How to Incorporate Donor Cultivation into Fundraising Plans

Guest post by Aly Sterling

Put yourself in a prospect’s shoes. Suppose you were to receive a donation request immediately after subscribing to a nonprofit’s newsletter for the first time. You’d probably be alarmed at the organization’s audacity and reconsider engaging with it.

As Aly Sterling Philanthropy’s donor stewardship guide explains, “Before you can jump into requesting a donation from a prospective donor, your nonprofit needs to form the basic building blocks for a long-term relationship. This will make the transition to a donation request much smoother and more relevant.”

This guide will explore how to build donor cultivation into your nonprofit’s fundraising plan so you can initiate relationships with prospects that lay the groundwork for future monetary giving.

1. Educate prospects about your mission.

Before new prospects even think about giving, they want to understand what your organization is all about. Help them explore your nonprofit and its cause by:

• Sending them educational materials. Compile content that welcomes prospects to your organization and familiarizes them with your mission. These materials may include a synopsis of your nonprofit’s history, a blog post emphasizing why your cause is so important, and a news article explaining your mission's relevance to current events.

• Sharing beneficiary videos. With your beneficiaries’ permission, film them sharing their stories and how your organization has helped them. This form of user-generated content (UGC) allows you to convey your mission authentically and demonstrate your impact.

• Hosting workshops. Invite prospects to attend virtual or in-person workshops explaining your core programs and projects. Allow them to ask questions about how your organization operates and how they can get involved.

Once prospects better understand your nonprofit’s work, they’ll get an idea of how they’d like to lend their support and start to picture themselves as part of your organization’s community.

2. Segment prospects.

As you get to know prospects, gather and record pertinent information about them. Using this data, segment prospects based on similar characteristics so you can personalize communications and connect with them on a deeper level.

For example, you may group prospects by:

• Giving capacity with groups for potential small, mid-level and major donors

• History with your organization, segmented by length or area of involvement

• Demographics like age and location

• Motivation or interests as they relate to your mission

• Communication preferences, such as phone, email or direct mail

Update these segments in your nonprofit’s CRM as you learn more about new prospects. If you want to expand your knowledge of prospects further and target them even more precisely, consider conducting a data append. For example, enriching your database may allow you to access key lifestyle information, such as other charities your prospects support, so you understand the other causes they’re passionate about.

3. Develop personalized communications.

Personalization shows you care about prospects as individuals and offers insight into the treatment and acknowledgment they can expect if they become donors. Additionally, it ensures that the messages you send to prospects resonate, making them more likely to take action.

Use the information you’ve gathered to customize messages following these tips:

• Greet prospects by name. Consider the subject lines “Learn more about our nonprofit!” and “Elliot, explore how you can get involved!” While both essentially convey the same information, incorporating the prospect’s name adds a personal touch that may entice them to open and engage with your message. Use your CRM’s automation tools to insert prospect names into messages for efficient customization.

• Reference past interactions. Just as you feel understood when a friend brings up something you did or mentioned in the past, the same goes for your prospects. Referencing past interactions shows you listen to prospects and want to develop strong relationships with them. For example, you may ask a prospect how they felt about an event they attended last week or how their recent vacation went.

• Focus on their interests. Your nonprofit likely covers various different initiatives and programs. Find out what prospects are passionate about and put those at the forefront of your messaging. For instance, send prospects interested in your disaster relief efforts case studies of beneficiaries you’ve helped through that programming.

• Leverage their preferred communication channels. Following prospects’ communication preferences shows you’re attentive to their needs. Let them know they can change their preferences or opt out of communications altogether at any time.

Assess how prospects respond to your personalization efforts by tracking engagement metrics like open and click-through rates. Consider surveying prospects to understand how you can further tailor your messaging to their interests and needs.

4. Offer nonmonetary engagement opportunities.

There are various ways prospects can get involved before donating. Ensure they’re aware of all the nonmonetary engagement opportunities available to them, including:

• Volunteering. Let prospects know about different volunteer roles and how they can participate. Additionally, many prospects may not know they can help your nonprofit earn money just by volunteering. According to Double the Donation, 40% of Fortune 500 companies offer volunteer grants, which are funds employers contribute to the organizations their employees volunteer with. Encourage prospects to check their volunteer grant eligibility and apply for this funding to help your nonprofit without reaching into their own pockets yet.

• Advocacy. Prospects especially passionate about your cause may be interested in advocacy work. Equip them with resources like templates and brand guidelines so they can communicate about your mission according to your guidelines. You may also send them relevant petitions they can share and invite them to canvass your community.

• Events. Events allow you to meet with prospects face-to-face and introduce them to your community. Consider hosting facility tours, open houses, networking events, and panels that help prospects become more deeply ingrained in your cause.

Offering nonmonetary engagement opportunities not only helps you engage prospects but also retain current supporters. Donors will appreciate the ability to help your cause between donations so they can make a larger impact without contributing more financially.

Engaging Students: 6 Innovative School Fundraising Events

Guest post by ABC Fundraising

According to ABC Fundraising, 80% of parents who model philanthropic behavior see their children mirror these habits. To inspire the next generation of givers, the adults in their lives need to do their part—and that doesn’t have to stop at home.

School is where students learn about math, science, history, and language arts, but it’s also where they learn important life skills. By planning and hosting fundraising events your students will enjoy, you can get them excited about giving back and earn more for your school at the same time.

