Has your annual Ask Event^™ become a burden? Does it seem like nearly as much work as putting on your former gala or auction? Here's a radical thought: maybe it's time to focus on quality, not quantity, and significantly reduce the size of your next Ask Event.

Consider the number one measure of a successful Benevon Free One-Hour Ask Event: At least 40% of the people in attendance must have attended a Point of Entry^® in the prior year. When was the last time your group met that benchmark?

Next, consider this measure from our Sustainable Funding Scorecard: 10% of Ask Event guests join your Multiple-Year Giving Society^™ (pledging at least $1,000 for five years) newly each year. When was the last time that ten out of every 100 guests at your Ask Event joined your Giving Society at one of these levels?

If you are not meeting either or both of these benchmarks, it's time to reduce the size of your Ask Event.

We have a group that had gotten so carried away with having their event be the biggest one in town that they had lost sight of the real objective. Their event had grown to nearly 700 people. Although they met our official formula for Ask Event success (a 700 person event would generate at least $350,000 in gifts and pledges), it was largely due to the leadership gift from the same corporate donor every year for $200,000. That meant their 700 people actually gave only $150,000, far less than the formula calls for. Likewise, they added only eight new donors to their Giving Society.

The purpose of the Ask Event is to grow your Giving Society significantly, annually, so as to have a larger pool of donors to cultivate and grow and to draw from for larger major gift, capital, and endowment campaigns. The purpose of the Ask Event is NOT to put on a great feel-good event to thank and reconnect with your donors.

Here's what I recommend:

• Bite the bullet and cut your Ask Event back from 700 people (in this example) to 250-300 people.
• Do an analysis of how much more money was given at your last Ask Event, on average, by people who had attended a Point of Entry in the year prior to the Ask Event versus those who hadn't. You will probably be surprised at the difference.
• As you call last year's Table Captains, share your results with them.
  • Tell them that the event is not raising the money it needs to raise, largely because you are focusing on quantity over quality. As wonderful as the event was, it has veered away from its original purpose—to ask well-cultivated donors to make five-year pledges to join your Giving Society. It has become more of a social gathering for long-time supporters of the organization.
  • Tell them the statistics about how much more money was given at the Ask Event by people who had attended recent Points of Entry.
  • Tell them that you are changing the process for next year, to allow your team to focus on adding more long-term donors and freeing up time for cultivating the donors you now have in your Giving Society.
  • Tell them you will be offering two special Free Feel-Good Cultivation Events in the next year for your loyal donors (including the ones who attend the Ask Event more as a social event now).
• Tell Table Captains they need to have ten guests attend Points of Entry. Aim for 80% ripened fruit at your next Ask Event, not 40%. There will be attrition. 40% is your absolute minimum.
• Then spend your next year focused on only one thing—having your most passionate Table Captains host Points of Entry. All year long, stay in touch with this core group of "new" Table Captains. Schedule their Points of Entry—either at your central location or as Points of Entry in a Box at their office conference room or home. Keep reminding them of your goals.
• When it comes time for them to invite people to their Ask Event tables, pay close attention to who they are inviting and supply them with names of prior Point of Entry guests. Hold the line on having a minimum of 40% ripened fruit for those who committed to the new process.
• In the meantime, get back to basics with your own Points of Entry. Set a goal of finding 20% of your Table Captains from new Point of Entry guests, just to keep each year's event fresh. Work your Treasure Map.
• If you are worried about offending your loyal Table Captains by requiring they host Points of Entry or "blessing and releasing" them, you can transition to this new Table Captain job description more gradually. Set an interim goal. For example, you would still reduce your overall Ask Event size by half or more, but only require that half of the Table Captains play by the new rules. That way you can give a few prior Table Captains the option to continue being Table Captains next year without having ten people attend a Point of Entry. They will get the idea over time and, if they are serious about your mission, they will eventually shift to the new rules.
• Be sure to secure your Leadership or Challenge Gift just like you did last year. Going into your next Ask Event, knowing you have that large gift in hand, will give you confidence—and inspire additional giving from the 40% or more of your well-cultivated audience.

Finally, imagine having a 100-person Ask Event with 80% Ripened Fruit. That would be a good use of everyone's time!