Small Nonprofit: Fundraising Tips, Leadership Strategies, and Community-Centric Solutions

Further Together: Fundraising Strategies for Nonprofit Organizations

Episodes

Mentioned books

undefined
Feb 22, 2021 • 29min

figure out your finances with Betty Ferreira

Good financial health is the cornerstone of a sustainable nonprofit. As nonprofit leaders, we all know the importance of financial management, but budgets and audits still give us the worst headaches. How can we build up our financial management muscles and confidence? On today’s episode, Betty Ferreira, Founder of GoodCasting who has trained and coached many nonprofit leaders on financial management, shares with us how we can figure out our organization’s finances without headaches and tears. Myths that Betty wants us to walk awayYou have to be good at math to manage your finances. Managing finance doesn’t necessarily require you to be good at math. A lot of it is exercising your logical thinking muscles. You have to have all the answers whenever you’re talking about finance with your board. Don’t aim for perfection. Aiming for perfection will trap you into the habit of avoiding talking about your organization’s finance with your board of directors. No one has all the answers. Work with your board together on figuring out your finances. Betty’s tips on figuring out your financeKnow that you can transform your organization’s business model and financial structure. Many inherit the business model and financial structure from their predecessors and assume that they can’t change them. You can (and in some cases, should) absolutely make changes to the financial structure to suit the changing needs of the organization. Have a thorough and transparent discussion about finance with your board. It’s tempting to provide the minimum and most succinct version of your financial statements to your board. But in order for them to do their job of providing financial oversight, you should present them more comprehensive information including the financial position statement of your organization. Expect that this process will take time and effort in going back and forth with your board. Favourite Quotes from Today’s EpisodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“Doing the match and sorting out your finance is connected to social justice -- they’re about your organization’s resilience and impact.”“For both fundraising and finance management, don’t wait for the crisis to build the competencies” Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipFind Betty at GoodCastingLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Feb 15, 2021 • 34min

getting started with cryptocurrency donations with Anne Connelly and Jason Shim

Donating with cryptocurrency is an emerging trend. With a lot of information (and hype) out there about cryptocurrency, it can be confusing and even a bit scary when considering whether your charity should start receiving cryptocurrency donations. On today’s episode, two experts in this field, Anne Connelly and Jason Shim, share with us how to get started with cryptocurrency fundraising. Quick facts about cryptocurrency donationsYou can sell the donated crypto currency right away, or you can hold on to it and sell it to harness a higher profit. Note that cryptocurrency is more volatile than stocks or bonds but charities can leverage on the volatility. You issue a tax receipt for cryptocurrency donations at fair market value at the time of donation. Crypto currency donations are currently considered as in-kind donations in Canada. You’re not the first charity to do this. There are Canadian charities that have already started to accept cryptocurrency donations. Pathway to Education Canada, Simon Fraser University, and more.  Anne and Jason’s tips on getting started with cryptocurrency donationSet up your system to receive cryptocurrency. Start with choosing a platform that can receive cryptocurrency and embedding the system to your website. After that, think about what are other ways in your communication channels and touch points that you can set up the receiving of crypto donation and promote it. Reframe about the way you think about who can give and the way they give. Crypto donors are often young and digital minded. They may behave and think quite differently than traditional donors.Evaluate perceived risk versus actual risk. Don’t get caught up in sensationalism in media headlines. Do your research. Try buying one bitcoin on your own to see what the process is like. Favourite Quotes from Today’s EpisodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“This is something that every charity is going to have in the next 10 years. When you look back on the adoption of credit cards, the charitable sector also had people who were really afraid of that at first. With Bitcoin right now, people are nervous about it but I guarantee within the next 10 years if your donor database doesn't integrate crypto currency donations, you'll be finding a new database.” “Here’s a really amazing window of opportunity right now, where if you build it they will come. And that's because there's so few charities out there that actually do accept cryptocurrency donations. With wealthy crypto donors, their first step in finding a charity to donate to is literally googling charity that accepts Bitcoin and then picking from five or six that are on the list.”Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipAnne Connelly Jason ShimAnne and Jason’s new book: Bitcoin and the Future of Fundraising Anne’s Blog (including guides on how to buy cryptocurrency)Liked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Feb 8, 2021 • 38min

