Build Infrastructure: The 10 Factors that Can Transform ...2015... · Transformational Fundraising...
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Build Infrastructure: The 10 Factors that Can Transform Your Fundraising by Gail Perry 1 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Transcript of Build Infrastructure: The 10 Factors that Can Transform ...2015... · Transformational Fundraising...
Build Infrastructure:
The 10 Factors that Can
Transform Your Fundraising
by Gail Perry
1 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step One:
Data and Donor Trends
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
Start at the beginning! Let’s see where you are and what you have to work
with. No fundraising plan is complete without a good hard look at your
donors and fundraising numbers. Trends can tell you a lot!
Sometimes it may be difficult to pull this data out of a donor database. You
may have to try several different pulls/searches to get what you need. Don’t
kill yourself to create this information. Pull what you can within a reasonable
time. It really depends on how your database is set up. If you can’t pull the
last 3 years, then pull the last 2 or just last year.
What we are looking for is information that gives you a sense of the TRENDS
with your donors. We are also looking for as much as we can find about
Lapsed Donors and your Donor Renewal and Retention Rates.
NUMBERS To Pull and Discuss
# of Current Donors and Dollars to date, compared to past 3 years.
Number of current donors and total dollar amounts given so far this FY.
Number of current donors and total dollar amounts for the past 3 years.
Dollar amounts given so far this FY compared with the same time in the past 3 fiscal years.
This lets you see how well you are doing compared to last year and the previous years.
Discussion: What does this tell you about your fundraising program and strategies?
2 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Sample Fundraising Results Chart
Adapt this chart to reflect your own fundraising program. Add additional rows for additional fundraising strategies.
Fundraising Strategy This FY Goal
Last FY Results
Previous FY Results
Previous FY Results
Events
Event 1
Event 2
Event 3
Mailings/ membership
Mailing 1
Mailing 2
Mailing 3
Mailing Campaign 1
Mailing Campaign 2
Website revenue
Multichannel campaigns
3 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Campaign 1
Campaign 2
Social media campaigns
Major gifts
Grants
How to Pull Your Donor Renewal/Retention Rates
Number of donors who gave last FY but not this FY. If your fiscal year started July 1, then pull the number of donors who gave two years ago but who did not give last year.
DO NOT count new donors in these totals.
Find the number of people who gave two years ago and who renewed last year. What percentage of your overall donors DID renew their gift? This is your Donor Retention.
Find the number of people who gave two years and did NOT renew their gift. What percentage of overall donors DID NOT renew their gift? This is your Donor Attrition.
Amount of money that was not renewed.
The donors who have lapsed are your “money on the table”. They represent the easy money for you to go get this FY.
Your top strategy needs to zone in on these lovely people who have already supported you once.
4 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Is your database able to give you meaningful information that you can use?
Discussion: what needs to be done about it?
2. Do the numbers tell you that your donors are sticking with you?
Or are they leaving you?
Discussion: what needs to be done about donor retention?
3. Do the numbers tell you that your fundraising strategies are working?
Discussion: Taking an overview perspective, how well are your fundraising strategies working overall?
4. What do your fundraising trends tell you?
Discussion: Taking an overview perspective, what needs to be said about why you have or have not made your goals?
To whom does it need to be said?
5. Which fundraising strategies need to be reexamined or tweaked? Which ones would benefit from additional investments of time, resources and energy?
Discussion:
6. Overall, is your fundraising effective?
TOTAL
5 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
6 10 You’ve got work to do!
11 19 You’re getting there!
20 30 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
6 Steps You Can Take Today to Improve Your Donor Retention
7 Ways to Create Highly Committed Donors
How to Ask Your Donors for Feedback So They’ll Love You Even More
Top Fundraising Strategy to Raise More Money in the Coming Year
6 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Fundraising Budget and Return on
Investment Worksheet (example)
Gross
Revenue
Total
Direct
and
Indirect
Costs
Staff
A
Staff
B
Staff
C
Supplie
s
Mat’ls
Travel
Misc
Gala
Direct
Costs
(Venue,
Catering)
Gala 100,000 15k 8k 3k 2000 650 28,000
Other
Event
Major
Gifts
Donor
Loyalty
Annual
Fund/
Mailings
Grants
Website
and
Social
Media
7 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Two:
Internal Support for Fundraising and
Philanthropy
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
How strong is the internal support for fundraising at our organization?
