By Kathryn Masterson

While donations of $1-million or more are down for colleges and other nonprofit organizations, there are still donors who can and want to make big gifts, a trio of fund-raising experts said Tuesday. Such philanthropists are no longer easy to find, however, and colleges must be creative in how they identify and solicit them.

The three experts—Robert F. Hartsook, a fund-raising consultant who works with colleges and other nonprofit organizations; Robert E. Carter, a philanthropy consultant who works with individual and corporate donors; and Lisa Thomson, associate director of gift planning for the Nature Conservancy—shared their tips for seeking big gifts during tough times in an online discussion moderated by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Mr. Hartsook, chairman of Hartsook Companies, predicted that giving for unrestricted purposes would continue to decline, and said that fund raisers should look for new ways to structure pledges or ask to be included in a donor's estate plan. His advice to seek bequests echoed what many fund-raising consultants are suggesting that colleges do when loyal donors are unable to make outright gifts.

Colleges may need to change the way they recognize donors, Mr. Hartsook said, because philanthropists may not want recognition now. (Giving anonymously makes it more difficult for other nonprofit organizations to identify and solicit them.) One client Mr. Hartsook is working with recently received an $18-millon gift from someone who did not want any recognition because his company was experiencing problems.

Ms. Thomson said she has seen recent success with big gifts when very wealthy donors, who are still in a position to give, are presented with a "big dream" proposal that matches their philanthropic vision. She continues to talk and meet several times a year with major donors who are unable to continue their level of giving. One couple in that situation has included the Nature Conservancy in their wills.

Some wealthy donors are willing to increase their giving because they know other donors who supported the organization in the past are struggling, said Mr. Carter, who is vice chairman of Changing Our World, a philanthropic-services company. He cited an example of a donor who annually makes a big gift to a certain charity and is now considering making a megagift because the donor wants to see the charity flourish.

Often, those donors who are increasing their giving to one organization are doing so by eliminating donations to charities they feel less connected to, Mr. Carter said.

Other tips for college fund raisers included:

• Seek supporters outside of the alumni base that care about your institution's success, including businesses interested in a college's research or in hiring graduates.
• Shift the focus from "long shot" prospects to stewardship and cultivation of current donors.
• Look at the sectors of the economy that are doing well.
• Don't shy away from campaigns. If a college isn't out soliciting donors, another organization will get their charitable contributions.