Showing posts with label fundraising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fundraising. Show all posts

Monday, December 20, 2010

Boards Struggle in Fund-Raising and Diversity Efforts, Study Finds

Chief executives of nonprofit organizations gave their boards grades of D+ in fund-raising and C+ in increasing board diversity, according to a new national survey. The 2010 Nonprofit Governance Index, compiled by BoardSource, shows many organizations are still struggling from the recession: 41% cut or froze staff salaries, 29% laid off staff members or eliminated positions, and 28% dipped into reserves or endowments. The survey included responses from 978 chief executives and 780 board members of nonprofit organizations.

The survey asked chief executives and trustees to rank their boards’ performance on 10 basic board responsibilities. Some of the lowest grades came in fund raising, community relations, and board recruitment.

Also, the survey showed that new disclosure rules in the Form 990 are prompting organizations to put more accountability measures in place. The number of organizations with written conflict-of-interest policies roles from 88% in 2007 to 95% this year. Some 87% require annual statements disclosing potential conflicts, compared with 67% in 2007.

The 2010 Nonprofit Governance Index is available on the BoardSource Website.

Posted by Kathy Grochow, NRS, St. Cloud

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

15 Tips to Help You Raise More Money by Mail

I came across this from Guidestar and thought it might be helpful information. Enjoy!

Reprinted from "115 Tips to Raise More Money by Mail."

  • Use the same appeal message in your mail solicitations, on your Web site "call to action," and in your e-mail communications—to reinforce your message over and over.
  • Focus more on your donor and what he or she wants to accomplish than on your organization.
  • The appeal letter can have only one objective: a clear ask for support. It is not a newsletter, an end-of-year report, or item mixed in with other communications.
  • Your top priority is always to renew your past donors.
  • Don't solicit any donors until you have shown them what results you have accomplished with their first gift.
  • Be sure to communicate with your donors frequently in between appeals so they are up to date and feel connected to your organization.
Draw Your Donors In
  • Use the word "you" immediately in the first sentence of your appeal.
  • Repeat the word "you" frequently; it's the most important word in your letter. Always make it about the donor.
  • Always immediately thank donors for their past support in the first or second lines. I like to open letters with "thank you" to remind donors of their partnership for the cause.
  • Use the word "I" in the letter to make it more personal and friendly. It does wonders changing your tone from "institutional" to "personal."
  • Tell a story. Narrative is far more powerful than a set of statistics and organizational accomplishments.
  • Use photos in your letter or accompanying materials. The donor will read captions under photos before your letter copy.
  • Always use photos of people, not buildings. It's what happens inside the buildings that counts.
  • Photos of cute kids and attractive people draw better than photos of sick kids or unpleasant scenes. (Cute animals draw better than sick animals.)
  • Always, always, always send out personalized letters ("Dear Mr. Smith," rather than "Dear Friend").
Howard Barlow, NRS, Fargo

Monday, February 22, 2010

Nonprofit Connection

We've just completed our first quarter 2010 Nonprofit Connection Newsletter. You can find it on Bremer.com. This quarter, we take a closer look at donations and fundraising.

Friday, December 11, 2009

FUNdraising involves raising awareness

The Crossing Arts Alliance (Brainerd, MN)
This project is a great collaborative between The Crossing Arts Alliance a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, the Brainerd Public Schools Foundation, also a 501(c)3, and the Brainerd Public Schools.

Recently the Brainerd School District in collaboration with the Brainerd Public Schools Foundation sponsored a fall community homecoming event. Though many of the activities revolve around the traditional parade, football game and athletics, The Crossing Arts Alliance wants to ensure that there is an Alumni Event that also offers opportunities to celebrate the ARTS! On a Saturday evening in October in conjunction with the Community Homecoming Celebration, the Crossing Arts Alliance co-sponsored a reception for the artists exhibiting in the BHS Alumni Visual Arts Exhibit and the community, at the Franklin Arts Center.

The Crossing is always looking for ways to support our artists and raise awareness of the good work that artists do for our community. Like all 501(c)3 organizations, budgets are tight and we are always trying to find ways to fundraise with fun events that offer our members some benefits for supporting the arts.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

FUNdraising - match abundance with need

Central Minnesota Emergency Services Chaplaincy (St. Cloud, MN)

Ok, here's my idea. I don't know if it can be done because of liability issues, but it seems as though it would fill a gap in the community.

