We don’t just count the number of actions in assessing our cultivation record; we look at the quality of the interactions themselves. More is not always better—highly personal contacts are. As useful as email is, for example, it is a third-tier form of cultivation. Here is how I rank cultivation actions:
High Touch – Most Valued
- Solicitation in-person
- Meeting (not including board committee meetings)
- Visited contact
- Breakfast/Lunch
- Campus tour
- Conversation
Medium Touch – Valued
- Dropped by
- Proposal
- Phone call
- Personal letter (even a personal acknowledgment letter)
- Note
Low Touch – Less Valued
- Left message
- Fax
Therefore, a visit trumps a phone call, which, in turn, trumps an email.