Creating a Fundraising Plan for 2019

Over the next two weeks I am going to touch upon two areas of our organizational goal setting that are often overlooked: the fundraising/development plan and the operations plan. Ughhh, you say. Who has time for this? I will agree that fall is a very busy time for fundraising, but it is critical to think about 2019 before you get there.

If you don’t have a plan for 2019, you are going to be lost and you will waste a lot of time on unnecessary work and effort. Below are some key questions to ask yourself as you develop your thoughts (which should be able to fit on less than one page).

1. What three fundraising initiatives did we do this year that had the biggest ROI? That means the biggest return on investment (which could be time and/or money). We need to take a hard look at our events, grant writing, leadership donor cultivation, regular donor cultivation, etc., and see what really did the best for us. One part of the ROI analysis could also be if you have a wonderful committee running an event and you don’t have to do anything to raise several thousand dollars. Even if the committee spends a lot of time on an event, if it means you, as a leader of the organization, don’t have to own it, that is something that should be considered. Another way to do this analysis is a simple numbers crunch; e.g., if you invest $1,000 in an initiative and you make $10,000, that is a fantastic return. You need to identify the factors that are most important to you in determining the best ways to spend your time.
2. What can you really let go? When you think about a fundraising initiative and you just feel nauseated, that is a good hint. Be strong with your board about the need to focus, focus, focus….
3. Where can you grow? In contrast to number 2, don’t accept that status quo. Try to change things up and so something different. As a leader, you need to fundraise in ways that make you most comfortable. You might be better working from the leadership donor and appeal side of things vs. being out there in front of several hundred people asking for donations. Address your strengths and those of your board and take advantage of them to grow in those areas.
4. Once you have decided what you are going to do, mark your calendars and set dates. Then overlay that schedule with your operations plan (tune in next week for more on that) in order to make sure you haven’t scheduled your adopt-a-thon on the same day that you have an evening fundraiser at a local restaurant, for instance. Having a well-scheduled year will do wonders for everyone.

Remember, your fundraising plan should be a fairly simple document. It is your guide for 2019—something to fall back on and adjust if necessary. The points above are short tools to help you in drafting your plan. This exercise shouldn’t take longer than an hour or so to sketch out for a small organization, and then an hour with the board and key players (i.e. fundraising volunteers).

Talk to you next week, when I will touch upon the operations plan.