Getting to Know NonProfits in your Community

What are your community’s most successful nonprofit organizations doing to attract funds

When it comes to fundraising, animal welfare organizations often think of themselves as "competing" only with other animal welfare groups and that only animal-lovers will make donations to their organization.

But the truth is, most communities have many nonprofit organizations and many donors who contribute for a variety of different reasons. Below we offer some steps for getting a fix on your local nonprofit scene and using what you discover to enhance your fundraising efforts.

Who Are Those Guys?

Make a list of the nonprofit organizations in your service area. Nonprofits take many forms, such as:

• Human service agencies, such as home healthcare, elder services, shelters (for humans), crisis services, etc.
• Arts and humanities, such museums, music and performing arts organizations, artists collectives, etc.
• Youth services, such as Big Brother/Big Sister, Boys Clubs, Girls Inc., after-school programs
• Local chapters of national groups, such as the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, etc.
• Service organizations, such as Rotary clubs
• Private schools and colleges
• Community hospitals and other public-health agencies

Places you can look to find them are:

• The website of your local chamber of commerce
• Phone book
• Local papers (look for articles, advertisements, calendar entries, etc.)
• Your local United Way chapter (you can call and ask for a list of the agencies for whom they raise funds, or get this information from their website, if they have one)

How are They Doing?

Next, identify the organizations on your list that are well-known in your community and those your research has identified as strong fundraisers. Obtain copies of the most recent annual reports for this select list. Annual reports are often available from an organization's website. If not, you can always call and request one be sent to you. (Nonprofits' annual reports are considered public information.)

What Are They Known for?

• Are they known for putting on great events?
• Do they get lots of stories in the paper?
• Do they send out great appeals or publish a must-read newsletter?
• Are their spokespeople constantly on TV?

Don't be afraid to adopt some of the strategies that are working well for other organizations.

Who's Giving Them Money?

The annual reports will give you a good sense of the organizations' overall financial health. It will also contain detailed information about their sources of funding. The reports frequently include lists of individual donors by giving level.

You can see if you have any direct links to those donors by having your fundraising committee annotate those lists as well. Add promising names to your prospective donor list.

You can also make note of other sources of funding, such as corporate donations, grants, and revenue from events. This information will be useful when you pursue these other areas of fundraising.

Who Has Time to Find Out?

This kind of research is perfect for a volunteer with a telephone and access to a computer. You can also divide up the work among your fundraising committee members, with each person agreeing to research a few types of nonprofit organizations.

This research takes time. But it can definitely pay off in a practical understanding of where charitable dollars come from in your community and where they go.