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Welcome to The Vegan Report, my name is Ryan and today let me ask you this.

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Do you know of any animal protection non-profit struggling to keep its doors open?

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Who came to mind when I asked this question?

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Did you think of an animal sanctuary you follow on Instagram?

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A vegan advocacy project you just can't get off the ground?

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Or maybe your local shelter?

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For me, I am reminded of a few cases.

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But the one that haunts me is a non-profit I volunteered for years ago.

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Its mission was to provide emergency veterinary interventions at a discount rate for animals

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under the care of low-income or homeless people.

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The demand for them was immense, yet they did not have the funds to carry on their mission.

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And after a short three years of existence, they disappeared.

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This episode is my attempt to address this problem, to prevent great animal protection

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organizations from closing their doors or from limiting themselves in all the good they

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could be doing due to a lack of funds.

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As you see, my day job is to be a fundraiser, and I pride myself in being successful in

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my job.

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So, in this episode, I want to share five nuggets of fundraising wisdom I have acquired

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in my line of work with the hope that it can inspire and guide the fundraising efforts

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of pro-animal activists.

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So, please, for this holiday season, take this episode and offer it to the struggling

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pro-animal organization you were thinking about a moment ago.

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Or use this episode yourself to gain a new skill and fundraise for animals.

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Before we begin, please note that this is the last episode of 2024.

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I will be back on January 7th, 2025, with a brand new episode.

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In the meantime, I hope you have a fantastic holiday season.

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Thank you so, so, so very much for being a listener of this show.

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Okay, let's go.

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I prepared some notes, but this is all dangerously unscripted.

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Nugget of wisdom number one.

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Don't be afraid of asking for help.

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Asking for funding can be an extremely uncomfortable experience.

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However, you don't have a choice on the matter.

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You need to make your expectations clear every time.

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Study after study shows that if not solicited, people will not make a gift, even for causes

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they deeply care about.

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And the better you get at asking, the more successful you get at fundraising.

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And what is a successful ask?

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Well, that's a prepared ask.

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The standard is you need to create a solid case for your initiative.

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That means first defining who or what you are.

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You know, your mission, values, and vision.

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Then listing arguments that answer the question of why should we support you?

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One argument could be that your project will have a huge impact.

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Also clarify what your needs are and what you are planning to do with the gift.

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And lastly, you need to express what you will do to acknowledge the donor.

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And that matters so much that I am devoting Nugget of Wisdom number five to it.

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And all of that, all of that case needs to be tailored to the person you are trying to

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inspire.

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The person or the audience, the group, the community.

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So get to know them.

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Get to know that potential donor, what matters to them.

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Basically, how to speak their language and be able to connect with them.

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And all of this, all of this, you can think of it as something like a two pages business

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plan.

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And that preparation will make you feel, will certainly make you feel much more comfortable

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about reaching out to strangers and asking for their money.

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But that might not be enough, even with all the preparation in the world, you might feel

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that this is still too much to handle for you.

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And in my experience, this has to do with the fear of getting rejected.

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Now, if someone says no, it's not the end of the world.

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In fact, I want you to think of it as an opportunity to become a better fundraiser, because then

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you can identify what went wrong and find a way to be even more persuasive in the future.

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So if someone says no, ask why.

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And it is generally one of four options.

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One, you did not ask for the right amount.

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You asked for too much or too little.

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Two, you asked at the wrong time, too late or too early.

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Three, the project does not interest the donor.

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Four, the organization does not interest the donor.

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Negative wisdom number two, don't think you are begging for money.

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To lead a successful fundraiser, you need the right mindset.

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And that means understanding why people give.

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And here, I'm not talking about why people give to your cause.

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I'm talking about why people give in general, on a macro level.

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And here is the answer.

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People give because it feels good.

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For some, giving is a way to connect with others or to define their place in society.

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Others think of giving as a spiritual act.

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After all, religious people tend to give more than non-religious people.

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Some give because it helps them deal with the pain, the experience, for instance, out

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of grief.

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Keeping that in mind, you should look at fundraising not as begging for money, but as offering

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an enjoyable and meaningful experience in exchange of a gift, so to speak.

