Nonprofit Management
Article | July 11, 2022
While not-for-profit organizations have different missions and objectives than for-profit businesses, both need the appropriate management team and operational procedures to operate and develop. Unfortunately, maintaining good business processes can be problematic in the not-for-profit sector due to funding, staffing, and management resource limitations, which prevent companies from attaining their full potential.
Through this article, you can learn about business tactics that would help build a strong foundation and structure for your non-profit organization to reach its full potential.
Management and Board Supervision
Management and its governing board must understand their roles, responsibilities, and authority. The rules, processes, and board training materials of the not-for-profit should formally reflect this knowledge. Board members need to be trained and made aware of their duties. Depending on the size of the organization and the backgrounds of its board members, the training's regularity and formality will probably change. CPA firms and other organizations offer resources and instruction on good board procedures. The training should include organization-specific topics, including the entity's programs, activities, mission and philosophy, strategy, finances, and the board's relationships with the organization and its employees.
Management of Finance and Cash Flow
For any firm, having strong finances is essential. The majority of not-for-profit organizations create annual budgets, but many fail to take into account setting up operating reserves or keeping track of and anticipating unrestricted net assets and cash flows. A formal operational reserve policy that outlines guidelines for how and when the reserves can be used as well as how they are funded should exist and be authorized by the board.
Implementing Technology
Investment in IT ought to be included in the overall strategy. For not-for-profit organizations, there are numerous options for systems and software, including cloud-based resources, in areas including general accounting, donor administration, record retention, and management reporting. Monthly-fee subscriptions could offer hosting, better functionality at a reduced price, and little IT support. The market for cloud-based services has improved in recent years, offering higher quality at significantly lower prices. In addition, many cloud service providers give discounts to not-for-profit organizations.
Adhering to these above-mentioned business tactics would undoubtedly help your non-profit organization be structurally sound with a solid foundation. However, to develop a value proposition and new revenue sources, leadership must be able to view a not-for-profit company differently.
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Nonprofit Management
Article | July 29, 2022
Marketing is often the last thing most organizations think about when starting off. It makes sense that the most important things to do are develop a business plan, determine your service/product offering, get all your legal and financial ducks in a row, and find a way to go-to-market. However, for non-profit and for-purpose organizations just getting off the ground, one of the most important things to establish is your online image. Things that can be extremely influential in how quickly and effectively you can gain traction digitally are branding, social presence, and content curation.
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Fundraising
Article | July 15, 2022
As the fiscal year draws to a close for many U.S. nonprofits, we have decided to spotlight some of the best cloud products we offer. Budgets can be tight at the best of times, and we know that many nonprofits are paying extra-close attention to their finances over the past several months. But cloud-based tools are a good investment for years to come in terms of flexibility, security, and the ease with which they can be used remotely.
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Fundraising
Article | May 25, 2022
Much of the nuts and bolts of fundraising costs money, and expenses can impact your organization’s bottom line. Still, many successful nonprofits have enjoyed robust giving in recent years due to one relatively inexpensive method to exploit: social media.
We’ve become much more familiar with the various social media platforms recently; if the pandemic showed us anything, there is connective power to social media platforms. From the comfort of our homes, we can engage with people and organizations in our hometowns and far away places. If you are fundraising for a nonprofit, this connectivity is one way to attract new donors, cultivate current donors, steward your donors, and, ultimately, encourage gifts from friends new and old. Through peer-to-peer social outreach, the most impactful online connections are made, just as in “real life” fundraising.
Peer-to-peer fundraising can look a few different ways. One way is by encouraging your supporters to set up their own fundraiser pages. Some fundraising softwares make this easy by allowing a person to set up their own campaign. All of a sudden, their network becomes your network, too!
Understanding the Best Platform for your Organization
Another way of tapping into peer-to-peer power is through social media. How can social media help attract new donors? First, take an inventory of the social media accounts associated with your organization. Do you have a Facebook page? LinkedIn? Instagram? TikTok or Twitter? Find someone savvy within your nonprofit – or a friendly supporter – to help you determine if all of these (or some of them) are a good fit for your nonprofit’s personality and mission. Do you serve an adult client base? Facebook and Instagram might be good starting platforms for you. Does your organization help teenagers? Post to Instagram and TikTok. Perhaps a professional LinkedIn page is more in line with what you do. If so, make sure it is up to date and that you are interacting with other like-minded organizations!
Organizing Campaign Content for Donors
Once you have your platforms figured out, pushing organizational content that highlights your group’s work and mission will help you attract new friends and cultivate your loyal supporters. Think about posting entries that highlight the work you do in short sentences and compelling pictures, and think about posting on some kind of schedule. Perhaps you post about programming on Tuesdays and feature a client or member on a Thursday. Mindless posts are not compelling – make them relevant, interesting or clever, and tactical. Overwhelming the social media feed is not the goal – compelling content which drives social media users to your organization to learn more is.
Peer-to-peer social media fundraising often begins with peer-to-peer content sharing. Once you have a handle on the kinds of posts your organization will create – and when they’ll be pushed out – you must leverage the power of social media connections to help further your organization and its case for support. Encourage all of your staff and Board members to “friend” you on the various platforms, and encourage them to boost your content by sharing it with their networks. Do you have an event coming up? Be sure to get this out to your social media contacts and ask them to share it. Has a donor been particularly generous, and can you feature them in a social media post? If you can do so, “tagging” the donor will, in many instances, automatically push your content out to their networks. The reach becomes massive with the right connections.
Leveraging Peer Audiences
Cultivation and stewardship of your nonprofit’s loyal supporters are very easy on social media. Pictures and words of gratitude or recognition are simple to post and can demonstrate your organization’s impact far beyond the reach of any email or mailing list.
Finally, social media’s usefulness in fundraising cannot be overstated. Create virtual events that allow friends to RSVP and share them with their networks. Use Instagram to push out the publicity about the fundraiser – any promotional materials you may have or can create – to manufacture some “buzz” about the event. Utilize TikTok to showcase aspects of the fundraiser: perhaps highlight a program that the fundraiser will benefit or a behind-the-scenes of the event planning. There is no need to restrain creativity – give viewers a reason to return to your site, your event, and your nonprofit!
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