How To Build Nonprofit Brand Awareness: 4 Strategies

Monday, November 11, 2024

With countless businesses and nonprofits alike competing for attention, building a recognizable brand means the difference between staying in the shadows and becoming a household name. Establishing a recognizable and trustworthy brand ensures your organization stays at the top of people's minds when they think about which nonprofits to support.

A brand awareness strategy doesn’t just attract funding; it builds long-term relationships with donors, volunteers, beneficiaries, and co [...]

How to Keep Your Nonprofit’s Funding Flexible: 3 Strategies

Monday, September 23, 2024

By nature, your nonprofit’s finances are unpredictable. From varying donation types, frequencies, and amounts to fluctuating program needs and expenses, your organization must be able to pivot quickly and adapt to financial changes. That’s why flexible funding is key to fueling your nonprofit’s strategic plan.

Flexible funding drives both financial sustainability and advances, allowing your nonprofit to seize new opportunities without being constrained by funding restric [...]

5 Tips to Keep Your Strategic Plan on Track in 2024

Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Any organization that relies on fundraising dollars needs a clear strategic plan for success. However, it’s important to recognize that strategic planning isn’t a one-time process; your nonprofit’s strategic plan should be a living document that evolves as needed to help you continue reaching your goals.

This guide reviews five tips to help adjust your strategic plan to keep it on track throughout the year:

Check in on your resource and staff allocation. Assess p [...]

4 Essential Elements of a Strong Nonprofit Strategic Plan

Friday, April 26, 2024

How can your nonprofit plan for the future in a sustainable, measured way that sets your entire team up for success? By creating a nonprofit strategic plan!

A strategic plan is a document that identifies the goals your organization needs to achieve in the next one to five years to get closer to accomplishing its mission. It also outlines how you’ll work toward those goals.

A strong nonprofit plan can help you ensure your current and future projects are aligned with your larger v [...]

Securing Funding through Volunteer Grants: 3 Key Strategies

Wednesday, October 25, 2023

In today’s socially-conscious age, more businesses than ever before are providing support to nonprofits and their communities. In fact, 85% of companies in the United States have a formal domestic corporate giving program. There are many different forms of corporate philanthropy that businesses can offer your nonprofit, from sponsorships to in-kind donations. However, if you’re seeking a combination of donations and volunteer support, volunteer grants can be especially impactful fo [...]

Multi-Channel Advocacy: 5 Best Practices

Monday, January 24, 2022

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 [...]

Living Your Values

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

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 [...]

Importance of Data in Succession Planning

Thursday, March 7, 2019

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 [...]

3 Reasons Why You (Yes, You!) Need a Strategic Plan

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

“What do you know about strategic planning?”

“Do you think we need a strategic plan?”

“Strategic plans seem like a lot of work to put together.”

Sound familiar? Most of my conversations with board members were a variation on this theme when I worked as a fundraiser: strategic plans sound like a great idea but an awful lot of work.

It’s true that creating a strategic plan involves a combination of meetings, research and writing. But i [...]