Nonprofit Fundraising Podcast

Events are an important piece of fundraising for an organization. It also takes a lot of work to create an event that donors want to participate in. The fundraising strategy you use for your organization (and whether or not you choose an event) depends on what goals you have for your organization. Also the type of event you choose to host will be influenced by your donor persona. 

Mary is an event producer, and she does a great job of combining fundraising goals with the donor persona into the perfect event for your organization. Let’s spend some time with Mary learning about events. And stick around until the end for a great piece of bonus content. 

In This Episode

• 5:01 - New event trends that are gaining traction right now
• 7:29 - How donors expect to interact with your organization in 2021
• 11:33 - The one thing that can make or break your fundraising event
• 16:06 - What kinds of events are being hosted in 2021?
• 18:39 - Engaging your audience before your event
• 25:12 - 3 quick tips for hiring an event producer

3 quick tips for hiring an event producer

1. Have someone who is a key player in your event planning that understands the fundraising
2. Have someone who is calm, cool, and collected managing your event
3. Have someone who is experienced with the platforms you are using (whether or not the event is virtual)

Nonprofit Fundraising and Marketing: https://butterflyly.com

Reach Mary [email protected]

Instagram @epeventsllc

Today we are talking to Adam and Melissa from DipJar. DipJar is a unique product that helps organizations raise money at a specific location. It replaces the cash box and gives donors a positive experience that inspires them to contribute more. This is one tool that your organization can employ to collect donations when guests are immersed in an experience. 

Listen to the end for some interesting tips on how you can use a DipJar in your fundraising, and the most elaborate examples of how a DipJar has been used by other organizations. 

In This Episode 

• 5:43 - What is a DipJar and how is it used?
• 7:46 - Why should you use a DipJar where you would normally use a cash donation box
• 9:12 - What types of organizations would benefit from implementing a DipJar
• 13:30 - How implementing DipJar influences the overall donor journey for an organization
• 22:31 - Interesting examples of organizations using DipJars
• 26:13 - 3 quick tips for activating donor in a physical location

3 Quick Tips To Activate Your Donors On The Spot

1. Tell a story
2. Make a campaign
3. Be as specific as possible

Today we are talking about sponsorships, partnerships, and developing relationships with businesses. This can be uncomfortable for beginning nonprofits, but working with the business community is important to both the businesses and the nonprofits. In this episode, we talk about how to find partners, how to determine if a partnership is working, and the legal things you need to watch out for when navigating your partnership. 

In This Episode 

• 3:05 - How nonprofit organizations can get started with navigating partnerships
• 5:05 - Determining if a business would be a good partner for your nonprofit
• 9:44 - Approaching partnership conversations with businesses in your community
• 13:51 - The difference between sponsorships and partnerships
• 22:46 - Resources and people that the nonprofit will need in order to manage a partnership
• 28:17 - What to do when a partnership is not working out
• 31:21 - Everything you need to know about tax compliance when working with businesses
• 34:03 - Top 3 tips for building partnerships between nonprofits and businesses

3 Quick Tips On Building Relationships with Donors

1. Research the mission of the business and make sure it aligns with the mission of your nonprofit
2. Know what you need to get from the company as a nonprofit
3. Be willing to prove your worth to the company

We are speaking to Jay Yelas, executive director of the CAST for Kids Project. This episode is about relationship building with donors. Organizations that treat their donor like human beings who want to cause a positive change in the world are organizations that have the most success in building long-term relationships with their donors. Jay talks about relationship strategy and donor retention plans, and he gives three really great tips on how to build relationships with donors at the very end. 

The CAST for Kids Foundation is celebrating its 30th year, and its mission is to enrich the lives of special needs kids through fishing. They have a diverse group of donors that they connect with through a combination of building personal relationships and hosting large events.

Outside of CAST for Kids, Jay is a professional bass fisherman. He started out as a board member for CAST for Kids and transitioned into the role of executive director when the founder retired. It is an interesting mix to be a professional fisherman and the executive director of a nonprofit. It’s also a great fit for the organization, because of his connection to the fishing circuit.

In This Episode

• 5:28 – How Jay uses his connections as a professional fisherman to benefit CAST for Kids
• 9:08 – Significant changes CAST for Kids had to make in order to continue fundraising during COVID
• 10:38 – Using One Cause, a fundraising software, to hold virtual galas
• 13:47 – The CAST for Kids donor retention plan
• 15:00 – Using Network for Good to send thank you videos to donors
• 16:27 – Helping donors through the journey of becoming a high-ticket donor
• 19:14 – Leveraging your board members and their networks for peer-to-peer fundraising
• 21:19 – Fundraising tactics from 2020 that CAST for Kids is bringing into the future
• 23:30 – Tips on building relationships with your donors

3 Quick Tips On Building Relationships with Donors

1. Spend time with your donor and become friends with them
2. Use video and photographs to show donors how their money is being used
3. Use Network for Good to send personalized videos to donors

Links

CAST for Kids

One Cause

Network for Good

Butterflyly

Today we are talking about storytelling. The reason I wanted to start the entire series here is because donors are not checks, they are real relationships. And organizations that treat their donors as real human beings have ten times the success with fundraising. When you treat donors as a relationship, they are happy to share their stories, learn more about your success stories, and sharing them with their friends and family. 

We are talking to Farid Askerov, owner of Shutter Sauce, and a video strategist focused on creating video assets that supercharge marketing for businesses and nonprofits. He is one of my go-to videographers for storyteller campaigns. In the interview, we discuss how he approaches stories, how he approaches video, how to hire a video storyteller for your organization, and some really great storytelling tips for nonprofits.

In This Episode

• What is a donor story and how do you make one? (6:17)
• Selecting donors to showcase and advocate for your organization (9:52)
• Crafting the story arch for your donor story (13:16)
• What to look for when hiring a video storyteller for your organization (15:41)
• Where to share videos about your organization (20:43)
• Storytelling tips for nonprofits (21:00)
• Putting together a good participant story for a nonprofit (23:22)

The Ideal Story Arc for a Donor Story

1. Background on the donor’s life. Explore their struggles.
2. How did the donor get in touch with the nonprofit?
3. What has been the impact they have seen their dollars make?
4. How have they seen the impact their dollars are making on the community?
5. Call to action for new donors.

Links

Farid’s LinkedIn

Shutter Sauce Facebook Page

Shutter Sauce Instagram