Nonprofit organizations need strong systems and policies in order to do their best work with and for young people. Yet these can be shortchanged in the priority to focus on youth. All nonprofits face similar needs, regardless of their locations – to find and keep good staff, build and use a strong board of directors, ensure effective financial systems and policies, and fundraise - and there are universal, practical tools that can help.
Fundraising resources for our Grantee Partners
As we continue to discuss the impacts of COVID-19 with all of you, and the specific needs of your organizations, we are hearing that many of you are increasing your fundraising efforts. To support you in these efforts, we have put together some recommendations that could be helpful. We have also gathered a curated set of fundraising resources with links below.
EMpower’s top five recommendations for fundraising during COVID-19
1) Review your donor database and the donors you had expected gifts to come in from.
2) Revisit your strategic plan, budgets and portfolio to see what is feasible.
3) Contact your donors and be transparent about the situation. Do not only contact major donors , but also smaller donors and the ones who say they can’t give right now. Stewardship is key.
4) Ask donors whether they would allow for restricted funding to become unrestricted to allow for more flexible allocation of funds.
5) Be creative – use all the available tools.
FUNDRAISING RESOURCES:
Network for Good COVID-19 resources: https://www.networkforgood.com/covid-19-resources/
Making sure your donors stay engaged: https://www.hubbub.net/blog/ways-to-keep-your-supporters-engaged-during-covid-19
10 things fundraisers can do from home: https://npengage.com/nonprofit-fundraising/10-things-fundraisers-can-do-from-home-coronavirus/
How to fundraise during a pandemic: https://www.civilsociety.co.uk/voices/fundraising-during-the-covid-19-pandemic.html
The top 5 things you can do as a fundraiser during the COVID-19 outbreak (podcast): https://spoti.fi/2V3Pmei
Fundraising in the reality of COVID-19 (podcast): https://www.pursuant.com/podcast/fundraising-in-the-reality-of-covid-19/
Tips on fundraising during COVID-19 and ways to keep your funders engaged: https://bit.ly/2RexHPQ and https://bit.ly/2UMHXkD.
EMpower – The Emerging Markets Foundation
This EMpower-curated toolkit provides concepts, tips, resources and exercises to help small organizations understand more about fundraising, determine the most effective approaches given their capacity and context, and gain concrete ideas to strengthen their fundraising strategies and tactics.