The last five blog posts have concentrated on strategy, clarity, alignment, and fundraising tactics.
I thought with this post, I’d like to try to pull all this together. Here I’ll share learnings discovered over 30 years partnering with businesses and nonprofits, and a “readiness” element that is most often missing within leadership teams.
Following my introduction, you can read the teachings, in the form of a step-by-step cheat sheet (personally edited), from a modern brand and fundraising influencer, Kevin L. Brown.
Introduction
To set the stage, let me share a couple of personal experiences. I think these scenarios are timely and speak to the importance of “being ready.”
To me this means: have the right mindset, ask quality questions, be strategic, 80/20 everything (find small hinges that swing big doors), build relationships, give value, and be human.
To Stephen Covey this means: strategy, execution, accountability, and optimization.
Experience #1
The holy grail is traffic, leads, and conversions. Non-profit leaders want to drive traffic to their websites and convert leads into supporters and donors. We would offer to help them get the Google Ads Grant (up to $120,000/year for free) and manage their Google advertising campaigns.
Common Problems
Does it take sense to spend money and send prospective donors to a “bad” website or landing page?
Should they have thought about what the donor journey might look like?
In your opinion, were these nonprofits ready for online advertising?
Experience #2
Most nonprofits need to continuously attract funding to carry out their missions. And many would like to grow and have diverse, sustainable revenue sources. They often hire capital campaign counsel or a fundraising consultant to help raise money.
Common Problems
Shouldn’t a strong foundation with capacity be in place first?
Is it not critical to know your organizational Why, What, Where, Who, How, and When, before you try to fundraise?
What about: A market dominating value proposition? Compelling programs? Having the right people in the right seats? Systems and processes in place for success? Being easy to find and support?
So, to fundraise you must first be ready! Are you?
On my company website https:extendedimpact.com, you can find an Organizational Revenue Readiness survey. Readiness is the first thing we address in conversations.
Now let’s hear from Kevin L. Brown.
I closely follow branding and fundraising expert Kevin L. Brown. He has brilliantly bundled this concept and named it Fundable & Findable (please get his book).
He shares a definitive 20-step Fundable & Findable framework designed to get nonprofits ready to raise funds, develop partnerships, and generate revenue.
Hope you enjoy Kevin’s cheat sheet (personally edited).
20 Steps to Fuel Your Fundraising
BE FUNDABLE
Theory of Change
Fuel your fundraising, messaging, measurement, and partnerships.
1. Center on a specific problem
2. Serve a defined group of people
3. Focus the mission & intervention
4. Measure a few outputs & outcomes
5. Make your vision powerful & tangible
Strategic Plan
Turn your theory into traction and provide proof for funders.
6. Establish authentic core values
7. Get the right team in the right seats
8. Paint a 3-year picture (not a 3-year plan)
9. Set your annual goals & quarterly priorities
10. Back those priorities with rhythms & routines
BE FINDABLE
Positioning Strategy
Distinguish your brand and break through the noise in the minds of donors.
11. Analyze other similar organizations
12. Determine what makes you unique
13. Decide which audiences to target
14. Communicate value propositions
15. Show off a daring brand personality
Marketing & Communications
Amplify your story and mobilize funder audiences.
16. Develop bold messaging & storytelling
17. Design a compelling visual identity system
18. Execute a marketing communications plan
19. Optimize your website & funding materials
20. Partner with corporate brands via CSR
Credit to Kevin L. Brown | LinkedIn
If you’d like to connect to talk about optimizing your situation to drive revenue, click here.