Each week, we outline the previous week's articles addressing these economic times for nonprofits in the United States. We select the content that is useful to Alaska nonprofits. Below are a few of the links from the previous week.

The Ghost of Christmas Future: State Budget Deficits in 2010
Rick Cohen, The Nonprofit Quarterly

State budgets were a mess in FY2009, a debacle in FY2010, and look like impending catastrophes in FY2011.

Five Internal Controls for the Very Small Nonprofit

Segregation of duties, checks & balances . . . difficult to implement in the organization that has perhaps three or fewer staff, or only a few active board members in an all-volunteer organization.

Funders focus on rebuilding assets
Philanthropy Journal

In the wake of a year that saw foundation assets tumble 24 percent, a majority of endowments and funders will focus on rebuilding their assets in the coming months, a new study says.

Access more News to Use articles on The Foraker Group web site.

In this month's enewsletter, Dennis McMillian looks back at the Foraker journey over the past nine years.

...at the beginning of this New Year, we want to share our sense of fulfillment for the amazing journey we’ve been on for the past nine years – thanks to you. While we have traveled many miles and been to over 200 communities, it seems like just yesterday – actually it was January 2001 – when Ed Rasmuson held a press conference announcing the formation of The Foraker Group.

We truly had humble expectations of what we could accomplish. Our business plan was based on the assumption we would generate enough earned income to be self-sufficient with earned revenue within five years. At least that’s what we told our funders we would do. That goal was truly audacious. We had no clue if anyone would actually pay for the services we would provide. We had hopes they would, but frankly, before Foraker most nonprofits in Alaska were very skilled at getting free consulting help from volunteers at our larger businesses. These volunteers would train our boards or lead strategic planning sessions. The only exceptions to this practice seemed to be the larger organizations or affiliates of national organizations – and even those worked as hard as they could to pay nothing.

[READ MORE]

What are some of your reflections of the past year for your organization? What is your vision for the new year?

Did you apply for your PFD in the last week but are unsure whether you successfully filed a donation through the online PFD application or not?

Here's how to check:

On the PFD site on the left-hand side - below the photo of Deborah Bitney, Permanent Fund Dividend Division director - is a link called “My PFD” where, if you filed and signed electronically, you can check whether you successfully made a donation.

1. The first page is a Warning that you had better be the person who you say you are.

2. The second page is a place to enter your Social Security and other identifying information.

3. The third page is where you submit your myAlaska login and ID just as you did when you filed.

4. Finally, you will see a record of your current application status. Look to the “Payment Status” field, and you can see whether you made a contribution.

If you meant to donate but couldn't in the first few days of the year, we'll have information for you on this blog as soon as we know how you'll be able to go back and donate.

Did you have any trouble donating through your PFD online application this year? If so, please share your stories here so we can troubleshoot.

The number of people who have successfully filed a charitable donation to eligible Alaska nonprofits through the PFD Charitable Contributions Program, also known as Pick Click Give., has shot up in the hours since the State reported that the technical problems had been resolved.

Today’s participation rate among people who filed for their 2010 Permanent Fund Dividend is 667 percent higher than during the first four days of the New Year. We have received a number of personal reports of success in completing the donation process when filing online. Complaints received by Pick. Click. Give. staff are way down.

The PFD Division is encouraging Alaskans to use the online application and the Pick. Click. Give. option.

Further, the PFD Division is working to create a process that allows Alaskans to Pick. Click. Give., even if they already submitted their online application without making charitable contributions. We are looking forward to spreading the word about this “do over” opportunity as soon as we receive details.

We at Pick. Click. Give. are grateful to each of you for your patience. Hundreds of Alaska nonprofits and individuals went to extraordinary lengths to promote and utilize Pick. Click. Give. as a way to encourage individuals to support the causes they care about.

We are hopeful that if you experience any difficulties with the online application, please email the details of your experience to pickclickgive@pickclickgive.org and we will relay them immediately to the State.

You can also share your experiences with Pick. Click. Give. on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pickclickgive) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/pickclickgive).  Make sure to fan and follow us to stay up to date on the latest information!

Technical problems prevent PFD applicants from taking part in Pick.Click.Give.  State asks people who want to give to file after the problem is resolved.

We have received numerous reports today that people have been unable to make the Pick.Click.Give. function work when they filed online for their PFD.  As soon as we heard about these problems, we got in touch with the head of the Permanent Fund Division and asked that immediate attention be given to this situation.  As you know, the state is responsible for the technology and manages the system that allows people to make a donation when they complete their PFD application.  The Permanent Fund Division is trouble-shooting the problem right now and has asked us to share this message with you.

