Fundraising is critical for every nonprofit, but a solid plan is crucial to achieve results.
A fundraising plan is a roadmap to success, breaking down your organization's goal into simple, actionable steps. With a clear fundraising strategy, you can achieve your goals and ultimately raise more funds within a specific timeline.
In this guide, we'll walk you through the importance of a fundraising plan, followed by the steps to create your own.
What is a Fundraising Plan for Nonprofits?
A fundraising plan is a blueprint outlining a nonprofit's approach to raising funds to support its initiatives. It strategically organizes your fundraising efforts over a given period (usually one year).
Your fundraising strategy should be aligned with your nonprofit's mission, values, and vision.
Download here our free fundraising calendar template →
Define a timeline and address specific questions, such as:
- What kind of fundraising campaign will you launch?
- What is a good time to begin and conclude?
- What will your team look like? How many volunteers and donors?
- How much will you need to spend?
- How much revenue do you need to raise?
Why Do You Need a Fundraising Plan?
Having a fundraising plan in place helps your nonprofit in the following key ways:
- Establishes clear direction: A fundraising plan has defined goals, strategies, key performance indicators (KPIs), and other essential details that help your organization take concrete steps and make informed decisions.
- Assists in problem-solving: Whenever there's uncertainty regarding a fundraising campaign, you can look to your comprehensive fundraising plan template for clarification and guidance. It gives your team a resource to turn to for help when unexpected circumstances push the campaign off track.
- Better organization: A fundraising strategy sheds light on the role and responsibilities of staff, board members, and upper-level volunteers, ensuring everyone is on the same page. Each member is aware of their specific roles and how their work relates to the overarching goals, enhancing accountability.
- Improved time management: Map out deadlines and benchmarks throughout the year. With these insights, you can establish priorities and shape your daily operations around tasks that advance your goals. This ensures your nonprofit manages its time and resources efficiently.
Ultimately, well-defined fundraising planning will help nonprofits raise more funds, expand their donor base, and achieve their goals.
11 Steps for a Successful Fundraising Plan for Nonprofits
Each nonprofit's annual fundraising event planning template will be unique, but most will incorporate these basic steps.
1. Define the Goals of Fundraising Strategy
3. Decide on the Fundraising Campaign to Execute
5. Delegate Tasks to Your Team
7. Make the Donation Process Easy
8. Show Appreciation for Your Donors
9. Follow Up and Keep in Touch
10. Track Specific Fundraising Metrics
11. Simplify Your Fundraising Efforts with the Right Fundraising Software
1. Define the Goals of Fundraising Strategy
When creating your nonprofit fundraising plan, the most important step is to define specific and tangible goals that align with your nonprofit's mission.
For instance, if your mission is to build schools for girls, an achievable goal could be to raise enough funds for one school.
However, not all goals are achieved through funding. Here are some notable examples of the different types of goals to set:
- Major gifts: These are the largest contributions your nonprofits receive. How many major gifts are you aiming to receive, and what amount would you want each gift to be?
- Donor retention: It refers to the number of recurring donors that contribute to your nonprofit from year to year and fundraising campaign to campaign. What is the donor retention rate you’re targeting this year?
- Donor acquisition: It refers to the number of new donors you secure over a period. How many new donors would you like to bring on board this year?
2. Conduct Prospect Research
Prospect research involves identifying major or mid-tier donors with the capacity and willingness to donate. Since 80% of a nonprofit's revenue comes from around 20% of its donors, conducting prospect research is essential to spotting major donors and meeting fundraising goals.
Scan your donor database to find supporters who rank high on the following parameters:
- Instances of involvement as a volunteer or board member.
- Ample financial resources, such as high-income careers, SEC holdings, real estate ownership, and business affiliations.
- A personal connection to your cause that motivates them to support you or solid relationships with your board members or existing major donors.
These indicators show that your prospect is committed to giving their money and time to causes they care about.
3. Decide on the Fundraising Campaign to Execute
Your fundraising plan should define the core annual fundraising campaigns you intend to run throughout the year and relevant details for each campaign. Factor the following in:
- Plan the type of campaign: Peer-to-peer fundraisers to auctions, walk-a-thons to galas, and campaigns to bake sales; there is a plethora of fundraising ideas for nonprofits to pursue. When picking one, take note of your donors’ and nonprofit's budget. Focus on campaigns that resonate with your ideal donors and persuade them to donate.
- Set a budget: Consider your previous fundraising campaign expenses to see how much of your budget you will need to allocate for activities in the coming year. Pay attention to administrative, marketing, fundraising, programming costs, and additional expenses.
- Follow a timeline: Set a date and time for each campaign; even if it's simply a rough timeline. Decide when you're going to execute your campaign so that your events are properly spaced. You don't want to host campaigns back-to-back or leave too much time in between.
- Create a fundraising plan calendar: Visualise how your plan will play out throughout the year. Compile documents essential elements of the planning phase, including fundraising activities, staff responsibilities, deadlines, and estimated revenue and expenses per phase.
