1. Fundraising Action Planning II

2. Good morning! Aubin Dupree National Youth Council Alumni Board
Presenter 2
Position
5 minutes
Slides 1-5

3. Fundraising Action Planning II
Review
Fundraising strategies
Major giving
Grants
Events
Fundraising planning
The presentation today is broken into three parts.
Explain parts.
We will try to make this as fun and interactive as possible. Feel free to interrupt with questions at any time.

4. It’s really early for a Sunday…
Can do morning icebreaker / wake up activity now.
If you have to run out to get a coffee, go ahead.
You need to be awake this morning, because this session is where you are going to take everything you have learned at NYI and put it together to make a real fundraising plan that will bring real money into your chapter.

5. Fundraising Action Planning II
Review
Fundraising strategies
Major giving
Grants
Events
Fundraising planning
The first thing we’re going to do is review what happened yesterday during Fundraising Action Planning I

6. Yesterday was so long ago…
Fundraising Action Planning I
Introduction
Mission
Core activities
Target population
Fundraising cause
Fundraising needs
Fundraising resources
5 minutes:
Let’s refresh our memories about the elements of a fundraising action plan from Action Planning 1.
You talked about:
I. Introduction
a. ARC mission and values
b. Youth program mission and values
II. Needs (ask audience for examples)
III. Resources (ask audience for examples)
In addition you worked on your fundraising cause. Ask participants to share some of the causes they identified/
Now, in Action Planning 2, we’re going to focus on a couple of additional elements:
IV. Fundraising Goals
V. Fundraising strategies
a. Establish a broad fundraising timeline
b. Briefly map the primary fundraising strategies (broad thinking to outline their thinking before actually getting started)
…and more.

7. Fundraising Action Planning II
Review
Fundraising strategies
Major giving
Grants
Events
Fundraising planning
Now that we’ve reviewed what happened yesterday, let’s start thinking about the strategies you are going to use for your fundraising projects.

8. Mini presentations Fundraising strategies Major giving Grants Events
Earlier, you learned about how to focus your thinking and heard some ideas about where to get funding.
In this part and the next part, we will focus on some of the key details you will need to get your fundraising prospects to say yes to your project.
For this part, we’re going to focus on three types of activities: major giving, grants, and events.
Events ideas will be discussed only briefly. The focus will be on major gifts and grants.

9. Major giving Solicitation cycle Engagement strategy Prospect strategy
Major gift scenario
10 minutes slides 9-10
The Solicitation Cycle for Major Giving
Donors are there because they like to help out and they want to make a difference. (remember what you discussed during Fundraising 101 about donor motivation!)
They won’t want to help you unless you have great communication and show them what their money is doing!

10. Major giving solicitation cycle
Identification
Research
Develop strategies
Cultivation
Solicitation
Acknowledge
Recognition
Stewardship
So, when you have the solicitation cycle at work….you should cover the following elements
1. Identification: identify prospects
2. Research: find out everything you can about them
3. Development of strategies: figure out the best way to approach
4. Cultivation: help prospect get to know you (events, communications)
5. Solicitation: Make the ask!
6. Acknowledgment: send tax receipt
7. Recognition: publicize the individual’s generosity
8. Stewardship: keep individual updated on your project (events, meetings, s, phone calls)
Engagement strategy worksheet
Prospect strategy worksheet

11. Major gift scenario Charles and Monica Smith
Identification
Research
Develop strategies
Cultivation
Solicitation
Acknowledge
Recognition
Stewardship
Charles and Monica Smith
Charles has been an annual fund donor for five years, giving $1,000 each year
Capacity rating of $500,000+ gift
Charles owns a successful biotech firm in Silicon Valley
Monica “inherited millions”, according to a board member
Children John (22) and Paisley (16)
Two dogs
Monica is on the board of the ballet company; recently gave $350,000 to capital campaign
Walk the participants through the following scenario….exemplify the power of solicitation cycle and how it guides the fundraising process.
What do we know?
• Regular annual fund donor = good prospect, already likes the Red Cross
• High capacity rating, and have given large gifts in the past (to the ballet)
What do we need to find out? Get out your “Asking Strategic Questions” handout from yesterday.
• Find out what inspired him to give to the Red Cross, and what keeps him giving
• Develop some “priceless ideas”
• Get the prospect to say “How much would it cost to make that happen?”
How can you engage them?
• Offer to work with biotech company on preparedness or other training for employees
• Suggest Charles, Monica or children attend a Pet First Aid class
• Offer Charles and Monica more information about Red Cross youth and young adult programs