Do the leaders of your organization understand and support fundraising? What does this tell us?
Do the leaders of your organization understand what good fundraising is like today?
How do we educate them so that they can make smart decisions about strategies, investments and staffing?
Does everyone at your organization (staff, ED, board members, volunteers) all understand that fundraising is important and that they need to support it?
8 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
NO
1 2 3 4
YES
5
1. Our leaders understand how fundraising really works today.
2. Our organization values our donors as institutional investors and partners in our mission.
3. Our leaders are committed to serving and communicating to our donors as a priority.
Discussion: why or why not?
4. Our leaders support fundraising and the development staff.
Discussion: how would you describe “supporting” fundraising?
5. Our leaders understand that fundraising expenses are essential
investments.
Discussion: why or why not?
6. Our leaders understand that spending money on fundraising will pay for itself several times over.
Discussion: how to we expand this discussion?
7. Our leaders feel that we get a good return on investment from the dollars we spend in fundraising.
Discussion: why or why not?
9 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
8. The entire staff of our organization understands that fundraising is important to our mission and our programming.
Discussion: why or why not?
9. Our organization makes financial investments in fundraising for the long term.
10. The entire staff of our organization knows that they have a role to play in fundraising – even if it is the way they answer the phone.
Discussion: thoughts?
11. Most people in our organization across positions are willing to act as ambassadors and engage in relationship building.
Discussion.
12. Our organization has a commitment to fundraising over time.
Discussion: thoughts?
13. Fundraising staff members are at the table when the budget is set.
Why or why not?
14. Our organization is committed to keeping the development office fully staffed
15. Our organization does NOT lay all the fundraising on one or two people (or the fundraising office) and avoid any responsibility.
Why or why not?
16. Fundraising is valued as one of the “missionaligned” programs of our organization.
Why or why not?
10 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
17. Everyone in our organization promotes philanthropy and can articulate a case for giving.
Why or why not?
18. Our ED is committed to and is personally involved in fundraising.
Why or why not?
19. Our organization invests appropriately in fundraising infrastructure.
Why or why not?
TOTAL
20 45 You’ve got work to do!
46 74 You’re getting there!
75 95 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
Building an Internal Culture of Philanthropy to Support Major Gifts Takes Time
and Effort!
Is There a Crisis in Fundraising Leadership?
Top 10 Things to Understand About How Fundraising Really Works Today
Does Your Organization Really Support Fundraising? Take This Simple Quiz
Five Clues Your Fundraising is Headed Downhill
Use the Word “Profit” to Get Your Board’s Attention!
11 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Three:
Mailings and Annual Fund
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
Direct mail is still the powerhouse of fundraising. Be sure that your mailings are fully
present in your donors’ mailboxes. And be sure that you build out your mailings into full
multichannel campaigns, blending email solicitations and social media into the mailing
campaign.
What is the trend in our annual fund and membership totals over the past few years?
What does this tell us?
Where are we doing well and where are we not doing so well?
12 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. We are sending out highimpact, high quality mailings.
Discussion: why or why not?
2. Our appeal letters are full of emotion, urgency and specifics.
Discussion: why or why not?
3. We make it easy for donors to give: We are including attractive pledge cards, attractive reply cards, and our website address on all our mailings.
Discussion: why or why not?
4. We make the transition from mail to our website easy for donors: We are tying our mailing pieces into the landing page on our web site, so if someone gets a letter and then goes to the site to give, we make it easy for them.
How easy is it to give on your website?
5. We have a robust, warm, fuzzy, friendly thank you program for our wonderful donors. (this is what will ensure your donor retention!)
Discussion: thoughts?
6. Our thank you letters to our donors are passionate, personalized and specific about what the gift will accomplish.
Discussion: thoughts?
7. We sent welcome letters to first time donors.
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8. We phone call our donors to say thank you.
Discussion: thoughts?
9. We have a special strategy to encourage donor renewals.
Discussion: thoughts?