Download here our free fundraising calendar template →
This calendar can guide your day-to-day operations and keep your team focused on the campaign goals. Share this fundraising calendar across the different departments of your nonprofit to keep everyone in the loop.
4. Create a Gift Range Chart
When developing your fundraising strategy, create a gift range chart to identify the donations required to achieve your fundraising goals.
A gift range chart describes the number and value of donations your nonprofit needs to meet its goals. Strategize and decide on the number of prospects and successful solicitations you must focus on.
Here’s how you can create a gift range chart:
- First, break down your gift sizes. Define different tiers of gifts as well as how many donations you have to earn within each tier. The largest gift must make up 10-20% of your goal.
- Add three to five prospective donors per gift.
- Fill in your chart downward based on what you're aware of about your donors and their capacity.
The below gift range chart is for a hypothetical $1,000,000 fundraising campaign.
5. Delegate Tasks to Your Team
Assemble a team and delegate responsibilities across your nonprofit to achieve your fundraising goals.
When assembling your fundraising team, play to each member's strengths to make the most of your limited time and resources. Assign roles that match their skills and expertise – put your social media whiz on digital marketing and let your number cruncher handle the budget.
Get your board members involved too, and have them share their knowledge with the team. By dividing tasks strategically, you'll work more efficiently and achieve your fundraising goals faster.
Here are some roles you may want to delegate:
- An event coordinator to oversee your fundraising initiatives and ensure everything pans out smoothly.
- A marketing and promotion coordinator who can promote your fundraising campaign via various channels.
- A donor relationship coordinator for reaching out to major donors and other supporters to build relationships.
- A volunteer coordinator responsible for managing your volunteers, whether they're helping out at the events or in the office.
6. Spread the Word
Once you've defined your fundraising campaigns and other key elements, spread the word with a multichannel marketing approach. Using several channels will allow you to expand your campaign reach and attract more donors to your fundraising initiative.
Some popular channels to grow visibility around your fundraising campaigns are as follows:
- Social Media: Social media can supercharge your promotional efforts for any fundraising campaign. 55% of individuals who engage with a nonprofit on social media platforms take some action, and 59% make monetary donations. Choose one or two platforms that your supporters actively use to target a specific donor audience that is more likely to engage. Here are a few ways to tap into the benefits of social media to promote your campaign:some text
- Create a unique hashtag for your nonprofit and supporters to discuss your latest event.
- Craft compelling marketing content for your campaign and post it on your social media pages.
- Partner with influencers with a targeted following that aligns with your ideal donor base to advocate for your cause.
- Email marketing: Promote events and direct subscribers to RSVP. Create drip campaigns to build hype for subscribers who signed up for your event and encourage those who have not signed up. Set reminders to update your donors about the upcoming event. Include a link to your donation page alongside registration to boost donations.
- Press Release: A well-written press release generates media coverage and public awareness for your campaign. Create a concise press release covering relevant details about your campaign schedule and distribute it to news outlets and other media sources. This adds credibility to your nonprofits, announces your campaign's launch to a wider audience, and drives more traffic toward your event.
- Direct Mailing: Direct mailing is an effective way to spread the word if you're hosting an event for your neighborhood community. Letters and postcards help your organization to stand apart and offer a personalized form of communication.
7. Make the Donation Process Easy
Once your fundraising strategy is in place, it's time to raise funds. Ensure the donation process is simple, convenient, and quick—you do not want your donors to turn back after they decide to donate because your method is confusing.
Since 63% of donors prefer to give online with a credit or debit card, prioritize online and mobile fundraising.
With a virtual fundraising platform, you can easily collect online donations. Create mobile-responsive online donation forms, e-commerce stores, or crowdfunding campaigns to raise funds for your nonprofit organization.
While most platforms charge a transaction or processing fee, Zeffy's 100% free online donation platform offers a simplified way to collect donations without a fee.
Here are some additional tips to consider to make donating easier:
- Keep your donation form short by requesting only the necessary information.
- Include links to your online giving pages in your social media channels and email campaigns to make it easy for donors to contribute.
- Some of your fundraising campaigns may include in-person events such as bake sales, silent auctions, or school carnivals. For these traditional events, simplify the process with QR codes or tap-to-pay options at the venue.
8. Show Appreciation for Your Donors
Raising money should not be the only focus of a fundraising plan. Your plan should also cover ways to show appreciation to donors and engage with them regularly.
Setting up a donor stewardship process in your plan will help nurture long-term relationships with donors after they donate to your nonprofit. By stewarding your donors, you show them that your nonprofit values their support and contributions.
- Right after you receive their donations, send them an acknowledgment email with a thank you note and donation/tax receipt, if applicable.
- You can even give donors a shout-out on your social media, email newsletters, websites, or at another fundraising event.
- Use the donor information stored in your database to personalize the message.
- Include their name and reference their specific gift amount. Also, choose their preferred mode of communication, whether digital or direct mail.
