Fundraising For Dummies 3e: Mutz, John, Murray, Katherine: 9780470568408: Amazon com: Books

You can position your organization to be prepared for the good times that will return (sooner or later) by completing some of the tasks we present in the next section. If you’re still unsure about how your organization will face the challenges ahead, the final section in this chapter may provide the encouragement you need to forge ahead. All the hardship you’re dealing with now offers you countless lessons to learn, and it may even result in a more efficient, focused, and streamlined organization. As your make your way over the many hurdles, you gather lots of wisdom from the experience.

Fundraising For Dummies, 3rd Edition

• Especially when daily news is filled with negativity, people love to hear a good story.
• We show you how to prepare and preserve your organization with your case statement in Chapter 4, and then we show you how to use it to build a full fundraising plan in Chapter 6.
• This means that unless you work in one of the few groups with an increase in giving, you are likely feeling the pinch in tough economic times, no matter where you’re fundraising, how well-known your organization may be, or how many successful campaigns you’ve run.
• Your organization can do the same today as you figure out how to do a better job of working with what you’ve got — doing more with less.
• Like the Olympic flame, your spark gets carried from person to person and warms the very lifeblood of your organization, whether you’re a volunteer, staff member, or board member.

The following sections discuss some key points to keep in mind as you promote your organization. Not only is that spark of passion the driving force behind your desire to help, but it’s also one of the best tools you can use as you fan the embers of possibility into a full fundraising flame. When you’re trying to fundraise in uncertain economic times, plugging in to your own passion — why you do what you do — is a vitally important part of telling your organization’s story with the energy that captures people’s attention. Chances are good that passion for a particular cause led you to fundraising in the first place.

As you can see, many of the challenges fundraisers face right now are really opportunities in disguise. An invitation to take a look at the mission statement, goals, and objectives of your organization to see whether you need to update them, renovate them, or throw them out and rewrite them completely. People who cared about your organization before the economic downturn still care about it today — they just may be less certain about their own abilities to give.

Nurturing the donor-agency relationship

Oh, sure, you find professional fundraisers out in the field who are interested first and foremost in turning a fast buck. People are drawn to organizations because they see a need — perhaps up close and personal — and because they feel compelled to do what they can to make a difference. When you’re part of a mission that’s close to your heart, the potential for creative effort and action increases and others are inspired and attracted to what you’re doing.

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Eventually, the way will feel easier and the path will look clearer, but when you encounter moments of challenge, you find the resources — internal and external — that you need to accomplish your mission. Remember.eps It’s important to balance the dismal facts and figures that accompany economic downturns with a larger sense of the ebb and flow of philanthropic work. Money may be tight right now, but the number of people who care about your cause isn’t in short supply. Being able to tell your story in a positive way that clearly shows others how they can help is an important first step toward fulfilling your mission in any economy. With a little creativity, vision, collaboration, and passion, you may find that you can read fundraising for dummies online by john mutz and katherine murray easily do more with less — while serving a greater number of people than you’d previously thought possible.

You’ve lost that loving feeling

• In this chapter, we take a look at having and staying in touch with that initial spark that brought about the birth of your organization, that keeps it going, and that you caught and are helping to flame.
• With a little creativity, vision, collaboration, and passion, you may find that you can easily do more with less — while serving a greater number of people than you’d previously thought possible.
• In some cases, you may be able to fulfill your mission by keeping all your programs and services alive through a creative partnership or merger.
• Participate in community events to help keep your organization in the public eye.
• Some people say that fundraising is really friend-raising, but saying that is like putting a bit of polish on an otherwise slippery surface.

By definition, focusing on some services means giving less attention and effort to others. Whether recovery comes quickly or eases in slowly over time, the smart thing to do is begin where you are today with a good, clear look at the building blocks of your organization. We show you how to prepare and preserve your organization with your case statement in Chapter 4, and then we show you how to use it to build a full fundraising plan in Chapter 6.

You may be surprised to find a little breathing room and discover that you can chart a course that is open and honest and that builds trust throughout the entire organization, even — and perhaps especially — in the midst of trying times. To help you navigate these choppy waters, we’ve included information in Chapter 8 on how to connect with your donors in a variety of low-cost, high-impact ways. Chapter 11 helps you think through your approach for writing engaging, inspiring grant proposals, and all chapters in Part IV focus on specific campaigns you can use to approach your donors in different ways. Uncertainty is in the air, and even your more affluent donors may be experiencing difficult personal economic circumstances. According to the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, the Philanthropic Giving Index (PGI), which evaluates confidence in charitable giving, reached an all-time low in 2009, dropping almost 49 percent since December 2007.

Replace much of your print expenses by using e-mail for letters and newsletters (see Chapter 15). Consider partnering with another organization to share costs and increase visibility. Be willing to share your challenges with others and enlist their help in reaching your goals. Your personal data will be used to support your experience throughout this website, to manage access to your account, and for other purposes described in our privacy policy. Invite donor feedback to welcome your donors’ engagement with your organization (and be sure to acknowledge and use the feedback you get).

For example, a food pantry recently discovered it was going to come up short in supply of its needs, so the board enlisted the support of the local mayor. Tip.eps You may not be able to give staff a raise this year, but you can offer other benefits to offset that loss. Depending on the way your organization is structured, you may be able to offer flex time, give an extra personal day, or change other perks that don’t relate to an increase in the bottom line. In Chapter 5, we show you how to help your board tackle the tough decisions so you know what to plan for and what to expect.

After you identify what processes you’ve been using to fulfill your organization’s mission, you can look for ways to make those processes more cost effective. Tip.eps You can reduce the anxiety your staff and donors may be feeling for any number of reasons simply by being candid (although being candid does take a little courage). When you use candor with kindness to address the situation directly, people feel relief to know the straight story — even if it’s not good news — and they usually feel they can trust what you’re telling them. In Chapters 4 through 6, we show you how to shine a light on your programs and services and reprioritize so the programs that meet the biggest need in your community right now are the ones that get your attention. By getting clear on your mission and exploring creative and innovative ways to deliver the programs and services that meet your goals, you streamline your efforts, which helps you do more of what works — and less of what doesn’t. In his book Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote that people generally rise to the occasion presented to them.