10. We do not send a brochure in our fundraising appeals. (studies show that adding a brochure cuts back on the results of the mailing.)
11. We have a robust “donor communication” program to keep in touch with our donors. This is the core of your donor loyalty program!
Discussion: thoughts?
12. We have staff and budget resources allocated to communicating and engaging/involving our donors.
Discussion: thoughts?
13. Our communications with our donors are “donorcentered” not all about us and how wonderful we are.
Discussion: thoughts?
14. If we have a membership program, we survey our members occasionally to find out why they are giving and what they want.
Discussion: thoughts?
15. We consider our donors one of the special assets of our organization.
Why or why not?
14 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
TOTAL
15 37 You’ve got work to do!
38 53 You’re getting there!
54 75 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
112 Tips to Raise More Money by Mail
The Role of Quirky, Surprise and Delight in Fundraising Appeals
10 Steps to Create an Appeal Letter That Brings in the Money
An Appeal Letter Makeover: From “OrganizationCentered” to “DonorCentered”
Strengthen Your Fundraising Appeal With the “MPI” Formula
18 Tips to Create a Wildly Profitable Monthly Giving Program
15 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Four:
Grants and Sponsorships
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
What is the trend in our grant totals over the past few years? What does this tell us?
What is the trend in sponsorships over the past few years? What does this tell us?
Where are we doing well and where are we not doing so well?
16 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. We have a consistent grantseeking/sponsorshipseeking effort. Discussion: why or why not?
2. We consider our funders of grants and sponsorships special “partners” of our organization.
Discussion: why or why not?
3. We communicate to our funders and sponsors during the course of the grant – and keep them posted on our progress.
Discussion: thoughts?
4. We try hard to get to know our funders as people and develop cordial personal relationships with them.
Discussion: thoughts?
5. We are really good at thanking our funders and reporting back to them. Discussion: thoughts?
6. We have engaged our funders and sponsors in “advice visits” to brainstorm what THEY are looking for and what they would like to accomplish.
Discussion: thoughts?
7. We have good records of past funders and sponsors.
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Why or why not? What do we need to do?
TOTAL
7 18 You’ve got work to do!
19 24 You’re getting there!
25 35 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
A General Unrestricted Ask is LAZY Fundraising
18 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Five:
Fundraising Events
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
Here’s the trouble with relying on too many fundraising events:
They are the least profitable of any fundraising strategies because they
generally cost 50 cents on each dollar raised.
Most of the big money from events comes from sponsorships; therefore having
too many events dilutes your ability to close sponsorship gifts.
They distract your staff and volunteers from fundraising activities that generate
far more money for each hour of effort.
What is the trend in our event totals over the past few years?
What does this tell us?
What is the trend in event attendance over the past few years?
Are we having too many events or too few events?
Does everyone at our organization (staff, ED, board members, volunteers) understand the true costs of our events? (There is an opportunity cost: when you spend time on a low return event, you are giving up the opportunity of the money you could raise from
other, more productive uses of your time.)
19 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
What is our typical cost per dollar raised for events? (The industry standard cost per dollar raised is $.50 on the dollar. That is, it costs you $.50 to raise a dollar so your net
is really fifty cents.)
Does everyone at our organization understand the cost per dollar raised concept – especially as it relates to events?
Are there other fundraising activities you are neglecting because you have to spend so much of your time on events?
Do you have a good idea of the amount of staff and volunteer time it really takes for your events? What would be the cost per dollar raised if you included staff and volunteer time?
20 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Are there nonproductive events that are sacred cows at your organization?
Is there an event you think your organization should eliminate?
Is there an event you think needs to be rebranded because its concept is getting stale?
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Our events are wellattended and fun experiences for our guests.
Discussion: why or why not?
2. Our events are manageable for the staff and volunteer resources we have allocated to them.
Discussion: why or why not?
3. We have accurate records of the profitability of each event.
Discussion: thoughts?
4. We are always trying new ways to raise additional money at our events. (Such as adding games, raffles, preparties for
21 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
sponsors, special honorees, special locations, new levels of sponsorships.)
This is a great way to expand profit: Discussion: thoughts?
