Here are some fundraising tips to help you sharpen your appeal, keep your donors (partner-investors) on board and even build your donor base.
Know why people give.
According to fundraising master Jerold Panas, there are two basic reasons people give. To change or to save lives. Your appeal must be visceral when asking people to invest in your mission. You must express how you “change” or “save” lives. For Example, “Help us empower 100 inner city children with the skills to move into a higher education environment”, instead of , “Help support education in our school.” People need to be moved.
Have a compelling mission.
This follows #1 by creating something everyone can relate to and support. Here’s the Make a Wish Foundation’s mission statement, “to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. The children we serve are fighting for their lives, and their families are doing everything that they can to help them in their battles.” Everyone wants to help children especially those in such desperate circumstances.
Don’t be daunted – and stay positive and confident.
The current economic environment, including the new tax laws are real hurdles to get over, but you can. What your donors want is to know that “everything’s a go” with your agency, that your mission fulfillment is on track. They want to hear from you with energy and enthusiasm, that with their continued partnership you help change the lives of more people, more effectively.
Remember you are a business.
Many non-profits forget they’re a business – a non-profit business – but a business nonetheless. Wear your business hat when talking with donors and prospective donors. They are investors and expect (as they should!) a return on investment (ROI). Instead of a financial return, the ROI is in lives changed for good, lives saved from desperate circumstance.
Have fun and believe in your mission!
People, all people, just want to know everything is going to be OK. A sense of humor helps set people at ease. Of course there should be urgency in your appeal; people’s lives depend on you, but being over-serious is a turn-off. In other words, be normal. Know how to laugh. And in all you do, have faith and believe in your mission. If you do, it is likely they will to.
Fundraising is both an art and a science – but whether it’s a proven method you apply or a “gut feel” you go with, the most important thing you can have is passionate enthusiasm for you cause – your mission!