CFRE FINAL EXAM ACTUAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
SURE A+
✔✔STEP ONE - Examine the Case - ✔✔Examine the Case
1. A planning checklist
2. the sum of all reasons why anyone should give a gift
3. how NPO meets clearly defined and understood community needs
4. illustrates how the nonprofit serves the community, provides benefits and adds value
✔✔STEP TWO - ✔✔Analyze Market Requirements
1. NPO tests its mission articulated in the Case against the wants and needs of the
market or gift sources
2. If the markets do not understand or accept the needs of the NPO, then obstacles
3. IF the market doesn't know of the NPO, FR is not possible
4. Donors give to NPO they care about that addresses needs they care about
✔✔STEP THREE - ✔✔Prepare Needs Statement
1. the plan for carrying out the work to mission fulfillment
2. Program plans
+ Financial plans
+ Sources of revenue
= Justification for FR
✔✔STEP FOUR - ✔✔Define Objectives
Mission statement explains WHY
Goal statements tell WHAT
Objectives state HOW
SMARTR
Specific, measurable, achievable, results, time determined, realistic
✔✔STEP FIVE - ✔✔Involve Volunteers
1. involves carrying out effective FR strategies
2. an effective gift solicitor is one who believes in and is committed to the case
✔✔STEP SIX - ✔✔Validate Needs Statement
1. involve volunteers to validate needs statement
2. constant validation by board and other volunteers
3. validation important before launching the FR campaign
✔✔STEP SEVEN - ✔✔Evaluate Gift Markets
1. to determine their ability and perceived willingness to fund NPO programs through
gifts
2. make informed judgments about which markets to approach and the gift amounts to
be sought
,3. most likely sources are individuals, corporations, foundations, associations, and
governments
✔✔STEP EIGHT - ✔✔Select FR vehicles - strategies
1. FR staff selects the most effective techniques in each market
2. Direct mail, phonathons, events, grants, personal solicitation, recognition groups,
email and internet
3. Diversification is KEY
✔✔FR Programs - ✔✔1. Annual Fund
2. Special or major gifts
3. Capital campaigns
4. Endowment programs
5. Planned giving
✔✔Successful FR program - ✔✔1. Analyze the methods
2. test various ones
3. analyze effectiveness through cost benefit ratios and other measures of success
4. LT sustained effectiveness matches various methods to the fits sources to see what
works best in the markets
✔✔STEP NINE - ✔✔Identify Various Gift Sources
1. distills and refines the gift market into lists of prospective donors
2. each prospect is qualified by 3 criteria
- linkage
- ability to give at the level being sought
- interest in the organization's work
✔✔STEP TEN - ✔✔FR Plan
1. A call to action
2. How much will be raised
3. for what programs
4. in what time frame
5. using what methods
6. ID roles of staff and volunteers
✔✔Keys to successful FR plan - ✔✔Prospective donors understand mission and FR
plan
✔✔STEP ELEVEN - ✔✔Prepare Communications Plan
1. People give money to people and causes they care about
2. Communications must stir the emotions and intellects
,✔✔Goal of Communications - ✔✔to lead the prospective donor to an understanding
and acceptance of the NPO and its purposes and create a desire to share in seeing that
the mission is fulfilled
✔✔Two Way Communications - ✔✔1. a means for donors to express concerns
2. exchange of values
✔✔Relationships - ✔✔1. FR is about relationships built on mutual interests and
concerns
2. People give to people with causes
✔✔STEP TWELVE - ✔✔Activate Volunteer Corps
1. using volunteer advocates is compelling
2. trend is to rely on staff to solicit gifts especially major ones
3. NPOs must renew and expand volunteer corps to expand base of donors
4. One volunteer is needed for every five personal solicitations
✔✔STEP THIRTEEN - ✔✔SOLICITATION
1. Represents carrying out the FR plan
2. Culmination of previous steps
3. Making the case
4. Expalining his level of commitment
5. Inviting prospective donor to join in the fulfillment of the mission
6. Is dignified process of asking with pride for a philanthropic gift to carry out impt work
of NPO
✔✔STEP FOURTEEN - ✔✔STEWARDSHIP
1. Soliciting and receiving the gift is the beginning of a deepening relationship between
donor and npo
2. Proper gratitude and acknowledgement by the NPO
3. NPO discloses how the gift will be used and demonstrate accountability and
stewardship in use of gift
✔✔GIFT Renewal Possibility - ✔✔1. When donors are properly thanked
2. Use of gift is reported
3. Demonstration of wise stewardship is evident
4. Restarts the FR cycle
✔✔PROCESS - ✔✔FR is a multi disciplined process requiring extensive involvement of
staff and volunteers in a series of interrelated steps described in the FR cycle!!!