(1) There are rhubarb and fruit trees all throughout the community that do not get harvested for the gifts they provide.
(2) We have many people in our community who obtain food from the food shelf and who are struggling to make ends meet.

This demographic is documented to eat less fresh produce because of the prohibitive costs. Why not make these two things match up? Let's collect the food around town that is growing in our yards and get it to people who need it.

The project would involve community members looking to have their fruit trees (e.g.: apples, pears, plums, mulberries) and plants (e.g.: rhubarb) harvested, organization and community members to submit recipes, a couple people to design recipe booklets, donation from a paper and/or printing company in exchange for logo on recipe booklets, coordination with local food shelf, and an organization to organize the collection of the fruit (maybe ladders, loaders, containers, bags, baskets).

Money could be raised as pledges per pound raised or per hour invested or as a flat pledge. I was thinking that recipes for each type of fruit harvested would be helpful for the households who are not used to receiving a large amount of fruit at one time. The recipe booklets could also be sold.

Monday, December 7, 2009

FUNdraising - Creative Crafts is their signature

The Friends of the Polk County Libraries (Balsalm Lake, WI) has been a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization for the past three years. They have been FUNdraising with Creative Crafts.

Creative Crafts are items recycled from felted wool sweaters; primarily they have made mittens and purses. These have been sold with such success that they are expanding their line of Creative Crafts to include coasters, mitten bookmarks, fingerless gloves and Christmas stockings. They have sold these creations at the Polk County Fair, Polk County Homemakers Christmas Fair and the Polk County Library Federation.

This fall, they will be expanding their FUNdraising to include the St. Croix Falls Harvest Festival, and the Amery Senior Center Fall Bazaar.

FUNdraising - All Nations Dinner

Tricity Haitian Ministry (Fargo, ND)

I suggest that we do a fundraiser called ALL NATIONS DINNER, where we have all kinds of foods come from all parts of the world with expositions of customs and maybe try to have a representative from each of the countries to help out.

I think it will be beautiful to have most of the country's flags in the world in one room, serve dinner and have a diverse concert where people from different countries will be willing to dance, sing, etc .

Together with advertising and publicity, an All Nations Dinner would be a great fundraiser and fun event.

Friday, December 4, 2009

FUNdraising - kitchen renovation project

Backus Community Center (International Falls, MN)
Here's a list of fundraising activities for Backus Community Center's Capital Kitchen Renovation Project:

· Period architectural calendar
· Letter of solicitation to area service clubs
· Article in local high school alumni association newsletter
· Sell sweat and T-shirts with screen print and embroidery of Backus logo
· Boat tour
· Guest column in local newspaper
· Musical showcase for K-12 students
· Theme baskets for silent auction at each major event

FUNdraising - Pennies for Pets

Animal Humane Society (Golden Valley, MN)
Two teenage girls wanted to help the Animal Humane Society but they didn’t have the capacity to stage a fundraising event. So they rolled up their sleeves and took the old fashioned approach: they went door-to-door in their neighborhood, asking people to donate their spare change to help the animals at the Animal Humane Society…PENNIES FOR PETS. Pounding the pavement really paid off because these dedicated teens brought in a Rubbermaid tub of change that totaled $1,000!

Fundraising, community building, youth involvement, grassroots activism…these were all factors in helping us take care of animals!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

FUNdraising - Thanks(for)giving... Seasoning Your Staff

Family Resource Center St. Croix Valley (Baldwin, WI)
Let development in your non-profit be bigger than the space of your desk and phone! Saying thank-you is one of the most important and fun parts of development activities. Share that critical and enjoyable work with other staff members when you set aside a few hours for all staff to make thank-you calls.

Before the calls, have a staff discussion about what cultivation is and why it’s important for your relationship with donors. Help all staff who participate in the services/execute the mission of your organization prepare a story to share with donors before the calls. The story will provide a brief illustration of how donor support is translated into real-life results for the community you serve.

During the calls, staff will love talking about the positive results of their work, and donors will be delighted that you took the time to make such a personal thank-you.

