Created By: John Philligin
Updated January 28, 2026

While many nonprofits can achieve their immediate fundraising goals, scaling or diversifying revenue in the long term often presents a significant challenge. This is particularly true given internal constraints like limited resources or specialized staff expertise, alongside external factors, such as economic volatility, shifts in donor priorities, and changes in the philanthropic policy landscape. 

It’s clear that building a resilient funding strategy is more important than ever—and major gifts are the solution. A strong major gifts program provides the kind of transformational support that helps organizations not just sustain their work, but expand their reach and capacity for the future.

While starting a major gift program to secure larger donations may seem daunting, it is achievable with the right framework and strategic focus. In this guide, you’ll find a clear, actionable plan for building your own major gift program—from laying the groundwork and establishing key elements to implementing effective strategies and evaluating your progress.

Major Gifts: Frequently Asked Questions

What are major gifts?

Major gifts are large, significant donations to your nonprofit. Major gift programs focus on a smaller pool of high-capacity individuals, offering a sustainable way to fund key initiatives and expand impact. They allow organizations to launch new programs, build internal capacity, or invest in new revenue streams rather than just keeping the lights on.

What counts as a major gift?

There is no sector-wide standard for what constitutes a major gift. For a small community nonprofit, it might be $1,000, whereas for a university, it might be $100,000. 

Determine what constitutes a major gift for your organization based on factors such as the percentage of revenue you want contributed through major gifts, your organization’s size, and your fundraising goals. Analyze your top 25–30 gifts from the last three years to determine any trends and find your natural threshold for major giving. 

Why is a dedicated major gift program important?

Without a strong major gift program, organizations risk missing out on substantial revenue opportunities and may fail to cultivate deeper relationships with their most engaged supporters. 

Let’s take a closer look at the unique aspects of a dedicated major gift program:

General Fundraising

• Focus: Receiving donations now
• Timeline: Short-term
• Used for: Immediate programming needs/overhead
• Communication: Mass appeals

Major Gift Fundraising

• Focus: Building relationships and partnerships
• Timeline: 12-18 months
• Used for: Long-term capacity-building
• Communication: Highly personalized

Essentially, general fundraising revenue and major gifts are both necessary, but nonprofits need to secure major gifts to ensure their missions can stand the test of time.

Why Major Gift Programs Matter

Without a strong major gift program, organizations risk missing out on substantial revenue opportunities and fail to cultivate deeper relationships with their most engaged supporters. Major gift programs focus on a smaller pool of high-capacity individuals, offering a sustainable way to fund key initiatives and expand impact. To fully leverage the benefits of a major gift program, it is essential that your organization is well-prepared to undertake this strategic effort.

Securing Major Gifts with the Major Donor Lifecycle

Successful major gift work is cyclical, not linear. It requires progressing donors through a strategic, high-touch process to deepen their relationships with your nonprofit. Let’s explore the main phases of the major donor lifecycle: donor identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.

1. Identification

Unlike general fundraising strategies, such as direct mail or online campaigns that target large audiences, identifying prospective major donors requires a more focused approach on high-capacity individuals.

This process relies heavily on personal relationships and close connections within your network. Collaborating with board members, community leaders, and current donors can provide insights into potential prospects. Using wealth screening tools, donor research, and data analytics can be quite helpful to create your own targeted prospect list.

To get started, look for major gift prospects in your existing donor community with these qualities:

1. Current or recently lapsed donors who have given close to your major gift threshold but have not yet crossed it.
2. Lower-level donors who have a high giving capacity and demonstrate high affinity for or commitment to your organization, such as attending events, volunteering, or engaging in multiple ways.
3. Donors with high wealth (capacity) indicators and a history of charitable giving in general, especially those who have supported causes like yours.

You can always identify potential major gift prospects from those who have never given to your organization. However, it’s smart to start with warm leads who already know your nonprofit’s work and have demonstrated previous financial support. Prioritizing those outside of your current donor base can lead to a long chase and inefficient use of time and resources.

Use our major gift prospect matrix to learn more!

