Displaying items by tag: fundraising

by Bryan Gonzalez

In last month’s article, we explored a changing paradigm: attendance at traditional fundraising events is on the decline.  But for many PHOs (pregnancy help organizations), large event-based fundraising events like banquets, golf outings, and walks remain a critical part of the development cycle.  So what happens if you're not ready to toss the gala entirely – but you’re noticing fewer RSVPs and less energy in the room?

Similar to Haley’s article last month, where if you’re going to do an event, she offered some tips for success; this month, we’re looking at the “how” of event-based fundraising:  if you’re going to do an event, how can you get people to actually show up?

Here are three practical strategies you can use to increase engagement and attendance.

1. Planting Seeds

In response to the question “how do you get guests to attend your event?”, I typically say:  “I started last year!”  What I mean by that is, as soon as your event is over, are you planting seeds for next year’s event?  

Are you promptly, correctly, and donor-centrically acknowledging the donors who just gave?  Are you reaching out and connecting in meaningful ways with those donors, and with new, first-time donors?  

By creating engagement with as many of your donors as possible, by respecting your donors’ time (in addition to their treasure and talent), and by starting and ending the event on time, you’re earning their trust to come back.  Are you keeping the number of speakers to a minimum?  Is your donor experience positive?  (Hint: if you’re having a hard time getting people to your event, then maybe your donor experience isn’t positive and you should consider changing something up)

As St. Paul writes:  Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap (Gal 6:7; emphasis added).  Are we sowing this year to reap next year?

2. Make It Personal: Invitations That Work

Gone are the days when a single, mailed invitation and a few emails would fill a room.  If you want people to attend, someone needs to personally invite them.

“But, that’s a lot of work!  And, I’m just one ED, and I wear many hats!”  Yes, it’s a lot of work, and I know that you wear many hats.  (That’s one reason that Haley has advocated for not putting all of your fundraising eggs in the events-based fundraising basket!)  

It’s also a reason to hire a dedicated fundraising professional, even if that person is only part-time.  It also means enlisting your board members, key volunteers, and development team in an outreach plan. Assign 10-15 contacts to each trusted advocate and have them call, text, or meet with invitees.  This doesn’t have to be a hard sell – it’s an opportunity to say, “You’re important to this ministry, and we’d love for you to be there.”  Remember our article on being pursued?  People are far more likely to attend when they feel personally invited and expected.

Bonus tip: send a reminder text the week of the event.  A personal touch can be the difference between “maybe” and “yes”; or, if they’ve already signed up, then it can be the difference between them actually showing up and “oops, I forgot”.

3. Lead with Purpose, Not Just Food

Increasingly, donors are choosing between multiple causes and commitments.  They need to know why your event matters.

So don’t just promote a meal, a raffle, or a golf cart.  Lead with purpose.  What's the mission or purpose behind this gathering?  Who will their attendance help?  How will this evening change lives?

Consider highlighting:

• A compelling client/patient story shared live or by video;
  
  
• An update on impact – what’s changed in your community;
  
  
• A bold new vision for the year ahead.
  

Yes, people want to have a good time.  But more than that, they want to make a difference.  Make sure your invitation and promotional materials communicate that clearly.

Another aspect of this is not recording your event.  Don’t make it hybrid or virtual.  Make it so that guests will feel it that they’re not there this year.  In the short term, it’ll be a bummer for them to miss it; in the long run, they’ll clear their calendar for this unique and “must-see” event.  

A quick word about the food:  guests will rarely remember the food…unless it’s bad.  So, 

if you want to serve rubber chicken like everyone else, go for it – it just better be tasty rubber chicken because if it’s not, then they’ll remember the food for the wrong reasons.

One Final Thought

Events can still work – but only if they’re intentional and professional.  The key isn’t doing more.  It’s doing fewer events, better. Personal invitations, mission-focused messaging, and bringing new people to the table are proven ways to turn your event from an empty room into a night of impact.

Let’s keep learning from one another.  If you’ve tried something that boosted attendance at your event, I’d love to hear about it.  Email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and let’s keep the conversation going.

ICYMI:  October 2024  Relational Donor Events

**Do you have topics you’d like me to write on or have comments/feedback on my articles?  Send me an email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.**

Presented by Valerie Harkins, Housing Specialist

The pandemic showed us just how delicate our fundraising strategies are to unforeseen events.  Many nonprofits found themselves financially vulnerable in 2020 without the ability to host their annual fundraising events or apply for a specific grant upon which they had become reliant. It’s been three years since then, and the trends have continued to speak a sobering message.