5. We are pleased with the results our events bring back to our organization.
Is it really worth it? Thoughts?
6. We do not put fundraisers working on events that are only for PR. Instead, we ask our fundraisers to spend their time on activities that will actually raise money.
Events for PR purposes are a needless distraction from fundraising. Discussion: thoughts?
7. We have good records of past funders and sponsors, and we go to our past sponsors first for support.
Why or why not?
8. We have the right number of events for our volunteer and staff resources.
Why or why not?
9. We are able to use our events also as cultivation activities for our major prospects. (VIP tables, party transportation, preevent private receptions, etc.)
Why not?
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10. Our fundraising events are the best party in town! (don’t forget to make them fun and people will keep coming back!)
Why or why not?
TOTAL
11 20 You’ve got work to do!
21 34 You’re getting there!
35 50 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
Top 20 Charity Auction Tips for Greater Profit
Top 10 Tips to Make More Money, Have More Fun at Your Fundraising Event
Timeline for Planning a Profitable Fundraising Event
8 Tips for Getting High Dollar Sponsorships for your Big Event
Why You Should Ditch Your Next Event
How to Throw a Party Everyone Wants to Attend
23 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step 6: Our Case
What’s our story and how well do we tell it?
Fundraising and Solicitation Plan for 2015-16
We can always, always tell our story better. Your messaging can make or break your
entire fundraising program. Be sure it is CLEAR and URGENT and focuses on WHY
you do the work and WHY donors should give.
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Is the need well established and understood?
Why or why not?
2. In your opinion, does your organization have a strong story to tell?
Why or why not?
3. In your opinion, does your organization tell your story well?
You tell your story to the world in many different ways via different communications channels. Rate how well each communications channel is telling your story:
4. Your newsletter
5. Your web site
6. Your publications
7. Your fundraising appeals
24 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
8. Your brochures and reports
9. Consistency: Do you keep your story the same via all your communications channels (or are they all saying something different?)
Why or why not?
10. Is your story simple? (should not be complicated to tell your story)
Why or why not?
11.Does your story have urgency?
Why or why not?
12. Is your story emotionally evocative?
13.Does your story establish the need clearly?
14.Do your materials use as few words as possible to convey your message?
Why or why not?
15.Does your story focus on “WHY” your organization’s work is important, not “WHAT” you do.
16.Do you use pictures to tell your story? (Better than words!)
17.Do you use professionally created pictures?
18.Do your materials look professional?
Discussion: What’s your opinion of the design? Are they OVERDESIGNED? Or amateurishlooking?
25 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
19.Have you used infographics to tell your story?
20.Are you telling people exactly how much money you need and what it will go for?
Why or why not?
21.Does your story encourage your donors love and trust in you?
Why or why not?
21 35 You’ve got work to do!
36 73 You’re getting there!
74105 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies.
Resource articles from my blog:
How Fundraising is Turning into “Fund Marketing” Dump the Cliches: Words and Phrases Fundraisers Love to Hate! How to Nail Your Online Messaging to Your Donors
The 3 Most Boring Words in Fundraising Appeals
26 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Seven:
Our Online Presence and Revenue Potential
Fundraising and Solicitation Plan for 2015-16
What is the trend in our internet revenue over the past few years?
What does this tell us?
Do we feel we understand what it takes to raise money online?
Have we evaluated the quality of our website?
Have we evaluated the quality of our email communications, appeals and newsletters?
27 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Are we committed to continuing to educate ourselves on all aspects of this rapidly changing and vastly important communications medium?
What are our challenges? What have we learned?
Have we tested our donation page for ease and speed?
Are we educating ourselves regarding social media? What are our learnings? Our challenges?
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Do we understand what it takes to raise money online?
Discussion why or why not?
28 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
2. We update our website continually.
Discussion why or why not?
3. Investment: We have a budget line item every year for website development.
Discussion: thoughts?
4. There is an OBVIOUS “donate” invitation on our home page. You don’t have to look to find it.
Why or why not?
5. We have tested our online donation form with our own contributions.
Why or why not?
6. Our web donation form is NOT cumbersome. It does not have too many boxes to fill out.
Why or why not?
