5 Steps to Maximize Your Not for-Profit’s Social Media Presence
Fundraising Report
1. Fundraising Report
Best Practices In Securing Corporate Sponsorship
Step #1: The Proposal Brief. Once a prospect has been identified, sellers should approach the
company with an executive brief that highlights the opportunity and how a partnership can help
the non-profit organization accomplish their marketing goals.
The goal of the proposal: to secure a meeting.
The reason: With the growing number of sponsorship decision-makers having busy schedule,
most do not have time, interest or energy in reading multi-page documents, so one-page
summary makes it easier for the reader.
Prior to contacting a prospective corporation, it is better to conduct research to learn about the
company, its marketing challenges and other information that can be used to secure interest in a
sponsorship.
Step #2: Securing The Meeting. The focus of the meeting should be to gather information, not
make a sale. That includes learning about the company’s marketing objectives with the goal of
creating a tailored package.
The non-profit organization should use the meeting to provide more comprehensive material on
the sponsorship opportunity. That includes audience demographics, sponsorship opportunities,
case studies and partner testimonials.
Sellers should commit roughly 30 percent of the meeting to explaining the sponsorship
opportunity and roughly 70 percent to listening to the needs of the sponsor. That includes asking
questions about the prospect’s marketing priorities, marketing challenges and what has and
hasn’t worked in previous deals.
Step #3: The Full Proposal. The seller uses information from the meeting to create a proposal
targeted to the prospect’s specific marketing needs.
The multi-page document should be comprised of two parts: a one- or two-page offer letter and a
separate document that contains supporting information.
The offer letter is essentially a more detailed version of the proposal brief. The document should
include a summary of the sponsorship opportunity, four or five tailored benefits, customized
promotional overlays, and the rights fee.
The addendum should include information that supports the sponsorship opportunity. That
includes additional selling points, a summary of rights and benefits, audience research data, a
property fact sheet and other relevant information.
The addendum should also include sponsor testimonials and case studies.
2. How To Approach A Corporation For Sponsorship
Here are top tips to attract corporate sponsors:
1. Be clear about your demographic and your platform. Your platform is your message
and your fan base--people who know you or who align themselves with people you
know. Your demographic is the market you're after, and you want to have statistics about
that market at your fingertips.
Find out the spending power and purchasing habits of your target market. Research the
median income and educational level.
Consider the publications your demographic reads. Then ask for media kits from those
publications.
Don't forget cause-related marketing, either. People want to purchase from companies
that give back to the community. If you change lives in a positive way, that's cause-
related marketing. Sponsors will be eager to come aboard.
2. Have a great sponsor proposal. It has to be completely compelling. The person you
show that proposal to has to show it to accounting to get approval and a check. You need
to connect personally with your champion in the company.
In addition, be aware that there's a certain format for how the proposal has to look. It has
to have certain language and certain sections.
o Start with a story. It could be your story, or the story of someone whose life you
changed. This will get your proposal to stand out and make an emotional
connection.
o Describe what you do. This is your mission statement. It explains why you do
what you do.
o Benefits. You have to have really great benefits for the sponsor you're
approaching.
o Describe your demographics.
o Create an advisory board. If you don't have experience, surround yourself with
people who have experience. Show potential sponsors that you have a great team.
o Ask for the money. They don't call you to ask how much money you want,
clearly state how much money would help advance your cause.
3. Promise deliverables. Don't just promise media coverage. Promise specific media
coverage.
3. 4. Don't sell yourself short. Ask for $10,000 to $100,000 from each sponsor.
5. Find the right person to approach in the company. Ask for the marketing department.
That's the best place to start. But however, that in some companies, the appropriate
department might be public relations, community affairs, public affairs, supplier diversity
or brand management.
Whenever possible, introduce yourself by telephone, not e-mail. This is a relationship
business. Besides, a lot of corporations have good firewalls, and your e-mail may not get
through. E-mail once you have the relationship.
Try to avoid filling out an online form. That's a screening device.
6. Be impeccable with your word. When you're courting a sponsor, always do what you
say. Sponsors will test you. If you can't get information, tell them why. Always be on
time or early for an appointment. Let them know you are a person of integrity.
7. Always follow up. So many people lose deals because they don't follow up.
8. Be brief, be brilliant and be gone. Ask for what you want, but don't take up a lot of a
potential sponsors' time doing it.
9. You can't help anybody until you help yourself. Until you're financially secure and
strong, you can't help all the people you want to help. Corporate sponsorships are a way
to make you strong and give you the resources you need. They also add to your
credibility. Publicize your corporate sponsors on your website to let people know you are
playing at a higher level in business.
Creating Partnerships With Corporations
As corporations are becoming increasingly open to collaboration, NGOs and other potential
partners now have more opportunities for program expansion and funding innovation. In order to
better explore the potential of this partnership and find the ideal working relationship, NGOs
must take the following into account when entering into a joint endeavor with a corporate
partner:
Look for a like-minded partner. One of the first things corporations like, like in any other
type of relationship, is sincerity, genuineness, purpose, transparency – being very clear
about what you’re trying to achieve and how you want to work with others.
Define the problem and make sure it lines up with the corporation’s social mission. For
example, HP is most interested in education, entrepreneurship, health and community
involvement. Microsoft, on the other hand, only works with nonprofits looking to build
IT capacity (either by human skills or infrastructure) in order to create jobs in under-
served communities.
