FIRST, CREATE VALUE

In an increasingly competitive world, nonprofit organizations (NGOs) face the constant challenge of raising funds. However, beyond simply asking for more donations or sponsorships, it is essential for these organizations to recognize the importance of professionalizing their fundraising efforts. In addition to running more efficient fundraising campaigns, the key to success in this area lies in creating value before approaching potential donors.

Doing otherwise is like running a bakery and constantly worrying about whether customers will walk through the door. Do not look outward. Focus on making the best cakes and pastries, and customers will come—I assure you. In short: create value. Then show it. Finally, ask. We will devote a separate article to each of these stages. In today’s article, we will simply sketch out this entire chain of actions that forms the A, B, C of fundraising.

Create Value. But for Whom?

Creating value does not simply mean carrying out charitable or social activities. It means generating an impact that can be measured both quantitatively and qualitatively and that benefits the communities or causes being served. To achieve this, NGOs can:

Demonstrate transparency: A detailed report on activities and their impact allows donors to see where and how their contributions are being used. We will examine impact measurement in greater detail on another occasion.

Build credibility: By demonstrating tangible results, NGOs strengthen their reputation and reliability within the community.

Differentiate themselves: In a crowded landscape of organizations seeking support, those that can demonstrate clear value will stand out to potential partners and sponsors.

However, this “downward” effort must be complemented by another that is equally, if not more, important: an “upward” focus. In addition to creating value and subsequently measuring it, organizations must also provide direct value to the donor in question. Donors and the beneficiaries of an NGO’s activities are target audiences that are not necessarily aligned. Ultimately, a donor will contribute an amount of money corresponding to the value that the NGO creates for them through the defense of “their noble cause.”

These two perspectives—“upward” and “downward”—are fundamental in the world of fundraising, and balancing them is a complicated task. At times, there may be a temptation to relax founding principles or betray the organization’s original purpose in order to become a better fit for a larger number of donors.

Ultimately, fundraising requires the creation—and demonstration—of value for beneficiaries, donors, and, of course, society as a whole. Winning over this third target audience helps build brand recognition, reputation, and trust, which in turn makes it easier to engage with the other two target audiences.

Professionalize Your Fundraising

My work and family life are as exciting as they are exhausting, leaving me very little time for my hobbies. One of them is playing the piano, but I only play late at night, when everyone else is asleep. I therefore practice during the least productive hours of the day, when I am tired, and so on. Under such circumstances, anyone would understand why I am unlikely ever to become a piano virtuoso. Amateur inputs produce amateur outputs. The opposite would be surprising.

The same applies to fundraising. If we approach it like amateurs, why should we expect professional results? We should not. Professional results require professional action.

Therefore, together with a clear understanding of who an NGO’s “clients” or “target audiences” are, organizations that want to attract significant and consistent donations must adopt a more professional approach to fundraising. This involves, among other things:

Continuous training: Equipping the team with modern fundraising techniques, digital marketing skills, and donor relationship management practices.

Use of technology: Implementing technological tools to manage donations, communicate with donors, and analyze data.

Effective storytelling: Using storytelling to share success stories and demonstrate the real impact of donations.

To the above, I would add another element that I consider essential to the sustainability and profitability of fundraising efforts over the medium and long term: donor and sponsor retention.

NGOs often take their donors for granted once they begin providing financial support and devote all their efforts to finding new donors instead of looking after the ones they already have. This is a serious mistake.

How many times have we seen the person behind a counter answering a call from a potential customer instead of serving us, even though we are standing there with the product we want to buy already in our hands? We already “are customers,” while the caller “could become a customer.”

Retention is fundamental. It enables financial planning, budgetary stability, and the emergence of voluntary “ambassadors” for our organization and mission: the donors themselves. Are we really going to ignore them?

Moreover, they come looking for an opportunity to help, but they also want a sense of community. We should give it to them.

Conclusion

Nonprofit organizations cannot limit themselves to asking for support; they must earn it by creating value and demonstrating that value to different audiences that have been carefully identified in advance.

At the same time, they must professionalize their fundraising activities. Only by doing so can they ensure their sustainability, maximize their impact, and more effectively fulfill their founding purpose.