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Protecting children from all kinds of abuse

Category: Children & Young People
Available from: UBS Optimus Foundation
Deadline: See Website

The UBS Optimus Foundation is committed to the welfare of children around the world. Their overall goal is to protect them from abuse of all kinds. In the area of education and child protection, they require all their partners to fully comply with a zero tolerance policy for child abuse, exploitation and child pornography. They promote and respect the standards set out by the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child, which outlines the fundamental rights of children within its sphere of influence. Projects are primarily identified through periodic calls for proposals, which typically occur in the fourth quarter of every year.
Exceptional funding is available outside the regular calls, however these applicants have a considerably lower chance of receiving funding. Projects funded in this phase are meant to demonstrate proof of concept: the unconventional, even risky approaches that have a promising potential for realization.

Read more | UBS Optimus Foundation

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Addressing the situation of women and girls with
disabilities in post-conflict countries

Category: Disability
Available from: Open Society Foundation
Deadline: 5th December 2011

The Open Society Foundations' International Women's Program and the Disability Rights
Initiative announce a call for proposals addressing the situation of women and girls with
disabilities in the following post-conflict countries: Nepal, Palestine, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, and Colombia. Only proposals from these countries will be considered
for support. Successful applications will have one or more of the following objectives -
reducing discrimination and violence against women and girls with disabilities;
strengthening access to justice for women and girls with disabilities; and/or Increasing
women's and girls' with disabilities self-determination and role as decision-makers and
leaders. 

Read more | SOROS

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Strengthening institutional capacities in higher education

Category: Education | Environment | Health | Human Rights | Social and
Human Services |Tech Dev & Science
Available from: OEAD - Austrian Development Corporation
Deadline: 31st December 2011

The objective of Appear is to strengthen institutional capacities in higher education, 
research and management in the key regions of the Austrian Development Cooperation 
(ADC) through academic partnerships with Austrian academic institutions and Master's and PhD Programmes as a contribution to sustainable reduction of poverty. Appear wants to encourage researchers, professionals and academic institutions in the addressed countries and in Austria to share their knowledge and experiences, to design innovative projects targeting the general objective described above and to improve the overall standards in higher education, research and management. All proposed activities are expected to be related to the thematic focus of Appear: higher education and research for development; water supply and sanitation, rural development, energy, private sector development, governance and human rights; poverty reduction, environment and natural resources, peace building and conflct prevention, gender equality; Strengthening of skills in social sciences as an instrument to systematically analyze the reasons of poverty and to empower capacities in social science research. Eligible countries are: Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Bhutan, Nepal, and the Palestinian Territories.

Read more | OEAD

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Serving the implementation of women's and children's rights

Category: Children & Young People | Community | Human Rights | Social & Human Services
Available from: Women's World Summit Foundation
Deadline: 31st March 2012

Awarded since 1994 by WWSF Women's World Summit Foundation - an international, non-profit, humanitarian NGO, serving the implementation of women's and children's rights and the UN development agenda - the Prize ($ 1000 per laureate and $ 3000 for specific African women's organisations), honors women and women's groups around the world exhibiting exceptional creativity, courage and commitment for the improvement of the quality of life in rural communities (375 prizes awarded so far). The Prize aims to draw international attention to laureates' contributions to sustainable development, household food security and peace, thus generating recognition and support for their projects. While rural women are vital in providing examples of sound practice in their communities, they still do not have full access to tools needed for 
development, such as education, credit, land rights and participation in decision making. By highlighting and awarding creative development models, innovations and experiences enhancing the quality of rural life, WWSF participates in addressing the eradication of rural poverty, gender mainstreaming and women's empowerment.