Best Practices

1. Develop a Research Plan: Use CRM reports to analyze past giving data, donor engagement, and wealth screening results. Identify who meets your criteria for a top prospect and create detailed research profiles for each.
   • Pro Tip: If your organization doesn’t have access to a wealth screening tool, useful indicators of someone’s financial capacity include the value of their real estate, business affiliations, and stock holdings. You can easily look up useful information via publicly available tax records, LinkedIn, or Zillow—just ensure the data is reputable.
2. Clarify What You’re Looking For: Identify and share the qualities you seek in a prospect, and brainstorm individuals who fit that profile. If no direct connections exist, identify connectors in your nonprofit’s network who can help facilitate introductions.
3. Host Small Events: Organize small gatherings or virtual events to introduce potential donors to your organization’s mission and leadership. These events are beneficial if you assess interest, build relationships, and have a follow-up plan.

2. Qualification

Qualification is essential in major gift work as it focuses your later engagement efforts on the right people. After all, not everyone with the capacity to give will be interested in engaging further than they already are. 

Best Practices

1. Set Your Criteria: Define the ideal qualities for your strongest prospects. Ask yourself: Will they respond to your calls or emails? Are they excited about your programs? Is there interest in becoming further involved in your work? Are there high wealth indicators?
2. Monitor Progress: Use your CRM to log outreach attempts and responses. For those open to further engagement, create an action plan for next steps; for those not open, note this in their account.
3. Keep Notes: After a qualification call or meeting, write a contact report that logs everything you learned about the individual in your conversation.

Pro Tip: Establish a standard outreach cadence before disqualifying a prospect if you’re unable to connect with them. For example, you might decide to disqualify someone after two phone call attempts, three emails, and one message from senior leadership over a period of six to eight weeks. Sticking to this cadence allows you to move on to other names efficiently without spinning your wheels.

3. Cultivation

Major gift cultivation is often a more time-intensive process and requires a strategic approach. Take what you’ve learned about prospects’ goals, interests, giving history, and personal connections from your qualification conversations to create a customized action plan for each person. 

Some examples of cultivation activities include:

• Program Site Visits: These visits provide a first-hand experience of your work in action and its impact, creating an emotional connection to your mission.
• Personalized Meetings with Staff or Leadership: Interactions with organizational and program leaders allow opportunities to ask questions, share thoughts, and feel more connected to your work.
• Tailored Communications: Personalization adds a layer of thought and attention that shows you care. Communications such as impact reports, newsletters, or thank-you notes should be meaningful and reflect the prospect’s specific interests.

Best Practices

1. Create a Calendar: Develop a timeline of cultivation activities tailored to each prospect’s interests and preferences. Note which activities can benefit multiple prospects to help manage workflow.
2. Segment Prospects by Interests: Group prospects based on specific interests to tailor your engagement efforts efficiently.
3. Check In Regularly: Cultivation is usually the longest phase in the major gift development process. Ensure you schedule regular check-ins with your other fundraising team members to maintain momentum.

Pro Tip: Every action and touchpoint can be significant during the cultivation process! Enter every conversation or touchpoint with a clear objective in mind so you can get the information you need to make a compelling ask down the line and make the donor feel comfortable.

4. Solicitation

Once you’ve collected all of the necessary information, it’s time to craft a custom ask. You’ll need to create a detailed proposal before meeting with the prospect one-on-one. These meetings often involve a peer, a member of organizational leadership, or a program staff member who has a strong relationship with the prospect. 

Best Practices

1. Decide Funding Alignment: What funding priority most aligns with your prospect’s interests? Will their support go towards restricted project funding or unrestricted general operating expenses that benefit the whole organization? Increasingly, many donors and prospects understand the need for general operating support and trust an organization to allocate their donation to the most pressing need. However, restricted funding opportunities can provide a stronger investment angle through project-specific budgets and outcomes.
2. Prepare for the Ask: Develop a solicitation strategy, including the project to fund, ask amount, participants, key messages, and potential objections.
3. Role-Play and Rehearse: Practice with your team to ensure everyone is prepared and confident. Prepare for every possible outcome, from rejection to thoughtful deliberation, and even enthusiastic acceptance with an increased donation.
4. Follow Up Promptly: Before leaving the solicitation meeting, you should always agree on next steps with the potential donor. Be sure to follow up with a personalized thank-you note or call, regardless of the outcome, to continue building the relationship. 

