Making the Most Money Ever for Your Community OrganisationPatrick MoriartyDirector Training and DevelopmentAustralian Institute for Community Practice and Governance

Today’s Session• Upfront Planning – What are you fundraising for?• Developing an Annual Fundraising Strategy• The Fundraising Pillars

• Grants• Membership/Alumni/Friends• Donations• Community-Business Partnerships• Special Events • Earned Income

All Community Organisations Need Funds

Fund Raising is Essential for establishing and Sustaining Social Capital

The Annual Fundraising Strategy

Assign fundraising as a priority responsibility

Develop an inclusive strategy

Work out the elements – what mix?

Gain Board approval

Communicate widely

Keep fresh

Low participation of local disabled in organisation

Vandalism causing damages to building

Lack of young members

Complaints that parents have nothing for children to do

Problem

Have some forethought – what do you need

Develop brochure to inform and attract people with a disability

Improve lighting

Survey local area on what programs will interest 16-25yo

Create play area for kids

How solved

$800

$10,000

$2,000

$500 – research needs of parents$2000 – Ground works$5000 – equipment$500 – clean up/launch$8,000

$

In-kind

partnership

2000 grant3000 fundraise

sponsor

Feb 06

Dec 07

Feb – Mar 07

June 07 – Dec 07Timing

Feb 06$800Develop brochure to inform and attract people with a disability

Low participation of local people with a disability in organisation

Dec 06$10,000Improve lightingVandalism causing damages to building

Feb –Mar 06

$2,000Survey local area on what programs will interest 16-25yo

Lack of young members

June 06 –Dec 06

$8,000Create play area for kids

Complaints that parents have nothing for children to do

Timing$How solvedProblem

The Six Fundraising Pillars

1. Grants - Gov, Corporate, Philanthropic

2. Affinity - members, friends, supporters,

3. Individuals - donations, wills, bequests and life insurance

4. Community events: sausage sizzle, festival

5. Partnerships - business, other community groups/schools, councils, service clubs –major or minor (sponsors)

6. Business - maintenance, meals, jobs etc

Every group should consider how best to utilise the pillars – weigh up (but don’t ignore) the feasibility of each of the pillars – in terms of return, input, resources.

It is possible for even the smallest group to have a strategy from each pillar.

How is your revenue split?

Like This…

3,921,376.65Total Income

0.2%7,000.00Earned IncomeSubsidies

0.2%7,310.24DonationsDonations

0.3%10,228.47MembershipsMembership fees

0.3%10,408.13Earned IncomeSite hire fees

0.3%12,583.81Earned IncomeInterest received

0.7%26,617.50Special Events/Earned IncomeFundraising

1.1%43,552.74Special Events/Earned Income/PartnershipsSundry income

6.0%236,211.33Earned Income/PartnershipsOther fees, sales and services

11.4%447,442.38Earned Income/PartnershipsFees from schools for programs

28.4%1,111,786.23GrantsGrants income

51.2%2,008,235.82Earned IncomeTakings from enterprises

% of Total RevenueFundraising Pillar/sActivity

Or Like This…

Pillar Number 1: The Grants Pillar

• Sourcing grants – knowing where the $ are

• Process for applying

• Application itself

• Relationship management

How Well do you Fare?

SPAR

Easy Grants NewsletterInformation Every Month and support for grant seeking

• Comprehensive – every grant in Australia

• In time (approx 2 months ahead) – not old manuals

• Proactive

• Advice and Tips

First Step is Knowing Where, When and How

• Confirm that grants are a legitimate fundraising strategy

• Agenda item – bring up at meetings/ roles responsibilities

• Nominate a “scout” to search for grants

A Winning Grant Process

Easy Grants:• What’s the “problem” you need to solve

• Look up the categories

• Find the grants

• Assess:

• for suitability

• amount (ave, min,max)

• guidelines

• Check the closing date

Grant Seeking

• Need to align “values” with funding agency

• How do you help them achieve their goal

• Target your application• Tailor your application• Refine your application• Work out where your objectives meet

NOT ABOUT YOU. IT’S ABOUT THEM

Finding the Right Fit to Seek Grants

Draw a matrix

• Select the topic for the issue or area for the grant

• Brainstorm every grants area possible

Finding the Right Fit to Seek Grants

Think outside the square and think how else youcontribute to the local community.

• What is your constituency – who are your members/targets and what programs do you undertake?

• Are your activities encouraging healthy practices or an anti-drug, anti-alcohol, anti-smoking attitudes?

• Do you service a large multicultural group?

• Are you providing opportunities for youth to learn leadership skills?

Looking Beyond the Narrow Category View

Sports HealthYouth Family DisabilityCommunityArts

Potential Funding

For example – redevelop rooms

Lateral Thinking about Grants

Are you doing anything innovative/inclusive?

