Special events during turbulent times

Creative Solutions & Innovations | www.creative-si.com | 404.325.7031

December 2011

December 2011Deborah Spector, Founder

Creative Solutions & Innovations

deborah@creative-si.com

SPECIAL EVENTS During Turbulent Times

December 2011Creative Solutions & Innovations

| www.creative-si.com | 404.325.7031

Why Special Events?Why Special Events?

Special events are key to successful fundraising. They:

Bring attention to your mission.Improves bottom line performance

and market share through new donors & sponsors.

Create a meaningful way to thank your existing supporters.

Bring Attention To Your MissionBring Attention To Your Mission

You do events to further your mission:

What do you do? Why is it important? What is your organization’s vision

for a better world? How will you achieve this?

Increase RevenueIncrease Revenue

Fundraising events are held to raise money. They need to generate revenue.

Cultivation events are investments into potential donors. They are not designed to raise money.

Thank You, Thank YouThank You, Thank You

You cannot say thank you enough!A Special Event is the perfect way

to say thank you. Your donors & sponsors need to

know their contribution allows you to focus on your mission & provide your services.

December 2011

TAKE AWAY:TAKE AWAY:

Be sure you are clear on what type of special event you are

holding – fundraising or cultivation.

EVENTS AS PART OF YOUR EVENTS AS PART OF YOUR DEVELOPMENT PLANDEVELOPMENT PLAN

BequestsRecognition Events

Capital CampaignsLaunch events for public phase

Major giftsTargeted Events

Annual GivingVolume Events

Event360 – www.event360.org

Experiential MarketingExperiential Marketing

“Research shows that face-to-face events have a greater return on investment than most other forms of advertising or public relations.”

Mike Cleary of Abcom

December 2011

TAKE AWAY:TAKE AWAY:

Events are the experiential aspect of your development efforts.

Without them people may not know or care who you are!

Brainstorming is a great way to answer

key questions!

Brainstorming: Create Your Brainstorming: Create Your VisionVision

Vision is your grand scheme of how you perceive your event, what it should be, who will attend, what you hope to accomplish.

Vision gives you the energy to move toward your goals. A visioning exercise allows everyone around the table to share in the ownership of the goal and as such the success of the event.

Visioning ExerciseVisioning Exercise

Is having an event a good idea? What event can reach our goal? Is there a link between this event and our

mission? Do we have enough time to plan? Can we find a reliable event chair with enough

time and energy? Do we have adequate volunteer and staff

support?

Develop a SWOT AnalysisDevelop a SWOT Analysis

Strengths Weaknesses

Opportunities Threats

December 2011

Special Event TimelineSpecial Event Timeline

December 2011

Creating a BudgetCreating a Budget

Revenue Follows Good CommunicationsRevenue Follows Good Communications

“Any group that does not have an effective communication program will raise only a fraction of the money they would otherwise attract.”

Fundraising Guru Roger CraverStrategic Communications for Nonprofits

Promoting Your Special EventPromoting Your Special Event

Plan publicity early Budget ahead Define your target audience Set Goals Develop a strategy Know your deadlines

Website NewsroomWebsite Newsroom

WOM CommunicationWOM Communication

WOM CommunicationsWOM Communications

While other marketing channels slow, WOM skyrockets.

Great way to involve leadership and other volunteers in your marketing efforts.

Twitter, FaceBook and MySpace support WOM efforts.

Invitations are key to WOM.

Social Networking SitesSocial Networking Sites

Twitter.com – tell everyone about your fundraiser in 140 characters

FaceBook.com – tell everyone in your network about your fundraiser

LinkedIn.com – professional nonprofits ‘share’ information about fundraiser

YouTube.com – create a video for your fundraiser

SponsorshipsSponsorships

A sponsorship is a contract entered into between a company and an organization for marketing purposes that includes rights and benefits.

Keys to SponsorshipsKeys to Sponsorships

North American businesses spent more than $17.2 billion sponsoring events in 2010. These included charity galas, athletic contests, concert series, and the like -- according to IEG Sponsorship Report.

Electronic FundraisingElectronic Fundraising

www.donate.netwww.donate.net

ResourcesResourcesSponsorships:

• Patricia Martin, Made Possible By: Succeeding With Sponsorship Jossey-Bass, 2004

Communications:

• Kathy Bonk, Henry Griggs, Emily Tynes, The Jossey-Bass Guide To Strategic Communications For Nonprofits, Jossey-Bass, 1999

• MarketingProfs - http://www.marketingprofs.com/

Using Social Media:

• Using FaceBook for Your Nonprofit- http://www.techsoup.org/community/facebook/index.cfm

Special Events:

• How to Make the Most of Your Special Event - http://nonprofit.about.com/od/fundraising/a/specialevents.htm

• Alan L. Wendroff, Making the Most of Special Events, Jossey-Bass, 2003

December 2011

Thank You!Thank You!

Interested in sample budgets & event management timelines?

ContactDeborah@creative-si.com

Special events during turbulent times

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