The myth that small budget nonprofit organization cannot or should not pursue multimillion dollar campaigns is exactly that: a myth.

The size of your nonprofit organization’s operating budget does not dictate its fundraising prowess.

How do I know? The nonprofits who have been successful:

A battered women’s shelter with an annual budget of $90,000 raises $2.1 million

A youth summer camp with an annual budget of $300,000 raises $8 million

A community arts groups with an annual budget of $160,000 raises $3.8 million

A statewide professional society with an annual budget of $40,000 raises $7 million

A small town Boys & Girls Club with an annual budget of $280,000 raises $2.5 million

A group helping sexually abused children with an annual budget of $450,000 raises $4.5 million

A community based drug and alcohol recovery organization with an annual budget of $150,000 raises $1.3 million and 30 months later raises another $1.1 million.

There are more examples, but I think you get the point.

There are always reasons not to pursue a comprehensive campaign:

“The economy is poor.”

“We don’t have enough staff.”

“The board is not engaged.”

“We don’t have answers to a lot of our questions answered yet (I call this one paralysis thru analysis).”

“We have no big gift donors (and you won’t if you don’t do a campaign).”

“There are groups currently doing campaigns in our city.”

“We’ve never done a multi-million dollar campaign before.”

And my personal favorite, “No one knows who we are (beyond money, campaigns serve to greatly increase the visibility and profile of an organization).”

All of these dynamics were true for these nonprofit groups. Still, they went on to raise major dollars in service to the clients served by their nonprofit group.

Each of these groups had a different mission and a different type constituency. What these successful organizations have in common is a desire to better serve their clients and to serve more people in need. These groups engaged fundraising counsel and each pursued a major campaign. On any given day they had their doubts and concerns about their fundraising, but each trusted and pressed forward with the fundraising process.

Most importantly they did not allow their doubts and fears to delay or high-jack their ultimate goal of raising more money to better serve their clients.

If an organization of any size allows the current view of itself, including the size of its annual budget, to influence its future it strikes me that its future will be much like its past.

by Guest Blogger Robert Swanson, Vice Chairman, Hartsook Companies

Robert G. Swanson has worked with fundraising and nonprofits since 1987. He completed his nonprofit career as CEO of the Emporia State University Foundation. He has worked with nonprofits in 16 states and over 200 communities. His current client roster includes nonprofits in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. He is the author of Fundraising Magic: Turning Board Members into Fundraisers.

No matter how long you’ve been in the fundraising business, you can always be surprised at a new approach to a capital campaign. There’s nothing wrong with creativity and innovation.

However, there are common elements of every successful campaign.
At the same time, in almost every failed campaign, one or more of the following five “don’ts” can be found.

1. Don’t believe the volunteers will do all the work.
As Americans, we have a rich tradition of volunteerism and certainly many worthy ventures have succeeded because of volunteer efforts. But the demands of today’s volunteer are unlike those of 30 years ago. Today, multiple homes, businesses and jobs can keep volunteers from being able to set their own appointments and write their own letters.

Your campaign will very likely require additional staff, particularly administrative. Also consider that even if volunteers have the time, studies are showing that the organization’s leadership and fundraising staff are having increasingly more influence in securing gifts.

Read the rest of this entry