Fundraising trends are on the move in 2023. With the turbulence of the economy, the unpredictability of the environment, the shift in the generation of the primary donor base, and adjustments to the new post-pandemic norms, homes are finding that—now more than ever— they have a critical need for diversified revenue streams. Overall, we have seen a national increase in donations; however, this has been matched with an even greater decrease in purchasing power, frequently resulting in a realistic net loss for organizations. As is common during times of economic hardship, the number of individual donors on average has decreased with an increased amount per monetary contribution made. This means we have fewer people making contributions but larger individual contributions, creating an elusive financial projection that appears strong at the bottom line but is built upon what is likely akin to a Jenga tower.

Financial resilience is the golden ticket to stability in this season. This necessitates fundraising strategies built upon multiple revenue streams. A personal recommendation is to maintain an average of five sources of income. This provides you with a broad donor base and the gift of time when catastrophe strikes. Examples include minor events, major events, monthly donors, and grants. To learn more, check out our webinar Diversifying Your Home’s Revenue Streams where we take a deep dive into this topic. And there is no time like the present to strengthen your funding strategy by getting in on the Development Tack at Pregnancy Help Institute. There’s still time!

by Cindi Boston-Bilotta, Vice President of Mission Advancement, Heartbeat International

You are incredible change-makers in your community. You plan, follow through, inspire, sacrifice, lead, and come alongside women who will make life-and-death decisions. Their lives are changed forever because of what you do!

But how do you communicate success to your financial partners?

A 2022 Stanford Social Innovation Review study gave a comparable view with metrics shifting donations from charities with only a good pitch to those with supportive results. When combined with a good pitch, including “features” of an organization, metrics create a winning combination. More than 70 percent of surveyed donors said they care about metrics.

Interesting! Donors desire an emotional connection to their giving and want data-driven investment. The goal of donor care is to respect the interests and passions of donors. But how do you communicate the success so your financial sponsors so they can grasp the storyline in statistics? We show change through storytelling and relevant metrics to show return on investment.

When storytelling and statistics are combined in publications, articles, thank you notes, public relations, and conversations, your donors will grow a stronger connection to your organization as you show evidence that their investment makes a difference.

With a healthy donor care plan, several critical components must be in place to create strong donor relationships and trust. The Donor Loyalty Cycle, created by Veritus Group, gives us a glimpse:

In every stage, metrics complement storytelling to assist a donor in understanding the mission and the donor’s role as a change-maker. Here are a few examples:

Create Awareness – share the need – use community health department data to prove the need of the population you serve – the number of pregnant women, an estimate of women using chemical abortion, the long-term impacts of fatherless families or under-educated single moms, etc. Prove the need and then show how your programs will impact for the better.

Ask – match the interests of your donors with your programs. After showing the need, use data to predict your impact if you were to start or upgrade a program. Inspire a donor by matching their interests to a program growth goal. If they love the Ultrasound program, give stats showing a greater rate of life choices after an ultrasound. Then, share a moving story to bring in the emotion of a powerful story.

Acknowledge and Affirm – contact financial partners early and often about how their investment changes lives. Donors want to know how metrics reveal a conversion for your clients. Statistics open the eyes of a donor to the relevance of their gifts. They can see the impact on your clients. They are helping create a hopeful future for families.

Report – communication reminds sponsors that their monthly gift, quarterly pledge, or donation to a specific need or program will give them a sense of purpose and create an in-depth view of what their funds have accomplished through quotes, stories, pictures, and return on investment.

Motivate – inspire so donors are moved and consider giving again. They will see the impact of their gift and, as you give them new opportunities to provide again, will likely re-invest in your programs.

A written and verbal report can balance emotional stories, quotes, and incredible outcomes. Recently, a Heartbeat donor cried as he related to the desperation of a client's story. The stories and stats reminded him that we are creating safer spaces for moms, dads, and babies. We are preserving the branches of family trees. We share the love of Christ on behalf of donors who may never meet the clients they help. Change, shown through stories and statistics, inspires and motivates our generous donors.

Stories and statistics are a dynamic duo used to create interest, develop loyalty, and inform our financial sponsors that they are vital to our mission.