managing conflict with Claudia Aronowitz

Dealing with conflicts often invokes uneasy feelings or even fear. But healthy debates and conflicts can bring thought diversity and new perspectives to the table. So can we stop avoiding conflict and manage them with more ease and courage? On today’s episode, personal development coach and mediator Claudia Aronowitz shares with us practical tips on conflict management. Myths that Claudia wants us to leave behind“I need to know what to say during an argument!” Don’t listen to the other person in conflict with you just so that you can have the perfect come-back line to prove your point. That is not constructive for moving along the conversation. Don’t be afraid of silence in an argument. Give space to listen. Ask more, talk less. We need to leave emotion out of the door when we try to de-escalate a conflict. Acknowledging the emotion in a tense conversation is key to de-escalation. When emotion runs high, it is ok to take a time-out break. Claudia’s tips on managing conflicts Acknowledge the other side and agree to disagree. Listen and acknowledge differences of opinion and perspective and stay curious. You do not have to agree with everything, but you can always acknowledge the other person’s point and emotion.  Understand and anticipate your triggers. Observe what kind of behaviour, signals, and patterns trigger yourself. If you can get a better understanding of your trigger points, you will be able to anticipate when and how you get triggered. Paraphrase what the other person is saying and summarize it out loud. If you can paraphrase what the other person engaging in a conflict with you is saying, you are showing the other person you're actively listening and understanding the person’s point of view. This is helpful for de-escalation in a difficult conversation. Favourite Quotes from Today’s EpisodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“There are always two sides in a conflict. Ask yourselves what are the things that you’re willing to do to deal with that conflict. Because if we change, the relationship changes. If we start dealing with conflict differently, the other person on offense will come around and start understanding that something's shifting.”“To prepare yourself for a conversation involving conflict, you really need to work through the steps of what do you want to say? How are you going to listen? How are you going to get the information you need? And in a situation involving power dynamics, do you need somebody else to come to the meeting with you? “Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipClaudia AronowitzValues Exercise WorksheetLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Feb 1, 2021 • 40min

prospect research 101 with Preeti Gill

Prospect research, or prospect development, often seems to be one of those fundraising “best practices” that feel exclusive to charities with more resources. How can small charities do meaningful prospect research and development without draining their bank account? On today’s podcast, prospect development expert Preeti Gill shares some practical tips for small nonprofits to kickstart their prospect research and challenges us to rethink the notion of philanthropy through the process of prospect development. Myths that Preeti wants us to leave behindYou always have to look outside for prospects. Be curious about your own donor base first. Look at the donors who have made a gift larger than you expected in the past, reach out to them, and get to know them and why they support your organization. More information means more dollars will be raised. Gathering external information and research about donors and donor prospects must be coupled with action in order to yield results. Don’t expect any donor research database or tool will solve all your fundraising problems. Preeti’s tips on prospect researchActively and consistently capture data on who is interacting with your organization. Collect data on who is subscribed to your e-newsletter, who comes to your event, and who volunteers for your organizations - your best donor prospects are those who already support your organization. Leverage external information to fill in the information gap about your existing donors. There might be information that your donors do not want to share with you explicitly. For instance, how much are they giving to other charities. If you can leverag donor research to fill these information gaps, you will have a better picture of your donors. Don’t do prospect research just from your desk - meet with people! Communities everywhere are filled with diverse donors who are eager to support and engage with their community initiatives. You’re missing a big part of the picture if you only rely on an online database to look up past giving history. You might also fall for the dangerous trap of having a narrow definition of a philanthropist and philanthropy. Favourite Quotes from Today’s EpisodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“It is not enough to have beautifully crafted and presourced prospect development. You also need to be investing in training your donor facing colleagues to get to know their donors and understand that it is their job to foster philanthropy and secure philanthropic support from donors supported by the prospect research.”“Prospect researchers play an important role in broadening our definitions of what philanthropy is beyond seeing an old white guy's name on the top of a building. Really think about what philanthropy means to a broader subset of Canadians, because I would argue newcomer Canadians and first generation Canadians have a different definition of philanthropy and how philanthropy is practiced and viewed in North America.”Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipPreeti Gill on LinkedinPreeti Gill on TwitterLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Jan 25, 2021 • 39min

