some info about our fundraising training
Manish Vaidya
Happy sunny Friday!
Our trainer and I had a super-exciting prep/intake session today for next week's training. My novel from today's intake is below. Priscilla's going to take that info and her experience working with groups in crisis, and send me a draft agenda by next Wednesday. At the meeting, let's do a quick once-over of it and make only those changes we feel really strongly about :)
About the concern Rick, and others in the past, raised, that we need the donor list:
The trainer agrees, but only for donors who've given $500+ gifts in the past 5 years.
I think LM staff expressed concerns in the past that they want to protect donor privacy. But we need some general info (just their names, date of last gift, and what giving level they're in: $500+, $1000+, etc.). That will help us craft the appropriate ask for each. Then we can ask board/staff to bottom-line the follow-up, including getting their contact info and making the ask.
xo
manish
Save Lyon-Martin
Fundraising Working Group
Fundraising Workshop & Strategy Session
Action Items
- Manish get donor list: all donors by giving level from past 5 years (not specific amount or gift date)- all donors who $500+ as a one-time gift at least once (not $500+ every year); if list is more than 150 people/10% of donor base, refine list to past 3 years etc.
- Prepare what SLM folks should be presenting:
- FR team roles and responsibilities (SLM vs. board vs. staff)
- Priscilla will create a more detailed agenda Wed. morning; Manish will review/edit w/ group Wed. and bring it back to Priscilla that night
- Priscilla will let Manish know which hand-outs are needed; Manish will photocopy or coordinate with Kara to copy at LM
Date/Time/Location
Saturday, May 7, 2011
10am-2pm
Million Fishes, 2501 Bryant St. @ 23rd St. (5-10 minute walk from 24th St. BART)
Participants
15-20 projected (8 confirmed as of 4/29)
- Save Lyon-Martin (SLM) fundraising working group members (including Mitchel- person often seen as point person, and pending Lyon-Martin [LM] board member Cheryl)
- Save Lyon-Martin overall group members
- LM key staff (part-time development contractor Kara, who is main LM liaison with SLM; interim ED Eric; clinic director Elizabeth)
- Lyon-Martin board members (including secretary/exec committee member Melyssa and fundraising and nominations committee member Pike [both also are SLM members])
Purpose
- Get SLM, LM staff and LM board all on the same page about what strategies each group will do to help us reach our fundraising goal
- Gain skills in how to carry out those strategies
Outcomes
1. A draft written (on flipchart) fundraising plan that includes concrete goals for 2011, who will bottom-line each item, when it will take place, the target income goal, etc.
2. A written ‘next step’ and deadline for each item
3. Each participant will have practiced asking another participant for money face-to-face
Process
Shared decision-making among all participants (Eg. The board chair and the ED in theory won’t veto an idea if SLM as a group decides to move forward with it. I can talk more about this via phone.).
Draft Agenda Items
- welcome, intro, logistics review, agenda review, ice-breaker
- acknowledge/normalize crisis/anxiety mode, celebrate accomplishments (we are still here; $500,000 in donations, grants and pledges raised, etc.), offer optimism
- brief review of fundraising intro: myth-busting, acquire-retain-upgrade, (fundraising infrastructure piece?…particularly what we need to do to regain trust of donors)
- principles of FR: quick overview of mission-driven FR, need for diversity of resources
- principles of FR: using strategies effectively: time in vs. effectiveness out; building a FR team (just a report-back of what SLM FR group will have come up with next Wednesday re: what we expect staff vs. board vs. SLM to do); assessment of SLM/LM FR strategies so far; brainstorm what strategies we’ll use going forward
- brief overview of team-based/Firstgiving-type FR (we’re deciding between either doing a x-a-thon using Firstgiving, or a pledge campaign with a celebration event at the end of the campaign)
- creating a FR plan (& we write out a plan)
- major gifts/asking for $: practice making the ask; strategize how to attach major donor work to our campaigns
Potential Challenges
- tenuous relationship between SLM and LM, largely because of continued inadequate levels of transparency, accountability and communication from LM to SLM
- LM has burned bridges with many patients, community partners, donors, etc. because of a continuing lack of transparency, past financial mismanagement, inadequate fundraising and communications infrastructure, etc. We have a lot of relationship-rebuilding to do.
- there is still the possibility that LM will close in the next few months
- the clinic is severely understaffed; other than database work/gift processing and some web work, most fundraising work isn’t being held at the staff level
- now that some SLM folks are now LM board members or paid contractors, the relationship between the two groups is shifting; could be a great thing for SLM, but there could be some feelings of insider/outsider status in the future
Materials
- Lyon-Martin to provide flipchart paper, markers, blue tape (Kara will bring)
- Priscilla will send Manish by or on Thursday 5/5 files to be photocopied
Room Setup
- Folding chairs; space for break-outs; space to post flipcharts
Food
Potluck-style breakfast, lunch, snacks, drinks (Fundraising working group will fill in gaps as-needed)
Cost
$0
- GIFT is donating waiver of trainer fees
- Lyon-Martin will provide flipchart paper, markers, blue tape (Kara will bring)
- Million Fishes is donating workshop venue
- Lyon-Martin or Manish will make photocopies (Manish will follow-up w/ Kara)
Invite Sent to SLM Folks
Hi All,
You are invited to
the Fundraising Working Group's fundraising workshop and strategy session! This
is a kick-ass space to celebrate our huge $500,000 of fundraising fabulousness
and to learn and plan how we'll raise the rest of the $$ and sustain
Lyon-Martin! We need you there. Please RSVP by adding your name to this google document ASAP.
During our
workshop we'll:
- review our fundraising successes and accomplishments
- define some long and short-term goals
- learn some new fundraising skills + strategies
- make a plan so we're all on the same page about our work going forward
Our workshop/strategy session will be facilitated by Priscilla Hung, an
expert trainer and consultant on fundraising and the Executive Director of
Grassroots Institute for Fundraising Training (GIFT).
Details
Save Lyon-Martin Fundraising Workshop & Strategy Session
Saturday, May 7
10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Million Fishes, 2501 Bryant St @ 23rd in the Mission
Yummy Potluck Snacks
Please RSVP by adding your name to this google document (If you can bring food/drink for the potluck, please list that, too.).
We're looking forward to this chance to plan and strategize together how to make sure Lyon-Martin's around for the long-haul. Hope we see many of you there!