

Can a Virtual Tour Help Secure A Multi-Million-Dollar Gift?
By Daniel Lindley
If your capital campaign for a building project has stalled, taking prospective donors on a virtual tour of the proposed new construction can get things moving again, says Carolyn M. Appleton, major gift fundraising executive of carolynmappleton.com (Austin, TX).
That’s what happened in the early aughts, when Appleton teamed up with architects to produce a virtual tour for a proposed new wing at the Art Museum of South Texas in Corpus Christi. Within three years, the revived campaign brought in about $5 million, allowing construction to begin.
“It was a really successful partnership,” Appleton says. “The virtual tour totally changed the game. It was a showstopper. For prospective donors, it was like, ‘I get it now.’”
The museum had been relying mainly on PowerPoint presentations with “flat” architectural renderings to promote the project. But people just couldn’t get excited about the presentations and an accompanying glossy brochure, Appleton says, and the campaign stagnated.
Brought in as a consultant, Appleton built a case statement containing all the facts and statistics any donor might want. But her real coup was to work with architects to create a virtual tour. Realizing that most architects use sophisticated software to create their own virtual reality renderings of projects to help themselves and clients better understand how construction will look when finished, she asked if the architects could adapt the tool for fundraising purposes.
The architects obliged, providing the virtual reality production at half price. Appleton and several board members showed the seven-minute video to prospects at the museum and visited other prospective donors. In those pre-YouTube days, Appleton and volunteers also mailed CDs containing the videos to prospects, foundations and others outside Corpus Christi.
Beginning with views of the exterior, the video brings viewers inside the new wing and gives them a look at a gift shop, gallery rooms complete with paintings hanging on the walls, a café and other spaces. Animated museum guests stroll through the rooms.
“Flat renderings are OK, but there’s nothing like a video tour to make a building look alive and like this is what you would be funding,” Appleton says. “It gave people confidence.”
Although creating a virtual reality rendering for fundraising costs money, of course, Appleton suspects that most architects would be happy to help nonprofits that want to try using this tool.
“Rely on your professionals,” she advises. “They obviously want their projects to be funded, and they’ll work to help you get there.” ◆
Source: Carolyn M. Appleton, Major Gift Fundraising Executive, Austin, TX. Phone (737) 300-7605. Email: carolyn@carolynmappleton.com Website: https://carolynmappleton.com
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Spell Out Responsibilities Before Hiring Counsel
Whenever you hire fundraising counsel, be sure to clarify the firm’s role, in writing, at the outset, to minimally include:
❏ What the firm will do for your organization. Describe various functions separately: internal audit, feasibility study, case statement development, etc.
❏ Names of people from the firm who will be responsible for specific roles: Who will be responsible for various aspects? Who will be primary contact? Who will make regular visits to your organization and/or with prospects or donors? Who will be responsible for making reports to you and your board?
❏ The timeline for consultant involvement. In addition to
an overall timeline, each component of the consultant’s responsibilities should include deadlines.
❏ Detailed fees and expenses. Some consultants have flat per diem rates while others charge according to type of job. Some even have different rates based on size of organization for which they are working. Most charge separately for expense reimbursement.
❏ An opt-out option. Any written agreement should allow you to discontinue work with the consultant if you choose: “This agreement may be cancelled upon 30 days written notice by either party.”