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The relationship graph

Fundraising runs on introductions. The relationship graph records who is connected to whom, so the route to a person you want is something you can look up rather than something you happen to remember.

What it holds

Section titled “What it holds”

Around each record sits the people and organizations connected to them. Family sits closest. Professional connections sit further out. Affiliations like a board seat or a company they own sit on the edge.

A relationship graph around one donorMargaret Okonkwo sits at the centre. Solid family ties connect her to her spouse David Okonkwo and her daughter Nia Okonkwo. Dashed professional ties connect her to Thornbury Wealth, where she is a partner, and to the Kettle Valley Arts Foundation, where she sits on the board. A second dashed tie connects Thornbury Wealth to your own board member Alice Tremblay, who works there. So the route to the foundation runs from your board member through her employer to Margaret, two introductions rather than a cold approach.spousedaughterpartner atboard seatemploysMargaret Okonkwothe donor you are workingMODODavid OkonkwoNONia OkonkwoThornburyWealthKettle ValleyArts FoundationATAlice Tremblayyour boardfamily, stableprofessional, changesThe route in runs Alice, Thornbury, Margaret. Two introductions, not a cold letter.

The argument for keeping it current

Section titled “The argument for keeping it current”

The picture above contains the reason. The foundation you want to reach is two steps from a board member you already have. Nobody would find that by reading a donor list, and everybody would find it by looking at the graph.

The connection you need is rarely the obvious one. It is a board member’s employer, a donor’s daughter, a supplier who sits on a committee. These are facts somebody at your organization knows and nobody has written down.

Households and couples

Section titled “Households and couples”

A couple who give jointly are two people worked as one. Keep them as two records and connect them, rather than merging them into a single entry.

That distinction matters when you write to them, when one of them dies, when they separate, and when only one of them is the connection to your board.

Organizations

Section titled “Organizations”

A foundation, a business or a government funder is a record in its own right, connected to the people who represent it. When the programme officer moves on, the institutional relationship survives and you can see who else you know there.

Keeping it honest

Section titled “Keeping it honest”

The graph is only as good as what is in it, and there is no way to populate it automatically. Two habits are enough:

  • When you learn a connection, record it. Thirty seconds, on the record, at the time.
  • When you record a meeting, note who else was mentioned.

Professional ties change. People move jobs and leave boards, and a five-year-old employer is not current fact. Record the date you learned a connection, so the next person to read it knows how much to trust it.

Next

Section titled “Next”