Skip to main content

Wisdom from Guy on Fund Raising

I've learned a lot from Guy Kawasaki over the years. His book, 'The Art of the Start" taught me much about starting things, raising money and making presentations. He recently did a blog post that contrasts two types of approaches to venture capital. One is with up front money is one is raising money after a product is brought to market. You can read his thoughts on 'Plan B' fundraising here.

To me there are many parallels to the non profit sector. Many of us think 'money first, programs after.' We like to project what we feel will be the best case scenarios, articulate the community need are then try to build the capacity around the idea. In my career I've started things only to find the need was not what I expected it to be, and had to go back to donors or stakeholders and explain what happened. That's not too fun. Staffing in non profit work is as or more important than in the for profit world because of the relationship factor. Staffing is also by far the highest cost of all and is what, other than a place to be, what capacity building is about in our world. 

Others, scape, borrow, beg and duct tape a program together, prove the need, create the market (participants) then build the capacity of the program after the program and approach is proven. 

With our youth financial literacy program, for example, we've proven over the past year that there is a need and our approach works. Now we're trying to build the staffing and capacity of the program to meet the demand. It's a whole different type of 'ask' when you can say - "We're blowing the doors off and your help with make a major difference!"  This, in my opinion, is by far the better way to go and the easier way to build capacity and raise funds. It's still a bear to raise funds - and is the burden I have to carry on a daily basis. I'd much rather raise funds with all the data, evidence of proven need and track record than with great ideas. 

However, if an organization or leader has a proven track record of success, then there is a much greater chance of raising funds and building capacity before a programs is unveiled. For those of us who are still establishing ourselves, then 'Plan B Fundraising' may be the right route to take. 

Please comment....




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

YWAMers Praised for Faith and Leadership

The Denver Post reports on the memorial service at the Denver YWAM base: "We're going to celebrate a life, we're not accentuating a death," said Faith Bible Chapel pastor George Morrison, in opening a memorial service today for two people killed at a missionary training school in Arvada . The service is called "A Celebration of Life for Tiffany and Philip." Philip Crouse and Tiffany Johnson died Sunday when a gunman opened fire at the school's dormitory. Youth With a Mission director Peter Warren said today both Crouse and Johnson embodied the spirit of the group. First the service focused on Crouse . "Phil gave his life to Jesus Christ and was never the same again," said Zach, a friend of Johnson's who met him years ago at a youth ministry in Alaska. At the time, Crouse was tough and wouldn't let people get close to him. "Over the years, Phil became a humble, teachable, sweet guy" who was able to reach kids with rough e...
Post a Comment
Read more

Book: White Man's Burden - thoughts for Labor Day Weekend

I'm reading a fascinating book that has some of the same themes that run through Bob Lupton's recent writing. It's called 'White Man's Burden" by William Easterly. (I get the feeling some of you have read this already.) You can find it here. The title of the book is somewhat unfortunate, it's meant to be sarcastic. There are some amazing points here, stuff NCUD and others at CCDA have been talking about for years. I encourage you to check it out - here's a couple of great excepts from the first chapter: "But I and many other like-minded people keep trying, not to abandon aid to the poor, but to make sure it reaches them. Rich countries have to address the second tragedy if they are going to make any progress on the first tragedy. Otherwise, the current wave of enthusiasm for addressing world poverty will repeat the cycle of its predecessors: idealism, high expectations, disappointing results, cynical backlash." "Let’s call the advocates...
2 comments
Read more

Big Gifts, Tax Breaks and a Debate on Charity

New York Times Article on the debate regarding the societal benefits of non profit donations. It's a somewhat rambling article, but my feeling is that this is a brewing debate. Eli Broad, a billionaire businessman, has given away more than $650 million over the last five years, to Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to establish a medical research institute, to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and to programs to improve the administration of urban schools and public education."What smart entrepreneurial philanthropists and their foundations do is get greater value for how they invest their money than if the government were doing it." "I got a plaque in the mail and an invitation to an awards ceremony. I never gave them another nickel. What were they spending money on plaques for?" The rich are giving more to charity than ever, but people like Mr. Broad are not the only ones footing the bill for such generosity. For every three dollars the...
1 comment
Read more