Finding and Fostering Major Gifts is a six-week crash course on how to raise major gifts from supporters in your database. In this course, you will learn how to set up a successful development shop, find supporters who are major givers and learn to grow those relationships to ask for major gifts. This class will have a weekly live session, as well as reading and homework assignments with the oversight of your instructor, Haley Limo. Each week you will come together in the live class to discuss your reading assignments, go over your homework assignments and learn important skills to grow your development shop. Through this class you will: 

• Learn to set up a successful development shop
• Understand the basics of putting together an annual fundraising plan
• Find out who your major donors are
• Learn to grow relationships with your top prospects
• Be able to ask for a major gift (face to face!)
• Learn to write a successful proposal
• Work on putting together an effective thanking strategy

Training Requirements:

• Participate in live weekly Zoom sessions beginning October 13th, every Monday from 12-1 PM EST.
• Have reliable access to a computer with an internet connection.
• Be able to devote 3-4 hours per week to the training. 
• Be self-motivated and comfortable completing additional reading assignments, and activities on your own. 
• Be able to obtain copies of How to Win Friends and Influence People and Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (library copy is fine).

Your instructor for this live class is Heartbeat Academy Faculty member Haley Limo. Haley is the Founder and President of Least of These Philanthropy (LOT), a boutique fundraising consulting firm. With a background in major gifts development, Haley's desire is to help teach the art of relational fundraising to Christian nonprofits. As the former CEO of a medical pregnancy center, pregnancy help organizations hold a special place in her heart.

 Next Session: October 13 - November 17

Heartbeat knows that the job of a Development Director is never done. That's why we have a number of opportunities for training and ongoing support built just to help you build relationships and raise funds for your organization.

Development Director resources from Heartbeat International:

• Pregnancy Help Institute - Development Track
• Banquet Planning from Scratch: Recipe for Success
• Firm Foundations
• Advancement Trends in the Life Community (monthly newsletter, including a thank you note to use for your supporters)

“And it came about that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me.” Acts 22:6

Servants of Excellence

As we know, the Bible is full of stories. The Old Testament tell us story after story of everything from the first sin, to the rise of Israel, to heroics and failures of people like Samson, David, Solomon, Ruth and so many more.

The New Testament tells us the story of Jesus, including the stories he told. And, we also see stories of those who followed Jesus . . . and the stories they told.

Do we see a pattern here? Sharing our faith almost always begins with stories. And there is no greater example of this than Paul.

Yes, the Paul, the great theologian who gave us so many New Testament letters. The Paul who gave us everything from the great doctrinal book of Romans to the love chapter in I Corinthians 13. That Paul.

His faith began with a story. One place he tells his story is in Acts 22. Defending his work before the Jewish council, Paul launches his story by recounting his advancement in Judaism. He mentions (v. 3) his education under the great Gamaliel, and his zealousness in persecuting that ragtag bunch of heretics known as The Way (v. 4).

But, Paul’s story shifts on the road to Damascus, where he met the man he was persecuting. Jesus. Paul tells of a bright light, of being blinded and falling to the ground. And, he tells of a life-changing conversation with a man he thought to be dead, which turned him from persecutor to a promoter of this new faith.

Reading Luke’s account of Paul telling his story, we see his listeners throwing fits of anger. This says much more about Paul’s listeners than his story. Because as we know, Paul told his story to people everywhere, launching churches all over the known world.

The point? While Paul’s story is more dramatic than most, all of us have a story.

We sometimes get caught up in trying to know exactly how to best share the hope within us. We search Bible verses, learn techniques and avail ourselves of trainings. None of this is wrong, but often our best approach is the simplest: Tell our story.

Just like with Paul, our story is our own. Someone could argue with Paul, but they could never take his story away. More important? Paul’s story—like ours—allows us to be transparent, which always draws in listeners.

The next time someone—whether inside our ministry’s doors or in our neighborhood—wonders why we believe what we do, perhaps it is time to do what Paul did so well: Let’s tell our story.

Our story may be a conversion story, like Paul’s. Or, it may be a story of a time when we clearly saw God’s hand in our lives. If our listener is open, our story may invite a transparent conversation—a conversation which opens the door for our listener to begin, or extend, their own story of faith.

The good news? If we have faith, we have a story. And it is often our story which may inspire the stories of others.

by Kirk Walden, Advancement Specialist

We have been working with our friends at the Charlotte Lozier Institute to identify public funds in various categories that pregnancy help organizations may be able to access according to their circumstances and needs. We are excited to announce that the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for HHS's general Sexual Risk Avoidance Education (SRAE) grant was just released.

What you need to know

Both pro-life and pro-­abortion organizations have been recipients of Title V SRAE funding, either directly or through sub-­‐contracts/sub-­‐grants, as have churches and religious ministries. Unlike Title X, Title V SRAE does not require a grantee to prescribe or refer for contraception.

