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Not For Profit

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Not For Profit

“Mission’ for nonprofits is the same as ‘profits’ for private sector companies. In the private sector, corporations achieve their goals by carefully designing business operations that are reflected in a budget and then regularly reporting on how actual profits compare to that budget. If mission accomplishment is as important as profit attainment, why do most nonprofits not spend equivalent time in mission creation and monitoring?

In reality, nonprofits often completely mess this up. As important as missions are, nonprofits frequently go off in ineffective directions by relying on mission statements that can be little more than slogans. At a time when nonprofits around the world are struggling both to stay afloat and to achieve their missions, they are missing out on one of the most valuable tools to available to them.”

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Not For Profit

“There are huge markets where people have needs — for food, shelter, education and more — but can’t afford to pay money out of their own pockets to have their needs met.

In the United States, the government created the 501 (c) (3) nonprofit corporation to help address this situation. Technically speaking, a 501(c)(3) is a tax-exempt legal structure that can receive charitable donations from individuals, businesses, government agencies, and philanthropic foundations. Examples of well-known not-for-profits include: the Boys and Girls Clubs, the YMCA and the Sierra Club. People who donate money to these charitable organizations benefit by deducting the contributions from their taxable income.

In the United States, over one million organizations qualified for 501(c)(3) status in 2009 compared to 600,000 in 1993. Charitable donations have declined: in 2008, $315.08 billion were invested in the not-for-profit sector, compared to $303.75 billion in 2009. Competition for resources has increased, making it more difficult for nonprofits to grow or even exist.

Like any business, a not-for-profit needs to generate revenue to cover its expenses. It needs to identify a target market and figure out how it will deliver its products and services to that market. Some key differences and considerations exist, however, and you should be aware of them before you choose this legal structure:”

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Not For Profit

“Do you know how many of your supporters use popular social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube? 42.3% of the entire American population use Facebook. Twitter has over 16 million users. YouTube is the second most used search engine in the world. With usage stats like that it’s probably safe to assume that a large portion of your supporter are using at least one social network, right?

Knowing that non-profit supporters around the world have been adopting the use of social networking in their daily lives we set out to figure out if the use of social networks had any impact on personal or peer-to-peer fundraising. The results we’re pretty amazing (though arguably not in any way shocking).

We found that participants who use social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube communicate with their networks more regularly and send more messages. This resulted in increased fundraising results by up to 40%.

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Not For Profit

“Just as more jobs are being created, and the economy continues to lurch forward in a recovery, the outlook for charitable giving is trending upwards, according to the 2011 Cygnus Donor Survey that came out in April.Here are the ‘aha’ moments from that incredibly thorough and wide-reaching survey.

Charitable Giving Up

Respondents to the survey were optimistic, with 79% expecting to give the same or more to charitable causes in 2011, and only 7% planning to give less.
The youngest donors, under the age of 35, are most likely to say they will give more. 23% of the most generous of donors (giving $10,000 or more last year), plan to give more in 2011, while a mere 10% expect to give less
Recommendation: The researchers point out that while younger donors typically give less than older donors simply because they have fewer resources, their willingness to up their giving is reason for charities to not ignore younger donors as they often do by gearing their efforts toward higher gift value donors.

Clues to Donor Attrition or Loyalty

86% of the survey respondents said they have supported at least one cause for five years or longer. Why? Reputation and trustworthiness ranked first as characteristics of charities that garner loyalty.
53% of these loyal respondents said that ‘achieving and communicating measurable results’ are very important in gaining their long term support.
Of those who stopped supporting one or more charities, 41% said that their priorities had shifted, and ‘over-solicitation’ was cited by 32% of respondents”

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Not For Profit

“The future of fund raising isn’t a topic that usually conjures up visions of Star Wars. But that might be changing with two academic efforts testing robot solicitors on three continents.

Tim Pryde, a 21-year-old product-design student at the University of Dundee, in Scotland, built DON-8r – pronounced ‘donator’ – a small robot that travels through public spaces, relying on coin donations for charity into a slot on its back to keep moving.

Mr. Pryde, who built the project as his final-year project, says he got the idea by watching the often-negative attitudes people had toward street fund raisers who make face-to-face solicitations in busy pedestrian areas.

‘You often see people walking very, very far around them just so they don’t get caught,’ he says. ‘What I wanted to do was design something that people wanted to approach. That’s where the idea of it being a wee robot came from.’” Read More:

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Not For Profit

“Raising funds in the form of in-kind donations may not be as straight forward as simply asking for cash, but can be lucrative and help your group through a slump when cash donations don’t meet expectations. However, in-kind donations are not just an alternative to cash donations, but should be considered year round as an additional way to complement your regular fundraising activities.
(Ideas on where to get in-kind donations.)
Make it easy for the donor to give to you
- The easier you make it for the donor, the more donations you will get. If you have restrictions on when you can pick up items for example, you’re already putting a strain on the donor. Don’t make your donor change his or her schedule – change your schedule to accommodate your donor’s.
- If you nit-pick through items that aren’t perfect, you may come across as not appreciative. Present yourself and your cause as being grateful for the donations you are receiving, even if they’re not perfect. Especially when you first start out, it’s important to keep an open mind and just go with the flow. In time you’ll be able to identify which companies or industries generally have the most useful items to give away.”

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Not For Profit

As the presence of social media continues to increase as a form of communication, health organizations are searching for the most effective ways to use the online tools to pass important information to the public. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have found that nonprofit organizations and community groups appear to be more actively engaged in posting health information and interacting with the public on Twitter than other types of health-related organizations, such as health business corporations, educational institutions and government agencies.

“Twitter may be more appealing to nonprofit organizations because it creates a barrier-free environment that allows these organizations to share important information through real-time exchanges without significant efforts,” said Hyojung Park, a doctoral candidate at the Missouri School of Journalism. “Unlike business organizations such as pharmaceutical companies, nonprofit health organizations and advocacy groups may suffer from lack of funding, staff, and other resources in developing and implementing communication strategies for health intervention and promotion programs. Thus, it is likely that nonprofit organizations and support groups recognize the rapid growth of Twitter and its value as an inexpensive but highly effective communication tool.” Read More

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Not For Profit

You’re told that the organization is high impact in addressing a vital community issue, and that its services are cost effective. You’re giving your time and money (hopefully, generously). And other people see that you’re involved; they trust the organization because they trust you. Simply by serving on the board, you’re vouching.
A cause you believe in. Nice people. That’s great. Just one question: HOW DO YOU KNOW?
And there it is … the essence of the role of the board.
The HOW DO YOU KNOW questions
HOW DO YOU KNOW if the organization is accomplishing what it has set out to do (its mission)? Truly meeting the needs of its clients? Maximizing its effectiveness? On track with its budget? On track with its strategic plan, and updating it in the face of new challenges and opportunities? In compliance with legal and regulatory requirements? Financially accountable? Read More

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Not For Profit