Monday, November 16, 2009

A new tool for giving

A new and exciting way to support nonprofit organizations has just been launched!


Through the partnership of several Minnesota foundations, GiveMN.org has been created to offer nonprofits statewide a common tool to accept and process online contributions of time and treasure. The website allows potential contributors a means to research and offer support to any Minnesota nonprofit with no processing fees or overhead costs.


This seems like a great tool, especially for smaller nonprofits. Are there any pitfalls to this method that nonprofits should be concerned about?
Check it out: http://www.givemn.org/





Posted by Kathy Grochow

NRS, St. Cloud

Friday, November 13, 2009

FUNdraising - More Fall Fun

.... your group can borrow these ideas for next year; start planning now....

Aitkin Women of Today (Aitkin, MN)
The Women of Today is a non-profit organization that runs many fundraisers and projects to benefit our community. For several years we have held the "Pumpkin Patch" in Aitkin. The Pumpkin Patch is a family event, usually run on a Sunday, two weeks before MEA weekend. It is held at our local city park, so it is an outdoor event. We have the following at the Patch:

Family Pictures: We have a local photographer come and take pictures of kids/families in their autumn or Halloween costumes, with a fall background
Booths: Halloween tattoos, pumpkin cookie decorating, one or two Halloween crafts, and more
Several Games: Including pumpkin bowling; prizes are of Halloween nature
A Not-so Haunted Haunted House: Located in our warming house, the past couple of years, the local Girl Scout troop has decorated this, inside and out, for young children and older children to visit. Profits from this goes directly to the Girl Scout troop.
Concessions: Fall type fare
Fall Bake Sale & Pumpkin Sales
Petting Zoo: Includes small pets that children can hold and handle. Will sometime feature kittens to "give away."
Fall Potholders: Children can put their handprint (painted) on the back of the potholder. Proceeds from this goes to the local Child Prevention Abuse Council.
Hayrides

This event is truly a community event. Our local Sentence to Serve group helps set up tents, tables, chairs, etc. for the event. They also help transport the purchase of pumpkins to people's cars. Miss Aitkin and her court work at the event. Aitkin Women of Today members dress up in Halloween costumes. Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative sponsor the horses and hay wagon for rides. At times, the Learning Stables have provided goats, horses, etc. for the petting zoo. Girl Scouts run the Not-So- Haunted Haunted horse. The local Boy Scouts help work at the games. Proceeds go to local charities and chapter maintenance.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

FUNdraising - Fall Festival; Family Fun Day

Western Community Action (Marshall, MN)

Enjoy the changing of the seasons and celebrate the arrival of fall with a family fun day in the park! Spend a crisp afternoon with your family and friends while listening to great music, eating delicious food, and competing in fun contests. And no need to worry about decorations – the beautiful scenery with the orange and yellow leaves will serve as your backdrop and put people in the mood for fall!

Invite local craftsmen to join the fun and set up booths to show off their new line of fall decorations. Have local food vendors serve delectable treats to attendees and sell goodies just in time for Halloween! Anyone is welcome to participate! Remind people of the joy that fall can bring (crisp air, beautiful leaves, tasty meals!) and deliver a wonderful day that families will cherish forever.

Attractions
Local Band for Concert
Scarecrow Making Contest
Pumpkin Pie Eating Contest
Local Food Vendors
Local Craft Vendors

Activities
Pumpkin Carving/Coloring
Mini-Scarecrow Making
Pumpkin Rolling
Scarecrow Dress and Sash
Pumpkin Toss

The sky’s the limit!

Friday, November 6, 2009

FUNdraising - Get IN the Gutter (Please)!