5. One of the highlights of Google’s match program is that the company not only matches personal
donations to nonprofit organizations, but also matches funds employees personally raise for a
charitable event which they actively participate in (ex. walks, marathons, bike rides, etc.)
Community Grants
Most large companies provide grants to non-profit organizations through community grant
programs. It’s a way for companies to support their local communities by giving back to
nonprofits which work to improve the lives of employees, customers, and entire communities.
Unlike matching gift programs where employees initiate the grant requests, nonprofits must
individually research and apply for community grants. This often involves applying
electronically through a company grant making portal where the non-profit outlines how the
funds will benefit the community.
Volunteer Grants
One of the other most common ways companies donate to nonprofits is through volunteer grant
programs. These are corporate giving programs where companies give grants to nonprofits where
employees volunteer regularly. They can be a great source of incremental fundraising for
nonprofits such as Big Brother / Big Sister organizations, Girl Scout or Boy Scout Councils, or
any other group with a large number of volunteers.
Here are a couple of companies that donate to nonprofits through employee volunteer grant
programs:
Microsoft
Microsoft is well known within the corporate giving world for having some of the most generous
employee grant programs. In fact, over the years Microsoft has donated more than $1 billion
through its employee donation programs.
Microsoft’s grant of $17 per hour exceeds the average volunteer grant of $8-$15 per hour. All
employees are eligible for both the volunteer grant as well as the matching gift program.
Starbucks
Not only is Starbucks well known for its conservation and environmental efforts, but it also
offers multiple ways for employees to designate donations to nonprofits of their choosing. One
such way is through its Partner Match Program for US and Canadian employees. Starbucks has
multiple tiers of volunteer grants:
25-49 volunteer hours = $250
50-74 volunteer hours = $500
75-100 volunteer hours = $750
100+ volunteer hours = $1,000
6. Team Volunteer Grants
BestBuy
Best Buy’s employees are some of the most active volunteers in the country. In the 2013 fiscal
year, 10,000 employees volunteered for over 100,000 hours which resulted in about $2.5 million
dollars being donated to nonprofits through the company’s volunteer grant programs.
Groups of Best Buy employees who volunteer together can earn grants for the respective non-
profit.
When groups of two or more Best Buy Mobile employees collectively provide volunteer services
to nonprofit organizations, they can earn up to $500 annually for a non-profit.
When groups of five or more employees at all other Best Buy locations volunteer together, they
can earn $1,000 awards for the non-profit.
Verizon
As one of the largest employers in the country, it isn’t surprising that the company is one of the
largest corporate contributors to nonprofits. Since 2000, Verizon has provided grants to over
54,000 nonprofits. Additionally, Verizon employees have volunteered over 6.8 million hours.
One of the unique aspects of Verizon’s corporate giving program is its team fundraising match
for employees who collectively participate in an organized fundraising event. The Team
Fundraising Program is open to teams of ten or more Verizon employees who participate in
cause-related walk, run, or bike events. Verizon will match up to $1,000 in funds raised per team
member and up to $10,000 per team event.
Acknowledging Corporate Sponsors
Every year, corporations spend billions of dollars on cause-related marketing and
event sponsorships.
Unfortunately, many nonprofits don't have a clue about how to approach a potential sponsor,
prepare the information needed, and persuade a sponsor to join them in a mutually beneficial
project.
Organizations that become good sponsorship partners realize that this is a business deal, not a
donation. They also learn that the skills involved in securing good corporate sponsorships are
different from those that work in everyday fundraising.
Non-profit that wants to be a sponsorship heavyweight has to first change their attitude. Those
who succeed exhibit two qualities:
Genuine interest in working with a sponsor because they know the alliance will provide
something of value for both organizations.
Conviction that they are offering a good marketing investment to the sponsor.
7. Nonprofits need to price their proposals on its promotional value to the corporate sponsor.
Sponsors want to exploit the commercial opportunities associated with an event, cause or
organization.
Building Long Term Relationships With Corporate Sponsors
The question of 'if' NGOs should collaborate with the corporate sector has been replaced by
'when' and 'how'. In most cases, what starts out as philanthropic giving develops into a realisation
that businesses have vital skills and resources that can benefit the NGO.
When picking potential partners, first decide in which areas a partnership would be most
beneficial to your organisation. Also consider how you could benefit the potential partner. For
example going to company with some kind of idea – even if it's not what the company ultimately
wants to do; it demonstrates that you have thought through your relevance to that company.
NGO’s should screen companies against a variety of criteria – issues related to children, what
industries they are involved with, the company's values, its corporate governance structure, its
labour standards, the company reputation in the media and whether there are any brand risks in
partnering with that company.
Both partners such as the NGO and the corporation are looking at how they can use each other's
resources. Although the company's motivation might be quite different to the NGO's, as long as
there is a shared understanding of where it might move to and what the positive change can be on
both sides. NGOs must be prepared to accept that this needs to be a win-win for both parties.
The effort that goes into forming partnerships is hardly worth if they only lasts for a few months.
Better communication and fine-tuning is needed to ensure both parties remained equally
committed and satisfied. NGO’s should hold an annual review meeting with their corporate
partners for both parties to look at the key performance indicators, share what's worked well and
what the challenges are. NGO’s should also hold regular meetings with the companies. It gives
an opportunity for both sides to discuss the relationship.
