The 6 Segments: DEVELOPMENT
Most call it fundraising, but we like to call it “development.” Development means more than money, and more than transactions. Develop means you are developing relationships with your supporters, both donors and volunteers.
Development of course includes galas, events and campaigns. But it also includes gratitude days, meetings and outreach.
Scroll down for examples of ONGOING tasks and ANNUAL tasks that you should get onto the calendar.
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Grant deadlines are for real. You can’t miss them. Get the deadlines on the calendar. If you can, aim to submit the grant application a day in advance - you never know when there is going to be a tech issue at the last minute.
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Not every interaction with a donor is an ask. Schedule regular meetings with both prospects and current donors to keep them engaged, informed and excited about the work you do.
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Development isn’t just about money - your volunteers are a significant form of support. Schedule regular days for volunteers to be engaged with your program, your participants and your organization.
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Sure there are big, annual events, but there are ongoing smaller campaigns as well to raise money. Schedule the launch of the smaller campaigns that happen throughout the year so that you have a target date for creating the collateral and starting the outreach.
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Throughout the year, you’ll have smaller fundraising events (in addition to whatever your big, annual event is). Get them on the calendar!
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Gratitude is more than a quick thank you after your receive a donation. Make it a habit of spending time on gratitude: reaching out through phone calls, texts, letters…or tagging on social platforms. Set aside time on a regular basis to express gratitude for all of your supporters.
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A few times a year, send out a note to your supporters. Maybe snail mail, maybe email. Schedule it to come at an unexpected time.
Stickers available in the 6+4 Planner System:
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Most nonprofits have an annual shindig to raise money and rally the troops. Maybe it’s an annual ball, maybe it’s a performance or awards show, maybe it’s a golf outing. Try not to schedule too much around the time of the event; these things are a lot of work.
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The Tuesday after Thanksgiving has been renamed “Giving Tuesday.” It was named to promote generosity and a spirit of giving on the heels of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It’s a big fundraising day for nonprofits (though in recent years it has been harder to break through the noise as so many nonprofits promote themselves on this day.)
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This isn’t a requirement, but it’s a nice best practice. At the end of the calendar year, create a year-end giving statement for each of your major donors letting them know how much they donated over the course of the year. This is helpful to them as they prepare to file their taxes.
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Once a year, sit down and sketch out your development calendar for the next twelve months. In addition to the annual milestones like Giving Tuesday and your annual event, plan your smaller events, your campaigns, and your outreach. Space it out across the year so that you can plan for and maintain a standard of excellence year-round.
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Schedule something to recognize and celebrate your volunteers formally. Whether it’s a day of calling them, a thank you note or small gift or an event, it’s important to do.
Stickers available in the 6+4 Planner System:
While we started with the word development, we’ll end the page with the word fundraising. Without the money coming in, you’ll not be able to manage the organization.
Track here total fundraising achieved in the quarter - donations, corporate contributions, events, campaigns, and grants.
When you create your budget, it’s useful to have both an annual goal and quarterly goals - perhaps even monthly goals once you have some history.
Stickers available in the 6+4 Planner System:
When scheduling your Development tasks, give as much thought and energy to the relationship building as the event and campaign management. Outreach, gratitude, and thoughtful gestures like sending the year-end tax documents go a long way to making your supporters feel part of the community they are supporting.
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