Course Overview

Introduction to Relational Fundraising

An invitation is not the same thing as an ask.

About the Course

Most fundraising is structured around "the ask," a conversation designed to secure a commitment from someone who has resources. Even when it's done warmly and professionally, the underlying frame is transactional: you need something, they have it, the goal is to close the gap.

Mi's approach replaces the ask with the invitation, a genuinely different posture that honors champion dignity, trusts the Spirit's work, and produces relationships that outlast any single campaign.

This course introduces the anatomy of a genuine invitation, explains why cultivation long before the conversation is where relational fundraising really happens, and previews the Fundraising Campaign Plan you'll build throughout this topic,  a plan designed to deepen champion relationships while meeting financial goals, not despite them.
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Course Outline

Frequently asked questions

Is this approach realistic when we have actual budget needs and deadlines?

Yes, and this is where Mi's approach is often misunderstood. Relational fundraising doesn't mean slow fundraising or passive fundraising. It means fundraising that builds toward specific invitations with genuine relational preparation behind them. Campaigns designed relationally typically produce stronger results than urgency-driven ones, not just in the short term but over the full arc of champion relationships. The Foundational course in this topic, Fundraising Campaigns, goes deep on the practical mechanics.

We don't have a major gifts program; most of our funding comes from small donors. Is this course relevant to us?

Absolutely. The invitation posture applies to every financial ask, not just major gifts. Whether you're asking someone to join a monthly giving program, respond to an annual fund appeal, or consider a significant gift, the difference between invitation and extraction shapes the experience and the outcome. This course addresses that posture in ways that apply at every gift level.

What's the difference between this topic and Transformational Giving?

Transformational Giving covers the philosophy and theology behind Mi's approach, why fundraising is ministry, the Ten Principles, the abundance mindset. Relational Fundraising applies those convictions to specific tactics: campaigns, major gift cultivation, cause positioning, and champion appreciation. The two topics are deeply related, but they work at different levels of abstraction.

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