PATH Crisis Nursery Serving Wright County (Monticello, MN)

One of the most interesting and memorable grassroots fundraisers a group of bowlers did for us one time was to give the Crisis Nursery $1 for every gutter ball bowled by team members. We got a nice donation (Yeah!) and they quickly became better bowlers because of it.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Best Practices - Direct Mail Marketing

Ten Best Practices of Direct Mail Marketing from The US Postal Service

1. It's all about the list! You'll have covered the most important part of the process which is using a targeted, clean list of prospects. Depending on the list you choose, you could be provided with various demographical statistics about your audience.
2. Set a goal. It's the easiest way to determine if results of your mailing meet your goal.
3. Consider ways to personalize the message you are sending.
4. Make sure your strongest benefit/offer is on the cover or in the headline to ensure the highest possible open/read rate. Consider the idea that you have three seconds to make an impression. Is your piece powerful and engaging enough? Stand out from the pile. Be creative!
5. K.I.S.S. = Keep It Simple Stupid. Studies prove short words and simple language are far more effective.
6. Don't assume you've got it right. Test it. Test it. Test it. Start with a small segment and gauge results. Fix it and gauge again.
7. Re-mail. Follow up in three to five days...."In case you missed our offer...." Just like any form of advertising, the key is in the redundancy and repeated exposure.
8. Make your mailing part of an overall campaign. Promote your message across print/digital/online channels.
9. Consider a mailing to say "thank you" to your current customers. Nurturing a relationship isn't all about selling.
10. ROI - Return on Investment- takes into account campaign cost > response rate > conversion ratio > AND profit per sale. DON'T STOP AT RESPONSE RATE! Estimate your return on investment using the USPS's online ROI Estimator.

Posted by Julie Vreeland
NRS, Brainerd, MN

FUNdraising - I Dare You

Hope Foundation of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)
Within a business, there are two (or more) people chosen (preferably someone at administration level) to a dare. You display (within the organization) jars with the person’s name and dare clearly displayed on it. The jar that ends up with the most cash in it after a certain amount of time is the person that has to perform the "dare."

Employees submit "I Dare You" proposals and the most popular – the ones that generate the most contributions in jars – will be carried out.


This would create a battle between the individuals picked for a dare. They would start filling each others jars with money so they would not have to perform a dare.

Friday, October 30, 2009

FUNdraising - The Trick is M&M Treats

Not just Halloween -- this can work any time of year!


Safe Kids Grand Forks (Grand Forks, ND)

Want to get kids involved in fundraising? Hand out a "treat" of mini M&M's in the plastic tubes with a sticker promoting your cause on the outside. Ask them to collect quarters in the tube, fill it up and bring it back. Encourage them to search the closet floors, couch cushions, loose change on the dressers, etc. The quarters add up fast in the plastic tubes and when kids get excited about something, they are "eager askers". All totaled, you can fit about $16 - $17 in one M&M tube and that's a pretty good donation from a kid!!

Thursday, October 29, 2009

FUNdraising - Picking Grapes & Harvesting Apples

Apple Tree Dental (Minneapolis, MN)
A winery in Red Wing, MN uses groups of volunteers to pick grapes. The winery makes a donation to the volunteers' nonprofit as compensation for their time. Apple Tree is looking at doing this as a way for our employees to help Apple Tree and as a team building event.

.....Speaking of apples and trees and volunteers, when I read this FUNdraising idea, I thought about something sort of related that I had noticed. Not about fundraising specifically, but definitely on the theme of generosity and building teams and community, a post on Second Harvest Heartland's Hunger Matters blog describes how some cool high school kids harvested apples for hungry families served by Second Harvest Heartland. If you're looking for a "warm fuzzy," this fall season, take a minute to check it out here.





Posted by Lois Schmidt

NRS Willmar/Marshall

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

FUNdraising - Sawing Logs

Interfaith Caregivers of Burnett County (Burnett, WI)
Heat a Home

Pledge money to the organization to deliver donated, split firewood to families who cannot afford to heat their homes. Money goes for maintenance of saws, splitter, gas, chains. Wood is delivered no charge or mileage may be paid from donated funds. Money could also be used to buy wood to be cut, split and delivered if not enough is donated.

Last year, we delivered wood to 42 families before they ran out. Workers donated their time.

Monday, October 26, 2009

FUNdraising - Deck of Cards






Crow Wing County Composite Squadron, Civil Air Patrol (Brainerd, MN)
While working with Ducks Unlimited, we would stop the banquet, show a nice item such as a knife set and sell cards from a playing card deck at $5 each, announcing that we would draw a card from a second deck with the holder of the matching card winning the item. The cards went fast so we needed to have them distributed to sales personnel with change and ready to move. We included the Jokers, so we took in $270 very quickly (54 cards x $5 ea.) It was a popular raffle that we generally used twice throughout the night.