The Full Story
When Emma Callahan stepped into her role as a Donor Experience Officer, she approached it the EverTrue way: focusing on real relationships first and trusting that results would follow.
Armed with EverTrue’s Signal platform and a donor-first mindset, Emma built thoughtful cadences that mixed video messages, emails, phone calls, handwritten notes—you name it. If a prospect didn’t respond right away? No problem. Emma stayed politely persistent, confident that the right message at the right time would open the door.
And it worked.
In one standout example, Emma sent an initial outreach email and quickly landed a Zoom meeting with an alumnus. What started as a 30-minute discovery call turned into something much bigger. As Emma listened, it became clear the donor was deeply grateful for his BU experience—and ready to make a major impact. When she floated the idea of a $100,000 scholarship gift, he didn’t hesitate. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
The final outcome:
- Three $100,000 current-use gifts
- A planned gift from his estate
- A stronger pipeline for future major gifts
Emma’s persistence also paid off in other ways. Another donor didn’t respond until the seventh touchpoint—but when he did, it led to a $1,000 gift and a personal email to BU’s leadership praising Emma’s thoughtful, pressure-free approach.
Every touchpoint, every meeting, every follow-up showed the same commitment: prioritize the donor, make it easy to say “yes,” and keep showing up with value.
Today, Emma’s carrying those lessons into her new role as a leadership giving officer at BU’s Dental School, continuing to blend strategic outreach with genuine connection. Her story proves that with the right tools, a little creativity, and a lot of persistence, it’s possible to transform casual outreach into major impact—and build a stronger, more sustainable pipeline along the way.