7. Our web donation page is inviting, with a “Yes I want to help” theme.
Why or why not?
8. We are committed to keeping up to date on the everchanging world of internet communication.
What’s holding us back?
9. Our web site focuses on what someone might be looking for instead of what we want to present to them.
29 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Why or why not?
10. Our web site has progressed WELL BEYOND just being a brochure about us.
Why or why not?
11. Our web site has ways for people to get involved with our organization and our cause.
12. We have various ways of seeking email addresses of people who visit our site.
13. We have an interesting email newsletter, that brings in revenue.
Why or why not?
14. Our email newsletter always has an interesting snappy subject line.
Why or why not?
15. Our email newsletter tends to be short on copy. (shorter the better!)
16. We send out email news fairly often. (once a month minimum)
17. We are pretty good at email fundraising appeals.
Why or why not?
18. We have a reliable thank you process for people who give online.
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Why or why not?
19. We feel we understand the best practices of internet fundraising.
Why or why not?
20 45 You’ve got work to do!
46 74 You’re getting there!
75 95 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
How to Nail Your Online Messaging to Your Donors
How to Snag Those Last Minute Online Gifts Create a Donation Page that Rocks!
Top 10 Things Donors Want From Your Web Site
31 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Seven:
Our Major Gift Prospects, Success and
Potential
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
What is the trend in our major gift revenue over the past few years?
What does this tell us?
How much major gift potential do we have right now – if we just had the time and resources to go after it?
Do we have a fully rated, ranked, qualified Major Gift Prospect List?
Do we feel we have enough staff time allocated to major gifts in order to capture the funding that is probably out there for us right now?
Does everyone at our organization (staff, ED, board members, volunteers) all understand that we have to invest personal “face time” in developing relationships with major donors?
32 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
MAJOR GIFTS ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Staffing: Is your staff able to get out of the office to make major donor visits?
What’s keeping them in the office?
2. We have enough major gift prospects to keep us busy.
Discussion: why or why not?
3. Prospect List: We have a Master Prospect List of identified prospects.
Discussion: why or why not?
4. Dollar potential: We have rated and qualified all our major prospects.
Discussion: why or why not?
5. We know the dollar potential of our major prospect list.
Discussion: how much money is on the table?
6. Cultivation strategies: We are able to find ways to cultivate our major gift prospects and bring them closer to our organization.
Discussion: what cultivation strategies are you using and how well are they working?
33 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
7. Investment: We have a budget for major donor cultivation. (Events, travel, meals.)
Discussion: thoughts?
8. We have a system to track our progress with major gift prospects.
Discussion: what kind of system are you using and is it working?
9. We have a monthly major gift strategy session to evaluate where we are with our prospects.
Discussion: why or why not?
10. We understand how to determine if our major gift prospects are ready to be solicited.
Discussion: why or why not?
11. We have people who can successfully solicit our major prospects.
Discussion: why or why not?
12. We like to form long term partnerships and with our major donors.
Discussion: why or why not?
13. We have some major donors who are close friends of our organization. Discussion: why or why not?
14. We can organize and execute solicitations of our major donors when needed. Discussion: why or why not?
34 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
15. We recognize and honor major donors and their gifts with receptions or events in their honor.
Discussion: why or why not?
16. Our board members help us identify and develop relationships with major donor prospects.
Discussion: why or why not?
17. Our board members are involved in helping solicit major donor prospects.
18. Our board members help us thank and continue to cultivate major donors after they give.
Discussion: why or why not?
19. We know who the major donors were for our most recent capital campaign and we are still in touch with them.
Discussion: why or why not?
TOTAL
20 45 You’ve got work to do!
46 74 You’re getting there!
75 95 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
5 (Very Simple) Steps to Build a Major Gifts Program from the Ground Up
35 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
How to Get the Most Out of a Major Gift Visit!
The #1 Secret of Raising Lots of Money? Face Time With Major Gift Donors
Step by Step Major Gift Coaching Program
22 Power Questions to Ask Your Major Gift and Capital Campaign Donors
36 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Nine:
Infrastructure, Back Office and Staffing
Resources Checklist
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
What’s the general situation of your back office and infrastructure?
