Book Review: Building Social Business

Is there a place in our economy for organizations that are neither for-profit businesses nor non-profit organizations? This is the question the  Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Muhammad Yunus sets out to answer in his newest book–Building Social Business: the new kind of capitalism that serves humanity’s most pressing needs.

Dr. Yunus got his start as an economics professor in Bangladesh.  He started the micro-lending movement in Bangladesh, making small unsecured loans to poor people normally denied by banks. His program developed into the Grameen Bank. Dr. Yunus and the Grameen Bank won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

More recently Muhammad Yunus conceived the social business. It is different from regular businesses in that 100% of profit is directed toward alleviating some social problem. It is also different from a non-profit organization because it is entirely self-supporting, usually by charging a small fee for its product or service.

As an example, the Grameen organization has a partnership with the French company Danone, maker of Dannon yoghurt in the United States. In Bangladesh, Grameen Danone produces nutritionally-enriched yoghurt for about 9 cents per unit, making it affordable to poor people. The program has created 1600 jobs and improved the diet of many Bangladeshis. It is self-supporting, returning all profits into expanding the program itself.

In the United States, a similar idea has been around for many years, in institutions like not-for-profit schools and colleges and non-profit hospitals.  They are still generating most of their income through fees for services, yet do not generate a profit. Dr. Yunus is suggesting there are many more opportunities for organizations modeled like these.

Check out Professor Yungus’ book at your local branch of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.

Using Matching Grants

Want to double your fundraising?  Actually, using a matching grant to motivate donors will do even better.  Research shows that incorporating a matching grant into a fundraising campaign increases that chance of an individual donating by 22%.

Plus, you might not need as large of a matching grant as you might think.  The same study found no significant difference in donor participation between matches of $25,000, $50,000, or $100,000.

Still, how do you find a donor for a $10,000 or $25,000 match? One suggestion is to approach someone who has already made a sizable
donation to see if you can use that donation as the match.  Does this mean you would have to return that money if you don’t meet the match? It depends on if you structure the match as conditional or unconditional.

One other tip to increase the number of donations is a deadline.  The sense of urgency a deadline gives tends to increase, not decrease the number of donations.

 

Read the full article, “Meeting Your Match,” by Nzinga Kone-Miller in the May-June, 2011 issue of Grassroots Fundraising Journal, found in the Southern Nevada Non-Profit Information Center at the Clark County Library.

 

Recruiting Young Adult Supporters

You know the stereotypes about young adults being apathetic.  Yet, this group can be engaged in non-profit efforts if they feel a personal connection.

Young adults primarily trust their friends, likely on Facebook, to help screen what is interesting or important.  This type of word-of-mouth publicity is more effective than slick, professional pitches and brochures.

Young adults, especially, want to feel they are part of a team.  They crave intimacy—even with your non-profit.  They want to feel like they have an active, vital role.  They want to be players not spectators, even if the role is small.

Most of all, young adults want authenticity.  When Ford planned to release the Fiesta, the company selected 100 well-known bloggers to test drive the car for 6 months and post their experiences online.  Ford knew they could get negative reviews, but during those six months there were 6.5 million YouTube views of the posted videos, contributing to 10,000 cars sold in the first 10 days.  The reason given—the audience trusted the objectivity of these third-party bloggers.

Read the full article, “Twenty-Somethings Respond Best to Word-of-Mouth Marketing,” by Jacob Berkman in the June 30, 2011 issue of The Chronicle of Philanthropy, found in the Southern Nevada NonProfit Information Center at the Clark County Library.

Berkman, Jacob. “Twenty-Somethings Respond Best to Word-of-Mouth Marketing.” The Chronicle of Philanthropy,  June 30, 2011: 23-24.

Getting The Most Out Of Your Board

Erika Oliver shares her tips to help nonprofits keep board members involved & effective in her article What Makes Your Board Members Tick?

Ms. Oliver has worked with nonprofits for many years. She conducts personalized training, speaking engagements & is a project consultant.

Having effective board members is vital to all nonprofit organizations. Ms. Oliver explains in her article that members need to fulfill their personal missions as well as those of the organization to stay happy & content as board members.  A board member’s relationship with an organization is reciprocal– the member has a need to contribute as well as a need to feeling s/he is  getting something back. Ms. Oliver gives helpful suggestions to get your board members to reveal their needs, which in turn will benefit your organization. She also discusses the top reasons people serve on nonprofit boards.

Read the full article, What Makes Your Board Members Tick? By Erika Oliver in the November-December 2010 issue of Nonprofit World in the Southern Nevada Non-Profit Information Center at the Clark County Library.

Oliver, Erika. “What Makes Your Board Members Tick?” Nonprofit World November/December 2010: 7.

Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open

Looking for a funding opportunity?  The Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open offers local charitable organizations the opportunity to raise funds for their organization by participating in ticket sales through the Charity Fundraising Program.  The Open will take place at the TPC Summerlin, September 25th-October 2nd, 2011.  Call Stephanie Maes at 702-589-4949 for more information about how your organization can get involved.

The Tickets for Schools Program, offered by the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open offers school organizations  the opportunity to raise funds through ticket sales as well.   Call Stephanie Maes at 702-589-4949 for more information about how your school can get involved

Boards & Giving

How engaged is your board in the role of giving?  Does your nonprofit require board members to make a personal contribution?  Are your board members comfortable with the role of fundraising?