how to recruit your dream board with Andrea Shirey

Managing the board often gives EDs a headache. When a board functions effectively, it can be an organization’s greatest asset, but when it doesn’t, it becomes an extra burden for the ED and the rest of the staff. So how do you build your dream board from inside out? On today’s episode, Andrea Shirey, CEO of One Nine Design and expert on nonprofit board management, shares with us step-by-step tips on improving your board’s experience and impact. Myths that Andrea wants us to leave behindPeople with tons of board experience are going to fix your board. Bringing in someone who is sitting on multiple boards is not necessarily going to fix things. Assess whether this board member even has the capacity to support your board, and be mindful that sometimes positioning a new board member as “the fixer” of problems can set the board member up for failure and create unintended friction within the board“We need to train our board!” - instead of focusing so much on training your board, focus on untraining them on bad habits first. Assess what they are doing right now that is not a good use of time and resources. See the tips below for some of the examples on how to “untrain” them. Andrea’s tips on increasing board engagement Improve communication with your board with the ED’s executive report. Avoid pages of long content without focus. Instead of writing the ED’s report the night before the board meeting, keep a document throughout the month to keep track of highlights and items you need the board’s support. When presenting the report, be very clear what kind of support you’re trying to get from the board members. See below for Andrea’s free Executive Director Board Report template. Flip your board agenda upside down. Make the board meeting engaging and interesting by sharing a good story right at the top and have the most important discussions at the beginning. Leave the procedural stuff at the end. Leverage your existing board members to recruit board members with authenticity and specificity. When you’re writing out a board recruitment posting for public distribution or your board members to share, avoid jargons and give a succinct summary of your organization’s theory of change and what is the expected commitment of your board members. Don’t be afraid of specifying the skill sets and expertise that you’re looking for. Favourite Quotes from Today’s EpisodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“Start with your current board, understanding what you need to move forward, and take the right steps to recruit the right people. An ideal board is made up of the right people for the right time for the organization who understand why they're there and understand what's expected of them.”“Improving the current board members’ experience and recruiting the right people to the board needs to happen simultaneously. When you improve the current board members’ experience, you’re setting them up to help the organization effectively. A good and specific place to start is with the Executive Director’s report.”Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipAndrea Shirey at One Nine DesignBetter Board Strategy GuideExecutive Director Board Report TemplateLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Jan 18, 2021 • 36min

multicultural philanthropy with Bobby Sahni

Reaching and engaging the changing demographics in communities is often on organizations’ strategic agenda. But when it comes to developing the actual strategic tactics and implementing them, organizations often face a set of questions:  where do we begin? How do we reach new communities authentically and meaningfully? And how long will our strategies start to show results? On today’s podcast, Bobby Sahni, Partner and Co-Founder of Ethnicity Matters, joins us to answer all your burning questions about engaging diverse and multicultural communities. Myths that Bobby wants us to leave behindThere are universal strategies for building a D&I program. The make-up of communities are shifting and organizations must pay ongoing attention to shifting trends to build a thoughtful diversity and inclusion practice. “do immigrant communities give”? According to the recent study that EthnicityMatters conducted with Imagine Canada, across the board, immigrant communities have the willingness to give more but they currently feel like they’re not being spoken to directly by charities. Bobby’s tips on building a multicultural philanthropy programDevelop a long term strategy and give yourself permission to fail. Don’t try something in the short term and then easily fall back to the good old way of doing things just because one or two strategic tactics do not work out. Start from the top. Driving diversity, inclusion and belonging is an internal journey and must be led by the leadership level of the organizations in order to have long term, sustainable outcomes. Know the communities you want to reach and serve. While this may sound so intuitively obvious, do a gut check and be honest with yourself and your organization whether you truly know the communities you want to serve. Go out in the communities to meet people and get to know them. Be curious and open. My favourite quotes from this episodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“The only thing we have in common is that we’re different. Let’s be curious and open and talk about all of our differences”“Building a multicultural philanthropy program is not a one-month, two-month, or one-year, or five-year project. It's constantly evolving and changing. Every organization really needs to first develop a strategic mindset and understand that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy.” Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipEthnicityMattersReport on Multicultural Canada and the Future of GivingBobby Sahni on LinkedinLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Jan 11, 2021 • 38min

