What is the best way to prioritize fundraising initiatives?

Be honest about how in alignment the organization truly is with its mission. Is it living its values? At its core, we fundraisers are vessels for transformational change. It is about aligning the donor's philanthropic objectives with the work being done to advance the mission. In order to do that, the organization has to make sure that they are clear on their strategy, approach, and impact. Then they will be able to determine, clarify, and prioritize their fundraising initiatives.

Ensure it is one of your strategic priorities, create an appropriate structure, resource it and put in the necessary talent to drive it and off you go. Monitor progress and adjust as lanscape changes. If you do that the odds are likely to be in your favour. You will more often than not succeed.

Very simply, don't see fundraising as something you do "so that" you can then go and transform the world. Fundraising IS part of your work, recruiting partners who align with your misson's heart and values. This perspective on fundraising gives permission for bandwidth, time and creativity, and, ultimately, it builds your team, because your contributors are not just donors, or worse still, ATMs; they're colleagues!

As Speaker Welch has stated and many have echoed, the primary step is to know your WHY. If you are able to make your why something that other see themselves then fundraising will be infinitely easier.

If we consider fundraising as business thus the product you are selling is mission. People will donate if they have been touched by your mission. So tie or align your mission to fundraising is key to success on any fundraising activity.

Continuously seek input from stakeholders, staff, directors, donors on the relevance of your mission and vision and the various ways you communicate your impact. These are changing times with changing audiences and messaging may become stale, or uninteresting to a next generation of decision makers.

In the arts, knowing the limits of your capacity both personally and as an organisation can be key to selecting what bids to focus on. Assessing this can help ensure that your efforts are directed towards applications that best align with your mission, and offer the most impactful contribution to your project. Depending on your project, it can also be valuable to look at funding time scales and its competitiveness, giving you the highest chance of success within your project timeline.

The next crucial step is assessing your capacity and resources. Picture this: In my startup venture dedicated to empowering women in rural areas, we took a close look at our time, budget, and staff. Understanding your financial situation and fundraising potential is key. For instance, if you find yourself with a small team and a tight budget, prioritize initiatives that are not just aligned with your mission but are also low-cost, high-reward, and easy to implement. In our case, we opted for impactful yet cost-effective strategies like online campaigns, events, and engaging peer-to-peer fundraising. This holistic approach ensures that your mission-driven initiatives are well-aligned and feasible within your organizational capacity.

Please refer to my mission statement 1 and thanks. Today, I work from home alone with two I phones, 2 laptops and a color copier alone listening to Pandora or Apple I Tunes and YouTube. I’m on Social Media Playing and Monitoring my 32 year old babies and their families who came through me to get into FHSD169 Promise Plus Pr- K Program. I have been all my life making Pennies to survive working 3 jobs for 30 years to support my four children so they would be productive citizens to society but life happened and they resented me for being there for everyone else and not them…we are all in Family Counseling now through NAMI. I’m currently on FMLA at SD170 and SUPERINTENDENT AMADIO is taking good care of me! When you do good…GOOD WILL FOLLOW!

Understanding your Return on Investment (ROI) is undeniably crucial in any nonprofit endeavor; however, it's imperative to recognize that cultivating meaningful relationships with supporters is a long-term endeavor that often yields intangible benefits beyond immediate financial metrics. While ROI provides a quantifiable measure of success, the intrinsic value of relationship-building transcends mere numbers. Establishing genuine connections requires time, patience, and consistent engagement to foster trust and loyalty among supporters.

The non-profit sector still struggles to an extent when effectively evaluating opportunities for in-person events. Too often, the level of market interest or capacity is overlooked in favour of chasing "trending" campaigns or event ideas. About a decade ago, the Greater Toronto Area had a deluge of walk/run fundraising events. The structure had broad appeal but the market became far too saturated with them for all of them to be financially successful. When exploring the prospect of an in-person fundraising event for your organization (particularly a physically active one), it's integral to do your research to determine if the event is A) a market fit and B) an experience your donors want that they aren't already getting elsewhere.

If you're in the tech space, crowdfunding platforms could be your dynamic ally. The crowd loves innovative solutions, and these platforms offer a stage for your unique projects. Social media campaigns, harnessing the power of platforms like Instagram or LinkedIn, can be your direct line to engaged investors, especially if your cause resonates with younger audiences. Consider partnerships and award to build credibility, do webinars, live streams, or virtual galas. In our case, hosting a virtual empowerment summit not only garnered funds but also fostered a sense of community around our cause. Think outside the box, like creating limited-edition merchandise or exclusive digital content that donors can access with a contribution.

What connections can you leverage to secure funding? Are there any introductions you can get through existing partners, or specific networking events you can go to to meet representatives of the organisation you are applying to? Maximising personal contact with the funder prior to applying can increase your chances of success as you will already know each other. This means, you will be more prepared having discussed the application process and funding priorities with them, and they will already know what your organisation is about and be more open to engaging with your projects.

