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Template: Write an amazing fundraising appeal
- Digital communications & marketing
- Fundraising ideas
- Nonprofits
- Fundraising
What’s the number one predictor of fundraising success? It all comes down to creating a nonprofit fundraising plan. Just by taking the time to reflect on your goals and put a plan into writing, your nonprofit organization will be in a better position to meet its fundraising objectives.
In this article, we’ll explore the seven steps nonprofits can take to build a successful fundraising plan. Then, we’ll get you started crafting your own fundraising plan with a few free templates.
While the exact details of every nonprofit’s fundraising plans will be different, this crash course will explore strategies that can apply to almost every situation. Let’s get started.
If you had a fundraising plan last year, begin by assessing how well you followed it. Gather data from your fundraising software and other available sources, such as donor feedback surveys, past budgets, or interviews with staff members.
By analyzing your past fundraising plan, you can identify where you succeeded and what you can improve on. When looking at your data, ask yourself these questions:
After discussing these results with your team, work together to build on your old strategies and create targeted goals for this year.
What resources do you have now that can help your fundraising? Be realistic in terms of availability and limitations. Most organizations start this process by taking a look at their:
By taking inventory of your current resources, you’ll be able to build a fundraising plan based on tangible assets and constraints. This will make your goals more realistic and ensure you leverage all of your resources to maximum effect.
Make a list of activities that will help grow your individual giving programs. Think about activities that will help with:
While you may focus more heavily on one of these aspects to align with your current goals, ensure you account for all three in your fundraising plan. After all, new donors are far more worthwhile if you retain them, and retained donors are at their most valuable when you take steps to upgrade them.
After evaluating your nonprofit‘s current fundraising priorities, it’s time to establish solid goals. Here are a few components to consider when setting new goals:
This process gets your entire organization on the same page about your priorities and ensures everyone understands the impact achieving your goals will have.
After establishing your goals, determine what specific actions you can take to accomplish them. When implementing any new activity or program, consider how it fits into your overarching strategy.
For example, if you want to recruit new donors, you may decide to expand your online outreach. This goal can be broken down even further into specific online activities. You might focus on launching a peer-to-peer campaign or participating in #GivingTuesday. If you’re just getting started in online giving, making your donation pages mobile-friendly and branded should definitely top your list.
A fundraising plan feels a lot more doable when you map out the work over time. Set deadlines and think of them as milestones where you can gauge your success. Use whatever tool works best for you: paper calendars, Excel spreadsheets, or an online tool.
Start with existing commitments—events, board meetings, grant deadlines, staff vacations—and put them in the calendar. Knowing you want to get something done that you can share at the July board meeting can be a great motivator. Or, if you see that the end of April is especially busy, you’ll be able to balance your schedule ahead of time.
Write in your monthly and seasonal focus areas. Maybe March is when you target new monthly donors, and fall is busy with #GivingTuesday and year-end planning. While this calendar may change as new challenges and opportunities arise, having a roadmap will keep you on track all year long.
Identify what helped you succeed in the past. By reviewing last year’s fundraising plan, you should understand what strategies work best for your nonprofit. Combined with new goals, these proven strategies will appeal to your supporters, help keep your team motivated, and ensure your resources are being used wisely.
Here are a few strategies nonprofits often implement to ensure they stay on track and fulfill their fundraising plan:
When your team does succeed, make sure to let them know and celebrate. If your team falls short, take the time to assess what could have been done better and make a concrete plan for how you’ll approach that goal in the future.
To help your nonprofit develop a new fundraising plan, here are a few free templates:
Use the template that best aligns with your organization’s needs and goals, or experiment with using all three. Remember to reevaluate your fundraising plan throughout the process to make the adjustments you need to succeed.
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