Pro Tip: Ask for the donor’s input on specific outcomes or budget allocations. When a donor contributes their ideas to a proposal, they psychologically transition from a passive supporter to an active partner, significantly increasing their commitment to funding it.

5. Stewardship

Stewardship is vital for major donors, as it not only expresses gratitude but also demonstrates the impact of their investment through multiple touchpoints across your organization. Unlike general fundraising, which may rely on standard acknowledgments, major gift stewardship creates a personalized experience for each supporter. When done well, this engagement significantly increases the likelihood of larger future gifts and improves donor retention. 

You might conduct stewardship via:

• Stewardship Reports: Include stories, photos, and data to create a detailed report on how you used the gift and the impact it made.
• Thank-You Calls from Leadership: Personal calls from senior leaders or board members to thank major donors for their contributions reinforce the importance of their support.
• Curated Events: Invites to donor appreciation events, behind-the-scenes tours, or intimate gatherings with organizational leadership help to build a sense of community.
• Public Recognition: Offer opportunities to recognize major supporters publicly in annual reports, on your website, or through naming opportunities, if they are comfortable with public acknowledgment.

Best Practices

1. Develop a Stewardship Plan: Outline specific activities for each major donor based on their giving level and preferences.
2. Track and Evaluate: Use your CRM system to monitor all stewardship activities and adjust as needed.
3. Personalize the Experience: Tailor your efforts to reflect everyone’s specific interests and relationship with your organization.

Pro Tip: High-capacity donors often view their gifts as investments, so your stewardship should feel like an exclusive update. Create a distinct “CEO Briefing” format—concise, data-focused, and sent 24 hours before public announcements—reserved strictly for your top tier. By giving them insider access to breaking news and strategic wins, you signal that they are trusted partners, not just an audience.

How to Start a Major Giving Program

Step 1: Gain Leadership Buy-In

A successful major gift program will require support from your entire organization. Start by earning buy-in from your leadership team by making a compelling case for why a major gift program is important, how it will benefit the organization, and what involvement and commitment will be required. Present a compelling case by:

1. Preparing a Briefing: Create a concise brief to share with leadership that outlines the potential impact of a major gift program. Support your case with data and examples from similar organizations.
2. Gather Data: Gather data on your donors, especially those who might be good candidates for major gifts, and determine the return on investment (ROI) you can expect.
3. Engage Key Stakeholders: Schedule meetings with your Chief Development Officer, Executive Director or CEO, and Board of Directors. Tailor your pitch to each group’s interests and priorities.
4. Outline Specific Roles: Clearly define the roles and expectations for each stakeholder, such as participating in solicitations or leveraging their networks to identify or engage potential prospects.

Step 2: Analyze Your Fundraising Pipelines

Understanding the full spectrum of your funding base will help show how each giving segment can influence your efforts in building a major gift program. Get the best picture of your pipelines by:

• Pulling Donation Reports: Run cumulative giving reports for all donors over the past three to five fiscal or calendar years. Analyze their giving patterns, such as when they give, how much they give, and which funds they support, to illuminate trends.
• Segmenting Your Donors: Break down your donor base into specific giving levels, but avoid too many segments. We suggest anywhere from four to seven tiers, depending on your nonprofit’s size. Look for natural breaks in giving amounts to help determine your levels.
• Scaling Your Portfolio: Be realistic about capacity. A full-time Major Gift Officer can typically manage only 125–150 active prospects. If you are a one-person shop, start by focusing on your top 20 donors and build from there.

Step 3: Audit Your Infrastructure 

Before launching your own program, ensure that certain foundational elements are present in your current fundraising strategy. With the following qualities already in place, your efforts will be more efficient:

• A Wide Range of Donation Levels: You’ll benefit most from a major gift program when there is a broad range of gift sizes from your donor base.
• Compelling Mission and Clear Case for Support: It’s crucial to clearly explain how your organization makes an impact and why donations matter. Ensure you have a “scalable” case for support—major donors want to fund growth and vision, not just deficit gaps.
• Functioning CRM System: A reliable donor management system is essential for tracking data and evaluating giving histories. You cannot manage major gifts effectively in spreadsheets.

