Some time ago I spoke with a nonprofit executive who had great news. He had been talking to an influential person in the community who asked him a simple question.
“If you could do one thing to expand the work you are doing in the community, what would it be?”
His immediate response was “Invest in fundraising so that our income is sustainable.”
The way the executive explains it, as soon as those words were lost, she worried because she thought that a better response would have been to hire a program officer or some other activity that would have directly impacted the programmatic work of the organization.
Appointment
A couple of days went by without another word from the influencer. The following week, the nonprofit executive received a call and was again the community leader. I wanted to follow up on your question by asking how much she would invest in fundraising. The executive was someone who has always been on top of her game, and she was quick to respond that with a $ 200,000 donation, she would be able to hire additional staff and develop a broader fundraising program, which would help her charity grow and become a more widespread and sustainable impact.
The community influencer thanked her and then spoke politely with her about the good work her nonprofit was doing. Once the executive hung up the phone, after scheduling an appointment to meet with him and talk more about the organization, he set out to do some research. He knew that the gentleman had not been a donor or supporter of charity, but he felt there was something of interest to him in the organization and its mission.
The gift
One of the best aspects of working with people is that you never know when they are going to surprise you. When the executive arrived at the meeting, the influential member of the community got straight to the point. She offered her $ 150,000 to invest in her development team and then asked her to use the gift as a challenge for other donors to raise the additional $ 50,000 that would bring her to the $ 200,000 she needed.
She was floored by the generosity, especially from someone who had not been a donor to the organization. In their conversation, he explained that his son was an addict and, although he wanted to “save” his son, he also understood that if he could help other parents in a similar situation, that would also be important.
Why fundraise and not program
The donor explained that when the executive first told him that if he had extra funds he would invest them in fundraising, it was a response he did not expect. Also, from a business perspective, he said it made sense. He understood, as a community entrepreneur and philanthropist, that hospitals, universities, and cultural organizations set out to invest in his operation, including marketing and fundraising. He was also aware that it was essential for smaller nonprofits to follow that path because it helped create sources of donor income, supporting the organizations’ ongoing work within the community.
As he explained, there was a direct link between increased spending on marketing and fundraising and eventual funding for the programs. So the way I saw it, even though you weren’t donating directly to the programs, the “investment” you were making would help the organization source and develop other donors, which in turn, would help drive the money. towards programmatic work.
Luck
While many nonprofits do not have the luck and good fortune that the organization I am writing about today had to land a sophisticated donor who wants to direct a donation to fundraising, the reality is that community organizations are more Small and donors are in fact understanding what large institutions have known for a long time. There has to be an investment in the institutional capacity of a charity, especially in marketing and fundraising.
There are ways you can start tilling the soil so that your followers contribute more to your annual fund or directly to capacity building.
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Inform your followers about how your non-programmatic funds are being spent. Be transparent.
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Develop a plan and help your champions, especially your board members, understand why your organization needs to invest in the organization’s infrastructure, particularly in marketing and fundraising.
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Research and understand industry benchmarks on the topic of capacity building and sustainability of nonprofits.
Finally, if you are getting pushback from board members or not getting enough traction, consider recruiting board members and advocates for your organization who also understand the connection between fundraising and the sustainability of your organization. Make sure this topic is a regular topic of conversation at your board meetings and with influential donors. And, if you find an opportunity to attract money that will go directly to building your marketing and fundraising efforts, create a strategy to go out and ask for it.