Read more | Women's World Summit Foundation

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Funding innovative projects that foster connections between individuals, communities, the environment and the world at large

Category: Children | Community | Disability | Education | Enviromen | Health | Social & Human Services
Available from: Irwin Andrew Porter Foundation
Deadline: 31st March 2012

The mission of the Irwin Andrew Porter Foundation is to fund innovative projects that foster connections between individuals, communities, the environment and the world at large. The foundation funds in a broad range of focus areas and is most interested in projects that require and/or inspire those directly benefiting from the project to give back to their communities both during the project and into the future. The Irwin Andrew Porter Foundation was founded in 1996. In its first ten years the foundation has distributed approximately $1.1M in grant awards. When considering a project for funding IAP looks for: innovation; inspiration; effectiveness; heart; programs that foster connections between communities and individuals; organizations willing to form partnerships with others to accomplish their goals; and programs and projects that inspire, require, and enable people to give back to their communities as much, or more, than they have received from the project. International grants are not geographically restricted. 

Read more | Irwin Andrew Porter Foundation

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Fostering community-based conservation of landscapes and seascapes

Category: Community | Education | Environment | Media & Arts | Social & Human Services
Available from: New England Biolabs Foundation
Deadline: 15th February 2012

The New England Biolabs Foundation (NEBF) is a private, independent foundation whose mission is to foster community-based conservation of landscapes and seascapes and the bio-cultural diversity found in these places. Working internationally in selected countries of Central America, South America and West Africa, as well as locally (the north shore of Massachusetts), the Foundation supports primarily grassroots organizations with an emphasis on the following priorities: Conservation of biological diversity; Sustaining cultural diversity (linguistic diversity, as well as traditional knowledge systems and practices); Maintaining ecosystem services (water, soil, carbon sequestration); Supporting food security and economic vitality of local communities; and In the marine environment –sustaining healthy reefs and support of sustainable fisheries. 

Read more | NEBF

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The Tech Awards

Category: Children | Community | Education | Environment | Health | Social & Human Services | Tech & Science
Available from: The Tech Awards
Deadline: 6th April 2012

The Tech Awards program aims to inspire global engagement in applying technology to humanity's most pressing problems by recognizing individuals, organizations, and companies that use innovative technology solutions. Nominations and applications are evaluated according to the following criteria: the technology application significantly improves the human condition in one of the five award areas: environment, economic development, education, equality, or health; a serious problem or challenge with global significance is addressed by this use of technology; the application of this technology, which may be either a new invention or an innovative use of an existing technology, makes a noteworthy contribution that surpasses previous or current solutions; the technology application has the potential to serve as an inspiration or model for
further innovation; and the technology application is in the field and has demonstrated a measurable benefit. Nominations and Applications can be made in only one category of award which are: the Intel Environment Award which includes the challenges of balancing population growth with available resources, protecting animal and plant life, as well as addressing the escalating demands for safe and efficient energy; the Flextronics Economic Development Award which focus on the
use of technology in creating jobs and providing people with livlihoods; the Microsoft Education Award which focuses on the use of technology in education; the Swanson Young Innovator Awards which is open to young people under the age of 26; the
Nokia Health Award which focuses on technology in area of health care and the biotechology field; and the Sustainable Energy Award which focuses on the more efficent use of energy resources.  

Read more | The Tech Awards

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Building the scientific capacity of developing countries

Category: Environment and Tech Dev. | Science
Available from: International Foundation for Science
Deadline: 29th January 2012

IFS is a research council with international operations and the mission to build the scientific capacity of developing countries in sciences related to the sustainable management of biological and water resources. To be eligible for an IFS Research grant, a candidated must be a citizen of a developing country; a scientist with at least a Master's or equivalent degree/research experience; under 40 years of age and at the beginning of research career; and attached to a univeristy, national research institution or a research-orientated NGO in a developing country. (There are some exceptions to these general criteria, see the website for further information).. 

Read More | IFS

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Environmental projects that operate in multiple European countries

Category: Environment
Available from: European Commission
Deadline: 5th December 2011

The European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment calls for proposals from NGOs in the European Union for environmental projects that operate in multiple European countries. The topics are climate change; nature and biodiversity conservation; environment and health; natural resources and waste; and horizontal and cross-cutting issues. Activities outside the EU borders are eligible for funding if they provide direct added value to one or more EU member states in advancing the EU's environmental agenda. Grants are up to €900 thousand per project, or up to 70% of eligible project costs. 

