Fundraising Blog

The following are reflections on various fundraising topics.

November 14, 2014

Ethics

There will be situations that deal with legal or ethical standards in the nonprofit sector. Ethics are usually personal views and values that guide an individual in making the right decisions in a certain situation.  Situations tend to be more grey than black and white.  In a nonprofit, a policy on ethics can be very helpful to guide the organization in making the right decision.  An ethical fundraiser will ensure that the nonprofit keeps the donor’s intent in mind and  use the donor’s donation correctly to ensure that the trust exists between the donor and the organization. Once the trust is lost between the donor and the organization it is very hard to build it back. A fundraiser will ensure the donor’s information is kept private from the public. This means making sure files are secured and not easily accessible to others and knowing how far to research an individual’s personal life. 

There are legal standards to keep in mind within nonprofits.   There are three duties on boards; duty of prudence, loyalty, and obedience. Duty of prudence requires that board members to act in good faith and diligence. This requires board members to make thoughtful decisions regarding financials, including fundraising. Having a committee that focuses on fundraising is one example of a board practicing duty of prudence. Duty of obedience requires that the organization and board makes sure that the mission is carried out legally. Duty of loyalty requires that board members do not act in a way that could harm the organization. These duties are set to ensure that there is no conflict of interest which is a staff or board member receiving personal financial gain. One way to ensure that this does not happen in an organization, it to have rules set in place in the ByLaws. Conflict of Interest can occur. For example if a board member is the CEO of a bank and the organization decides to do all of their banking with that specific bank it could be seen as conflict of interest. But if the organization can argue that this bank is the best for the organization’s needs it might not be considered conflict of interest.  Fundraising practice and conflict of interest is overseen by the IRS through the 990 forms. They ask questions and information on “board if directors, conflict of interest policies, charitable figs, and other data” (pp. 415).

Knowing how to be ethical and knowing legal information, will prepare myself to be a professional fundraiser in the future.

 

November 7, 2014

Stewardship

The chapter on “The Practice of Stewardship” written by Enright and Selier, which can be found in the text “Achieving Excellence”, made me realize that stewardship is more than just day to day fundraising activities. The chapter explains that most nonprofits think that stewardship is the thank you letters, acknowledging donors, reports, outcome measurement and gift receipts.  I would agree to this; this is what I thought stewardship was. In all reality, stewardship is way more than just the day-to-day operations of fundraising; it is more grass root than that; more of a spiritual thing.

“Stewardship is holding gifts in trust for the public good and serious regard for this trust is the soul of stewardship” (Enright & Selier, 2014, pp. 268). So stewardship for nonprofits through fundraising is creating that trust they build between the public or donors and the organization.  It is requiring nonprofits to be thoughtful about the gifts they are given. For fundraisers who understand and take the stewardship seriously,  will help donors to make decisions regarding the best ways to give. This concept was referred to as discernment; taking time to think, reflect, and meditate before making a decision. 

Those who give larger gifts are actually making an investment in the organization. The donors want to see the impact or outcomes from their gift.  Stewardship is guiding donors to makeing a philanthropic investment that will impact the nonprofit therefore leading to a long lasting relationship.  It is the fundraisers job to make sure the organization uses the donor’s funds and invests them positively.

 

October 24, 2014

Annual Fund

The Annual Fund is a comprehensive plan that provides support to the contributed income for the organization. The purpose of an annual fund is for an organization to have constant communication offering accountability and transparency. A successful annual fund occurs  after thoughtful planning and building those relationships with current donors and future donors.

I typically understood Annual Funds through direct mail solicitation, typically at the end of an organization’s fiscal year or around the holiday season (when people are feeling the most generous). These letters are less personal to the donors, which makes it harder for the organization to make a case to that specific donor to donate money. Some key things to think about when writing an annual fund letter is be quantitative and qualitative, discuss why your organization is unique and why their cause is significant.  These letters are telling donors this is why we are doing this, how we are doing this, and what we are doing. There are different ways to solicit funds for the annual fund plan, which  for some reason, I never thought of doing. In the text is suggests doing face-of-face solicitation, solicit through media outlets, phone calls, door-to-door, or special events. An annual fund does not have to use only direct mail. The annual fund plan needs to have a clearly thought out plan with a timetable that tells each individual in the team what tasks they will be doing. “The annual fund is the most effective strategy to invite, involve, and bond the consistency to the organization”. It is another way or tool to build relationships with individuals to aide the cause of your organization.

October 3, 2014

Successful Organizations: Planning & People

You start with the “Why” not the “What”.  TedTalk, by Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” discusses a leadership model that inspires great leadership within an organization. The “Golden Circle” Model, explains that most people understand “what” they are doing in an organization. Only some people know “how” they do the “what”, but very few people know the “why” they do the “what” within the organization (See Chart Below). This explains why some organizations inspire and why some don’t. The “why” is the purpose, the cause, or the belief,  it explains why does the organization exists. Businesses or organizations think inside out from the Golden Circle, while most other organizations, and think outward in. If we share why we are inspired to do what we are doing, then most people will follow and share the same passion as us. People buy “why” you do it, not “what” you do.  

This inspirational talk goes along with what we have been covering since day 1 of classes. Fundraising is not about the money or what we are doing, it is about the cause and the “why” of the organization. When someone shows they are passionate and inspired by a cause, it is easy to get other people to share the same passion. The "what" is the actual proof of what you believe. We need to inspire people to give.

