Is your nonprofit a friendly ghost, a black cat, or a good witch?
October 31, 2013
Happy Halloween, nonprofit friends!
Is your organization dressed up in any of these costumes today?
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Hot Costume! The Black Cat
Has your organization fallen victim to a robotic donor engagement strategy, doing special events in the same way as all the others, or describing your programs and services using generalities? Or are you creative, resourceful, and specific in your efforts? Be The Black Cat! Stand out! -
Old Tired Costume! The Friendly Ghost
Are your websites, social media platforms and Giving Partner profiles up-to-date with the newest success stories about your programs in action? We recently learned from Derrick Feldmann that the biggest turn-off for younger donors is old, crusty information about your nonprofit online. Don’t let your online presence be a ghost of your nonprofit’s past. -
Hot Costume! The Good Witch
Witches have wands, as everyone knows. Wands have a way of making things happen. And the results tend to be very visible, at least in the movies. Walk around in full character as The Good Witch, with your wand in hand at all times so that your focus is on your outcomes. Convey your results to your donors in lively stories using the real people, animals, or places you are helping. (And don’t forget to drop them in “examples of program success” in your Giving Partner profile.)
May your haunting this evening be fun and safe, without spooking your donors.
Happy Halloween!
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Viewing the Fundraising World from Above: 5 Perspectives
October 30, 2013
Before fundraising life gets hectic with the onset of season in Southwest Florida, take one moment to step back and look at the world from above.
The global view combines all the details of colors, expanses of water and land, and swirling clouds into one big sphere.
Visit or bookmark these fabulous resources to widen your perspective on how our world is changing and the impact it may have on your fundraising efforts:
The Financialist: 5 Trends in Philanthropy
Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy: Women Give 2013
#NextGenDonors: Respecting Legacy, Revolutionizing Philanthropy
Fired Up Fundraising: How Major Donors are Changing and What to Do About It
Give Smart: Spotlight on Remarkable Givers’ Philanthropy Strategy
What studies, articles or resources would you add to the mix?
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Honey, I Shrunk the Fundraising Plan
October 28, 2013
Success in fundraising requires intelligence, sensitivity, courage, patience, dedication, integrity, follow-up and follow through. It’s hard, rewarding work.
As obsessed as staff and board members have to be with fundraising to make sure their important work continues, it seems a little bizarre that only 26% of local organizations have a written fundraising plan.
(This percentage comes from current data from the 350 nonprofits with updated profiles in The Giving Partner.)
If you are sitting in the seat of a funder or donor evaluating a potential grant or gift, imagine the internal conversations you might have if the nonprofit requesting support does not have a written account of how it plans to secure operating and program dollars for the year.
We answer lots of questions about fundraising plans and what we are looking for, specifically in regard to The Giving Partner question. Here are some of the most common ones:
Q: What is a fundraising plan?
A: Preferably, it is not a large, cumbersome document that a fundraising rocket scientist must put together for you. In its most basic form, a fundraising plan provides guidance about:
- The total dollars you need to raise over the next 12-18 months for your mission and operations.
- What sources you will approach for funding (individuals, foundations, corporations, board members, etc.) and the vehicles you will use (annual appeal, major gift solicitations, special events, planned giving marketing, collaborations for special grants, etc.) along with the funding goals for each.
- When and how you will implement the various components of your plan.
- Who is responsible for each component.
Q: What format are we looking for?
A: It doesn’t matter. A fundraising plan can come in any number of formats but should specifically convey your major funding goals, fundraising tactics and the timeline you have established for achieving them. The document should be useful for your organization. (The Community Foundation of Sarasota County’s fundraising plan is in the format of a chart, and is quite handy!)
Q: How complex should our plan be?
A: Again, it’s all about your organization. The size and complexity of fundraising plans are variable, depending on the size and complexity of your organization and its fundraising resources. If your organization is all-volunteer or has a small budget, your plan may even be contained on a single page.
