John Bouza, CFRE
President and founder of CanFund |
 |
You
wouldn’t go on a canoe trip in Algonquin
Park without a first aid
kit. Likewise, you shouldn’t send your volunteers out asking for money without
a toolkit.
We
know that personal, face to face solicitation is one of the most effective
fundraising techniques. Yet, I’m often asked why it is that volunteers are
reluctant to go out and ask for money. There are many reasons for this, and some
have to do with individual personalities – some people really would rather eat
worms than ask for money. This feeling can be mitigated with training, support
and encouragement. But it takes practice and patience.
However,
there is one reason why volunteers won’t ask for donations which any fundraising
professional can readily address. Your board members and volunteers need a
toolkit. They need practical, hands-on, proven resources that make it easier to
make the ask.
The
elements of a toolkit will vary by organization and by type of fundraising
(capital campaign, annual giving, membership drive, etc.) but the basic tools
include:
- Brochure
– with program / project highlights
- Who’s Who – list of board / campaign cabinet with
their ‘day job’ noted; senior staff (preferably with a photo of each)
- Annual
Report with financial statements
- Video
/ CD / PPT
- Website
(print a copy of the home page)
- Elevator
pitch – your case for support in one minute or less
- Specific
funding opportunities (with examples of how funds are used)
- Solicitation
process (steps in completing your visit)
- Tips
on how to ask (Solicitor’s Guide)
- Donor
recognition options
- Sample
ask letter / proposal
- Next
steps: donation / pledge form, whom to contact for more information.
Customize
your toolkit for your organization and campaign. Consider adding news clippings
– nothing says credibility like earned media coverage. Go through the kit with
your volunteers so they understand the role and value of each piece. For
example, we all know tha "people give to people" so make sure your volunteer
solicitors know the importance of sharing the board or campaign committee list;
the prospective donor will study this, I assure you.
If
you are on a campaign for large donations and you are focussing primarily on individuals,
you may want to supplement your toolkit with these additional tools:
- A
chart on the after-tax cost of a charitable donation. Many people don’t
realize, for example, that a $10,000 five-year pledge will have a "net
cost" of only $5,300; just $1,060 per year for five years, after the tax
credit is taken into account.
- A
chart on how a big donation seems so much smaller when made monthly by credit
card – and, they can earn frequent flyer points at the same time!
- An
information sheet demonstrating the tax benefit of donating a gift of
appreciated securities rather than cash – the federal government has
vastly improved the tax treatment over the years. And offer details on how to affect
such a transfer: the name of your organization’s stock broker and your
account number, for example.
If your campaign is for annual giving, you need to
provide your volunteer solicitors with a different kind of tool – the "gift
club." Provide them with a program that enables them to ask a donor for a
certain level of giving: “If you donate $83.35 a month you will be giving
$1,000 a year and you will become a member of our Patron’s Circle. Patrons are
entitled to…”
Preparing the necessary elements of a fundraising
toolkit for your volunteers will go a long way towards making them comfortable
in making the ask. Give them the tools, and they will do the job.
|