In this guide, we’ll review several school fundraising event ideas to engage your students and boost revenue. Remember to adapt these ideas to your school’s unique student body as needed. Let’s get started!

1. Color Run

A color run is a twist on traditional school fundraising ideas like fun runs and walkathons. Instead of simply collecting pledges and running or walking to support your school, color runs involve volunteers throwing colored powder on participants as they complete the route.

To host a successful color run, keep the following tips in mind:

• Find a suitable outdoor space. Look for an open park or field where you can host your color run. Alternatively, you can host the event on school grounds if you have ample space.

• Gather the necessary supplies. Perhaps the most important element of a color run is the color itself. Purchase non-toxic, environmentally friendly color powder, or make your own using cornstarch, water, and food dye. Additionally, stock up on water, bib numbers, and first aid supplies.

• Tell participants to wear white. To make the colors pop, participants should wear white during the color run. You may even create and hand out white t-shirts with your school and event name for a personal touch.

Make your color run even more fun with some live entertainment. Consider hiring a DJ or even just playing family-friendly music to create an exciting atmosphere.

2. Carnival

Spring is the perfect time of year to host a school carnival fundraiser. The nice weather will encourage students and their families to join the fun and support your school.

Make your carnival extra engaging by incorporating:

• Games. Classic carnival games like ring toss, balloon darts, and basketball shooting are sure to be crowd-pleasers for students and parents alike.

• Activities. Get younger students excited about your carnival with bounce houses, face painting, and craft stations.

• Snacks. Serve all the best carnival delights, including cotton candy, popcorn, funnel cakes, and snow cones.

• Sponsors with giveaways. Local businesses could want a booth to demonstrate community spirit and distribute their own products, gift cards, or coupons.

To make your carnival a success, you’ll need a solid team of volunteers to check people in and run each booth. Whether your volunteers are older students, teachers, or parents, remember to thank them for their hard work and dedication to your fundraising event.

3. Talent Show

A talent show allows students to showcase their passions and become directly involved in hosting your fundraising event. Prepare for the big day by:

• Holding auditions. While you don’t necessarily need to reject any acts from your show, holding auditions encourages students to take the show seriously and allows you to make sure each act is school-appropriate.

• Selling tickets. The main fundraising aspect of your talent show will come from selling tickets to friends, family, and community members. Use online invitation software along with your typical communication channels to share event details and include a ticket sales link.

• Having a practice run. Familiarize students with your show order and the feeling of getting on stage in front of an audience. A practice run or rehearsal is also an ideal opportunity for testing out any equipment you’ll use during your talent show, such as microphones and speakers.

Remind students they don’t have to have a traditional talent like singing or playing an instrument to participate in your talent show. Encourage everyone interested to sign up and show off their skills.

4. Read-a-thon

Incentivize students to read and earn more for your school with a read-a-thon. During a read-a-thon, students collect pledges from friends and family and earn donations based on how many pages they read or how much time they spend reading.

Try out these tips to make your read-a-thon more engaging for students:

• Host a kick-off event. Get students excited about your read-a-thon by celebrating the beginning of your fundraiser with a party. Offer cozy spots for students to read, announce your fundraising goal, and invite local authors to speak and sign books.

• Incentivize participation. Besides earning donations for your school, provide further incentives for students to participate. You may offer individual prizes for students who read the most pages or use team prizes to inspire friendly competition between classes or grades.

• Hold a book drive. Take this opportunity to collect in-kind donations of new and gently used books, either for your own classrooms or for children in need. Explain to students the importance of sustainability and donating items you no longer use instead of discarding them.

Provide reading logs or digital trackers to help students keep track of the number of books and pages they read. That way, they can more easily collect pledges and measure their progress.

5. Restaurant Proceeds Night

A restaurant proceeds night (an evening where a restaurant donates a percentage of its proceeds to your school) presents a win-win-win opportunity for everyone involved. Students and families get a delicious meal, local restaurants receive more business, and your school earns more revenue.

This type of fundraiser can also be the beginning of an impactful partnership between your school and the restaurant that increases the return on investment (ROI) for both parties. For instance, they may be willing to sponsor or donate to future fundraising events in exchange for promoting their business.

To facilitate these partnerships, Double the Donation’s corporate sponsorship guide recommends working with businesses that share your values and believe in your cause. Consider having a partnership discussion before working with a particular business or scouring their website to see the types of organizations they typically support.

6. Movie Night

Looking for a low-cost yet inclusive and engaging school fundraising event? Look no further than a movie night.

All you need to host a successful movie night is:

• A movie. Choose a movie that’s family-friendly but also appealing to students of all ages. Survey your student body so they can vote on their top choices. Don’t forget to first secure a license for a public showing, as this may also influence your selection.

• A place to show your movie. You may host your movie night in your school auditorium, a classroom, outside on school grounds, at a local park, or a movie theater, depending on your resources and turnout.

• A TV or projector. If you’re hosting the movie night at your school or a park, you’ll need a TV or projector to show the movie to everyone.

Hosting concurrent fundraising ideas can create an even more immersive experience and raise more for your cause. For example, a concurrent fundraiser that aligns with the theater theme would be selling popcorn at your movie night. From traditional movie theater butter to sweet kettle corn, the possibilities are endless.