Read more | Euorpean Commission

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Provide targeted grants to individual species conservation initiatives

Category: Environment
Available from:The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund
Deadline: 29th February 2012

The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund is a significant philanthropic endowment established to do the following: provide targeted grants to individual species conservation initiatives; recognize leaders in the field of species conservation; and elevate the importance of species in the broader conservation debate. The Fund's reach is truly global, and its species interest is non-discriminatory. It is open to applications for funding support from conservationists based in all parts of the world, and will potentially support projects focused on any and all kinds of plant, animal and fungus species, subject to the approval of an independent evaluation committee. In addition, the Fund will recognize leaders in the field of species conservation and scientific research to ensure their important work is given the attention it deserves and to elevate the importance of species in global conservation discourse. 

Read More | The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund

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Enhancing the quality of life of people all over the world through activities that promote education

Category: Children | Community | Education | Health
Available from: Flahive Family Foundaton
Deadline: Rolling

The purpose of the Foundation is to enhance the quality of life of people all over the world through activities that promote education, self-sufficiency, health and wellness.The emphasis is on international projects and third world countries, especially Africa.The areas of interest to the Foundation are: reducing poverty by educating children;establishing safe and healthy systems for impoverished areas; support programs fordisease prevention, health and wellness; and improving educational opportunities forchildren in third world countries.

Read more | Flahive Family Foundation

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Supporting some of the most disadvantaged and poorest people in the world

Category: Children | Community | Disability | Education | Environment | Health | Human Services
Available from: Comic Relief
Deadline: Rolling

Comic Relief supports some of the most disadvantaged and poorest people in the world. Africa is the focus for most of our international work as the continent has the highest levels of poverty and injustice in the world. At the same time we support work in a limited number of countries in Asia and Latin America. Comic Relief grants to UK-registered charities only (including charities registered in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man) whose main aim is development and who work closely with identified local organisations. They believe lasting change requires investing in work that addresses people’s immediate needs as well as tackling the root causes of poverty and injustice. To do this effectively they’ve developed a set of principles which guide the way they work and the expectations they have of the organisations they fund. Organisations applying will need to demonstrate how their work addresses the following: understanding the context; consulting with key players; building on good practice; involving local people; investing in local organizations; working with others; implementing learning strategies and applying learning.

Read more | Comic Relief

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Opportunities for children who are growing up in socially and economically difficult circumstances

Category: Children
Available from: Bernard van Leer Foundation
Deadline: Contact the Foundation

The Bernard van Leer Foundation is an international grantmaking foundation based in The Hague. Their  mission is to improve opportunities for children up to age 8 who are growing up in socially and economically difficult circumstances. They see this both as a valuable end in itself and as a long-term means to promoting more cohesive, considerate and creative societies with equal opportunities and rights for all. Their have three program goals for 2010 to 2015 - taking quality early learning to scale, reducing violence in young children's lives, and improving young children's physical environments. Support is focused on the following countries: Brazil, India, Israel, Netherlands, Peru, Tanzania, Turkey, and Uganda. Until 2012, they will continue to work in the Caribbean, Mexico and South Africa on the issue areas defined by the previous period: Strengthening the care environment, Successful transitions from home to school, and Social inclusion and respect for diversity.

Read more | Bernard van Leer Foundation

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Introduction for International Development

2 Day Course. 11th - 12th January 2012, Time: 9:30am - 5:00pm GMT
Venue: Central London, England | Hosted By: BOND

Who's it for

People new to international development or wanting the ‘bigger picture’.

This vital introduction to the key issues and emerging debates in international development combines participative training with interactive learning online. You will gain a broad overview of the latest thinking, a deeper understanding of the concept and practice of ‘development’, and a sharper focus on some of its complexities. Included are free online activities to develop your learning after the course.