Dear PFD Applicant,

We are experiencing technical difficulties with regard to the charitable contributions program: Pick.Click.Give.  Our technical professionals are working to fix the problem.  If you intend to donate a portion of your dividend to your favorite nonprofit, we ask that you please come back to file when this notice states we have resolved the issue. The filing season is open through March 31st, so there is plenty of time. All eligible applicants will be paid on October 7th 2010. Thank you for your patience.
                          --Permanent Fund Dividend Division

We will send more information on this situation as soon as it becomes available to us. 

-- The Foraker Group

As we close in on the start of the new year, many nonprofits in Alaska are anticipating the 2010 Permanent Fund Dividend for good reason. This will be the second year that Alaskans will be able to check off one or several nonprofit organizations to support with a portion of their PFD when they apply online. Even $25 can make an incredible impact on the lives o Alaskans, especially if everyone picks, clicks and gives. Just see what Red Cross of Alaska, CASA, Wish Upon the North Star and Alzheimer's Resource of Alaska have been able to do with your contributions this past year.

This is also the second year that the Pick. Click. Give. awareness campaign is using social media to draw attention to the Permanent Fund Charitable Contributions Program.

In addition to the Pick. Click. Give. blog, there is also a presence for the campaign on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube and CauseCast which is a cause-related video sharing site.

There are several things that Alaska nonprofits - and any nonprofits - can learn from using social media for awareness campaigns.

There are several takeaways for nonprofits from a social media standpoint:

1. You Can Be Targeted. Social media can be effective as not only a global or national communications tool but can also be calibrated to be hyper-local and even hyper-rural. For smaller nonprofits whose scope doesn't reach beyond a state or a region or a town, social media can still prove useful and can be that finely targeted.

2. You Need to Pick the Right Tools. Not every social media tool is right for every nonprofit or every campaign. And you don't always start out picking the right ones, but as long as you monitor, measure and assess results from each, you can eventually zero in on the right ones. Even Pick. Click. Give. started out using a number of additional social media tools that eventually proved less useful in reaching Alaskans so we pared down this year to focus more energy on fewer, more effective tools. Holding onto MySpace was possible because it takes less resources to maintain than Facebook or Twitter. Holding onto Twitter even though the numbers may be smaller is a strategic move to be ready for the 3rd year of this program when more Alaskans will be used to Twitter communications. Twitter is still an excellent traffic-driver even before true interaction and engagement sets in.

3. You Must Coordinate Efforts. Social media tools can be linked together and coordinated in such a fashion that they can be utilized with a very small staff. Last year, one person ran the bulk of social media efforts in a few hours a week. This year, we are lucky to have one additional person devoted to social media a few hours a week and have better internal coordination with our project partners such as Rasmuson Foundation and the Nerland Agency (the ad agency that developed the programs brand and the PSAs). Social media cannot exist in a vacuum. All stakeholders in a campaign or project must be willing to keep social media top of mind and to keep the social media team in the loop in any marketing or communications discussion. And the social media team needs to know how to make the right noises at the right times to be noticed and not forgotten.

As Jordan Marshall of Rasmuson Foundation so eloquently put it, "The beauty of Pick. Click. Give. may be that it reminds people that they can make a big difference in peoples’ lives, so when they get the ask from the nonprofits they’re more inclined to act."

And that, too, is the beauty of using social media to remind people that the causes we are working to support truly matter to real people. People reaching out to and connecting with people. You can make a difference.

Pick. Click. Give.

How is your nonprofit using social media to reach out and connect?

Here are some article summaries posted in the News to Use section of the Economic Response resources on The Foraker Group web site for the week ending December 18.

Recession Prompts Watchdog Agency to Loosen Fund-Raising Standards
The Chronicle of Philanthropy

In recognition of the recession’s severe impact on charities, the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance announced today that it will allow organizations more leeway in meeting its standards for how much they spend on fund-raising and program activities. Since 2003 the watchdog agency has required charities that meet its 20 standards to spend at least 65 percent on programs (Standard 8) and no more than 35 percent of contributions on fund-raising expenses (Standard 9). But for the fiscal years ending in 2008 through June 2010, the agency announced, charities that spend up to 45 percent of contributions on fund raising and as little as 55 percent on programs will still receive the Wise Giving Alliance stamp of approval, so long as they comply with the other 18 standards. http://philanthropy.com/news/updates/index.php?id=10316

Social Good: How to Raise Support Through Online Contests
The Chronicle of Philanthropy

In our new edition of Social Good, a Chronicle podcast, you can learn how to use online giving contests such as the Case Foundation’s America’s Giving Challenge to raise money and awareness. http://philanthropy.com/media/audio/socialgood/

While this is not listed in News to Use, Beth Kanter - author of Beth's Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media - raised some interesting points about online giving contests, particularly utilizing social media in her recent post What Lessons Will Pepsi Learn About Crowdsourcing for Social Good from Chase Bank Contest Fail?