12. Grants Solicitation cycle Grant proposals Cover letter Proposal Budget
Supporting materials
10 minutes slides 11-12
The Solicitation Cycle for Grants
Foundations and donors get a ton of requests for money.
[Include something about grant sources here?]

13. Grant solicitation cycle
Identification
Research
Develop strategies
Cultivation
Solicitation
Acknowledge
Recognition
Stewardship
If you want them to remember you, and get the best chance of winning a grant, follow all of these steps:
1. Identification: identify potential funders
2. Research: find out everything you can about them
3. Development of strategies: figure out the best way to approach
4. Cultivation: make contact with staff at the organization
5. Solicitation: write and submit your grant proposal
6. Acknowledgment: send tax receipt
7. Recognition: publicize the funder’s generosity
8. Stewardship: keep funder updated on your project (grant reports, or informal communication)
Identification
Grant alerts
Development officer
Research
Specific requirements
Funding history
Develop strategies
Establish communication
Cultivation
Connect
Communicate
Gain visibility
Solicitation
Apply for grant competition
Acknowledgement
Send evaluation report
Major progress updates
Recognition
Publicize grant impact
Stewardship
Update contacts

14. Building a grant Cover letter Summary and proposal detail Budget
Supporting materials
Cover letter
Introduces your project and demonstrates that you have the Unit’s authority and support to go ahead.
Summary and proposal detail
The heart of your proposal
Short executive summary at top
Budget
How will the numbers work?
Supporting materials
Anything else that helps to demonstrate what a great job you are going to do.
Grant Proposals
A good grant proposal will have four key sections:
1. Cover letter: Introduces your project and demonstrates that you have the Unit’s authority and support to go ahead.
2. Summary and proposal detail: The detailed heart of your proposal, with a short executive summary right at the beginning.
3. Budget: Here’s where you show how the numbers will work.
4. Supporting materials: Anything else that helps to demonstrate what a great job you are going to do.
The first rule in preparing to write a proposal is to make sure it’s developed in the desired format. Some foundations have guidelines that must be followed. The following outline includes all of the information that is typically required, but make sure you are clear about what each foundation wants to know.
PART 1: Cover letter
Yes, this goes first in the proposal, but don’t write it until later. You’ll do a better job writing your cover letter after the proposal is finished.
PART 2: The proposal
Whether you follow a foundation’s specified guidelines or develop your own format, there are certain elements that every proposal must contain:
I. Summary
b. State what you propose to do and how much it will cost.
a. Develop a clear, concise, specific description of the project.
The summary will change a lot as you develop the rest of your proposal. That’s ok! A good tip is to write a basic summary, use it to guide your thinking on the detailed proposal, and then come back at the end and rewrite the summary to account for any changes you made along the way.
II. Introduction
a. Establish your credibility as an organization by describing your chapter’s purpose, history and accomplishments, especially those related to the project.
b. Explain why yours is the best organization to do the job.
c. Convince the funder that the Red Cross can make a difference in young people’s lives.
III. Problem Statement or Needs Assessment
c. Explain the elements of the problem that can be addressed by your project.
b. Use data, statistics and quotes from authorities to support the idea that the problem is serious but can be solved.
a. Document a specific problem you are facing.
IV. Objectives
a. Develop sets of specific, measurable outcomes to be accomplished by the project (you did this in one of the previous sessions). These outcomes, if accomplished, must clearly and significantly be—or lead to—a reduction of the problem.
b. Stress benefits to the community, rather than benefits to the Red Cross.
V. Budget
c. Be sure that budget figures add up!
b. Match the tasks laid out above with the costs of accomplishment.
a. Supply a line-item budget for the project’s cost.
d. Be scrupulously honest about including all costs.
Indirect costs are those costs that are not readily identifiable with a particular project, but nevertheless are necessary to the general operation. The costs of renting a space or equipment, administrative salaries and expenses are usually considered indirect costs.
Before you prepare your budget, check in advance whether or not the foundation you’re soliciting will pay indirect costs or put a ceiling on them. Chapters submitting a proposal to a government agency must negotiate with the agency to establish an indirect cost rate.
PART 3: The budget
Here’s where things get very specific. Make sure you account for every possible cost. Use this outline as a guide, but remember that you can customize the outline to your project if necessary.
PART 4: Supporting Materials
A number of supporting documents and other items are usually attached to the proposal narrative, depending on the foundation’s requirements:
• Tax-exempt status letters: Obtain copies of rulings confirming the status of the American Red Cross as a public charity, as described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. This is an important part so get working on it early.
• Current operating budget.
• Audited financial statements.
• List of chapter governing board.
• Job descriptions.
• Biographical data on key staff.
• Letters of endorsement and publicity about the program.
• Statistical data and needs assessment.
Don’t forget the cover letter!
Remember how we put this off until later? Well, now is the time to write it! All proposals must have a cover letter, signed by the chairman of your Unit’s board. This assures the potential funder that the board endorses the project.
A cover letter should—
• Be short and simple.
• Be signed by the chapter chairman.
• Be addressed to a specific person.
• Offer to meet to discuss the project, or otherwise supply additional information.