Please note: this is NOT Title V funding. It is a third grant program offered to a wider audience than the Title V Competitive Grant. This grant is open to states, localities, school districts, etc., making it more competitive than Title V. While they anticipate awarding only 20 grants, the amounts are substantial, with a floor of $600,000 per project period (36 months in this case) and a ceiling of $900,000.

Requirements for Title V SRAE grantees are detailed in the announcement calling for applications, known as a “Funding Opportunity Announcement” (FOA).

The Charlotte Lozier Institute has provided a Fact Sheet published by the Family and Youth Services Bureau of HHS to help you along the way.

Interested pregnancy centers need to locate their own grant writer. The due date is July 1, 2019.   

Servants of Excellence

“Now there was a certain man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man, and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people, and prayed to God continually.” Acts 10:1-2

There are times in our when we see God working elsewhere, but for whatever reason He doesn’t seem active in our own life. Others appear to be in the middle of God’s work and us? We’re watching, wondering why we don’t seem to be included.

Whenever we find ourselves thinking, “God doesn’t notice me,” let’s remember Cornelius in the Book of Acts.

We know Cornelius’ story, but have we looked closely? Cornelius was a Gentile (non-Jew), an Italian centurion—a soldier. Even though he had no connections to the Jewish nation, he gave financially to the Jewish people, and in this narrative, Luke also points out he “feared God with all his household . . . and prayed to God continually.”

Yet, even as God worked among the Jews and we see God sending his messiah, Cornelius was not part of anything. He kept praying. Kept teaching his family about God. Kept giving. But day after day, nothing. We don’t see the Jewish people welcoming him as one of their own. Cornelius was on the outside looking in.

Though he wasn’t seeing tangible results from his prayers, Cornelius—out there on his own regarding faith—stayed committed. Still, we can forgive Cornelius if he ever thought, What about me, God?

Then one day Cornelius received a visit from an angel, who told him his prayers had not been wasted at all. “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God,” the angel told him. The angel then asked our friend Cornelius to send men out to find Simon Peter, and, smart man that he was, Cornelius obeyed.

We know the rest of the story. Peter went to Cornelius’ home, where a mighty move of God brought the Good News to the Gentiles for the first time. Cornelius—the man who stayed committed even when he could see no real results—was likely the first Gentile in the history of planet Earth to be able to call himself “Christian.”

What about us? Whenever we feel as if we’re on the outside looking in, let’s stay committed. Let’s keep praying. Let’s keep looking for God to make His move. Though we may not see the results today, the fruit of our devotion may be closer than we think.

by Kirk Walden, Advancement Specialist

“Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John, and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were marveling, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.”
Acts 4:13

Early in Luke’s narrative of the Acts of the Apostles, we find the Sadducees had a problem. A fisherman named Peter stepped out and spoke to the people (Acts 2) and a stunning 3,000 people chose to be baptized in the name of a man named Jesus.

Just after this, Peter and John—these two average guys from Galilee—healed a man lame since birth (Acts 3). And, after Peter told the people how the man was healed, another 5,000 (and this is only counting the men!) latched on to this new movement.

For the Jewish leader leadership, this was a huge problem. Their hold on the people was disintegrating in front of their eyes. Thousands were walking away from them to follow a man Peter and his friends claimed God raised from the dead.

If the religious leaders didn’t do something—and soon—their entire power base would erode in weeks.

But what was the Sadducees’ biggest obstacle to stopping Peter, John and the others? It wasn’t the apostle’s education; the Sadducees were far more educated. Nor were the apostles trained well in Jewish law, traditions or the rites of the priesthood. Fact is, they didn’t know how to out-religious the religious leadership. They couldn’t sway anyone by claiming more knowledge or understanding.

Yet, the people marveled because this rag-tag group of apostles carried with them one characteristic which separated them from all opposition: They had been with Jesus.

What about us? If we want to reach a hurting world, knowledge has its value. Paul had knowledge and used his education to influence many, and even implores his protégé, Timothy, to “handle accurately the word of truth,” which implies educating ourselves (II Tim. 2:15).

Ultimately however, our greatest influence comes when others see we’ve been with Jesus. But let’s be real. This task is difficult in this crazy, social-media filled, informationally overloaded, busier than ever world.

We must take the time to stop, reset our minds and rest in Jesus Christ, or we will become just another voice in the noise of the culture.

As we go about our day, at some point let’s ask ourselves one question: “What is one thing I can do to be with Jesus?”

Our answers may vary, depending on our personalities. But each of us has an answer which is best for us. Once we receive our answer, let’s do that one thing—so that others may know, “This person has been with Jesus.”

by Kirk Walden Advancement Specialist