Take this course to learn • the historical context to development work • the global balance of power and the big players • progress that’s being made on the Millennium Development Goals • the key issues around aid, debt and trade • the challenges of HIV/AIDS and climate change • current approaches to development • what makes for successful development, using real-life examples

[More information / Book a place]

Social Media for Fundraising – Making it Work

Date: 14 th December 2011 | Time: See Website
Venue: Charity Centre, Directory of Social Change, 24 Stephenson Way, London, NW1 2DP
Hosted by: The Directory of Social Change

Too few fundraisers realise that the UK has more Facebook users than TV viewers, that 82% of time spent online is on social media and that visitors from a social media site are 10 times more likely to donate. There is so much more you can do with social media. Be ahead of the game.

Aims

To build an understanding of how to maximise the use of social media tools within your organisation in order to raise more money and achieve your charitable objectives.

For

For people who want to understand how to use social media strategically. Suitable for beginners as well as regular users.

Learning Outcomes

- Understand what works and what doesn't with social media fundraising
- Establish a set of tools to help you use social media effectively
- Be able to develop an effective social media fundraising strategy
- Understand the difference between online and offline donations

Content

- The reality of social media: facts, figures and new trends
- Learn from a wide range of the best case studies for the effective use of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs, FourSquare and more.
- Online donor behaviour - why people give and how it is different online
- Up-to-date models for building a social media strategy
- How to manage social media within your organisation - getting the tools working for you
- How to divide roles and responsibilities when using social media
- The best metrics for monitoring and evaluation

Costs start at £140.00

[More information / Book a place]

Accredited Creative Bid Writing E-learning Course

3-Week E-Learning Courses Covering All Major Fundraising Techniques
We offer a range of three-week accredited courses focusing on specific techniques. This option enables you to learn valuable new techniques, top up your training and start raising funds from a wider range of sources. So if you need to brush up your writing skills, put together a funding strategy, or increase sponsorship, active e-learning offers you the knowledge, tutor expertise, flexibility and value for money.

Who are Bite-Size Courses for?
Our bite-size courses are designed for advisors, volunteers and staff from charities, schools, clubs, social enterprises and support agencies with no or limited experience of fundraising techniques.

E-learning
Each three week course is accredited and leads to a Level 3 Open College Award (1 Unit).

The courses take 9-10 hours of your time and are delivered in our e-learning internet based classroom. Discussion boards and case studies are used to bring materials to life, and you’ll join a class with between 6 and 20 other learners, studying at a time that suits you!

Creative Bid Writing
This will take you 2-3 hours a week studying online, leading to an NCFE Level 3 award. By the end you will be able to:

Adapt your writing style according to requirements of donors, trusts, foundations & business
Convey the right balance of emotion and reason within a draft application
Describe your project using active language and good visual presentation
Assignment: Produce 3 key written sections of a funding proposal

Course Programme
Week 1: Module 1
Bid Writing Tips, Common Pitfalls

Week 2: Module 2
Advanced Bid Writing exercise: How to Persuade & Engage the Funder

Week 3: Assignment
Produce 3 key written sections of a funding proposal
You will receive detailed feedback on your writing style and draft proposal

£195.00

[More information / Book a place]

Bill Gates Urges G20 Leaders to Boost Aid for World's Poorest

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation co-chair Bill Gates has delivered a report to world leaders at the G20 Summit in Cannes, France, in which he urges them to commit to increasing the pool of resources dedicated to development in poor countries.

During his presentation of the report, Gates stressed that it was important for rich countries to continue meeting their foreign aid commitments and outlined several ways that development funding could be applied more effectively. His recommendations include using foreign aid to help developing countries improve their ability to collect taxes, increasing transparency requirements for mining and oil companies, adopting innovations in private sector finance such as making sovereign wealth funds available for infrastructure development, and lowering transaction costs for remittances by diaspora communities. "If the countries that have made promises stick to them, it will generate an additional $80 billion annually starting in 2015," Gates said. "Well-designed aid reduces poverty right now and accelerates poor countries' progress toward the moment when they no longer need it."