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Let me put it this way.

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As someone who enjoys giving, I am grateful that I am given the opportunity to support

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and help great causes that matter to me.

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I want to say thank you to my favorite organizations.

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Thank you for allowing me to play a role in all the good you are doing.

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And that's how every one of your donors should feel.

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After making a gift to you, they should have a big smile plastered on their face.

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The memory of supporting you should be valued by your donors.

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So your challenge is to keep that experience enjoyable.

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And if possible, find ways to increase the happiness of your donors.

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Nugget of wisdom number three, stop focusing on small donors.

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Okay, that one might ruffle some feathers.

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Here is the makeup of a successful nonprofit.

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20% of their donors are behind 80% of their total revenue.

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And for the most successful nonprofits, it's more like 1% of their donors are behind 90%

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of their revenue.

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Putting all your energy on small donors, meaning people who make small gifts, can be a fatal

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error.

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Here is why.

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The resources you will invest on mobilizing them are not worth what you will get from

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them.

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It is not sustainable.

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It costs money to fundraise, and you need to think long and hard on what you will spend

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that money on.

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For example, you might want to launch a direct mail campaign, which means in terms of expenses,

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purchasing paper, stamps, and envelopes.

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Now, how is your money best invested?

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Spending $1,000 on sending letters to 1,000 small donors who, if they decide to make a

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donation, will make a donation averaging $10.

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Or spending $1,000 on sending letters to 1,000 Franciscan communities, and as you might know,

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St. Francis is the patron saint of animals that have the potential to each make a $1,000

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donation.

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Better target the few donors out there who can make major donations and gain some of

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them to your cause, than tirelessly work to get small donations out of a sea of small

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donors.

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Negative wisdom number four.

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Cash is not all that you want.

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People can give a lot more than money.

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They can give their access to their platform for promotion purposes.

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They can give you the contact information of a potential donor and even facilitate an

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introduction with a donor.

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They can make material donations such as paintings that you can later auction.

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They can give their services pro bono.

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The list is endless.

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Don't be narrow minded and only think about money.

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Look at the big picture and think strategically about your fundraiser.

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And even in terms of financial support, there is so much diversity.

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People can donate stocks.

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They can put you on their will.

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You can become the recipient of their life insurance policy.

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If they are entrepreneurs, they can give you a percentage of the products they sell.

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You could get a donation in cryptocurrencies.

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Who said traditional currency donations are the way for you?

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Maybe you will get more successful targeting, let's say, Bitcoin's communities for your

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fundraiser.

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Who knows?

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Negative wisdom number five.

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Don't be a stranger.

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This is what we call stewardship.

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In fundraising, stewardship is the practice of building and maintaining positive relationships

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with donors to foster ongoing support and engagement.

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You need to thank your donor several times.

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Showing your gratitude is a must.

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One mentor of mine would say, thank a donor seven times in every email you send them.

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Now this was a hyperbole, but she meant take every opportunity to thank them for their

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gift.

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But more than thanking them, you need to inform them of what you are up to.

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Transparency is really important.

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In essence, you need to answer the question, what have you done with their money?

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But beside those basic points, you need to think about how to cultivate your relationship

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with a donor.

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The goal is for them to think that this is not an organization they are supporting, but

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their organization they are supporting.

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That your cause and your project is also their cause and their project.

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They are not on the sidelines anymore.

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They are players on the field with you.

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If you want to know more about fundraising, if you want to get access to resources, classes,

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courses in fundraising, then check out the episode notes where you will find a link to

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the Association of Fundraising Professionals, a link to their website.

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The Association of Fundraising Professionals have all of that available to you.

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Some of their classes and conferences and all of that are free, others cost money.

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But they are a very important actor in the world of fundraising.

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I would also invite you to check out their code of ethical standards.

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There are a lot of ethical dilemmas and issues raised by the activity of fundraising.

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It is always good to get informed on what to do when presented with those kinds of issues.

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As always, thank you so much for listening.

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I hope that this was helpful.

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Once again, I kindly invite you to share this podcast with the organizations or the activists

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who are struggling with their fundraising.

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I will see you in 2025 for a new episode.

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Take care everybody.