Q: Is a list of special events a fundraising plan?
A: No.
Q: How do we get started if we don’t have a plan?
A: The important thing is to start somewhere. Look at last year’s budget and review your sources of revenue. Can you increase individual gifts this year? By what percentage? How might you do that? What new sources of funding can you consider? What are the resources you will need to implement them?
To upload a fundraising plan in your Giving Partner profile, it doesn’t have to be a work of art. It will not be viewable to the public, but it will help the Community Foundation verify that you have a written plan. Most importantly, it will help everyone on your board (and staff, if you have staff) get on the same page about how you will raise money and measure your success.
This week, we will post some fundraising resources for you. E-mail us at Susie@CFSarasota.org if you have some good suggestions!
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
A recent article in the New York Times by Wealth Matters columnist Paul Sullivan discussed how and why people are making their charitable giving decisions.
Sullivan’s perspective and highlights of the recent U.S. Trust report he cites shed even more light on the importance of tools like GuideStar‘s DonorEdge platform, implemented here in Southwest Florida as The Giving Partner.
Increasingly, donors are sharing that tax incentives and tools for giving may not be as important to them as understanding which organization(s) are the best matches for their passions and charitable goals.
While financial advisors may focus on the technical aspects of the donation vehicle when working with individuals and families, many donors wish to focus their conversations largely on their charitable interests as well as family goals, the U.S. Trust report says.
This is a common experience with our donor development team here at the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. Vehicles for giving are important to donors, but many donors wish to talk more about maximizing their charitable investments by partnering with organizations that can address their aspirations for environmental preservation, better health care, access to human services and education, experiences in the arts, and a myriad of other “creating a better world” goals.
The U.S. Trust report shares that donors also wish to have a greater understanding of how their gifts are making a difference. We second that.
The Giving Partner is a tool to help donors make more informed decisions about giving, and the hefty program section of each nonprofit profile contains the long and short-term success measures of the organization’s programs and services, how success is measured, and examples of success.
For advisors who may have more knowledge about giving vehicles than knowledge about local organizations, The Giving Partner is a perfect aid to help them gain a better understanding of the nonprofit choices in our local market, and to also understand their financial history, management and governance structures–in addition to the priceless information about programmatic impact.
Donors can go directly to the tool to do the same.
As we move more deeply into an era where donors view themselves as charitable investors, community foundations and nonprofits share responsibility to equip them with current, in-depth knowledge about who is doing what and the difference it is making.
Special thanks to GuideStar for its vision in making this tool available and to the many nonprofits and donors in our local community who make The Giving Partner possible in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and Desoto counties.
The Giving Partner is a partnership among four foundations: The Community Foundation of Sarasota County, The Patterson Foundation, Gulf Coast Community Foundation, and the Manatee Community Foundation.
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
This morning at 7:00 a.m., a very special month-long campaign is launching–the Give to Legacy of Valor match gift opportunity, created by The Patterson Foundation to inspire our community to share its generosity with 12 nonprofits in our region that have existing profiles in The Giving Partner, have ongoing programs benefiting veterans and are current partners in the Legacy of Valor campaign.
Head on over to www.givetolegacyofvalor.org, and you will find our giving platform–energized with a Leaderboard that updates every 60 seconds with gifts from the community and links to The Giving Partner so that donors can learn more about the programs, finances, management, governance and needs of each organization.
As participating agencies began discussing their strategies to inspire supporters and citizen philanthropists to give, conversation was buzzing with the power of storytelling.
Shining the light on one veteran who has benefitted from an inspiring performance, a service animal, a new home, a job–when shared with succinct, compelling language–can establish an emotional connection with a donor like nothing else. When paired with good data reflecting the organization’s long and short-term impact and a clear call to action, these stories will woo potential supporters.
We encourage you to visit the 12 Legacy of Valor organizations online over the next month. Check out their profiles in The Giving Partner and visit them on Facebook.
- What stories are being shared about the veterans who will benefit from a financial gift?