Whether or not board members should be required give has been a topic of debate for quite some time.  There are boards which are largely philanthropic where many board members are expected to give & to give considerable sums.  There are small organizations where it might be difficult for board members to give large sums.

BoardSource’s Nonprofit Governance Index for 2010 details some interesting data on the topic.  The last time BoardSource conducted a similar study was in 2007.  What the study found was that whether the board was small, medium, or large, the percentage of board giving was 75% or above.  71% of organizations require their board members to make a personal contribution.

The study also looked at comfort levels among board members with fundraising.  Surprisingly 32% respondents noted that they were uncomfortable with asking for money directly & calling potential donors!   Check out the complete study for more information on a variety of board related topics– you might be surprised.

Okay, so your organization does not require board members to make personal contributions, rather your policy is to hope that they will.  Now what?  The Fundraising Authority has a good series on why your organization needs a board giving campaign,  how to run a successful campaign, & how to increase board giving.

If you feel that your board members might be experiencing some of the discomfort mentioned about in personally soliciting funds, then this article on motivating your board to raise more money by The Fundraising Authority might be for you.

10 Ideas for Taking Your Fundraising to the Next Level

Great ideas from The Fundraising Authority.  Check out their website for other great articles.

10 Ideas for Taking Your Fundraising to the Next Level

by Joe Garecht

// You’ve done your homework.  You know your pitch.  You believe in your mission, and understand the reasons donors give your organization.  Even so, you may feel that your fundraising has plateaued… that you’re stuck in a rut or missing out on key giving opportunities.  Many times, you may simply feel a sense of malaise – that no matter how much you try, you aren’t leveling up.

Today, we offer you ten great ideas for powering back on, and taking your fundraising game to a whole new level:

1.  Turn off the Computer and Pick up the Phone

The next time you are getting ready to send out an e-mail, I want you to stop – turn off the computer – and pick up the phone.  Instead of e-mailing that donor, prospect, board member or community leader, pick up the phone and call.  It’s far more personal and has lasting positive effects on the relationship.

2.  Join a New Networking Organization

Running out of new people to talk with about your organization?  Join a new networking group.  It could be a local chamber of commerce, the Kiwanis club, your college alumni association, a business group… whatever it is, join and start going to meetings to connect with more people.

3.  Jump on Social Networks with Renewed Vigor

You may have started that Twitter account, LinkedIn Group or Facebook company page with the best of intentions, but as time went on, your interest may have waned, you got discouraged, or simply stopped participating.  Now is the time to reengage!  And while you’re at it, be sure to follow us @FundraisingAuth on Twitter!

4.  Visualize Your Donor Efforts

Follow these tips to visualize your major donor fundraising efforts.  It will help you see where your donors and prospects are in your overall process.

5. Listen to Your Staff and Volunteers

When was the last time you asked for – and listened to – new fundraising ideas from your staff and volunteers?  Get them into the room and ask them for ideas: What should we try?  Who should we talk to?  What can I do to help you?

6.  Take Your 5 Smallest Donors Out to Lunch

Everyone takes their biggest donors out to networking lunches – and you should too – but have you thought about taking your 5 smallest donors out to lunch?  You know, those old ladies who give $50 a year to your annual appeal or those young professionals right out of college who give $25 because they saw an ad for your organization online?  Call ‘em up, take ‘em out to lunch, and see what motivates them to give.  Maybe they could give more?  Maybe they have friends who would want to give?  Maybe they will just be shocked that you called… It was only $25 after all!

7.  Take 5 Peers Out to Lunch

Yes, another great lunch-related tip.  This time, find 5 peers you respect, folks who work in similar jobs to you, but who aren’t competitors (is there such a thing as a non-profit competitor?  You’d say no in public, but privately, you’d say yes!) and ask them if you can buy them lunch to hear about how they raise money, how they find new prospects, etc.  End result = new ideas and a new contact.

8.  Launch One New Initiative

Step outside the box and take a couple of days to launch a new fundraising initiative.  Do lots of direct mail but never tried asking through e-mail?  Give it a shot!  Don’t have a planned giving program?  Get one started!  Talked about doing prospecting mail, but never pulled the trigger?  Now is the time to do it!

9.  Spend the Day in the Field

Nothing is more invigorating, or leads to more insights, then spending a day away from fundraising working in the field with your program staff.  If you are fundraising for a school, spend a day helping tutor kids for one of the teachers.  If you are working with a homeless shelter, spend a day serving meals and cleaning up after.  Get reconnected with the mission, and get reenergized.

10.  Cold Call (But Don’t Cold Ask)

Seriously… It’s like a splash of cold water in your face.  Shocking, confusing, a little scary, but oddly refreshing.  Make a list of 5-10 people you wish you knew.  Find their phone numbers (or the main switchboards at their companies) and call them.  Introduce yourself.  Ask them out to breakfast.  Don’t make an ask over the phone.  Don’t try to sign them up for your walk or get them to commit to a tour.  Just try to get them to meet you to hear more.  You may get one that says yes.  You may not… Either way, you’ll refine your pitch, think of new ways to present your organization, and feel really, really confident when you go back to calling warm contacts.