Interactive Experiences
Planning a Capital Campaign
Raising capital is increasingly becoming a difficult task in today’s world, and especially when it is related to non-profit organizations.
Developing and implementing Nonprofit Capital Campaigns is a major undertaking, involving a great deal of planning, marketing and communications skills to make sure you reach qualified prospective donors, and involve stakeholders with a vested interest in your nonprofit organization’s success.
However, a challenge faced by many Capital Campaign directors is how to effectively promote the campaign and recognize supporters before the new facility is built and open to the public. Why would someone give money for a building for your new university faculty, or for the expansion of your hospital’s cancer research institute without getting anything in return.
With the onslaught of humanity, questions like these are not really rare. People always think twice before giving funds for charity and at times like these it is the duty of the volunteers to be able to convince the donors of the genuine purpose of the funds raised, present them with your organization’s mission and vision, to tell your organization’s story and the impact their contribution will have in the organization.
Building up a Capital Campaign for a nonprofit organization, be it any amount, therefore requires a lot of planning and skill. It is not everyone’s cup of tea.
This article shall elaborate on some key requirement or strategies for planning a successful Capital Campaign and briefly describe their benefits.
Developing and implementing Nonprofit Capital Campaigns is a major undertaking, involving a great deal of planning, marketing and communications skills to make sure you reach qualified prospective donors, and involve stakeholders with a vested interest in your nonprofit organization’s success.
However, a challenge faced by many Capital Campaign directors is how to effectively promote the campaign and recognize supporters before the new facility is built and open to the public. Why would someone give money for a building for your new university faculty, or for the expansion of your hospital’s cancer research institute without getting anything in return.
With the onslaught of humanity, questions like these are not really rare. People always think twice before giving funds for charity and at times like these it is the duty of the volunteers to be able to convince the donors of the genuine purpose of the funds raised, present them with your organization’s mission and vision, to tell your organization’s story and the impact their contribution will have in the organization.
Building up a Capital Campaign for a nonprofit organization, be it any amount, therefore requires a lot of planning and skill. It is not everyone’s cup of tea.
This article shall elaborate on some key requirement or strategies for planning a successful Capital Campaign and briefly describe their benefits.
- Good Planning: With any capital campaign whatsoever, it is very important to have a plan. When you have all targets, goals, work allocation, data’s and figures on the chart, things become much more easy and efficient. Everyone will know their duty and there will be not any overlapping. Moreover, no one will interfere with the work of others as each will be occupied will their own work and with achieving their own targets. Planning also eases down the process of distributing the work according to the specialization of each individual. For example, if one person is good with communication skills, he or she can be the spokesperson for that organization and use their rhetoric to convince people for donations.
- Leadership: This again is a work with enormous responsibility. Once any plan has been chalked out, the next important thing is to make sure its proper implementation, for which one person must be made in charge. This is not to suggest a hierarchical work relationship where the leader is on top of the ladder with all others working below him but just one person with a greater responsibility which will keep the work rolling and ensure its smooth functioning.
- Prospects: Tasks like fund raising makes essential one skill among volunteers. This is the communication skill. It requires an active engagement between two or more people or organization and if you are not good with words, it is very unlikely that they will be willing to invest, in case of profit making organization, or donate, in case of non-profit organization, with you. Therefore one must inculcate good communicational skill and take some lessons on rhetoric.
- Stages: You must divide your work in different stages which may include approaching the individual or organization, building good relations with them, raising their awareness of the cause and giving some time for them to indulge in it and get first-hand experience. This will build up their interest and create a sense of curiosity in them, which is always beneficial for your organization. The more involved they are, the better it is because you. It is still a better option than directly jumping to the point of capital.
- Recognition: You must ensure that major donors are thanked and recognized and that their stories can become an inspiration for others to donate as well. For that, ensure that all major donors are properly listed in a donor wall or donor recognition display so people can learn about their significant contribution and the impact it has in your organization. Present their names, photos, bios.
Planning a Capital Campaign