Vibrant Description of OrganisationRe-use for most applications and for marketing andcommunication (IT WILL HELP TO SAVE TIME)

• Why is your group the best in the world?• What is your group on the earth for?• Who loves your group and why?• Your staff and board• Your annual budget• Your values

The Grants Template

• Corporate Info (ABN, GST, Annual reports)

• Mailing address/Contact details

• Board Member details (brief)

• Previous grant wins

• Demographic data (group/town/city/region)

• Testimonials (gov, community, corp)

• Insurance Coverage

Template Contents

• Who are you?

• What do you do?

• Why do you do it?

• How do you do what you do? (funding, people, volunteers, staff, partners)

• Where do you operate – link to data?

• When were you established? If new why?

Template Contents (cont)

MISSION STATEMENT

• Hardly two grant applications are likely to be exactly the same… However most if not all will want to know about you and your organisation

• You now have one document with many sections that can be cut and pasted (CAREFULLY) to save time BUT it still needs to be tailored to the grant (and priorities –DON’T just use one for all).

• TRACK CHANGES – WARNING

How do you Apply the Template

• READ the Guidelines (all of them)• READ AGAIN• Check upper and lower $ limits• When does it close (plan to meet it)• What is the average grant?• What groups/programs have won the grant previously?• What is the tone, type (i.e. hints) of the words used…

You Think that the Grant Suits Your Needs

They won’t write your application but they will give youmuch of the information that you will need to know.

Making the Call

• The phone call

• The meeting

• Resilience in the face of the arrogant brush-off (they might be trying to reduce the number of applications they get)

• Remember court orders apply to stalking (it may also heavily reduce your chance of grant success) – weigh up the relationship (yes/no answers sure warning sign)

Saving Time and Creating Relationships

• Define the problem• Clearly defined and achievable objectives• Specific• Realistic• Achievable within timelines• Result in outcomes that can be measured• Who is involved (internal/external)?

The Proposed Project

• Keep it realistic

• Budget in sync with timeline

IF THEY GIVE YOU A FORM – USE IT

• A milestone spreadsheet?

Timeline

Evidence

• Letters-current and targeted to the project• Financial – can you do what you say• In kind – who is doing what for you• Local Newspaper Articles• Research (as before)

e.g. multi use – draft schedule for use of facility

Community Support

• Match budget to activities• Match timelines to budget• All items of expenditure under headings• A percentage of overheads (check)• Contingency (check)• Cost in volunteer time (check)• What are you putting in?

Budget

Everyone is looking for efficiencies

• Consultation

• Joint submissions

• A Learning network (cluster?)

• DGR- Auspicing

Collaboration

• Celebrate Internally – But first thing to do is say thanks

• Invite funders to any events, openings (if they attendacknowledge them in speech)

• Send regular reports and communications

• Acknowledge funders on all materials and verbally

….THEN LET THEM KNOW WHAT ELSE YOU WANT TO DO

Winning the Grant – and More and More…

• Murder is illegal

• Ask for a debrief

- Should more information have been provided?

- Was there one particular area (or many) where they could improve?

- Would they consider another application in future?

Not Winning is Not Losing in the Future

Grants are money in and money out – they do not support core revenue

75% of all funds raised comes from individuals –donations and bequests and not from grants

Pillar Number 2: Members, Friends and Alumni

• A key question to ask about members…

Do we want to make money or do we want to grow numbers?

If its to make money you could double your fees, lose members and still be more “profitable”

• Adult• Senior/Junior• Social• Family• Concession• Life• Business• Pet?

Membership• Retention

• Evolutionary

• Value for Money

• Incremental

• Valid

• Accessible

• Long term

• Most Community Organisations have a history that either through:

– Past members– Staff– Volunteers– Committee members– Donors

provide you with a ready made “warm” source of funds, partnerships, mentors, employees or networks

• % Growth (set a target)

• Gender/Family Balance

• Age spread of Members

• % less than 35 yo

• Retention Rate (aim for >95%)

• Alumni/Friends (aim to convert 5%)

Health Check – Some Dimensions

• Establishing and expanding database and keeping it clean (mobile/email)

• Communication – four specific newsletters a year

• Ask for additional donations for special projects

• Invite affinity network to all event

Relationship Building

Pillar Number 3: Individual and Appeals Donations Pillar

• The key to the success of any appeal is your lists. Compile them carefully and make sure that each person's name is spelled correctly and that the address and the postcode are correct.

• Experienced fundraisers divide mailing lists into three categories: hot, warm, and cold. These describe the likelihood of people on that list making a donation.

• Has anyone got $50?

What is the Reason to Give?

• Give people a reason to give

• If you do not know the donor this is even more critical

• If you know the donor make the connection something “tangible”.

• Close the loop – say thanks and demonstrate that you have used the donation for the purpose named

What is the Reason to Give?

After relationships and initial donations start toflow from the affinity groups, community groupscan start to lock away…

Wills and Bequests

To Build Individual Donations