Suzie Rees’ Post

The London living hourly rate is £13.85. 💥 If you donate 4 hours of your time per week to a local charity you're saving them £55.40 That's a saving of £221.60 per month. £2,659.20 per year. Wait, there's more According to the Office of National Statistics, it costs around £3,000 on average to recruit someone into an organisation. To train that delightful new recruit another £1,530 ( On average ) That’s £6824.40 per year. That’s £6824.40 per year that your favourite charity or community group doesnt have. That's £6824.40 per year that you can donate in time. That’s £6824.40 which will generate the charity cash through you upskilling them. That's £6824.40 of savings that will go towards helping charities and community groups build strong foundations, grow, thrive and support their communities in a way only they know how to do. The next time you consider a one-off fundraiser as a business, I’d ask you to reconsider. To think outside of the box. Switch things up a little. Give back to your community in a way that will make a long-term impact. You have an organisation full of employees who can build meaningful relationships with local projects needing their support each year. My inbox is always open for those wanting to find out more #socialclub4socialgood #localimpact #socialgood #businessforgood #volunteering #esg

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠? Be encouraged, you're in good company! Fundraising is tough at times - for a whole bunch of reasons. Who should you apply to? How do you get their attention? How can we grow in confidence in asking for money? How should you respond when you get knocked back? And so on... I don't class myself as a fundraising guru, but I've learnt a few lessons over the past 25 years in the charity sector which I'd love to share with you. You've probably got a few gems yourself that others also need to hear (including me!). So let's hang out online on Wednesday 16th October 12:30 - 2:00pm to explore how we can all level up fundraising. I'll be sharing 11 things I've learnt so far and there'll be space to share, question and grow together. Sign up for a free space (and Zoom code) today, and I look forward to seeing you in October. Link below... Comments from previous participants... "𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦." "𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵. 𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘶𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨." "𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 90 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩, 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨." https://lnkd.in/d7pyvsgy

For small charities, making the most of limited funds is crucial to success. By streamlining your admin processes, you can not only save time but also make your resources go further. My experience in working with charities has shown me that the right admin support can have a transformative effect. One of my recent successes was helping a small charity produce an effective Excel spreadsheet that enabled them to track funding opportunities. This tool helped them apply for the most appropriate funding at the right times, ensuring they didn’t miss any crucial deadlines. By researching and prioritising grants that aligned with their goals, we maximised their chances of success, all while staying organised and efficient. Working with me isn’t just about getting admin tasks off your plate—it’s about saving time, carefully using your existing funds, and ultimately creating more opportunities for your charity. If you want to explore how admin assistance can help your organisation thrive, let’s connect and discuss how I can support your mission. #SmallCharities #NonProfitSupport #FundingOpportunities #CharityAdmin #GrantWriting #ExcelEfficiency #MaximiseImpact #CharityGrowth

Great advice from Philippa Ouvry-Johns for any charity that has or is thinking about setting up a Friends of or Membership programme 👀⬇️. There are some great, fruitful programmes but as Philippa says setting up and running one should be part of a broader strategy. They are often resource dependent slow burners rather than instant income generators. If you have set up or run a successful friends of programme and have any tips to pass on please share (including any advice on why you chose not to invest in one one).

Want to know if your ask strategy is really maximising your appeal income or needs a tweak? What anchor amount should you set? Is it better to have a bigger gap between your $ asks on your donation page or should the gap be smaller? Over six years and across 20 charities, Dan Wilson (pictured below) from The Data Collective has conducted a range of tests that revealed simple techniques to boost appeal and acquisition income. Now Dan might have a quirky sense of humour as evidenced by his portrait, but he's deadly serious about anything that increases fundraising revenue. At the F&P Fundraising Forum (https://lnkd.in/gywpp9qf ) Dan will reveal the small tactical changes you can make that have a big impact on appeal income. There’ll also be case studies from Médecins Sans Frontières, The Alfred Foundation, Ethiopiaid, Vinnies QLD and more.   And as a bonus, Dan will share a key tactic that has helped at least two organisations increase their high-value acquisition revenue from 3% to over 25%.   If you want to maximise your appeal income, this is a Fundraising Forum session you won’t want to miss.   The F&P Fundraising Forum is happening on August 27-29 in Sydney.   You will leave this presentation with a clear framework of how to apply ask strategies and the different tactics you can use across the year to maximise revenue without sacrificing retention. And as an extra extra bonus, if you can suggest a brilliant, incredibly witty caption (nothing inappropriate please), I have one Fundraising Forum registration to give away to the best caption writer! Send your caption by connecting with me through Linked In and sending me a message.

It’s important to us that we offer a mixture of both paid-for and free services. We’re proud of this list- we know it means our services are able to be accessed by charities of all sizes. 🆓 Our YouTube Channel @moneytreefundraising is jam-packed with free informative videos on Trust Fundraising and Major Donor Fundraising as well as tips and advice for charity fundraisers. 🆓 We run two brilliant Facebook groups where fundraisers can network, share knowledge and seek advice. Comment if you’d like us to send you the links to join either the Major Donor Fundraising Facebook group or the Trust Fundraising Hub. 🆓 Major Donor Scorecard- answer 20 questions about your major donor programme and we’ll send tailored feedback to help you get started or improved. 🆓 Monthly LIVE chats- we offer a free monthly live chat (next date is Friday 13th December) on Zoom for all fundraisers. 🆓 Proposal Matrix- our free tool helps you gather everything you need to make compelling proposals- access via our website. 💷 We can help write applications 💷 Undertake audits 💷 We offer coaching and training- open access and in-house 💷 Prospect research for trust fundraising, tailored to your cause. 💷 Interim staffing should a member of fundraising staff go off in the short or long term. 💷 Launch a new programme for your cause. 💷 Consultancy Want to work with us? Get in touch 020 8895 6428 #fundraising #majordonorfundraising #charitysupport #charityfundraising #fundraiser