- Are you “meeting” individuals whose lives have been changed by the support of donor dollars in action?
- How are stories enhanced with videos or images?
- Is there a call to action?
Here are links to the organizations participating in this campaign, in which donations of $25 to $1,000 will be matched dollar for dollar by The Patterson Foundation:
- ALL FAITHS FOOD BANK INC.
- CHARLOTTE COUNTY HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
- GOODWILL INDUSTRIES MANASOTA
- HABITAT FOR HUMANITY SARASOTA INC.
- HABITAT FOR HUMANITY SOUTH SARASOTA COUNTY, INC.
- JEWISH FAMILY & CHILDREN’S SERVICE OF SARASOTA-MANATEE INC.
- MANATEE COUNTY HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
- SARASOTA MILITARY ACADEMY INC.
- SARASOTA MILITARY OFFICERS SCHOLARSHIP FUND INC.
- SOUTHEASTERN GUIDE DOGS, INC.
- USF-UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA FOUNDATION
- VAN WEZEL FOUNDATION INC
In the program section of each Giving Partner profile, every organization has shared the details of its veterans program–the budget, what is being achieved, how it is measured, and an example of program success.
We are grateful to The Patterson Foundation and to Magnify Good, providing strategic communications support for this initiative, for spotlighting the importance of The Giving Partner as a tool for storytelling, transparency and sharing impact.
You can follow this campaign using #LegacyofValor and by visiting www.givetolegacyofvalor.org. Join us in making a difference for local veterans and their families by making a donation, sharing links, forwarding messages, and tagging participating agencies on social media and beyond.
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Board Members: Your Honorary Communication Kings & Queens
October 14, 2013
Have you crowned your board members yet?
These Kings and Queens of Communications are–or should be–your organization’s number one messengers. To uphold the royal crown, each board member should be…
- A donor, making at least one financial gift that is meaningful to her each year, without being asked.
- An ambassador, talking about your organization in her various networking circles of friends, family, colleagues and business associates.
- An informant, always holding up her antennae for news, events and discussions that could influence your organization’s mission and work in the community.
Your staff or board chair should help equip your board members with several pieces of bling for their communication crowns:
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Good stories about what your organization is accomplishing.
It’s great to share a few compelling stories about your organization’s success with board members. It is even better to let them witness the creation of good stories by observing your programs in action. Offer those opportunities and expect board members to make the time to show up. You will notice that it becomes easier for them to speak about your organization from the heart. -
Your organization’s greatest needs.
Keep your board members up to speed about your greatest funding needs so they can speak intelligently with potential donors, funders and supporters in a unified voice. Since your most pressing needs may change from month to month, consider including an item in each board meeting’s consent agenda listing your 5 greatest needs. -
Your organization’s profile in The Giving Partner and GuideStar.
Everyone can view your organization’s profile online at www.thegivingpartner.org and at www.guidestar.org. Do your board members know what members of the public are reading there? Both locations include lots of information about your organization, including their names as the guys and gals in charge. We frequently encounter board members who are surprised by what we know about their organizations because they have never seen the profiles.
Encourage your board to share your organization’s news (as appropriate) on social media. You might send them sample messages they can customize to make things super easy.
Consider having board members rotate turns at board meetings sharing an example of how they talked about your organization to others over the last month–two minutes or less. (Thanks to Northern Trust’s National Director of Philanthropic Services Marguerite Griffin for this great suggestion.)
What success stories do you have from your board member Communications Kings and Queens? We would love to share them.
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Expectation = Experience: A Winning Formula for Nonprofits
October 11, 2013
Ed Kanis, MBA, consultant for healthcare, higher education and service organizations, joins us for a guest blog post about branding, challenging us to think beyond the “look” and explore coherence.
Many of us who toil tirelessly doing the good work of nonprofits often bristle at the use of the word “branding” and its application in our resource-limited organizations.
