Introduction

Fundraising for 2020 has fast forwarded changes that we have all seen coming.  Many nonprofits have been slow to engage donors online and especially on mobile devices. Other nonprofits have relied on events and not direct mail. Fundraising in 2020 will do two things. It will force nonprofits to engage donors on a personal level and force nonprofits to tell their story more often and with more variety.  

Today on our Bold Leading Podcast we will be talking about “Six fundraising tips for 2020 and beyond.”

I'm Dave Sena from Bold Leading, This is your Bold Leading Podcast. We know life for nonprofits can sometimes get complicated and confusing. When you need a trusted friend to help you fundraise and grow your nonprofit without fear or panic, Bold Leading is here for you. Visit us at boldleading.com today where we help you connect with donors and grow your nonprofit.

Prologue

Fundraising for 2020 and beyond will make nonprofit organizations tell their stories with more regularity and with more urgency.  Stories will have to be bite-size with variety. Nonprofits will need to experiment with technology, social media and paid advertising.  

To compete for dollars in local markets, nonprofits will need to become savvy with their time, technology and messaging.  Professional fundraising will not be a luxury or future thing.  It will be a today-thing that is necessary for small and large nonprofits.

There are two non profit organizations that are vulnerable.  

The nonprofit that is small and volunteer driven will need to find a way to automate their fundraising and make it feel organic.  Value driven fundraising will be important.   People will want to know why you do what you do.  They will need to be reminded multiple times and formats of your why.

The other nonprofit that is vulnerable are million dollar organizations that have traditionally sustained their mission through contracts with the government and grants with private funders.  Both of these funding sources are seeing increased competition and shortage of money.  I have also seen grant funders changing their funding philosophy to fund bigger impact projects and fewer projects.

Main Episode

In an age where people are becoming more discerning in how they gave, when they gave and to whom they give, non profit organisations will need to adjust.  This need has been brewing for years but the pandemic has fast-forwarded the urgency and amount of change.

Donors have been forced to see the world from their desktop and mobile phones.  Their had been a good percentage of donors that were still not interacting with nonprofits or giving to nonprofits via the internet.  That has or will change dramatically as more people stayed at home and learned to do more things on the internet than ever before.

Remote work, video meetings and new technology will forever change the way people connect with nonprofits.  It has been changing and a majority of people had already started to move in this direction. Now most people are changing.  

What can nonprofits do? Here are a “Six fundraising tips for 2020 and beyond.”

1. Produce more content.  Learn how to present your content in various formats.  Reuse stories for your email, tell it in video and share it on social media.  You will need to have a process that regularly uncovers impact stories for your organization
2. Produce more consistent content.  Make sure your content relates to your big why.  You will need to create a key messaging document that controls and guides all your communication so all your content relates to your core messaging.
3. Experiment with technology and be flexible.  Your will need to find more innovative ways to connect with your donors from text-to-give to monthly online giving to peer-to-peer fundraising platforms.
4. Not abandon direct mail or traditional fundraising.  Sending letters in the digital age will feel counter culture and innovative as more nonprofits move to cheaper and easier ways to connect with donors.  Getting a letter or note from a nonprofit will be a change of pace.
5. Find ways to connect with donors through phone calls and visits.  People have always given the most money when asked with a personal touch.  They give more when they are invested.  Helping people “see” your organization will help you connect with donors who have capacity to give larger donations.
6. Bonus: Nonprofit organizations will have to commit more resources to fundraising and storytelling than ever before.  They will need to outsource technical or systematic fundraising.  Or they will need to recruit staff or volunteers that have the experience of a media company and the stamina of a marathon runner.  

Epilogue

Nonprofit organizations will have a big task of protecting their resources and finding new sources of funding.  Many organizations will have to re-focus their mission and make difficult decisions about programs that do not fit their core business. 

Nonprofit organizations will have to become more flexible and agile.  The ones that survive will have rainy day funds and dollars for experimentation.  The landscape is changing and we need to change with it.

Nonprofit organizations will have to resist the temptation to abandon traditional fundraising like direct mail.  People will enjoy getting personalized communications in their mailbox especially when they are bombarded with tons of spam email.

Nonprofit organizations will have to be content creators that are adept in using technology.  They will have to know their donors better than ever before.  They will have to tailor their story telling so donors see the big why and are compelled to follow and give.

Outro

Fundraising for 2020 and beyond will make nonprofit organizations tell their stories with more regularity and with more urgency.  Stories will have to be bite-size with variety. Nonprofits will need to experiment with technology, social media and paid advertising.  

They will have to remember the why and most importantly, remember their donors.

Thank you for hanging out with us to discuss the “Six fundraising tips for 2020 and beyond.”

I'm Dave Sena from Bold Leading, This is your Bold Leading Podcast. We know life for nonprofits can sometimes get complicated and confusing. When you need a trusted friend to help you fundraise and grow your nonprofit without fear or panic, Bold Leading is here for you. Visit us at boldleading.com today where we help you connect with donors and grow your nonprofit.