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Example: How Higher Fundraising Costs Raised Revenue at a Medical Center

By  Holly Hall
May 18, 2015

From 1993 to 2013, the Maine Medical Center increased its fundraising returns by more than 600 percent, to more than $11.4 million, under the leadership of Susan Doliner, vice president for development.

During that same period, the organization greatly expanded its fundraising budget. By 2013 it was spending more than $1.6 million on its fundraising operation, an increase of 255 percent.

May 15 Maine Medical Chart 2

The chart above shows the rise of the medical center’s fundraising costs and returns for those 21 years. The organization achieved net returns ranging from $351 for every dollar spent when it was hiring new staff and gearing up for a campaign to $1,070 during one of its big fundraising drives.

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From 1993 to 2013, the Maine Medical Center increased its fundraising returns by more than 600 percent, to more than $11.4 million, under the leadership of Susan Doliner, vice president for development.

During that same period, the organization greatly expanded its fundraising budget. By 2013 it was spending more than $1.6 million on its fundraising operation, an increase of 255 percent.

May 15 Maine Medical Chart 2

The chart above shows the rise of the medical center’s fundraising costs and returns for those 21 years. The organization achieved net returns ranging from $351 for every dollar spent when it was hiring new staff and gearing up for a campaign to $1,070 during one of its big fundraising drives.

The chart and attached table, which includes a simple calculator to find your cost to raise a dollar, may help you make a case to a skeptical trustee or chief executive for a bigger investment in fundraising.

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  • Example: How Higher Fundraising Costs Raised Revenue at a Medical Center
Read other items in this How to Budget for Fundraising Growth package.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
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