Volunteer Screening Blog

It takes money to make money. That’s an old saying that doesn’t usually apply to non-profits, but according to a new study, it should.

The results of a survey conducted by the Nonprofit Research Collaborative found that 60% of groups that spent more money on email and other internet fundraising efforts in the first half of 2011 saw a greater return in donations. But overall, only about a third of charities reporting actually increased spending on online efforts. The lesson: if you can increase your online efforts, you have a good chance of increasing your fundraising success.

Other results from the study were that participating charities were successful with a variety of fundraising methods, from seeking support from corporations and foundations, to events, direct mail and asking board members for donations. About 45% used social media and planned giving. Donors responded to every form of fundraising, with event donations up for two-thirds of the charities that produced them, and direct mail and major gifts up for 54% of the charities that invested in these methods. The lesson: Keep up the effort, no matter which form it takes.

Overall, giving was better in the first half of 2011 for nearly half (44%) of the responding groups; worse for others (30%), and unchanged for a large percentage (25%). Charities with large budgets—over $3 million—saw greater increases in giving.

A recent survey of U.S. companies showed that planning for community involvement, including contributions, has “moved out of crisis mode and into a recovery mindset.” In other words, drastic budget cuts in charitable giving have slowed among these companies, and they are again thinking about helping their communities.

What does this mean for non profit organization (NPO) executives and volunteer boards? Perhaps some breathing room. If your NPO made it through 2009 intact, you may see increased corporate support in the rest of 2010.

Still, according to the report, 20% of the 114 companies surveyed in December 2009 and January 2010 are planning on reducing their budgets for charitable giving. But that’s a significant drop from 53% in the same survey taken in 2008-2009.

The good news on the volunteer side is that most of the surveyed companies plan to increase the resources devoted to volunteer programs. Event sponsorship, however, will continue to take a hit. Corporations will want to help with personnel hours instead of dollars. Continue developing relationships with corporate leaders and let them know how their employees can help your organization.

Capital campaigns and arts and culture organizations will continue to be hard hit, since more companies plan to focus resources on education and environmental causes.

But the positive news is that the companies surveyed overwhelmingly say they are less likely to reduce their contributions-related administrative budgets (down from 34% last year), and less likely to cut grant size (8% this year, 21% last year). Another bright spot: only 11% of surveyed companies plan to make fewer grants in 2010, compared to nearly 34% in 2009.

So, while non profits will continue to work hard for contributions, there could be pleasant surprises along the way in 2010!

According to the Philanthropic Giving Index (PGI), a report by the Center on Philanthropy, the climate for fundraising in the US has declined almost 9 percent for the first half of 2009, continuing the downward trend from 2008. In fact, positive fundraising attitudes among the professionals polled for the report has declined by 29 percent since one year ago.

The report reveals that 86 percent of fundraising professionals say the U.S. economy is having a negative or very negative impact on fundraising now—a gain, when compared to the 93 percent who believed so in December of 2008. 60 percent expect the negativity to continue over the next six months, while 23 percent say the economy will have a positive affect on fundraising.

The PGI is similar to the Consumer Confidence Index, which is used by economists and forecasters to measure Americans’ buying habits. The Center polls nonprofit fundraising professionals to compile the report, which also shows that the current giving environment fell to the lowest level ever since the study began in 1998.

Fundraisers for arts, culture and humanities organizations and human services nonprofits feel they will have a more difficult road ahead, while educational and religious fundraising professionals are more optimistic about the current situation.

Donors are still giving, although the pace and amount has slowed. Nonprofit managers need to continue with consistent, focused messaging and marketing efforts to stay top-of-mind in their supporters’ and donors’ minds. Building relationships with prospective donors is also extremely important—as is finding creative ways to make it easy for donors to give.

Fundraisers report that Internet and email fundraising, along with direct mail, are the most successful venues for getting donations. Foundation grants and major gifts are falling, 23 percent and 39 percent, respectively since December 2007.

The good news is that expectations for the next six months are better, while still short of true optimism. Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) will likely face continued difficulties in raising funds. But, it’s difficult to predict how the recession will impact charity giving—because the only thing predictable is uncertainty!