May 4, 2006 | Read Time: 4 minutes
Q. I’m working with a small aikido group that has a wonderful program for children focused on leadership and conflict resolution. We’d like to raise funds for building renovation and scholarships. Can you offer any information about fund raising in for-profit environments?
A. When it comes to fund raising — whether you’re approaching foundations, individuals, or, in this case, for-profit corporations — the best thing any charity can do is tell a good story, says Linda N. Spencer, a fund-raising consultant in New York. Having a feel-good mission isn’t enough.
“You need to be specific,” she says. “Tell the real-life story of Jack or Jane. What happens to that child when they go to the aikido studio? They learn martial arts, yes, but what beyond that? Do they learn discipline, self-respect, goals, how to be a better student? All of these successes are the story.” In addition to a good story, she says, corporate donors are also looking for a good reason to give, and to give to your organization: “Those reasons may include: to raise their brand awareness in the community, to increase the company’s revenue, to increase brand preference, or simply to become a good corporate citizen.”
For example, you might approach a local store and ask it to donate 5 percent or 10 percent of its sales to your organization for a given day or for a specific period of time, suggests Ms. Spencer. The company can then promote its good will as a way to increase sales, since customers tend to be more inclined to buy when they know part of the profit is going to a good cause, she says. When approaching a business owner, give assurances that you will encourage all your teachers, volunteers, and students’ parents to patronize the store for the duration of the campaign, thus providing new customers.
You might also consider approaching companies with a detailed sponsorship package, showing how much the company must give to receive specific benefits, suggests Kate Atwood, founder of Kate’s Club, a nonprofit organization in Atlanta that provides programs for children who have lost a parent or sibling. For instance, for a $20,000 donation, the corporate sponsor might be promised naming rights to a new aikido studio room. Giving a higher amount could offer naming rights for a scholarship, an attractive perk for companies as well as individuals, says Ms. Atwood: “Offer recognition for the gift at your facility, on your Web site, in your newsletter, and with the press.”
Because you represent a small organization, Ms. Atwood recommends that you first seek support from local, small to mid-size for-profit partners, rather than big corporations. “It’s common that the bigger the company, the bigger the charitable organization they are going to fund,” she says. “So seek smaller, local companies or even local branches of bigger companies to endorse your fund campaign. It may mean securing more than one, but you’ll see more success in your requests.”
Focusing on smaller companies, she says, may also help minimize red tape for a charity seeking support: Small companies often handle their giving within their own marketing or public-relations departments, while larger companies usually maintain separate foundations that distribute most donations.
Ms. Atwood also suggests investigating grant opportunities and donation-matching programs within the corporations where your current board members, volunteers, and donors are employed. Her organization, for instance, recently secured a $25,000 grant from a company for which one of its trustees works.
And don’t forget to ask for support other than cash, adds Ms. Spencer. Ask a local company to give a day off or some other incentive to employees who volunteer to help with your charity’s renovations. Fostering that connection can help not only in ultimately attaining financial aid from the company, but also in recruiting individual donors. As an example, Ms. Spencer describes a small nonprofit client of hers that asked employees from a local company to help paint the charity’s building. Afterwards, one of the volunteer painters sent the organization a $50,000 check.
For more on working with corporate supporters, see the Philanthropy Careers article, “Handling the Ethical Dilemmas that Corporate Partners Can Bring to a Charity.” For more on raising money for building and renovation pojects, see the Philanthropy Careers article “Crafting a Capital Campaign.”