It’s important to us that we offer a mixture of both paid-for and free services. We’re proud of this list- we know it means our services are able to be accessed by charities of all sizes. 🆓 Our YouTube Channel @moneytreefundraising is jam-packed with free informative videos on Trust Fundraising and Major Donor Fundraising as well as tips and advice for charity fundraisers. 🆓 We run two brilliant Facebook groups where fundraisers can network, share knowledge and seek advice. Comment if you’d like us to send you the links to join either the Major Donor Fundraising Facebook group or the Trust Fundraising Hub. 🆓 Major Donor Scorecard- answer 20 questions about your major donor programme and we’ll send tailored feedback to help you get started or improved. 🆓 Monthly LIVE chats- we offer a free monthly live chat (next date is Friday 13th December) on Zoom for all fundraisers. 🆓 Proposal Matrix- our free tool helps you gather everything you need to make compelling proposals- access via our website. 💷 We can help write applications 💷 Undertake audits 💷 We offer coaching and training- open access and in-house 💷 Prospect research for trust fundraising, tailored to your cause. 💷 Interim staffing should a member of fundraising staff go off in the short or long term. 💷 Launch a new programme for your cause. 💷 Consultancy Want to work with us? Get in touch 020 8895 6428 #fundraising #majordonorfundraising #charitysupport #charityfundraising #fundraiser

Why a Friends Of or Membership programme probably isn't the answer - even if your Board keeps on and on about it! There's something about small charity boards that makes them very, very keen on setting up Friends programmes. It's probably familiarity - it's an easy concept to understand, they are likely Friends of a few charities themselves, and they think that because the donations are small it therefore isn't much work. You probably don't need me to tell you that this last point is very much not true. Friends/Memberships are - at first - more work than the income level justifies. You have to create a cohesive group of supporters, keep them stewarded, perhaps put on events, handle enquiries, handle lots of small gifts, and when you're setting up, the income is low. Over time, Friends/Memberships are brilliant: you end up with a committed group of people who know about your cause and are on your side; they are a good group to ask for Legacies; they may go on to give bigger and bigger gifts. They work well as part of a broad fundraising strategy. But, at set-up, it's a slog for not much income. If you are going to do Friends/Membership, make sure you have enough time and resource to set it up properly AND to keep it running. If you set it up and don't give it attention, you'll just create something that takes up your time but doesn't give you the results you're after. Or, worse, something that gives donors a bad experience because they never hear from you again. In short - Friends/Membership (or other regular giving) should be part of your strategy, but IMO it shouldn't be the first thing you do, and it's definitely not a magic income generator!

Where is your advantage? Most weeks I speak to a charity CEO for the first time, and here’s one of the things I’m learning to look for: Their advantage. It’s amazing how often a charity is sat on something that other organisations would LOVE to have and can takes years to get. Things like: 📧 Big mailing list 🫱🏼🫲🏾 Great networks 🎯 Unique positioning 📢 Amazing reputation 🏢 Relationships with corporates 💸 Big capacity donors that aren’t being nurtured But their potential advantage is not being utilised. So the challenge isn't to find some newfangled fundraising silver bullet, but to find, use and eventually maximise the one or two advantages you already have. I share this not because we sell stuff to help you capitalise on these advantages (although we do 😜) but because it might be something worth exploring at your charity, or the one you keep getting asked to help. What you need may be closer than you think! #CharityAdvantage #fundraising #comms

Does your charity have established public fundraising income streams? Are you seeing a worrying decline in your income generation results? Or does it just feel like there’s a lot at stake over the coming months (particularly from your planned Q3 activities, because this is such an important income generation period for many charities)? Perhaps you'd benefit from a fresh perspective and expert support to make sure your fundraising activities over Q3 are optimal. I can help you identify: - Where your untapped opportunities are (quick wins and longer-term gains) - Where small changes to existing activities will increase your net income now - Where you can focus your resources to increase your return on investment (in the short, medium, and long-term) I have very limited availability over the summer to support charities who want an expert review of their public fundraising plans and activities in time to ensure the best possible results during quarter three of this financial year (and benefits to your longer-term income generation). This can be across any of these income streams: - Individual giving - Prize led giving - In memory giving - Events fundraising - Community fundraising - Trading / e-commerce I love sharing the experience I've gleaned over 25+ years working in public fundraising, across more than 120 charities, on hundreds of appeals and campaigns, to help the charities I work with achieve far better results than they thought possible. My flexible way of working means there's always ways you can access my expertise and support that fit with your budgets and team structure. But we'll need to get started soon to make sure your Q3 fundraising results are the best they can possibly be in this challenging climate. So, if you want to raise thousands more in unrestricted income and re-engage hundreds or thousands more of your supporters in the process, ping me a DM and we can book a free exploratory call while there's still time to get your ducks in a row. (Please note, it's highly unlikely any ducks will feature - unless your charity's mission includes ducks) #fundraising #PublicFundraising #IndividualGiving #Results #IncomeGeneration #Q3