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Barrer & Co can provide comprehensive recommendations regarding the fundraising streams that will be the most suitable for your fundraising goals, and how you can approach and manage these for the best outcomes.

Individual Giving

Individual giving describes fundraising that encourages gifts made by an individual, of a smaller amount (compared to mid- and high-value gifts). These donations can be given on a regular basis, or as a single, one-off gift. This is often the start of the donor giving journey, beginning with an initial entry-level gift. The donor may treat this as a “test” gift, to decide whether they want to continue their support, depending on the stewardship experience they receive from your organisation.

Individual giving delivers a steady flow of cash over time, providing long-term, predictable income and the ability to plan programmes and projects in advance. It is the entry point to what is described as the fundraising pyramid, and should be considered closely aligned to your charity acquisition plan (of how to build your supporter base).

Over time, through growing and deepening the relationship between the donor and your organisation, the donor will upgrade their giving, moving into regular gifts, giving through their business or encouraging their networks to support your organisation. If they are able to, they may become a major donor, or leave you the ultimate gift: a bequest. This means that investing well into this stream, and caring for your individual donors, is incredibly important for your fundraising pipeline and future sustainability.

To learn how individual giving might fit into your wider fundraising strategy, Barrer & Co can help unpack this stream and help you to understand it’s application and what needs to be in place to set your organisation up for success.

Community Fundraising

Community fundraising usually describes all informal fundraising carried out on behalf of your charity by the community it serves. The motivation is usually an individual or group with huge passion for the cause (there is often a personal connection) and can be an excellent way to bring the community together. The fundraising is usually self-motivated, and the fundraisers would let you know that they are raising money for you, either during the process or after the money has been raised.

Types of community fundraising include:

  • Peer to Peer Sponsorship
  • Externally or Internally run events
  • Collection Boxes/Contactless payment machines

This is a great opportunity to raise money with little investment required by your fundraising team, as it can involve your supporters not only raising money on your behalf, but spreading the word within their own networks about your cause. Ensuring that community fundraising fits into your wider fundraising strategy is a key consideration prior to starting to plan or getting any collateral development underway. Barrer & Co can help you understand the place of this stream alongside your other fundraising efforts and help with implementation and awareness raising too.

Trusts & Foundations

Trusts & Foundations come in all shapes and sizes, and give grants for a wide variety of causes.

Trusts & Foundations can bring in a high return on your time investment, providing a large amount of funding in one go. They can be time-consuming, but with well-managed plans and well-written applications, this source of funding can result in regular funding income. It is key to develop relationships with trustees or grant managers so that they can understand your organisation and the impact their support will have on your cause.

Barrer & Co can help your organisation elevate the position of this stream, ensuring it fits into your wider strategic fundraising plan. Understanding the nuances of the funding application process is key to ensuring success year on year of this fundraising stream.

Corporate Partnerships

Corporate partnerships are a creative and rewarding area for fundraising success. Whilst many organisations will receive business donations or sponsorship, for truly effective partnerships to occur, strategic thinking and a planned approach is necessary. Presenting multiple opportunities for cross-pollination across fundraising streams, when done well, can create multi-layered partnerships and reach large audiences, furthering the vision and mission of both organisations.

Corporate entities can choose to work with a charity for a variety of reasons, including brand alignment, marketing exposure, staff engagement, access to new markets, tax incentives, and genuine good will.

Businesses and consumers alike are becoming increasingly aware of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); the requirement of businesses to act in the interest of causes outside of their immediate networks.

  • Mechanisms for corporate giving include:
  • Corporate donations
  • Cause-related marketing
  • Customer Sales
  • Employee fundraising
  • Payroll giving
  • Bequests (internal comms leading to staff awareness)
  • Volunteering
  • In-kind giving (services & goods)
  • Corporate Sponsorship of an Event

Establishing and implementing a corporate partnership takes time and consideration. Barrer & Co can help break down this stream into manageable steps, assisting with the theory and the critical pathway to set your organisation up for success; forming solid and genuine partnerships, that can collaboratively generate real change.

Major Donors

Major donors are prosperous people who, having established a connection with your organisation and learned about the work you do and your long-term vision, want to support you financially in a significant way.

Major donors usually come from your existing supporter base; they may or may not have given a significant gift previously.

A major donor prospect will ideally have three qualities:

  • Linkage – a connection to your organisation.
  • Interest – an inclination to give
  • Ability – the capacity to give

Ensuring that your organisation is ready to not just accommodate major gifts, but to inspire and excite major donors too, is crucial to unlocking the success of this stream. Following appropriate prospecting, Barrer & Co recommend a ten-step approach which, when taken the time to set up and implement properly, will lead to a successful major donor programme.

To understand more about this ten step approach, and how Barrer & Co have helped leverage major donor funding for other not for profit organisations, read about our work with Lincoln University.

Bequests

Bequests, also known as legacies or gifts in wills, are gifts given when a supporter includes your organisation in their will.

Many not-for-profit organisations have obtained their largest gifts through bequests. Bequests requires a different approach to other forms of fundraising, as the type of information being communicated needs to be managed with confidence, tact, and diplomacy.

Bequests highlight your organisation’s long-term commitment to your mission, and they don’t require an immediate financial outlay from the donors. There is currently great opportunity for organisations to create or improve their bequest programmes due to several factors:

  • The population is ageing, therefore there are more potential legacy donors.
  • The Great Wealth Transfer (the transfer of significant wealth from the Baby Boomer generation into the next)
  • Technology is making it easier for New Zealanders to make a will: you can now easily create a will online.
  • Recent changes to the Trusts Act 2019 make it more difficult to maintain a family trust.

Bequest donors are usually motivated by a simple desire to support the organisation, or the wish to create a lasting memorial for themselves or for a loved one. Most donors are likely to have had a previous connection with the organisation before making a bequest, normally in the form of a previous donation, personal connection or time spent volunteering for the cause. People tend to give to well established organisations that have good reputation and brand recognition.

Barrer & Co can assist with the development a bequest programme, by using a module-based approach designed to administer the tools and training to set up and implement a programme methodically, appropriately, and therefore successfully.

Like to know more? We would love to help

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