15. Events Grants vs. events Solicitation cycle Planning worksheet
Project plan example
10 minutes slides 14-15
The Solicitation Cycle for Events
Remember to consider the difference between grants and events.
Heavy on the marketing and social media!
Events and sales won’t work if people have a bad time or don’t like your product. To make sure your events are successful every time, follow all of these steps:
1. Identification, research, and development of strategies: identify niche (item to sell, event to hold) and audience
2. Cultivation: spread the word about your event or product sale
3. Solicitation: hold the event and get your donations (includes a lot of marketing, unlike other solicitation cycles)
4. Acknowledgment: thank everyone for attending or buying your item
5. Recognition: promote your success
6. Stewardship: keep participants/customers updated on your project (mail, , phone)

16. Events plan – explain the overall planning steps for NYI 2009

17. Mini presentations Fundraising strategies Major giving Grants Events
Summary / review of mini presentations
Explain that these three major fundraising strategies should be considered when they are developing their fundraising plan

18. Wakeup call!
Break 10 minutes

19. Fundraising Action Planning II
Review
Fundraising strategies
Major giving
Grants
Events
Fundraising planning
5-10 minutes slides 18-19
Before the break, we looked at the different types of funding that you can get, and earlier you thought about what your project will be and how long it will take.
So, to help you get started, let’s start making your actual plan.
What kind of funding are you going to go after, and how are you going to get it?
We’re going to help you put together through your fundraising strategy, your project timeline, your project budget and your fundraising team roster.
And because donors always want to know what happens with their money, we’ll also help you plan how to report your progress back to your donors.

20. Elements of your fundraising plan
Summary
Introduction, fundraising cause, needs, resources
IV. Goals
SMART example
V. Strategies
Fundraising criteria and fundraising steps
VI. Timeline
Project phases
VII. Budget
Budget detail on handout
VIII. Team
Leaders, advisors and recognitions
IX. Results
Performance evaluation
Elements covered yesterday during Fundraising Action Planning I were the summary, I. introduction (including fundraising cause), II. needs and III. resources
They should look through the documents they worked on yesterday.
Today, we’re going to concentrate on parts 4-9.

21. IV: Fundraising goals How much do you want to raise?
How much can you reasonably expect to raise with the specific type of fundraiser you chose?
How many people have to participate in order to reach this amount, either by attending the event, donating at a pledge drive, etc.?
How much money would you need in business sponsorship?
10 minutes slides 20-21
Have the group work on setting their fundraising goal. Walk them through the example of SMART goals and allow them time to set up their fundraising goal
Remind participants that they can engage various strategies to reach their goal (grants, events etc….

