writing profiles that detailed every job move, every insider stock transaction, every board position, every grant on a Form 990, every political gift, yada, yada, yada. Then I began to realize that while my profiles contained a lot of data—a […]
The Ins and Outs of Researching Philanthropic Data
When I first joined APRA Wisconsin 15 years ago, one of the highlights of our spring and fall meetings—besides seeing each other and learning from industry leaders and innovators—was the exchange of annual reports and donor honor rolls. Back then, at the turn of the new millennium, very few of us were posting donor lists […]
How to Prepare a Powerful Event Briefing
Last month I wrote about taking the deep dive: ways to trust but verify wealth screening data in prospect research. This month, I’d like to talk about casting a wide net: how prospect research sifts through the sea of data to retrieve actionable information. To that end, I am going to talk a little more […]
Before the Ask: A Prospect Researcher’s Journey
There is a role for prospect research at every stage of the solicitation cycle, beginning with our efforts to identify potential donors for events and travel, or to build a major gift portfolio. At this early stage, we are most likely preparing quick introductory blurbs or briefings that contain little beyond what we find in […]
Before the Ask: A Prospect Researcher's Journey
There is a role for prospect research at every stage of the solicitation cycle, beginning with our efforts to identify potential donors for events and travel, or to build a major gift portfolio. At this early stage, we are most likely preparing quick introductory blurbs or briefings that contain little beyond what we find in […]
Prospect Research, Big Data, and Poetry
For those of us in Wisconsin, the NCAA championship didn’t go quite the way we hoped—despite the Badgers’ stunning victory in Dan Klamm’s March Madness Social Media Faceoff. But a shining light broke through my despondency when I learned that April is National Poetry Month! It wasn’t long before I noticed that “prospect research” contains every letter […]
The ‘House of Cards’ Guide to Prospect Research
What could prospect research possibly learn from House of Cards? That is, if we ignore the obvious parallel: the hours spent chasing an elusive prospect on the Internet or binging on Netflix. The relationship between politicians and their donors fuels some of the drama of House of Cards, just as it does in real life in […]
The 'House of Cards' Guide to Prospect Research
What could prospect research possibly learn from House of Cards? That is, if we ignore the obvious parallel: the hours spent chasing an elusive prospect on the Internet or binging on Netflix. The relationship between politicians and their donors fuels some of the drama of House of Cards, just as it does in real life in […]
How to Identify and Prioritize Prospects Using Geodata
Carrick Davis, vice president of the APRA Wisconsin chapter and prospect development analyst with the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association (WFAA), believes the efficacy of prospect research is not best measured by the number of wealthy prospects it uncovers, but in the efficiencies it introduces to fundraising operations. With a master’s in urban planning from the University of […]
Gender-Based Assumptions Could Be Limiting Your Prospect Research
It is no longer news that women make up a larger percentage of the young undergraduate college population than men do. This has been true since women like me headed off to college in the 1970s. Women also make up a higher percentage of graduates (58% of all degrees granted in the US in 2013) […]
Small Data Is the Key to Deeper Donor Segmentation
Looking for love in all the wrong places? In my hometown, there are only so many millionaires, and most nonprofits already know who they are. So how are we to find more donors, even as our gift pyramids have turned into hourglasses in the last few years? In her recent blog post, Jen Filla addresses […]
Is It Ethical to Gather Social Data for Prospect Research?
As a past president of APRA Wisconsin and an impassioned advocate for prospect research, I try my best to keep up with ethics standards in our industry. In our search for strategic and actionable data, we aim to keep matters as black-and-white as possible, but that gray area always has a way of creeping in […]
