Money Is Power
A Guide to Building Your Fundraising List
Turn connections to contributions with this simple tactic.
Here’s the thing: you can do fundraising the easy way or the hard way.
With the hard way, you’re relying only on calling strangers, working to explain who you are and convincing them to trust you from zero rapport — assuming they don’t hang up on you within five seconds.
With the easy way, you’re reaching out to people who not only know you but like you already. You’re fundraising with a significant headstart.
In this guide, we’re going to teach you how to rolodex. If you don’t know what rolodexing is, we recommend reading this article to give you context on what this is and why this is the first thing you should do when building a fundraising plan.
You’ll be turning your personal contact list into a political list that will save you untold amounts of frustration and earn you thousands of dollars. Plus, a political list will go far beyond your fundraising program — it’ll save you hours, expand your reach, and set you up to build power for years to come.
If you want extra support while going through this guide, don’t hesitate to book a FREE 15-minute strategy session with us to see what we can do for you and your campaign or organization.
To prepare, make sure you have a computer, access to the internet, and some time to spare. Let’s get started!
How To Rolodex: A Step-By-Step Guide
Step 1: Make a spreadsheet.
We recommend starting with our rolodexing template. You can download it here! Feel free to rename and fit this template to your needs. The template already has the recommended boxes filled out and formatted for easy use.
If you want to start from scratch, Excel, Google Sheets, Airtable or anything you use to make spreadsheets will work.
At the top, create the following columns:
It should look like the screenshot above.
Step 2: Download your contacts.
Start with your cell, email, and LinkedIn contacts.
Depending on your service providers, the process is different. Google “how to download contacts from [insert app or provider here].”
Once it’s all downloaded, format and enter them into the spreadsheet that you created in the previous step. If you aren’t able to fill out every column, that’s okay, but do your best to enter as much information as you can.
Finally, label each contact based on what network you know them from (see the next step for tips).
Step 3: Think through your networks.
This and the next step will take a while, so make sure you block out lots of time for this task. It might feel tedious, but being thorough is crucial if you want the results.
In this step, you’ll think through your networks and communities to help you identify everyone who is connected to you and might support you. Again, even if you don’t know them that well, if you aren’t on bad terms, put them on the list.
Here are some examples to get you started:
All relatives and their families
Cousins from all sides, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles, partners and children of all
Family friends
Childhood friends, your parents’ friends, neighbors, etc.
Friends and early connections
Friends from elementary, middle and high school
Teachers, coaches, teammates and all their families from K-12
Later life connections
Friends, professors, TAs, roommates, classmates, and teammates from college (including Graduate/Continuing Education Programs)
Old romantic partners (and their parents/families)
Neighbors
Work connections
Bosses, supervisors, colleagues, staff, and acquaintances from all current and past employers
All the old business cards you have stuffed in a drawer
Community and volunteer connections
Democratic Clubs / Community Organizations / Nonprofits
Churches
PTAs / Carpools / Neighborhood groups
Social media
All of your LinkedIn connections
Facebook friends
Folks you engage with regularly on Twitter / Instagram / other platforms
Printable Network Checklist
If you want to keep track of this easily, feel free to download our PDF checklist to track your progress as you do this exercise.
Remember: this will take a while, but it’s worth it to spend the time and do this right.
And of course, once you’ve identified all of the people in these networks, add them to your spreadsheet.
Again, enter what information you can. If you don’t know it, look it up.
Step 4: Write single sentence bios of yourself.
It’s time to get reflective.
You don’t need to get existential, but this will help you think through people you’ve met over the course of your life so ensure you’re not missing folks who should be on your list.
Write a short biography of yourself in chronological order. List these out in one sentence each. Under every life event, list the names of people attached to those events. For example:
I was born in Louisiana.
Name
Name
Name
I went to John Doe Elementary School.
Name
Name
Name
I moved to Virginia.
Name
Name
Name
On and on through high school, college/trade school, all your odd jobs and your career, any moves (neighbors can be donors too!) and any other life phases or milestones.
Add new names to the spreadsheet.
Biography Worksheet Templates
If you prefer to brainstorm on paper or do this separately to keep your main spreadsheet organized, feel free to print the paper worksheet below — just remember that all of this information should go back to your master list.
Step 5: Contact your list.
This is the part where it all pays off. You’ve taken the time to find everyone you know who can support you; now it’s time to make the asks.
Call the ones you can, email the ones you don’t have phone numbers for (or do both) and start making your asks.
Of course, the main ask is fundraising. Make sure you name a specific dollar amount.
Don’t be discouraged by a no, though. You can always pivot to another ask. This is a great time to also ask if:
They want to join your volunteer list.
They want to sign up for your newsletter.
They want to follow you for updates on socials.
There are endless options for you to choose from at this point. Now it’s time to collect the rewards. Some tips for you while you contact your list:
1. Clean your list before starting. Delete duplicates and obsolete contact info. You’ll save time by not calling nonexistent numbers or tanking your deliverability with bad emails.
2. Make the hard ask. This is a great time to rekindle relationships, but don’t just have fun and leave empty-handed. If they say no, that’s still better than not trying at all. For tips on how to make a hard ask, read this article.
3. Be confident and specific. Don’t just say, “I’m running for office. Any chance you want to support my campaign?” Ask for specific dollar amounts, availability for a certain shift, etc.
4. Don’t be afraid of rejection. Not everyone is going to be a yes. But your rolodexing list is still going to have a much higher probability of success than calls to random people.
5. Persistence pays off. If they say no to donating, what about volunteering? If not now, can you follow up later? Don’t lose hope and give up after a half-hearted try. You’ll be surprised how much people are willing to support you.
Things to remember:
Don’t skip people just because you’re missing their contact info! Record the information you have, and find their contact information later. The most important thing is filling your list.
Take your (or your team’s) time to get this done right. This isn’t a short task, but it’s one that’s well worth the investment.
This spreadsheet will eventually become the backbone of your donor list, email list, volunteer list, endorsement list, and much more. Fill out as many people as you know.
Keep adding to it! If it’s been a few years since you’ve audited your connections, it’s probably a good time to rolodex again. Life moves fast, and you meet more people than you think.
Great job!
Make a spreadsheet.
Download your contacts.
Think through your networks.
Write single-sentence biographies.
Contact your list.
Now you have a rolodexing list. To recap:
Good luck! If you’re ready to take the next step, book a FREE 15-minute strategy session today! We’ll help you figure out what you need next in your campaign and how we can help you get there.
We also regularly publish free guidance on fundraising, field strategy, GOTV, and more on our blog — check it out now and follow us on social to stay up-to-date on new posts!
This guide was written by the Evinco Strategies Fundraising Department.