The report also emphasized the role that rapidly developing countries such as China, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, and Turkey could play in spurring development in poorer countries through the transfer of technological innovations and by providing unique insights into poverty reduction. Gates noted the particular promise of "triangular partnerships" between rapidly growing countries, traditional donors, and poor countries. To illustrate the potential of such collaborations, he pointed to a project involving Brazil, Japan, and Mozambique that aims to help Mozambique grow soybeans, rice, and other crops in its savanna areas.

[Read more] Source: GatesFoundation.org

Apple: new world for philanthropy under Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook is quietly changing the company's culture now that Steve Jobs has passed away.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Cook has been more communicative than Jobs -- and actually starts mass emails to employees with the friendly term "Team."

Cook has also unveiled a new charitable giving policy. Apple will now match employee's charitable donations, up to $10,000. In contrast, Jobs memorably told employees at a meeting last year that he was opposed to giving money away, the WSJ reported.

Cook has also been more interested in administrative issues like promotions and corporate structure.

However, the WSJ reported that Cook is not a fan of reorganizations and is unlikely to change the products in any significant way.

[Read More] Source: TMC.net

The Biggest Gift In The World

When Warren Buffett was in his 20s, he studied biographies of America's historical business titans, from J.P. Morgan to John D. Rockefeller to Andrew Carnegie. 

He was primarily drawn, of course, by their ability to accumulate vast fortunes. But he was also intrigued by the way the tycoons became philanthropists. Rockefeller and his son, John Rockefeller Jr., used their millions to cure disease, launch the green revolution in global agriculture and fund countless arts and cultural programs. Carnegie founded the nation's first library system and a famed concert hall, living true to his famous dictum that "the man who thus dies rich, dies disgraced." 

"One way or another, we form ideas about what we're going to do if we turn out to be wealthy," Buffett says. "For me it was in my 20s, reading what those other people had done." 

In the past year, Buffett has carried his philanthropy to a new extreme and, in the process, sparked a revolution in the world of giving. Through his launch of the Giving Pledge in June 2010, a joint venture with his partner-in-patronage Bill Gates, Buffett has unlocked billions of dollars for philanthropic causes. The Pledge has touched off a national debate about how much is "enough" when it comes to giving, and created the most powerful movement in American philanthropy since Andrew Carnegie released his famous "Gospel of Wealth" treatise in 1889. 

The Pledge itself is radical in its simplicity. Its signers have to be billionaires. And they have to promise to give at least half of their fortune to charity during their lifetimes. 

So far, 69 billionaires have signed the pledge, representing more than $150 billion in philanthropy. That number is "far more" than he and Gates expected, Buffett says. The signers are wildly diverse in their politics and causes—ranging from fighting cancer and funding Jewish schools to housing orphans in Africa and helping farmers in Appalachia. Still, they are united in their mission: to inspire the world's wealthy to give a larger percentage of their wealth to charity. It is the world's largest fund-raiser. 

[Read More] Source: Jacob Wolinsky @ GuruFocus.com

Fortune 500 Adoption of Social Media Slowing

The use of blogging, Twitter, and Facebook among the nation's largest companies has leveled off in 2011, according to a new study by the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.

Among companies listed on the 2011 Fortune 500, the use of three key social media platforms–Twitter, Facebook, and blogs—has increased slightly or stayed flat over the previous 12 months: 

• 62% now use Twitter (have an official corporate account with tweet activity in the previous month), up from 60% in 2010.
• 58% have a corporate Facebook page, up from 56% a year earlier.
• 23% have a corporate public-facing blog with items posted in the previous 12 months, the same percentage reported in 2010.

Below, other findings from "The 2011 Fortune 500 and Social Media Adoption: Have America's Largest Companies Reached a Social Media Plateau?" issued by the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.