Where are you covered adequately? (Staffing, skill sets, training, data base usage, management and financial reports, grant reports, time available for processing of deposits and acknowledgement letters)
Where are you short?
What is at risk if you do not fix the areas where you are short?
Let’s look at each area in detail:
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NO 1 2 3 4
YES5
1. Processing donations: Our back office can process our financial receipts quickly.
Discussion: why or why not?
2. Thank you note turn around time: Our back office can get our thank you letters out quickly.
Discussion: why or why not?
3. Important acknowledgements: We have a process that highlights important gifts for special thank you’s.
Why do you need one?
4. Accuracy: Our thank you letters always are accurate, and have correct salutations and addresses.
Discussion: why or why not?
5. Specifics: Our thank you letters can mention the exact amount of the donor’s gift.
Discussion why or why not?
6. Reporting turn around time: We get financial reports to the staff in relatively quickly.
Discussion – why is this important?
7. Meaningful reports: We are able to develop meaningful financial reports that give the staff useful information.
Discussion: thoughts?
38 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
8. Online donations: We have a separate and special process to thank donors who make gifts on our website.
Discussion: thoughts?
9. Staff: Our back office staff feel that they are an important part of the fundraising team.
Discussion: thoughts?
10. Staff: Our back office staff members have a cooperative and helpful attitude.
11.Database: Our database is reasonably up to date and clean.
Discussion: how clean is our database?
12. Database: If our database is NOT up to date and clean, we have a plan to get it in better shape.
13. Reporting turnaround time: We are able to pull reports out of our database easily and with a reasonable amount of time.
Discussion: who needs which reports, when and why?
14. Accounting and finance: Our financial mangers (CFO and staff) understand and support fundraising.
Discussion: thoughts?
15. Form 990: Our financial managers work with us to create a Form 990 that presents our numbers in a positive light.
Discussion: thoughts?
16. CPA Firm: Our CPA firm understands nonprofit accounting, and works to present our 990 appropriately.
Discussion: thoughts?
39 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
17. Overall investment in infrastructure: Our organization invests appropriately in fundraising infrastructure.
Discussion: thoughts?
TOTAL
17 42 You’ve got work to do!
43 60 You’re getting there!
61 80 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
Is Your Back Office Staff Supporting or Undercutting Major Gift Fundraising?
40 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
Step Ten:
Board and Leadership Support For
Fundraising
Transformational Fundraising Plan for 2015-16
What kind of support for fundraising comes from your board?
What kind comes from your ED and staff leadership?
NO YES
1 2 3 4 5
1. Our board members are excited and passionate about our cause.
2. Our board members are influential in the community.
3. Our board members are all aligned regarding our organization’s vision and plans.
4. Our board operates with business minded board practices.
5. Our board members all support our organization financially.
6. Our board members understand their role and their job descriptions.
Discussion: thoughts?
41 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
7. Our board members have a good relationship with staff.
Discussion: thoughts?
8. Our board members are comfortable talking about our organization and our work.
Discussion: thoughts?
9. Our board members have a short elevator speech.
Discussion: thoughts?
10. Our board members understand what we are raising money for.
Discussion: thoughts?
11. Our board members understand our fundraising strategies.
Discussion: Why or why not?
12. Our board members understand how nonprofit fundraising works today.
Discussion?
Our board members participate in:
13. Friendraising activities.
14. Donor cultivation events. fundraising.
15. Thanking donors.
16. Opening doors to new potential donors.
17. Hosting events.
42 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
18. Our board members are willing to make inperson solicitations.
Discussion: thoughts?
19. Our board members are good fundraisers.
Discussion: thoughts?
TOTAL
19 42 You’ve got work to do!
43 66 You’re getting there!
67 95 You’re in pretty good shape, let’s just tweak and sharpen your strategies!
Resource articles from my blog:
New Year’s Resolutions for Board Members
Five Clues Your Fundraising is Headed Downhill What Every Board Member Needs To Know About Fundraising Help Board Members Understand: Fundraising is Everybody’s Job
10 Fundraising Responsibilities of Every Board Member
Myths and Realities of Board Members and Fundraising
43 Copyright Gail Perry © 2015