For years, I’ve challenged the common notion of the b-word as simply creating a compelling logo and an engaging tagline and then assuring their consistent use in all media. While executive directors “get it,” they often find themselves focusing their branding efforts on these tasks in response to supporters’ firm belief that their organization is the area’s “best kept secret” and that all good things will come their way by simply “getting the word out.”
I would not dispute the value of an engaging look and its consistent use, nor the impact of a tagline that captures the essence of an organization and its mission. But branding’s true worth comes with all the work that precedes this communication activity. Rather than try to change constituents’ perceptions of branding, let’s use a new term: “coherence.”
I became aware of the trend toward coherence marketing several years ago while working with a Midwestern liberal arts university when I met Rick Bailey, founder and principal of a national marketing consulting firm specializing in higher education and nonprofits. Rick was putting the finishing touches on a new book titled “Coherence: How Telling the Truth Will Advance Your Cause.”
Since its publishing, the book has provided sound guidance to organizational leaders by dispelling the common branding notion and replacing it with a laser-like focus on relationship building. Coherence insists that organizations will succeed to the extent they ensure a “transparent connection between customer expectation and authentic user experience.” In other words, you are who you say you are and your constituents agree.
Consider the city of Sarasota. While those responsible for our city’s destination marketing excel at touting the beauty and benefits of spending time here, the experience for some downtown visitors is often influenced by encounters with our city’s growing homeless population. These encounters may create a perceived or real disconnect between what visitors expect and what they actually experience.
So, as you build your nonprofit “brand,” address proactively any issues not in sync with your constituents’ expectations. Then you can communicate with confidence, building a cadre of ambassadors who help tell your story and make the days of being the “best kept secret” a fleeting memory.
Ed Kanis, MBA consults for healthcare, higher education and service organizations. Having worked in the same industries,
he recently relocated from the Midwest, where he launched and directed a university-based Center for Strategic Communication focused on nonprofits and served as a faculty member.
As a follow-up to the “Nonprofit Communications Camp” workshop attended by 100 local nonprofit staff and board members at the Community Foundation of Sarasota County last week, we are beginning a series of posts about nonprofit communications to offer perspectives on messaging, communications planning, media relations, positioning and other topics.
As always, your feedback, ideas and contributions to the conversation are appreciated and valued.
Now let’s talk about inferences people may be making about your organization based on your messaging.
Think about a time or circumstance during which you felt as if your organization was at a disadvantage. Perhaps you were comparing your organization to other nonprofits with more staff, a more experienced board, a perceived foothold in the local media market, more volunteers, a longer history in the community–whatever it might be.
As we work with organizations through the Giving Challenge, enhancing profiles in The Giving Partner, and facilitating connections with donors in our community, we frequently hear from organization representatives who share comments like this:
- “We’re only all-volunteer…”
- “But we don’t have the time to _____.”
- “No one knows who we are.”
Note the use of the words “only,” “but,” and “no one.”
Imagine what these proclamations sound like to funders, donors, volunteers, or anyone who would like to be energized by the organizations they choose to support with time, talent or treasure.
Nearly twenty percent of the nonprofits with profiles in The Giving Partner have no paid staff. Each of them is doing meaningful work in the community. Like organizations with paid staff, they work hard to find volunteers, donors, and board members to lead the organization.
Time is an issue for you? Surprise! It’s a challenge for everyone. If something is important to your organization, make time for it. If it is not important, position the fact that you are not addressing it in terms of a deliberate strategy.
More connections…we’re all trying to make them, all the time. If you want to expand the universe of those who know about your organization, speak about it from the vantage point of specific audiences, why they need to know about you, and what actions you hope they will take once they do know about you. Do you have a plan to reach them? If not, why?
Try using messaging like this:
- “Our organization is small and nimble.”
- “We are growing carefully.”
- “We are strategic about how we spend our time.”
- “We’re working on developing connections with the young professional community to increase our volunteer base.”
Sound better? What do you think?
-Susie Bowie
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
The Giving Partner 