A capital campaign feasibility study is designed to answer some important questions before a nonprofit launches a major fundraising effort. Is the vision compelling? Is the goal realistic? Will donors support it? Is the organization ready?
But a good feasibility study can do something else, too: uncover possibilities you may not have considered.
The Quad City Symphony Orchestra offers a great example.
The Quad City Symphony Orchestra had a clear need. Its growing programs needed more rehearsal and training space, and the organization had a vision for a new home and performing arts center.
Amperage led the Symphony through a feasibility study to explore that vision, test its potential and better understand how the community might respond.
During that process, St. Ambrose University stepped forward as a significant potential funder. What followed was an even bigger conversation. The university had similar needs for updated rehearsal and performance space. The two organizations began exploring what they might accomplish together.
That exploration ultimately led to the Building Harmony campaign, a combined $24 million effort, with each organization responsible for raising $12 million toward a shared music center in downtown Davenport.
“The study explored that and really brought that potential partnership to life,” said Bryan Earnest, owner, CEO & president of Amperage Marketing + Fundraising.
The lesson is not that every feasibility study will suddenly produce a new partner. It is that the process needs to leave room for discovery.
The Symphony could have approached its study simply looking for confirmation that it could raise money for a new facility. Instead, the process created an opportunity to explore who else might see value in the idea, what needs might overlap and whether there was a more ambitious way forward.
In this case, there was.
The partnership also created efficiencies. St. Ambrose students can use the shared space as part of the university schedule, while Symphony programs serving younger students and adults often take place during evenings and weekends.
And by locating the music center downtown rather than on a college campus, the project has the potential to contribute to a growing arts destination and broader economic development in Davenport.
What began as a need for more space became a larger community investment.
That is part of the value of asking not only, “Can we do this?” but also, “What else could be possible?”
There is another important piece of this story.
Both organizations came to the campaign with strong fundraising experience and, importantly, established donor relationships. Those relationships were not created when the campaign began. They had been built over time through engagement, stewardship and personal connection.
That foundation matters when a nonprofit is asking donors to consider significant gifts.
Fundraising technology and tactics are valuable. A strong CRM matters. Email, direct mail, text-to-give and digital giving tools all have a role, but major gift fundraising is still deeply personal.
Donors who are asked to make meaningful investments generally have a relationship with the organization. They know its work. They have been engaged in its mission. Someone has taken the time to understand what matters to them and maintain that connection.
A capital campaign is not the time to begin building those relationships. It is when years of good donor cultivation can begin to pay off.
There are two lessons worth taking from the Building Harmony story.
First, use a feasibility study to explore, not simply validate. Go into the process prepared to listen to donors, community leaders and potential partners. Test the assumptions behind the project. Ask why — and why not. The original vision may be right. Or the process may reveal an opportunity to make it bigger, stronger or more achievable.
Second, do not wait for a campaign to invest in donor relationships. Cultivation and stewardship are ongoing work. The trust built today can make an ambitious idea possible years from now.
A feasibility study can help uncover what is possible. Strong relationships can help turn that possibility into reality.
If you’re ready to explore what’s possible with a feasibility study, talk to the Amperage team of experienced fundraising advisers. Contact us today.
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