September 26, 2014

Fundraising Basics

Fundraising starts with examining the case. The “The Fundraising Cycle” chart found in the text,  “Achieving Excellence Fundraising” really opened my eyes  as to  what all takes place in the planning and process of fundraising. The actual “ask” or solicit a gift is at the very end of the cycle. This process is continuous and never ending. Once a donor gives a gift, the relationship between them and the organization needs to stay consistent.

When choosing the right potential donors there are three criteria that needs to be considered:

1. “Linkage to the organization”

2. “Ability to give gifts at the level being sought”

3. “Interest in the work of the organization”

These three criteria and the fundraising cycle really defines the actual “process” and “duties” of a professional fundraiser. It is important to note that during the fundraising cycle volunteers have to be involved. The professional fundraiser isn’t always the person who does the ask. Peer-to-Peer fundraising is sometimes more effective than the person who gets paid to raise funds. A donor is more likely to give to a loved one, a colleague, friend, or family member than to a professional fundraiser because “people give to people”. This allows for the organization to tap into new networks through their volunteers.

Fundraising starts with a case or the cause, not a need. You need to have cause for people to support the organization.

 

Adventures of Fundraising

Philanthropy has been around for centuries. It started during the 15^th century with the reformation. Martin Luther left the Catholic Church and then he created a community chest. This community chest was there to serve the public. People put money in the chest and people were able to receive money from the chest. From there, philanthropy has continued to grow to Henry Ford, the Rockefellers, and many more.

When I talk about philanthropy I do not mean the money individuals give and accept some kind of incentive in return, as we see today with the tax deductions for donations. Philanthropy is a voluntary action for the public good. Voluntary action for the public good is one of the hardest concepts for modern day nonprofit organizations to wrap their minds around. The nonprofit’s responsibility is to serve a social purpose, that is the agreement they made when receiving their 501(c) 3 status with the government.

The reason why many nonprofits have a problem understanding the idea of serving a social purpose is the idea of patronage. Patronage is private financial support grounded in individual objectives. We see this with huge donations from individuals to support a cause and that person then receives huge tax deduction and whole bunch of other recognition. Nonprofits need to not just focus on the individual, but on the social good to be financially healthy. In order for nonprofits to be secure financially, they need to serve the community so the community sees them as a vital asset to the community. It is time to focus back to the original concept of philanthropy.

September 5, 201

You Like Fundraising More Than You Think

In the past couple of the weeks, the “Ice Bucket Challenge” for ALS has been all over the news. The ALS has received over $100 million dollars in donations that they were not expecting. Now the ALS Association’s board needs to figure out what do with the large influx of donations while keeping the donor’s intent in mind. There are positives and negatives to the “Ice Bucket Challenge” for the ALS Association because people are more aware of ALS than before, the ALS Association is able to tap into a new demographic that they were not able to reach before. This social experience is shifting how fundraising can operate not just for ALS but for other nonprofit organizations. The problem with this challenge is that the ALS Association was not expecting the large influx of donations requiring the board to act quickly to find ways to use the funds properly and to thank the donors in the appropriate time. The ALS Association now will have to find new, exciting ways to keep their new donors engaged and involved with ALS so they do not lose too much funds for the next fiscal year

There needs to be money behind the mission, which is why fundraising is so crucial in nonprofit organizations. Fundraising helps connect what people value to the organization’s values to create long-lasting relationships and support.  To help find ways to connect people’s values to the organization there are best practices in fundraising to follow and understand which the following are:

1.      People give to People

2.      The organization needs to have a compelling case

3.      People need to be passionate about what they are giving to

4.      People need to have trust in the organization to keep the donor’s intent with their donations

Fundraising helps bring the mission of the organization into action. It is about building relationships and helping people find ways to be involved with what they are passionate about. Fundraising is more fun when you think about developing relationships rather than just the money.

September 19, 2014

Let’s Talk Numbers

When it comes to accepting donations or sponsorships it is important that the gift matches the nonprofit’s mission and values.

While completing the exercise in class on the nonprofit that my group will be focusing on this semester, I really had to think about making a case for an organization that is financially healthy. I never thought about what I would say to a donor who thinks we do not need funds because the organization has enough. Our organization, Monterey Bay Aquarium, I thought be an easier sell for funds rather than an arts organization. The public is more educated about the purpose of conserving the oceans and animals rather than conserving the arts.  If I had to make the case for funds in a financially, healthy arts organization, I would explain to the potential donor the importance of preserving the arts in our culture.

This exercise made me think back to the discussion of Ravinia accepting or not accepting the donation from a casino. If Ravinia accepted the donation to sponsor a classical music concert, they were afraid their reputation would be affected and then they would lose their current audiences because the casino’s values did not match Ravinia’s values. If I was put in that situation, I would have accepted the donation from the casino to sponsor a concert. I think accepting the donation would have allowed Ravinia to tap into a new demographic for their concerts which could lead into more donations and support. But while accepting the donation from the casino, I would present sponsorship levels; showing what Ravinia gives in return for a specific level of a gift. This way, the casino would not get any special treatment or receive more recognition than other sponsorships at the same level. If the casino is not happy with what they would get in return for their gift, then the casino would probably not donate to Ravinia.

Numbers are tough, but the numbers make the nonprofit existence possible.