✔✔What are the main responsibilities of a fund raiser? - ✔✔1. Manage the process
2. Serve as a catalyst
3. Serve as a coach for all involved
, ✔✔How can a NPO engage its volunteers and raise philanthropic dollars? - ✔✔On
organizational strengths that reflect its understanding of the external environment.
✔✔Explain the 'connected' concept - ✔✔1. NPO must be connected to its external
environment
2. NPO must understand changing needs of the external environment and understand
its ability to respond to human and financial resources to remain functional
3. NPO must have management structures in place that interpret its mission in relation
to changing external needs
4. NPO tendency toward a closed or open system relative to the external environment
has an impact on fundraising
✔✔What is a Closed System? - ✔✔NPO that doesn't need others
1. NPO have a tendency to be closed
2. The attempt to build endowments reflect that tendency
3. A fully endowed NPO can become a closed system irrelevant to the common good
and vulnerable to decline
✔✔What is an Open System? - ✔✔NPO that is open to ideas of their external
enviroment
1. When NPOs desire a broad base of support or seek wider influence they must be
open systems
2. Open system theory assumes tht orgs are not independent of their external
environments and that they have impact on and are affected by their environments
✔✔What is Harmony? - ✔✔1. Many NPOs cannot and should not be fully responsive to
the market in order to enhance FRing
2. NPOs must remain in harmony with the values and mission for which they were
founded.
3. NPOs with strong internal value systems that give rise to their mission should
become highly responsive by actively involving their clients and potential contributors in
the NPOs affairs
4. FRing success depends on the sensitive inclusion of potential supporters in the life
and spirit of the org
✔✔Entrepreneurship - ✔✔1. NPOs today are vulnerable to concepts of social
entrepreneurship and market orientation
2. Donors push NPOs towards operating more market based services, using a business
model, with a focus on the bottom line.
3. Some NPOs have to deal with external pressures to balance the bottom line interests
of donors / board members with top line mission
✔✔Profit v. Nonprofit - ✔✔1. NPOs do not exist to generate profits but long term
survival depends on good business practices
SURE A+
✔✔STEP ONE - Examine the Case - ✔✔Examine the Case
1. A planning checklist
2. the sum of all reasons why anyone should give a gift
3. how NPO meets clearly defined and understood community needs
4. illustrates how the nonprofit serves the community, provides benefits and adds value
✔✔STEP TWO - ✔✔Analyze Market Requirements
1. NPO tests its mission articulated in the Case against the wants and needs of the
market or gift sources
2. If the markets do not understand or accept the needs of the NPO, then obstacles
3. IF the market doesn't know of the NPO, FR is not possible
4. Donors give to NPO they care about that addresses needs they care about
✔✔STEP THREE - ✔✔Prepare Needs Statement
1. the plan for carrying out the work to mission fulfillment
2. Program plans
+ Financial plans
+ Sources of revenue
= Justification for FR
✔✔STEP FOUR - ✔✔Define Objectives
Mission statement explains WHY
Goal statements tell WHAT
Objectives state HOW
SMARTR
Specific, measurable, achievable, results, time determined, realistic
✔✔STEP FIVE - ✔✔Involve Volunteers
1. involves carrying out effective FR strategies
2. an effective gift solicitor is one who believes in and is committed to the case
✔✔STEP SIX - ✔✔Validate Needs Statement
1. involve volunteers to validate needs statement
2. constant validation by board and other volunteers
3. validation important before launching the FR campaign
✔✔STEP SEVEN - ✔✔Evaluate Gift Markets
1. to determine their ability and perceived willingness to fund NPO programs through
gifts
2. make informed judgments about which markets to approach and the gift amounts to
be sought
,3. most likely sources are individuals, corporations, foundations, associations, and
governments
✔✔STEP EIGHT - ✔✔Select FR vehicles - strategies
1. FR staff selects the most effective techniques in each market
2. Direct mail, phonathons, events, grants, personal solicitation, recognition groups,
email and internet
3. Diversification is KEY
✔✔FR Programs - ✔✔1. Annual Fund
2. Special or major gifts
3. Capital campaigns
4. Endowment programs
5. Planned giving
✔✔Successful FR program - ✔✔1. Analyze the methods
2. test various ones
3. analyze effectiveness through cost benefit ratios and other measures of success
4. LT sustained effectiveness matches various methods to the fits sources to see what
works best in the markets
