For nonprofit organizations and institutions, endowments can be a reliable source of unrestricted operating support or a welcome source of support for restricted purposes.

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Most Plan A clients rely on philanthropic support for some or all of their operating budgets. Successful fundraisers know it’s important to build a diverse “portfolio” of support – with gifts and grants from a wide range of donors and donor types.

For many nonprofits, volunteer “labor” is an essential human resource, and central to the way you serve audiences or constituents and fulfill your mission. Effective volunteers are like effective staff: they are highly motivated; come with valuable skills and develop others; take on and uphold weighty responsibilities; and represent your organization or institution at its best. Like staff, volunteers should also be responsive to leadership that they respect and feel appreciated for their good work.

A capital campaign is designed to successfully reach a pre-determined financial goal in order to fund a defined initiative or set of initiatives in a set period of time; for example, build or renovate a facility, introduce or expand a major new program, or grow the endowment. Capital campaigns succeed when they have the right voluntary leadership, a compelling Case for Support, and a pool of prospective donors who have the capacity to be generous if appropriately motivated.

Think of your nonprofit’s fundraising CRM (Customer Relationship Management software) as both “container” and “tool.” While you can use it to simply record donations and produce reports, it can also be used more comprehensively to identify and analyze new sources of funding, cultivate and deepen relationships, grow and communicate with your audiences, manage events and programs, evaluate participation and other service outcomes, and set fundraising goals. Your CRM can be a strategic partner for more than simply fundraising.

A planned gift is a charitable gift made to a nonprofit as part of a donor’s financial or estate plans. For any nonprofit with a view to a long-term future, a planned giving program should be among the fundraising opportunities actively marketed, particularly in conjunction with an annual or capital campaign.

A Feasibility Study is a critical part of fundraising campaign planning so a nonprofit can set a campaign goal with confidence that it is achievable, and confidence that the Case for Support has resonance with prospective donors.