You can access more News to Use here.

Feel free to share some interesting articles in our comments section that pertain to the economy and nonprofits.

from Dennis McMillian's December letter...

We want to let a secret out of the bag. Raising money is simple. All you need is to find the best person to ask a prospect face-to-face for a specific amount of money – and you will raise money more times than not. Now let’s outline the complexity in that overly simple solution.

First, we want to address a few common myths about raising money:

• As soon as you get your 501(c)(3) status from the IRS, money falls from heaven.
• If Willy Horton robbed banks because that’s where the money was – then it’s logical that if you want to raise money you should ask rich people, right?
• Institutional donors like corporations and foundations have the most money to give.
• The more choices people have, the more they give.
• Advertising is all you need to get people to give money.
• “If people only knew how good our mission is, they would give.”
• “If people knew how much we need their help, they would give.”
• There is only so much money to go around – if I get mine, you won’t get yours.
• Professional fundraisers ask for money.

These fundraising myths run rampant. In Alaska and around the country, fundraising or development professionals confront these myths every day. Capacity building organizations like The Foraker Group fill fundraising classes with eager volunteers and staff wanting to find the silver bullet that will help them raise more money. Many leave disappointed because regardless of whether they ask us, or the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), or consultants from around the country, the answer is the same, there is no silver bullet.

Read the entire letter.

What is your best advice for securing individual contributions?

Food Bank of Alaska received $28,000 from donations made through the PFD Charitable Contributions Program. That means that thousands of Alaskans picked the Food Bank, clicked on their listing when applying for their PFD online last January, and gave to them.

But what does this REALLY mean to the organization? We had the opportunity to interview the folks at Food Bank of Alaska about Pick. Click. Give. 2009.

Name: Marleah LaBelle
Title: Communications Manager
Organization: Food Bank of Alaska
URL: www.foodbankofalaska.org
Org Facebook: www.facebook.com/foodbankofalaska

What did Food Bank of Alaska received through the 2009 PFD Charitable Contributions Program and what are those funds going to?

What does $28,000 mean to Food Bank of Alaska?

• We could purchase 2,800 turkeys. (Food Bank of Alaska purchases 16,000 turkeys for holiday food distributions that occur in Anchorage and across the state);
   
• It would allow us to pay for shipping costs of U.S.D.A. commodities to rural Alaska for one month;
• It will help us keep our four trucks running smoothly on the road for three months (includes fuel, maintenance and insurance).

Why is a program like Pick. Click. Give. important for Alaska nonprofits?

Pick. Click. Give. is important for Alaska nonprofits because it provides much needed funding and diversifies sources of funding. It also allows Alaskans to support their favorite nonprofits easily.

What is the actual impact of individual donors to an Alaska nonprofit and to the Food Bank?

The impact an individual donor has on Food Bank of Alaska is to help us achieve our mission and our belief that “No one deserves to be hungry.” For every dollar donated, Food Bank of Alaska can access 5 pounds of food.

What is the Food Bank of Alaska doing this year to incorporate Pick. Click. Give. into their outreach?

Food Bank of Alaska will make the information available on our website and through our Facebook Fan page. We will also include the information in our monthly Volunteer newsletter and our Advocacy Alerts.

What other tips would you give to Alaska nonprofits in terms of leveraging Pick. Click. Give. for their organization?

Communicate clearly with your constituents the organizations’ mission and manage your brand closely. Communicate with donors and media regularly to capitalize on awareness.

What would you say to Alaskans about the importance of individual philanthropy and how Pick. Click. Give. can help?

Individual philanthropy shows us how strong a community is – how much neighbors care about the community and about one another. Donations can help feed hungry Alaskans, or help a senior with heating assistance, or provide books for children from low income families. They are all gifts that make life a little better for our neighbors, and in turn, our community.

Have you Picked YOUR Click for January 2010?

Foraker president Dennis McMillian recently wrote about the "new reality" faced by us all - including Alaska nonprofits. He also highlighted several of his past letters over the last year, summarizing points made back then in context of where we are today.

"We are slowly climbing out of a very deep recession, but the end is still not in sight. As we expected, Alaska’s economic downturn started behind the rest of the country," says McMillian in his monthly President's Letter. "We did not begin to feel the recession’s impact until summer when we saw fewer tourists. The oil industry has been slow to make new investments in the state and the gas pipeline has again become a distant vision. In our sector, dedicated nonprofit staff and volunteers are coming to Foraker – reaching out to see what relief we can provide to help them weather the storm. However, unfortunately some are losing hope and may close their doors."

You can read the rest of Dennis' letter here.

Let us know your “new reality” – what have you been doing to cope with the economy one year after the downturn?