Looking forward with Bruce MacDonald

Myths that Bruce wants us to leave behindBecause corporations have shrinking budgets, they can’t support the charitable sector.  Many corporations have digital expertise that charities might not have. Corporations can share their digital expertise and help charities to assess their digital infrastructure needs to support them to adapt to the pandemic and post-pandemic world. After we survive this pandemic, it will be back to normal and business as usual for the charitable sector. It is clear that the ways we work and collaborate and the way we deliver our impact in the sector is rapidly changing. Charities must start thinking about what is their future business model and consider how to design their workspace (physical and/or digital), work culture, and service delivery model. Bruce’s tips on how can charities be equipped to face future stormsBuild digital infrastructure. Whether it is through sharing resources and expertise with partners and funders, or hiring digital specialists on the team, charities need to act now to build digital infrastructure that will ensure the sustainable health of their organizations. Diversify or maintain a diversified pool of funding support. We need a mix ecology for what is supporting the charitable sector, including support from the government, corporations and communities.  The coming together of different stakeholders will allow for the charitable sector to thrive. Continue to invest in impact sharing and storytelling. Continued and effective communication of the impact of charities and our sector as a whole has a profound impact on building and deepening trust with the general public. My favourite quotes from this episodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“It's time to shift the conversation to health and well being as opposed to overhead and administration. I've been using a tree analogy. We all understand that we need to deepen the roots and have a strong foundation. If several branches of the tree break off in a storm, for organizations whose roots are not strong, the storm will break the trunk of the tree. Part of building foundational strength is investing in the kinds of things like digital infrastructure and digital technology that are going to last in the long run.”“I’m hopeful that some of the practices that we've seen emerge through a crisis can shift our DNA and become part of how we as a sector work together more effectively going forward. With 2.4 million Canadians working in this sector, 13 million volunteers and 8.5% of GDP, we are a force to be reckoned with in Canada, and should be reckoned with. And if there's one thing we can do something out of this is to leverage our ability to use that strength for good.”Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipImagine CanadaBruce MacDonald on LinkedinLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Dec 14, 2020 • 43min

failing forward with Nikki Bell

We all want to do a good job. Especially in the nonprofit sector, sometimes there’s immense pressure to do an outstanding job because we need to answer to the community we serve. But trying to do a good job does not equate to the endlessly pursuing perfection. In fact, perfection doesn’t exist and we learn the most when we fail. On today’s episode, our guest Nikki Bell, fundraising consultant and founder of Pizza for Losers, will share with us how we can learn from the smallest to the biggest failures and how to build a growth-oriented relationship with our fear of failure. Myths that Nikki wants us to leave behindFailure shows our weakness. Moments of failures show our real potential. If you have not failed at anything, it means you’ve been playing too safe. Only big failures can guide us to learn. Our work and lives are made up of many small failures more than big, catastrophic failures. Some of the biggest learnings can come from the smallest failures. Nikki’s tips on failing forwardTake space and time for reflection. Failing gives us an opportunity for introspection. Make sure that you allow yourself to sit with the uncomfortable feeling and observe what is going on and reflect what is your biggest takeaway. Have a toolkit ready for facing fear. Dealing with fear of failure and pressure to succeed takes practice. Use methods like free writing to dissect your feelings and nurture habits to make you feel comfortable with these stressful and uncomfortable feelings. The more you practice, the more you will become aware of it and know how to respond instead of react to it. Don’t play the comparison game. Practicing failing forward is a journey, and everyone’s journey is different. Avoid comparing yourself with others or else you might fall for the trap of thinking the person you compare yourself with doesn't seem to have fear or failures, but in actuality you don’t know another that person feels. My favourite quotes from this episodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“With failures, we tend to blame elsewhere. It’s really important to get comfortable with uncomfortable feelings. Reflect, work on yourself, and love yourself.”“Quitting something that’s not working is not failure. The failure is sticking in it and festering there long term just to save face.”Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipNikki Bell Pizza for LosersFundraising EverywhereLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Dec 7, 2020 • 42min