Step 4: Train Your Team

Major gift fundraising requires a specific set of skills distinct from general development work, so you must equip staff, leadership, and volunteers with the confidence to navigate high-stakes conversations and build authentic partnerships. Prepare your team for success by:

• Aligning on the Narrative: Ensure everyone—from the Board Chair to program staff—can fluently articulate your nonprofit’s case for support. They should be able to tell the same story about the organization’s vision and financial needs, ensuring consistency regardless of who the donor speaks with.
• Role-Playing Scenarios: Solicitation can be stressful, so your team should be prepared to handle the heat of the moment. Conduct practice sessions to rehearse the “ask,” handle objections, and move the conversation along smoothly. This strategy builds muscle memory and boosts confidence before they are in front of a live prospect.
• Educating Them About the Lifecycle: Train your team on the concept of moves management, which is the process of funneling donors through the lifecycle through planned interactions (or “moves”). Help them understand that major giving is a long game—often taking 12 to 18 months—and requires patience and strategic touchpoints rather than immediate transactional requests.

Best Practices for Successful Major Gift Fundraising

Your major gift program requires consistent upkeep to continue firing on all cylinders. Follow these steps to ensure your major gift efforts achieve the best returns possible.

1. Create Your Own Moves Management Strategy

Adopt a rigorous system where every prospect has a defined plan. Track meaningful contacts—interactions that actually move the relationship forward—rather than filler communications. Establish a regular meeting rhythm (e.g., bi-weekly pipeline reviews) to ensure no top prospect is neglected for more than 30 days.

2. Leverage AI and Technology

Modern major gift programs use technology to scale their efforts. Use AI tools to:

• Draft personalized correspondence.
• Summarize complex program reports for donors.
• Schedule communications.
• Rank prospects on likelihood to give.
• Role-play difficult solicitation conversations.

Just remember: AI should supplement your connection efforts, not replace human interaction.

3. Monitor and Evaluate Progress

Establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) and regularly evaluating progress is essential for the ongoing success of your major gift program. Major gift fundraising relies on individual donors, who can be unpredictable and influenced by external factors like economic conditions, political landscapes, and social trends.

To adapt effectively and ensure your program has a strong foundation, you must monitor performance continually and make data-driven decisions. Some smart KPIs to monitor include:

• Number of Major Donors Acquired: Track this metric over a certain time period to help assess the effectiveness of your identification, qualification, and cultivation strategies.
• Total Funds Raised from Major Gifts: This indicator provides a direct measure of your program’s financial success and helps set realistic future fundraising targets.
• Retention Rate: Monitor the percentage of major donors who renew or increase their giving from year to year. High retention rates indicate strong engagement and satisfaction, while low retention rates may signal the need to improve stewardship efforts.
• Number of Prospects Qualified: This KPI can help assess the effectiveness of your research, outreach, and qualification processes.
• Solicitation Success Rate: This metric can indicate how effective your solicitation strategies and messaging are in closing gifts.

Wrapping Up

Building a major gift program is a significant undertaking that won’t be completed overnight, but with careful planning and sustained effort, it can yield substantial results. A well-developed major gift fundraising program will strengthen donor relationships, diversify your funding base, and ensure long-term financial sustainability for your organization.

With so much at stake, it helps to work with a seasoned fundraising expert when revamping your major gift fundraising program. Orr Group can help you develop transformative fundraising strategies that are as unique and innovative as they are actionable and achievable. Reach out to us today to get started.

• The Power of Integrated Fundraising: Fostering a Donor-Centric Culture. To have a successful major giving program, your nonprofit needs a donor-centric culture. See if you’re on the right track by reading our blog.

• Trends for 2026: What’s Next in Philanthropy and Nonprofit Fundraising. Each year presents new opportunities and challenges for nonprofits, and this year, major gifts are playing a central role. Our insights can set your organization up for success in 2026.

• Strategic Fundraising: Mastering the Life Cycles of Different Gift Types for Nonprofit Success. Want to dive deeper into different donor lifecycles so you can better connect with them? Get started with our guide.

John Philligin is a Director at Orr Group. With over 15 years of experience, John has a proven track record of developing highly tailored cultivation and stewardship opportunities, designing and implementing new fundraising initiatives, managing high-performing fundraising events, and increasing support from individuals, foundations, and corporations.