Fundraising Hacks

Fundraising is essential to a well-functioning nonprofit. Whether you’re a one-person shop, or you lead a team, here are some fundamental hacks you can use to improve your fundraising efforts.

The most basic of these hacks is to know where you’re going.

• What is your dollar goal?

• Your new donor acquisition goal?

• Your retention goal?

• How do you know when you’ve arrived? It’s more numbers. Have an evaluation plan.

• Have a good CRM with written procedures for data entry. Document all donor interactions.

• If you’re managing a team, then each fundraiser should have a set of goals to be achieved for the fiscal year and even per quarter.

Going hand-in-hand with your goals is your development plan.

• Do you have a written development plan?

• Benchmarks per quarter?

• Grants pipeline?

• Portfolios of donors?

• Have strategies to find new donors? See tips HERE.

• Block time to think about fundraising.

The Why

• A case statement is the foundation of all your communications, from your “elevator pitch” to your annual report. A well-written case statement keeps everyone on the same page.

• Real-life client stories are golden. Build up a collection of client stories to share with your donors and prospective donors. Make the program team your best friends and ask them periodically for new stories and share with them why this is important.

The Board

• Board orientation includes fundraising responsibilities.

• The board sets a standard for personal financial support.

• Board members understand one of their jobs is to open doors to new funders.

• Periodic training on board roles and responsibilities.

These hacks are really best practices that take time and focus. Plan your work, work your plan, and you will see results.

Cheers,

Michelle Crim, CFRE

Dynamic Development Strategies can help. We offer coaching, grant writing, and fundraising services for our nonprofit clients. We specialize in small to mid-size organizations because we understand your challenges. Please contact us for more information.

https://www.dynamicdevelopmentstrategies.com/