A successful fundraising culture always puts the donor first.
A successful fundraising culture always puts the donor first.
Our fundraising team is ready to work with you to guide, mentor, and explore how to move your fundraising to the next level.
Whether you need to develop a plan, establish policies and procedures, create a robust donor database, or encourage your board members to get more involved, we can help you achieve your goals. We are available for a one-time consultation, or a longer commitment – whatever you need to take the next step in your fundraising program.
For more information on how we can help, use our contact form or call us at 907-743-1200.
Fundraising is a team effort, and we need the whole team to be successful. But engaging the team requires learning how to do this work well. Fund development is both an art and a science, and very few of us have learned both by the time we volunteer or work for a nonprofit. That’s why it’s often tempting to jump right into tactics and strategies like events or website donation tools. Without some basic infrastructure, candid conversations, and training, you can quickly find yourself spinning your wheels. Since everyone in your organization should be thinking about building long-term donor relationships, you need a way to analyze and keep track of all the ideas. We can help you to:
A mentor is someone who is called upon for their experience and guidance. Our mentoring service can help you find creative ways to deal with all the steps to achieve a successful fundraising program. From planning through stewardship, we can assist you by increasing your knowledge through best practices. While you determine the exact topics you need to explore, we have tools that will help you manage many of the tasks that make up an effective fundraising program. Many people like to meet monthly or quarterly with one of our fund development specialists to bounce around ideas and keep accountable to their goals. No long-term commitment is necessary.
Although we don’t write the plan for you, we can assist in all parts of the planning process. We offer a step-by-step approach that includes both staff and board discussions and agreement. We start with a high-level discussion about organizational culture and fund development expectations. Our work culminates in a narrative summarizing the key decisions that drive the plan including organizational values, goals, key audiences, a gift chart, and recognition strategies all tied to budget and strategic goals. We also work closely with you to create a tactical version of the plan that outlines how each goal will be achieved.
While we believe that you will be most successful with full board and leadership staff involvement, the creation of the plan can be written by a small team that is committed to the process and can in turn engage the rest of the group in successful implementation. If you are interested in learning more, call us or sign up for our class.
Time Estimates: Timing to complete a plan depends on each organization and the time that staff and board are able to devote to the process. While there is not a “one size fits all” description of time required, it is safe to allocate a minimum of six hours of board facilitation plus 20 hours of Foraker consulting time. Complicated plans will take more time, as will plans for organizations that are new to donor-centered fundraising.
Once there is agreement on the big picture, we move through the key elements that are necessary to develop an effective fundraising plan that include:
Planned giving is a way for philanthropic individuals to support organizations through larger gifts than they could make from their existing income. Using that definition, a planned gift is any major gift made during a donor’s life or at death as part of an overall giving or estate plan. We can help you determine the best way to accept this type of gift. We can connect you with your local community foundation, or if you want to set up your own system we can advise you on those steps, too. Creating a way for your most loyal donors to make significant investments in missions they care about is a true gift.
We can assist you in the following ways:
A successful capital campaign is never about the building – it is about the ability to deliver mission inside the building. A successfully funded project includes gifts from individuals, corporate, and foundation philanthropy. Our focus in this work is on understanding how philanthropy will fit into your overall budget and plan, and then working with you to ensure realistic expectations and capacity to succeed. Ask our team of fund development experts for a consultation to get you started on the right foot. We have also created a resource, Preparing to Fund Your Capital Project in Alaska and Beyond, to help you prepare.
We offer the following classes on fundraising throughout the year. Don’t see a subject you need? No problem, use our contact form or call us at 907-743-1200 to explore the possibilities.
The directory allows you to search for corporate and foundation funders by areas of interest so you will know right away if a funder supports your mission, project, or geographic area. As part of a fundraising plan, this tool may save you hours of research. You can purchase a one-year subscription here.