Competition for nonprofit funding is increasing all the time, and many organizations are turning to business ventures to generate additional revenue. While this has proved very successful for many, registered charities must walk a fine line with the Canada Revenue...
Oh what a difference a year makes. Or does it? Around this time last year, the federal government had formalized its budget cuts to the voluntary sector, indicating that it wanted to find close to $1 billion in savings, some...
No one would argue the fact that every fundraising campaign needs a goal and that everyone connected with the campaign, including prospective donors, needs to be aware of that goal. Then why do people so often fight the setting of...
Canada and the United States share the longest undefended border in the world and we consider ourselves to be good neighbours, but when it comes to cross-border donations things can get a bit tricky. Adam Aptowitzer, a lawyer with the...
How do we know when to take our event to the next level? (e.g. add an auction or other mini-events to the main attraction) What you are looking to do is grow your events and have each one build toward...
When Professor Ida Berger of Ryerson University’s Centre for Voluntary Sector Studies published a study in Voluntas last summer, the nonprofit sector received some additional discourse for their boardroom tables. The report, The Influence of Religion on Philanthropy in Canada,...
Be warned. If you're starting a nonprofit and don't have $100,000 in the bank, don't use direct mail. You literally cannot afford to use direct mail to raise funds right now. Launching a new nonprofit is like launching a new...
Principal fundraising myth: It's common knowledge that corporations and foundations give most of the money to nonprofit organizations. Principal fundraising truth: You go where money you think you can get is to be found in the greatest quantities and most...
You’d be hard-pressed to find a nonprofit organization that doesn’t spend an incredible amount of time focused on resource development. As a result, some organizations establish their own foundation - known as a "parallel foundation". The parallel foundation dedicates itself...
Tom Ahern is author of the book How to Write Fundraising Materials that Raise More Money: The Art, the Science, the Secrets, published by Emerson and Church. His other book, Raising More Money with Newsletters than You Ever Thought Possible,...