✔✔STEP NINE - ✔✔Identify Various Gift Sources
1. distills and refines the gift market into lists of prospective donors
2. each prospect is qualified by 3 criteria
- linkage
- ability to give at the level being sought
- interest in the organization's work
✔✔STEP TEN - ✔✔FR Plan
1. A call to action
2. How much will be raised
3. for what programs
4. in what time frame
5. using what methods
6. ID roles of staff and volunteers
✔✔Keys to successful FR plan - ✔✔Prospective donors understand mission and FR
plan
✔✔STEP ELEVEN - ✔✔Prepare Communications Plan
1. People give money to people and causes they care about
2. Communications must stir the emotions and intellects
,✔✔Goal of Communications - ✔✔to lead the prospective donor to an understanding
and acceptance of the NPO and its purposes and create a desire to share in seeing that
the mission is fulfilled
✔✔Two Way Communications - ✔✔1. a means for donors to express concerns
2. exchange of values
✔✔Relationships - ✔✔1. FR is about relationships built on mutual interests and
concerns
2. People give to people with causes
✔✔STEP TWELVE - ✔✔Activate Volunteer Corps
1. using volunteer advocates is compelling
2. trend is to rely on staff to solicit gifts especially major ones
3. NPOs must renew and expand volunteer corps to expand base of donors
4. One volunteer is needed for every five personal solicitations
✔✔STEP THIRTEEN - ✔✔SOLICITATION
1. Represents carrying out the FR plan
2. Culmination of previous steps
3. Making the case
4. Expalining his level of commitment
5. Inviting prospective donor to join in the fulfillment of the mission
6. Is dignified process of asking with pride for a philanthropic gift to carry out impt work
of NPO
✔✔STEP FOURTEEN - ✔✔STEWARDSHIP
1. Soliciting and receiving the gift is the beginning of a deepening relationship between
donor and npo
2. Proper gratitude and acknowledgement by the NPO
3. NPO discloses how the gift will be used and demonstrate accountability and
stewardship in use of gift
✔✔GIFT Renewal Possibility - ✔✔1. When donors are properly thanked
2. Use of gift is reported
3. Demonstration of wise stewardship is evident
4. Restarts the FR cycle
✔✔PROCESS - ✔✔FR is a multi disciplined process requiring extensive involvement of
staff and volunteers in a series of interrelated steps described in the FR cycle!!!
✔✔What are the main responsibilities of a fund raiser? - ✔✔1. Manage the process
2. Serve as a catalyst
3. Serve as a coach for all involved
, ✔✔How can a NPO engage its volunteers and raise philanthropic dollars? - ✔✔On
organizational strengths that reflect its understanding of the external environment.
✔✔Explain the 'connected' concept - ✔✔1. NPO must be connected to its external
environment
2. NPO must understand changing needs of the external environment and understand
its ability to respond to human and financial resources to remain functional
3. NPO must have management structures in place that interpret its mission in relation
to changing external needs
4. NPO tendency toward a closed or open system relative to the external environment
has an impact on fundraising
✔✔What is a Closed System? - ✔✔NPO that doesn't need others
1. NPO have a tendency to be closed
2. The attempt to build endowments reflect that tendency
3. A fully endowed NPO can become a closed system irrelevant to the common good
and vulnerable to decline
✔✔What is an Open System? - ✔✔NPO that is open to ideas of their external
enviroment
1. When NPOs desire a broad base of support or seek wider influence they must be
open systems
2. Open system theory assumes tht orgs are not independent of their external
environments and that they have impact on and are affected by their environments
✔✔What is Harmony? - ✔✔1. Many NPOs cannot and should not be fully responsive to
the market in order to enhance FRing
2. NPOs must remain in harmony with the values and mission for which they were
founded.
3. NPOs with strong internal value systems that give rise to their mission should
become highly responsive by actively involving their clients and potential contributors in
the NPOs affairs
4. FRing success depends on the sensitive inclusion of potential supporters in the life
and spirit of the org
✔✔Entrepreneurship - ✔✔1. NPOs today are vulnerable to concepts of social
entrepreneurship and market orientation
2. Donors push NPOs towards operating more market based services, using a business
model, with a focus on the bottom line.
3. Some NPOs have to deal with external pressures to balance the bottom line interests
of donors / board members with top line mission
✔✔Profit v. Nonprofit - ✔✔1. NPOs do not exist to generate profits but long term
survival depends on good business practices
