“People want to support a winning organization not a whining organization.”
Random Notes
If you ask any person involved with a charitable organization what the organization struggles with most, the answer is almost always a need for additional financial support. It is theoretically possible for a charity to have more funds than they know what to do with, but I have yet to encounter an organization like this. Over the years, I have raised a lot of money for organizations I am working with as a volunteer or an employee. Fundraising is time consuming, sometimes quite disappointing, and very stressful for many people. However, if we care about our neighbours and our communities, we work together to gather enough resources to provide the kinds of institutions, services, and programs that make our cities and towns the places we love to call home.
People sometimes think that I have been successful at raising funds for these causes I care about because I know many people who are generous and charitable. Or they think that I might have some special training or skill set that makes it possible for me to raise funds. When it comes to fundraising, I guess that many organizations would like to feel that there is some magic formula that makes it possible for some people to succeed at fundraising.
I hate to disappoint you, but I cannot say that I have a magic formula of any type for successful fundraising, but I have some ideas that any organization could implement to increase the funds that they have available for a special project or to grow and sustain the organizations they love. Here are the principles I have used to build up the fundraising capacity in organizations.
1. Start with the funders and donors you know and ask for more money.
There may be many more wealthy people in your community, or funding bodies or charitable foundations that you think could afford to solve all your problems with one easily written check. That can be the case occasionally, but most of the time your best start is to reach out to all the people and institutions that provide funding for your organization and ask them if they would be able to make a larger gift. At the same time, it is also very important to express appreciation for the funding that is currently given and ensure that they know that the funds they have provided have been well and responsibly used, and that there have been some wonderful results from their generous support.
When you ask your current donors, foundations, and funding institutions for additional funding, always ensure that you have a reason for the request for additional funding. Are you launching a new program, building a new facility, planning a special project, celebrating an anniversary, or creating a new work of art? This is the time to let the people who support you know about the project.
2. Be Positive
I have never found that negative fundraising has worked for me. People want to support a winning organization not a whining organization.
People are far more persuasive when they are talking about the dreams and aspirations they have for their organizations, than when they are complaining about challenges or unfairness that is holding them back now. Some people may be able to pull this approach off, but it is not something that I can recommend.