Many groups are surprised to see the rigorous scorecard we use to measure each organization's ongoing success with the model. Click here to see the top ten of the thirty-three standards on the full Sustainable Funding Scorecard.

One of these top measures is: After year one, 40% of Ask Event^™ attendees have attended a Point of Entry^® Event prior to the Ask Event. (20% is the minimum for year one; 40% for all subsequent years.)

We call this the "ripened fruit" formula, and it ramps up after year one from 20% to 40%. There is no substitute for a Point of Entry prior to an Ask Event. You can work backwards from the number of guests you plan to have at the Ask Event to figure out how many people should attend your Point of Entry Events.

If you plan to have 200 Ask Event guests, you know that eighty of those people must attend a prior Point of Entry Event. Because only 25% of Point of Entry guests will actually end up attending an Ask Event, you can plan in advance to have 320 or more people at your Point of Entry Events during the year before the Ask Event.

While this may seem like a lot of work to attain the requisite eighty Ask Event guests, do not feel that you have wasted your time on those other 240 Point of Entry attendees. Some may never come to an Ask Event, but if your Point of Entry is sizzling enough, they may give one-on-one, and they will certainly refer others.

If your passion for the mission comes through at the Point of Entry, even the guests who choose not to become involved themselves will remember the impact of your work and mention it to others who might share a passion for your mission.

Furthermore, many Point of Entry attendees will want to become involved in other ways, perhaps volunteering in one of your programs, introducing you to their company or friend's work group or family, or helping with your fundraising efforts by hosting a Point of Entry for their friends or family.

Of course, the eighty people in this example who do attend the Ask Event after coming to a stellar Point of Entry and receiving personal cultivation will be some of your biggest donors at the Ask Event and beyond. In fact, another one of our statistics shows that Ask Event guests who have attended a prior Point of Entry give at least four times as much money as those who have not attended a prior Point of Entry. Many will be Table Captains at your first event and for years to come. It all starts with that sizzling Point of Entry.