For many nonprofits, a majority of their annual fundraising is collected in the last few months of the year, if not the last few days. Between reaching out to new donors, hosting year-end campaigns, and keeping your data organized, the end of the year will likely be a busy season for your nonprofit.
Fortunately, there are a few strategies nonprofits can implement to keep their campaign on target and ensure it finds an audience of receptive supporters. In this guide, we’ll explor [...]
Retaining your nonprofit’s donors depends on the effectiveness of your stewardship. Especially for first-time donors, you need engagement strategies like tailored communications, appealing involvement opportunities, and genuine appreciation to keep them invested in your mission. After all, you’ve put in the work to successfully acquire a new donor and you don’t want to lose them now.
Proactive stewardship will ensure you not only keep new donors interested in your no [...]
Filing nonprofit taxes can seem stressful, but now that your organization can file online, the entire process can be streamlined. Learn what data to prepare ahead of time to stay organized throughout the year and make the Form 990 filing process more efficient.
Practice Good Financial Hygiene
Practicing good nonprofit accounting all year will set your nonprofit up for success. If your nonprofit doesn’ [...]
Every aspiring journalist knows the formula for capturing the key elements for a news story. They ask and answer the “5 W’s and H”: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?
To secure grant funding, an essential part of a sustainable nonprofit financial strategy, an organization must similarly draft a complete and well-written grant proposal. You essentially tell the funder who your organization serves, what programs and activities you propose, when and where you plan to do the w [...]
If you are employed by a relatively new nonprofit that has grown steadily since its founding, congratulations: you are on the path to success. You established your board, vision and mission statements, engaged an initial group of donors, hired your core staff and created community impact through your programming. What’s the next step? In a word: VOLUNTEERS.
Besides financial contributions, the gifts of time and talent are the most important donations that supporters can make to your [...]
Nonprofit organizations take a unique approach to their accounting systems. This is because they must segment their funds, allocate them appropriately and according to specific restrictions, and reinvest all profits back into the organization’s mission. This makes it imperative for them to find sustainable revenue streams to support the nonprofit and to maintain a sustainable system of recording their financial transactions.
The tool that nonprofits can use to segment their funds and [...]
From email marketing to website marketing to direct mail marketing, there are pros and cons to each method of audience engagement. On the other hand, not every one of your current supporter base and potential prospects will resp [...]
Advocacy campaigns have the power to connect your nonprofit with new audiences while transforming the world for the better. With an advocacy campaign, you can engage donors on the issues they care about, introduce your nonprofit to new supporters, and further your cause by lobbying for social change, all while earning donations and getting your nonprofit’s name out there.
Of course, your nonprofit won’t attract new supporters and activists without the help of your marketi [...]
Fundraising is a critical piece of the nonprofit sector. Regardless of your position in an organization, it is vital to look for new opportunities to increase revenue and build your donor base.
There are proven strategies to do this that have been used for decades, such as engaging with your local community and targeting potential donors. However, the increasing digitization of society presents numerous new challenges and opportunities to boost fundraising.
While many organizati [...]
During 2020, nonprofit professionals around the country moved to their home offices. Working remotely came with its own challenges, from communicating with coworkers to building sustainable habits for your organization in the new context.
While many people turned to Netflix to fill their newfound time during the COVID-19 pandemic, others decided this was the perfect opportunity to start developing their own professional skills. Now that we’re getting used to the new normal and vaccin [...]
No matter how perfect your website’s current design is, you’ll need to update it at some point in the near future. Regularly updating your nonprofit’s website is part of running a website, but sometimes nonprofits aren’t sure what they should be updating.
In addition to WordPress’s routine system updates, you should take the time for routine cleanup and content updates to ensure your website remains both relevant and secure. No matter how much your supporters [...]
Nonprofit financial sustainability is necessary for organizations like yours to develop lasting strategies that help you not only maintain your current standing but also grow.
CharityProud’s article on sustainability explains that economically sustainable nonprofits “operate within their financial means and use their inherent resources responsibly. Your resources include both tangible (donors, technology) and intangible (staff skillsets, community partners) things.” [...]
With the unprecedented realities of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing, nonprofits of all sizes have faced the new challenge of taking their fundraising events online. Virtual events, though brand new undertakings for many organizations, can be extremely effective ways to engage with supporters, spread awareness of your cause, and raise money from anywhere.
Thankfully, online fundraising and communication platforms have made [...]
Have you ever heard the saying “what gets tracked, gets measured?” I like to add my own spin to and say that “what gets tracked, gets measured. What gets measured, gets results!” When nonprofits begin focusing on donor engagement, they have to take into account that their engagement plan must include gathering and tracking data, as well as how to put it to work to make educated decisions.
Before we jump into how to track engagement, let's [...]
Being in nonprofits for 10+ years, I quickly learned that the engagement of your supporters goes a long way. Another thing that I learned is that engagement doesn’t have to be hard. You just have to learn the basics and decide to do them right. As the title of this blog suggests, successful engagement is a multistep process that centers around the following five steps.
1. Get to Know Your Donors A crucial step in any good relationship is laying the right foundation. Wh [...]
Any successful nonprofit will tell you that their success can be attributed to their most loyal supporters. Who am I talking about? I’m talking about donors, members, volunteers, and advocates. Those that have been successful also will tell you that without building a solid foundation with your supporters, it will be hard work to keep them around. A key to helping you build and create those long-lasting relationships is making sure that your organization has an eng [...]
When working in the non-profit world, we talk a lot about our organizational values. Our mission. Our core beliefs. Our purpose. Even in the for-profit world, many organizations proudly and prominently hang their values on their walls. There are sections on websites devoted to the organizational mission. They are showcased in strategic plans and annual reports.
With all this talk about who an organization is, what they stand for, and why they do what they do, you would think [...]
So you went through the interview process and got the job of your dreams! You’re going to be working at a nonprofit where you have a deep connection with the mission and will be surrounded by other like-minded colleagues. You walk in on your first day and think to yourself, where do I start? You ask your colleague for a login to your database may receive one of the following answers:
What database? Do you mean QuickBooks, Constant Contact, EventBrite and SignUpGenius? Haha! Her [...]
If you are a 1-, 2-, or 3-person shop, wearing multiple hats in your nonprofit office in addition to needing to fundraise: this post is for you. Nonprofit leaders are often brought in because of their passion for the cause and ability to run an amazing program for the community they serve--but did we also mention you need to fundraise to keep your doors open? Where do you start? What are the essentials when you would rather be spending your time saving the world? (Psst…it’s not pla [...]
Presidents’ Day is a federal holiday in the United States that began as a celebration of George Washington’s birthday and has expanded as a day to honor the memory of past presidents. In addition to their services to our nation, did you know that many of the men formerly known as POTUS were avid philanthropists? Today we’re taking a look back at what the presidents have to teach us about why donors engage in charitable giving.
Philanthropy Is an Investment in the Future [...]