Evaluate fundraising opportunities by considering their potential impact, feasibility, and alignment with your goals. Prioritize initiatives that offer significant value and have a higher chance of success within your organizational context.

Depending on the size of your development team, if you have grantswriters, major gift officers and an organized planned giving program, we focused on those because each offers a strong ROI which our board was always watching! We kept away from special events doing only 2 a year and both NETTED over $100k. We did not do much with annual giving including direct mail or an organized “annual campaign”. Our results were consistent, our yearly goal was a minimum of $10 million or more and we hit it for over 15 years in a row.

Data-driven fundraising is a prerequisite for an optimally performing fundraising program. Therefore, I often get the question about which KPIs I consider important in fundraising. It's quite a list, but the most crucial one is quite simple. It is, in fact, the goal of most fundraising encountered in the non-profit sector: net income. To be more precise: net income in the long term, acquired sustainably.

I agree but, currently I’m a one woman show working from home on limited resources reaching the masses that I connected with as children…I have a yahoo, sd169, sd170 and gmail accounts. My emails are as follows if you would like to confer with myself further as a consultant. nikkicf2003@yahoo.com nfason@fordheights169.org conwaydarcus@gmail.com nicoleco4@icloud.com dconway@sd170 Truly Yours, D. Nicole Conway

Systematically categorize initiative matrix 1. High Impact, High Feasibility (Do First) Monthly online SOCIAL campaign. it is likely to generate substantial funds&awareness while being relatively easy to implement. 2. High Impact, Low Feasibility (Plan Carefully) Large-scale fundraising gala. it has the potential for high impact in terms of funds& awareness, but it requires meticulous planning & resource. 3. Low Impact, High Feasibility (Do Later): Recurring email newsletter for investor updates. it is easy to implement, its impact on funds and awareness might be relatively lower. 4.Low Impact, Low Feasibility (Drop or Revise): Elaborate merchandise for fundraising. This might demand significant resources with potentially lower impact.

Create a matrix by ranking fundraising initiatives based on criteria like impact, feasibility, and alignment with your mission. Assign weights to each criterion and score potential initiatives. This structured approach can help you objectively prioritize and focus on high-impact strategies.

In my experience, using a matrix to prioritize fundraising initiatives is incredibly effective. It brings a clear, structured approach to decision-making, balancing the potential impact against practicality. This method ensures that resources are focused where they can make the most significant difference, and it's adaptable to changing circumstances, which is crucial in the dynamic world of fundraising.

Evaluate specific metrics to help guide these discussions including net revenue, the cost to raise a dollar, conversion and retention rates, new and renewed donors, and staff hours. Look for opportunities to expand fundraising initiatives to increase their impact. Add a matching challenge, testimonials, increase paid ads, or incorporate email segmentation to improve performance. Expanding a campaign might require fewer resources and time investment rather than adding a new initiative to the calendar. Be thoughtful to those efforts with high awareness or engagement elements that act as gateways to fundraising. They are just as important for acquisition and prospect cultivation to maintain a healthy revenue stream and robust donor file.

You should also consider opportunities for matching grants. Some donors like to see their contribution be maximized and this is a great way to increase revenue and engage stakeholders who want to see their contribution go even further. Additionally, be mindful of the resources available to you. The old saying "It takes money to make money" is true to a certain extent but you have to be smart about it. Don't splurge on the best wealth screening tool, prospect research database, donor management system, etc. Make sure you stay within your means. Donors pick up on details like that if they notice you spent a lot on a fundraising campaign yet the output was horrible. Be wise and look for in-kind or pro-bono opportunities wherever possible.

Besides the previous remarkable strategic overview, yet it important to consider "stakeholders and engagement plans". These will ensure who to be reached and how . Knowing wide range of stakeholders is key as not all may be knowledge of each organization's mission/vision, and therefore aiming to reachout and provide thorough engagements helps to enhance understanding and thence be able to facilitate fundraising opportunities.

1. Beyond investments, engage stakeholders with impactful stories. Make them active partners in your mission, fostering a connected community. 2. Dive into donor data for trends and preferences. Precision in analytics ensures finely tuned strategies for maximum resonance. 3. Weave compelling narratives to humanize your cause. Powerful stories spark not just investments but a potent movement. 4.Explore partnerships for amplified reach. Collaboration with like-minded entities creates a potent force for change. 5.Foster trust with clear communication on fund utilization, impact, and challenges. Transparency is key for sustained support.

Consider the urgency of funding needs, donor preferences, market trends, and potential for community engagement. Additionally, assess the competitive landscape and any external factors that might influence fundraising success. Regularly review and adapt your strategy based on these considerations.