The Ask: How to Ask for Support for Your Nonprofit Cause, Creative Project, or Business Venture [Hardcover]

Laura Fredricks (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 26, 2010

A completely revised edition of the must-have resource for increasing your nonprofit's bottom line

This thoroughly revised and updated edition of the best-selling book The Ask is filled with suggestions, guidelines, and down-to-earth advice that will give you the confidence to ask anyone for any size gift, for any purpose. Written in winning language, filled with sample dialogues, and offering a wealth of tips and tools, this book addresses common mistakes made when asking and shows how to correct each mistake, providing guidance and direction on how to make a great ask.

• Offers step-by-step guidance for learning personal solicitation skills
• Filled with real-world tools and techniques for raising money or support
• Contains advice for overcoming situations such as hesitating to ask for money and following through on the ask
• Written for fundraisers from any size organization

Includes information on how to apply asking skills to a fundraiser's personal and professional pursuits.

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you ever thought it was difficult or uncomfortable to ask for money, think again. This book empowers you to go out and do it again and again."
--Rachel Wawn, development manager, The Healing Foundation, London, England

"The Ask is a commonsense approach on how to ask anyone for money. It will enhance the skills of countless people around the country who need to ask for money so that philanthropy will grow immeasurably."
--John Burke, director of major gifts, The Passionist Missionaries, Union City, New Jersey

"Asking people for money is one of the most difficult ‘sales’ we can make, and no matter how noble the cause, having the right tools at our disposal can make the difference. This book provides all the tools necessary to complete the ‘sale.’"
--James Duffy, CFO and executive vice president, Vertrue Inc., Stamford, Connecticut

"Most of us, when put in a position to ask for a contribution for a worthy purpose, are uncomfortable making the approach. But when someone requests a donation from us, we do not think any less of them for asking. Insights offered here will help the reader bridge this gap and confidently ask the next time."
--Michael O’Reilly, vice chairman, The Chubb Corporation, Warren, New Jersey

"ASK and you shall receive. Get this book and you will be prepared for ANY ask, no matter the size or cause. It's the ‘go-to’ book for truly effective fundraisers. ASK for it today!"
--Sarah Holland, president, The Visibility Project, New York, New York

"With over one hundred sample dialogues, you can't afford not to buy this book!"
--William Bartolini, vice president for development, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

The A$k

This updated and expanded edition of the best-selling fundraising resource The Ask gives anyone who needs to learn how to ask—for their nonprofit organization, creative project, business venture, or simply for themselves—all the right steps and language to make the best Ask.

Fundraising expert Laura Fredricks guides her readers through views about money; formulating the right case statement and business plan; selecting the right people, at the right time, in the right location, to make the Ask; handling the myriad of responses to the Ask; and the crucial follow-up to each and every Ask.

The Ask is filled with numerous sample dialogues that any reader can use and adapt immediately. Laura Fredricks shares her insights on how to take a good Ask and turn it into the most effective Ask by providing best practices and solid examples of her own fundraising experiences. Her engaging, entertaining, and inspirational style of writing will transform anyone's fear of asking into an action plan to make the right Ask.

This book is written for anyone who wants to develop the fundraising skills needed to achieve greater success and learn how to ask with confidence.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; Updated and Expanded Edition edition (January 26, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470480947
• ISBN-13: 978-0470480946
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #78 in Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Nonprofit Organizations & Charities

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A much needed book to aid in the process of training volunteers in the fundraising process., September 14, 2006

By 

Jeff Lippincott "JLIPPIN" (Princeton, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ask: How to Ask Anyone for Any Amount for Any Purpose (Hardcover)

Asking (soliciting) people for money can be a stressful or challenging endeavor. But, you know, so is just about everything we do the first time. And how do we learn to do something the first time? Someone teaches us either verbally or by way of writing a book. This book does a wonderful job of explaining "The Ask" part of not-for-profit fundraising in its 10 chapters:

1. Soliciting Money Usually Causes Jitters
2. Prospect Research and Evaluating a Prospective Donor for Gift-Giving Readiness
3. Who Should Do the Ask?
4. How to Prepare for an Ask
5. Asking for Non-Major Gifts
6. Asking for Major Gifts in Annual Campaign Setting
7. Asking for Planned Gifts (Deferred Gifts)
8. Asking for Major Gifts in Capital Campaign Setting
9. How to Respond to Prospective Donor after Making the Ask
10. Follow-Up for Each Ask

The author is certainly qualified to write the book. She has a number of years experience working in a major gift setting for a well established university in New York. It surprised me when I stumbled across this book in the bookstore that there was enough material on the subject to actually write this book. But apparently there is more than enough to talk about on the subject. I probably would have titled the book "Soliciting Major Gifts" instead of The Ask. But then I would not have included Chapter 5 either.

Let's face it, face-to-face gift solicitation is predominantly a major gift thing. There might be some face-to-face gift solicitation of donors for sizeable (but not major) gifts, but for the most part that is the exception not the rule. Major gifts as I know them are $10,000 and up. Many are six figures! Now that is something to get jittery over.

I would have liked the book better if it had not been as wordy as it was. Instead of providing the chapter titles in this review as they were written in the book I changed them a bit. I think my titles explain the contents of the book better. I also found the list of TEN (10) basic categories of responses to an ask included in the book to be way too long. I'm familiar with there being just four: (1) Yes I will give, (2) No I won't give, (3) That's too much, and (4) Let me think about it and get back to you. And there was some overlap of "guiding principles" included at page 213 of the book - so I think there could have been fewer principles included in that list.

I have a feeling this book will get its most use from board members of nonprofits and leadership teams heading up capital campaigns at nonprofits. It is my understanding that most people involved in major gift solicitations at the big nonprofits (schools and hospitals) already have a system in place for helping major gift solicitors feel at ease doing an ask and doing it well. In fact, this book is probably a public version of one of those schools' in-house guides. 5 stars!

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Just for Big $$$, February 10, 2006

By 

Fred A. Matthews "Director, Encore Pathways" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ask: How to Ask Anyone for Any Amount for Any Purpose (Hardcover)

One of the best things about The Ask is it is not just about major gifts. Fredricks outlines how to seek donations for special events (auctions, luncheons, golf tournaments)and the annual fund as well as major and planned gifts and capital gifts. She also guides the reader through overcoming personal factors in money that can make a person hesitate or even indefinitely postpone an ask. She directs "the asker" to consider the prospect's views on money before asking, too. There is also an outline of the "essential elements" for any kind of ask from which both novice and experienced askers can benefit. This is one of the best of its type around!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Ask, March 8, 2007

By 

C. Jenkinson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ask: How to Ask Anyone for Any Amount for Any Purpose (Hardcover)

I find this book to be very detailed and specific, giving useful examples of how to exercise the theories of fundraising covered in the book.

However, the book is extremely America-centric. Most other countries have not caught up to America in the field of philanthropy. For this reason many of the recommendations cannot be adopted or need to be scaled down for Australian fundraisers.