Finding Your Real Top 25 Donor Prospects

Drowning in “prospect” names? If your major gift list looks impressive on paper but doesn’t translate into actual conversations or gifts, you’re not alone. I’ve sat with teams staring at hundreds of “top prospects” and quietly thinking, “Where do we even start?” In my latest episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast, I share how I helped one nonprofit narrow 600+ “major gift prospects” down to a focused Top 25 using simple donor signals, capacity, affinity, and engagement, not just wealth. We didn’t buy new software. We just read the data you already have in a different way. I walk you through: How to spot your real Top 25 using signals hiding in your CRM 💡 A simple 1–5 scoring system you can build in an afternoon A weekly review ritual to stay focused (even when you’re stretched thin) Where light AI and automation can quietly do the heavy lifting for you 🤖 Imagine looking at your portfolio and knowing exactly who to call first this week, because the data and the story are both pointing in the same direction. What would change for your organization if your Top 25 were crystal clear, and everyone on your team agreed on who they are? 🎧 Tune in and if this episode helps you breathe a little easier about major gifts, share it with your ED/DD or a colleague who needs this clarity too. Resources: Show notes, links, and resources mentioned in this episode. Review my show: Please review my show. After you click the link, scroll to the bottom, first tap to rate with five stars, and then tap “Write a Review.” Then, let me know what you liked most about this particular episode or how you find my podcast helpful, valuable, insightful, or inspiring in some way. Privacy Policy: See Privacy Policy at https://www.fundraisingtransformed.com/policies Newsletter: Subscribe to my Scaling Major Gifts weekly newsletter. Mentioned in this episode: Practivated Launchpad You just hired a fundraiser. The search took months. Now comes the hard part: getting them ready to sit across from donors. That's why our partners at Practivated built Launchpad, a 30-day onboarding program built on your organization's own mission, case for support and campaign messaging. Your new hire learns your story, gets coaching from Coach Tivy, and takes reps in realistic donor conversations made for their role. And you see their progress from the manager view. The result? New hires ready in four weeks instead of twelve. At the University of Central Florida, five of six new hires who went through Launchpad were promoted in their first year. Get your next hire to full stride faster. Book a demo at practivated.com/launchpad.