At some point in your fundraising career, you are going to have an upset donor who is angry with the organization, leadership, or the direction that the organization is going. It’s not a pleasant experience, but with some grace and skills, you will make it though it. You will experience upset donors. It’s part of having a relationship – there are ups and downs. If a prospect is really upset and threatening to pull their giving or something drastic, engage your manager. It might take more than just you to smooth things over. That’s okay, just remember, they are upset because they care. If they didn’t care about your organization, they wouldn’t get upset. It’s hard to remember that when you’re being yelled at or lectured, but try to center yourself in the comfort that they care.    

• If they didn’t care about your organization, they wouldn’t get upset. It’s hard to remember that when you’re being yelled at or lectured, but try to center yourself in the comfort that they care.
• When donors or prospects have strong feelings, listen, and try not to get defensive. 
• Sometimes people just need to be heard and acknowledged.

→ Download KPI's For Annual Giving

→ Join The Fundraising Collective 

→ Connect with Mary Petersen on LinkedIn
 → Join our Private Facebook Group

→ Schedule Your Free Gameplan Call with Mary

Stop having “nice meetings” that go nowhere. If you want meetings that end with momentum (next step + timeline + clarity), start here:

🔥 Major Donor Meeting Mastery — my step-by-step system for better donor meetings.
📘 Mary's book — grab the framework and major gift ask scripts.
🎥 Momentum Webinar — learn the core strategy in one sitting.

💻 Connect with Mary Petersen

• Website: www.heyfundraiser.com
• YouTube: @heyfundraisers
• Instagram: @heyfundraiser
• LinkedIn: Mary Petersen
• Email: [email protected]