9. Follow Up and Keep in Touch
Since recurring donors give 42% more than first-time donors annually, it's essential to strengthen your ties with people who support your nonprofit. Plus, more spending is involved in donor acquisition than donor retention. 97% of donors state that creating an impact is one of the major reasons for giving. Ensure you let them know how their personal donations helped.
Other steps you can take are:
- Coming up with exclusive memberships motivates your donors to stay involved with all your fundraising activities.
- Segmenting your donor base and retain those who give more. Offer some special perks to donors, such as free parking at events, branded merchandise, or exclusive gift cards.
- Sharing accurate numbers and cases of how their donations are being used and the impact they're creating.
- Setting guidelines on how often you will reach out to donors. For instance, when communicating with recurring donors, you might share monthly newsletters about your projects and upcoming events.
10. Track Specific Fundraising Metrics
For every fundraising campaign, choose specific KPIs to track that report progress towards your nonprofit fundraising goals. For instance, if one of your goals is to acquire 200 new donors, evaluate your numbers throughout your campaign to determine your nonprofit's success.
Some effective metrics to track include:
- New donors acquired
- Donor retention rate
- Average gift size
- Event attendance rate
- Donor lifetime value
Use these metrics to create a well-rounded, transparent report on your annual fundraising plan template, giving supporters and nonprofit boards a deeper understanding of the current position and results secured from your fundraising efforts.
11. Simplify Your Fundraising Efforts with the Right Fundraising Software
Choosing the right fundraising software is crucial for streamlining your efforts and maximizing the fundraising impact.
Zeffy is a 100% free fundraising suite designed to help nonprofits plan and execute a wide range of fundraising events and campaigns with ease.
With Zeffy, you can manage your donor database and even open an e-commerce store for your nonprofit – all without any transaction or processing fees. This means that every penny donated goes directly to supporting your cause.
Zeffy's powerful features include:
- Event ticketing for groups and individuals
- Automated reminders and follow-ups for your fundraising events
- Seamless donor database and donation management
- Automatic tax receipt generation and sharing
- Peer-to-peer campaign functionality
By choosing Zeffy, you can save time, reduce expenses, and focus on what matters most: making a difference in your community. Simplify your fundraising efforts and amplify your impact with Zeffy today.
Parting Thoughts on a Fundraising Strategy
While the planning process may take a lot of time and effort upfront, fundraising plan provides the structure needed to stay on track and enhance your success.
Remember, your fundraising strategy can be flexible. Update your plan as you see fit throughout the year, adapting to unexpected challenges or new opportunities. Document your fundraising strategy so that everyone on the team can access it.
FAQs
What are the 4 Ps of fundraising?
The 4 Ps of fundraising are as follows:
- People: People are the advocates, employees, potential volunteers, donors, and other stakeholders who can support your cause.
- Purpose: It's important to clearly outline the purpose of your fundraising efforts, including what specific projects or goals the funds will support and how they will make a difference in the community.
- Plan: Developing a clear and detailed fundraising plan is essential for success. It must define your objectives, timeline, and resource allocations.
- Process: Having effective processes in place for gift processing, donor stewardship, and ongoing communication is important to build and maintain strong relationships with donors.
What are some popular types of fundraising?
Some types of fundraising initiatives to consider including in your fundraising plan are:
- Online donations
- Text-to-give
- Crowdfunding
- Peer-to-peer fundraising
- Partnerships or grants
- Events
- Direct mail
- Donation kiosks
What is the 80/20 rule in fundraising?
In the context of fundraising, the principle suggests that around 80% of your funds will come from 20% of donors.
Analyze your donor data to determine which donors have offered the most support in the past. Identify and target new donors who may fall within this 20% category. This will involve researching organizations or individuals aligned with your mission and having the capacity to support your fundraising efforts.
How does a nonprofit fundraising plan differ from other fundraising plans?
A fundraising plan for a nonprofit is an overall strategy that outlines fundraising campaigns over a year. You may also have other fundraising plans that detail the campaigns and activities that are part of this overall plan. These would be your short-term fundraising efforts to achieve the donation goal of the year.
What are the four stages of the donor cycle?
The donor cycle is the process of how potential donors find out about your organization and the steps they take that motivate them to support your cause. Each stage offers opportunities for nonprofits to engage with supporters in a way that inspires action.
- Identification: Focus on finding people who may donate to your cause. Look for those who share your values by examining your current supporters. Find patterns in your current donor base that will help you find new ones that would be a good fit.
- Qualification: Prioritize donors who have the inclination and financial capacity. Identify which of your potential donors will have an interest in your mission and are more likely to donate to your cause.
- Cultivation: Build relationships with these identified donors. You're not asking for donations yet – your focus should be to get to know them and help them understand your mission.
- Solicitation: Finally, ask for donations, recurring gifts, volunteers, or event registrations. Be specific with your request, ask politely, and use your donor-preferred channels.
