Guide to Donors and Nonprofits + A Blogging Tradition
This week Sean Stannard-Channing linked to “Five Charity Myths Dispelled” on Charity Navigator’s website. This sounded intriguing, so I clicked on it and found a crisp corrective to a number of ‘myths.’ Only then did I notice the date; this was featured more than 2 years ago – on July 1, 2007.
It is still a good guide to donors who would like to make wise decisions about giving.
I’d like to highlight the final myth, “Myth 5: A good way to support a charity is to participate in a special event or buy a special product.”
Charity Navigator conducted a study (yes, in 2007, but the findings are still sound) of more than 5,100 charities and discovered that, “on average, the charities we studied spent $1.33 to raise $1 in special events contributions, compared to an average overall fundraising rate of $.13 to raise $1.” If you want to contribute to a good cause, don’t buy a ticket or a specially marked product at the supermarket, write a check. Simple as that.
We can shift our perspective by 180 degrees and look at this as a guide for nonprofits seeking philanthropic dollars. Special events, raffle tickets, auctions, and so on can be fun, can boost the morale of volunteers and staff, can increase the visibility of an organization, and can generate good will – as well as make money (sometimes a lot of it). These are all good reasons to stage special events.
But as a rule, for most nonprofits, the annual fund is at the center of a healthy fund raising program. Annual fund donors are not making a purchase, buying a ticket, or expecting a meal. In most instances, they’re not seeking ‘premiums’ or ‘benefits.’ They are contributing to a cause they believe in. A viable annual fund represents a reliable, consistent source of financial support – providing a measure of stability year to year. And it is the foundation on which higher level development activities – such as introduction of a major giving program – are constructed. The annual fund is also a foundation of campaign readiness – when an organization begins planning for a capital campaign or a campaign to fund a new program, infrastructure or technological innovations, professional training, an endowment, or any other special project.
Earlier this month I linked to a recent study on fund raising effectiveness, which concluded, “Donors to charitable organizations give more when they are asked in person and when someone they know makes the request…” Todd Cohen commented at Inside Philanthropy, “Instead looking for quick-fix solutions for the financial crisis looming over the giving sector, nonprofits need to get back to basics and invest the time and effort needed to understand, cultivate and engage their givers and personally ask them for support.”
Face to face fund raising is the most effective. (And, with that, I have an opportunity to rerun the photograph that I ran with the October 13 post: consider this my version of Friday cat – and dog – blogging.)