donor naming rights for small charities with Vincent Duckworth

Offering a naming right opportunity to donors can be a daunting process. From making the right offer to negotiating the terms of the naming, how might we think holistically and act strategically about it? On today’s episode, Vincent Duckworth, seasoned fundraiser and CEO and President of the ViTreo Group, reframes our fear and worry around donor naming rights and provides practical advice on how to manage this process, regardless of how big or small your organization is. Myths that Vincent wants us to leave behindNaming rights only benefits the donors. Having a major donor’s name on a campaign or program can help drive momentum to the campaign and establish credibility for the program. Donors who want naming rights only care about visibility. Many donors actually don’t care about visibility as much as they care about impact. Understand every donor’s unique needs and design the naming right opportunity to meet those needs. Vincent’s tips on managing donor naming rights The property you associate the donors names’ with is a reflection of the relationship. The more tangible the named property is, the more that it shows you value the relationship. For example, a physical donor wall reflects more permanence in a relationship than a virtual donor wall. Be adaptable with your recognition strategies as your organization evolves. There is no one golden rule that is always right when it comes to naming right opportunities. When your organiatin starts out, it might make sense to provide more donors with naming rights. As your organization grows, you can also decide whether or not to reserve naming rights to be more exlcusive. When confirming naming terms, be aware of the impact it has on the communities you serve. While it might make sense to limit the naming rights’ to a term, for certain programs, sustaining stability and longevity is important and changing their names from time to time can have a negative impact on your community. Engage your community in the process if possible and be aware of the impact it has if you need to change the naming of a program, an offering, or a property. My favourite quotes from this episodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“In the nonprofit sector, some organizations suffer from thinking that their brand is not as important as those in the for-profit sector. And that’s just not true. But we don’t realize this until we make an abrupt change like renaming a property or program without talking to the community. Be aware that naming things has an impact on community dynamics.”“Sometimes, donors like naming right opportunities that are only seen by program recipients and staff. They do this not because of ego and not because of brands. It’s about making people know others care.” Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipFind Vincent at ViTreo GroupBrainTrust Philanthropy PodcastLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show
undefined
Nov 30, 2020 • 46min

dismantling white supremacy in the nonprofit sector with Hawa Mire

How can we have a real conversation about systemic racism and white supremacy, especially at our workplace with power dynamics involved? On today’s podcast, Hawa Mire, strategy and equity consultant and community organizer, walks us through how we might build up our muscles and emotional intelligence for having these important conversations. Myths that Hawa wants us to leave behindIf I do better individually, racism and oppression will go away. Racism permeates our society and culture on a systemic level.  While individual actions matter immensely, recognizing systemic racism and oppression exist and continue to exist is a starting point for us to tackle and dismantle white supremacy together. Only bad people will do racist things. Everyone has blindspots and unconscious bias perpetuated by systemic racism. Assuming that only bad people are racist pigeonholes conversations about race to be about individual character and risk neglecting the whole picture of systemic racism and power dynamics at play. Hawa’s tips on building up your muscle for talking about race, racism and white supremacy:Get out of passive learning. Reading a book is very different from engaging with real people and engaging with the community. Get out there to engage in experiential learning and connect with people and understand their lived experiences. Don’t react to a conversation with the sole intent of self-preservation. Conversations about race and racism are much more complex than one person’s good or bad. Allow people to come talk to you about their experiences without making the conversation about you. Respond mindfully and don’t be afraid to recognize you don’t have the language or answers. Recognize you’re responsible for the harm of your action and words. Intentions and outcomes can be very different. Having good intentions does not automatically preclude you from inflicting harm. Take responsibility for the impact and outcome of your actions and words. My favourite quotes from this episodePost your favourite quote on social to share with us!“It’s hard for people to get out of this sense of: I'm only a racist if I'm a bad person, not racist if I'm a good person. When you start the conversation around white supremacy there, you don't get very far because people are much more interested in preserving their sense of themselves. If the conversations involve BIPOC people responding rightfully about their lived experience, then suddenly we've got groups of people having conversations about themselves, but only one of those groups of people has any significant power to change the condition of the other”“In the context of a work environment, a charity, or an organization especially charities and nonprofit, what often happens is that staff or clients bring forward concerns around race and senior leaders bring in unconscious bias training. And what that does is it, it suggests that everybody in the room has the same level of power to engage in uncovering their bias, and it's just not the truth. We have to recognize the power dynamics: some of us have the power to do things about our bias, and some of us don’t.” Resources from this EpisodeThe Good PartnershipHawa MireFind Hawa on TwitterLiked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)Support the show

The AI-powered Podcast Player

Save insights by tapping your headphones, chat with episodes, discover the best highlights - and more!
App store bannerPlay store banner
 Get the app