Why It’s Not “Events or Major Donors”—It’s Both

Recently, I received a comment that I’ve been hearing more and more in nonprofit circles:

“I will say that in recent years we have received counsel that we should focus new fundraising efforts on meeting one-on-one with donors instead of adding new events. The data shows that the rate of funds received to the number of staff hours spent is more efficient with direct asks instead of planning and running events.”

And honestly, I agree. But also, I don’t.

Let me explain.

If you’re looking strictly at efficiency, staff hours versus dollars raised, nothing beats a well-executed, face-to-face ask. Sitting across from a donor, sharing vision, and making a clear invitation to give is where transformational gifts happen. As a nonprofit director, I’ve seen it firsthand. Major gifts don’t come from mass emails. They don’t come from social media posts. And they rarely come from events alone. They come from relationships.

So yes, if your organization is not prioritizing one-on-one donor development, you are leaving money on the table.

The danger is when that truth turns into the conclusion that we should stop doing events. That’s where things start to fall apart.

Because events, when done right, are not primarily about raising money. They are about creating momentum, identifying donors, and accelerating relationships.

One-on-one meetings are where the largest gifts are secured, but events are often where those donors are first inspired, first connected, and first exposed to your mission in a compelling way. A great event does something a coffee meeting simply cannot do. It creates a shared emotional experience. It allows people to hear the vision, see impact stories, feel part of something bigger, and take a first step toward engagement.

And maybe most importantly, it helps you figure out who to follow up with.

The most effective fundraising strategies do not choose between events and individual asks. They connect them.

A healthy system creates inspiration and visibility through events, engages new and existing donors at a deeper level, identifies who is ready for a next step, and then follows up with intentional one-on-one meetings where major gifts are secured.

Without events, your pipeline shrinks. Without one-on-ones, your impact plateaus.

The real question is not whether to do events or not. The real question is whether your events are designed to move people toward deeper engagement, whether you are capturing and following up with the right people, and whether your one-on-one meetings are fueled by a steady stream of new and inspired supporters.

When those pieces are aligned, events stop being a drain on resources and start becoming a force multiplier.

If you only do events, you will struggle to maximize giving. If you only do one-on-one asks, you will eventually run out of people to ask. But when you do both, intentionally and strategically, you build something every nonprofit is looking for: a sustainable, growing base of deeply committed supporters.