Fundraising Strategy
Reviewing your fundraising strategy can help you focus more clearly on achieving your aims. You might decide to look at strategic development because of:
- A change in fundraising staff
- The need for increased income
- The feeling that there are missed opportunities
- A desire to explore one or more potential income streams
- An awareness that existing programmes are not as cost-effective as they might be
Our experience of strategic development can guide you through the process. Starting with a review of existing activity, we can establish the rationale for fundraising, taking account of future plans and resources, and draft a case for support. This is then used to assess what targets might be achievable from a range of different types of support, such as grant-making trusts, the National Lottery, companies or individuals.
Once the likely sources of funding have been determined, the next step is to identify possible volunteer leaders who might be asked to help secure donations. This begins a period of strategic development, leading to agreement of the organisation’s fundraising strategy. While the process can be run as an entirely external, objective exercise, this sometimes leads to conclusions and recommendations with little or no consensus, resulting in no action being taken. We recommend an inclusive process whereby our consultants guide, advise and work through the planning and decision-making process with staff and trustees, building consensus and a sense of joint ownership of whatever conclusions are reached.
Depending on what has been agreed at the outset, there are usually two stages to a strategic review:
Evaluation
This could comprise:
- A review of all relevant written material, including that relating to recent fundraising
- Selective face-to-face interviews with staff, trustees and key supporters
Developing the strategy
What we can do:
- Develop a persuasive case for support
- Research into the potential sources of funding available
- Evaluate different options and methodologies and the implications for fundraising resources
- Produce a report setting out options and recommendations for action
- Produce a strategy, with objectives, an action plan, a detailed timetable, a risk management plan, a budget and a resourcing plan
Where next?
To have an informal conversation with a member of our team please call 01582 762441 or email first@craigmyle.org.uk. You may also like to see our CONSULTANTS page and make direct contact.