22. SMART goal example Specific
Battle of the Bands to raise $2,011 for the Measles Initiative by 2011
Measureable
The amount given or donated
Acceptable
Mission-related program or initiative
Realistic
Two-year timeframe to reach goal
Timeframe
Two years

23. V: Fundraising strategies
Sources
Corporations
Foundations
Individuals
Grants
Scholarships
Special events
???
30 minutes slides 22-24
Identify which strategies you should focus on in your fundraising plans, and write down specific elements for your approach (including dollar amounts)!
Use the fundraising plan handout

24. Fundraising strategy criteria
Fits with mission?
Cost-effective?
Skills/resources available?
Past experience?
Builds capacity?
Timing ok?
Repeatable?
Other benefits?

25. Fundraising steps Establish fundraising timeline Select strategies
Submit
Corporations
Foundations
Individuals
Grants
Scholarships
Events
The first thing to figure out is your timeframe.
How quickly do you need to raise money?
How much time do you have?
How long would you like your project to last?
Take five minutes with your groups to decide on the timeframe you have in mind for your fundraising idea (for example, 1, 2 or 3 years).
Depending on the objectives, youth can be directed to focus on longer-term projects.
Acquiring a gift from an individual, foundation, corporation, etc. is basically a two-step process:
1. Identify the most promising foundation or other funding source through careful research
2. Submit a proposal designed to persuade the source that your project should be funded — by them!
• Foundations: submit a proposal or application
• Individuals: set up a face-to-face meeting
• Corporations: varies
• Events: plan your “think, feel, do” message

26. VI: Fundraising project timeline
Break project into phases
The more detail, the better!
20 minutes
Use fundraising plan handout
Remind participants that their fundraising plan should cover a series of strategies.
There are two major strategies they can approach:
I. top down
Revisit the original time line they have for their fundraising plan (e.g. 2 years)
They can use the solicitation cycle and plan the timeline for each strategy
Once they plugged in the time….they should identify the order / priority – what can go in parallel, what need a separate approach
II. Bottom – up
Following the solicitation cycle – establish the time line and major phases for each strategies
Establish priority / how actions can be coordinated
Roll up the times, identify overlaps and establish overall timeline for the plan
Provide detailed information on the expected timetable for the project. Break the project into phases, and provide a schedule for each phase.

27. Final lap!
Break – by now they will have been sitting for more than an hour since the last break.

28. VII: Fundraising project budget
Phases
Budget detail
Be honest
Include all possible costs
Why is it important to be honest and include all possible costs?
20 minutes
Use fundraising plan handout
Be as complete as possible when you are planning your budget.
Include every possible cost! See the Grants handout from earlier this morning for instructions on how to plan your budget.
Think about budget management plans, to make sure your budget stays on track.

29. VIII: Fundraising project team
Project leaders
Advisors
Recognition
15 minutes
Use fundraising plan handout
List the key personnel who will be responsible for completion of the fundraising project, as well as other personnel involved in the project.
Tie-in to NYI youth leadership panel: Remind them that the panel had some good ideas for identifying, training and supporting youth leaders.
Remember to make someone responsible for performance measurement, and don’t forget volunteer appreciation!

30. IX: Fundraising plan results
Performance evaluation
What?
When?
How?
Who?
15 minutes
Use fundraising plan handout
Discuss how progress will be evaluated throughout and at the end of the fundraising project.
You may want to refer to your timeline from part II.
And don’t forget to assign someone to be in charge of evaluation and measurement.

31. Fundraising planning review
Needs
Resources
Goal
Strategy
Timeline
Budget
Team
Evaluation

32. Fundraising Action Planning II
Review
Fundraising strategies
Major giving
Grants
Events
Fundraising planning
5 minutes wrap up!
What has been learned so far (other sessions, this session)?

33. What’s your fundraising plan?
Gift, grant or event?
Unusual source?
Project length?
Questions?
Interactive Q&A
Go around the room to discuss what people are planning and encourage the sharing of ideas.
Part of this time can also be used as an overflow if the session is running behind.

34. You made it! www.redcrossyouth.org and Facebook
Aubin Dupree:
Presenter 2:
Give out contact info and one fun fact about each presenter.
Remind participants about handouts and resources.
Everything will be available on redcrossyouth.org.
Point them to next session.
Thanks so much for coming! Look forward to volunteering with you!