Twitter Adoption

Some 308 of the 2011 F500 (62%) have a corporate Twitter account with a tweet in the previous  thirty days; among them, 10 corporations (Wal-Mart, Exxon, Chevron, Conoco Philips, Fannie Mae, General Electric, Berkshire Hathaway, General Motors, Bank of America, and Ford Motors) consistently post to their Twitter accounts. 

Interestingly, the 2010 study revealed that four companies in the medical and healthcare industries had Twitter accounts with no activity. In 2011, those same four companies (Humana Health Care, Boston Scientific, United Health Group, and Cardinal Health Care) were found to have no registered accounts. Such was the case for the food chain Winn-Dixie, which now has no Twitter presence (or public-facing blog).

[Read more] Source: Univsersity of Massachusetts at Dartmouth

Financing Not Fundraising: 5 Lies to Stop Telling Donors

In part 11 of our ongoing blog series, Financing Not Fundraising, we are talking about being brutally honest with your donors. If nonprofits are going to truly break free from the vicious fundraising cycle, they must find the courage to tell funders how it really is. And since board members are a nonprofit’s closest supporters and (I hope) donors, you need to stop telling them these lies as well.

If you are new to our Financing Not Fundraising blog series, the series is about how nonprofits must break out of the narrow view that traditional FUNDRAISING (individual donor appeals, events, foundation grants) will completely fund all of their activities.  Instead, they must create a broader, more strategic approach to securing the overall FINANCING necessary to create social change. You can read the entire series here.

And, if you want to learn more about how to apply the concepts of Financing Not Fundraising to your nonprofit, join us for our Financing Not Fundraising webinar on November 9th, 2011.

If you want to break free of the exhausting cycle of fundraising, a key step is to start being brutally honest with funders. Here are the top 5 lies you have to stop telling donors:

1. 1. X% of your donation goes to the program
   The distinction between “program expenses” and “overhead” is, at best, meaningless and, at worst, destructive. You cannot have a program without staff, technology, space, systems, evaluation, research and development. It is magical thinking to say that you can separate money spent on programs from money spent on the support of programs. Donors need to understand, and you need to explain to them, that “overhead” is not a dirty word. A nonprofit exists to deliver programs. And everything the organization does helps to make those programs better, stronger, bigger, more effective.
   
   
2. 2. We can do the same program with less money
   No you can’t. You know you can’t. You are already scraping by. Don’t accept a check from a donor who wants all the bells and whistles you explained in your pitch, but at a lower cost. Explain the true costs, including administrative costs, of getting results. Politely, but firmly, explain to them that an inferior investment will yield an inferior result. If they simply can’t afford the price tag, then encourage them to find fellow funders to co-invest with.
   
   
3. 3. We can start a new program that doesn’t fit with our mission or strategy
   Yes that big, fat check a donor is holding in front of you looks very appealing. But if it takes your organization in a different direction than your strategy or your core competencies require, accepting it is a huge mistake. Nonprofits must constantly ensure that money and mission are aligned. Otherwise the organization will be scattered in countless directions with an exhausted staff and confused donor base. Don’t let a donor take you down that road.

[Read more] Source: Social Velocity Blog

10 things to do before writing a fundraising strategy

Having a shared purpose and a common fundraising goal is essential to any  successful nonprofit campaign or program.  This is why it is important for charities to work hard in order to develop their fundraising strategy prior to setting out with their asks or before beginning work on a fundraising project.

Developing a strong and coherent fundraising strategy helps cut down on wasting time and resources and gives a common purpose to the organization’s staff, including any volunteers.

Having a fundraising strategy with built-in timelines and targets also manages expectations amongst senior staff and board members and provides an effective manner in which to verbalize desired outcomes.

Before you start writing your strategy, here are 10 things your organization should be doing:

1. 1. Review your charity’s current status.  What are your present resources?  What went well in the past and what needs improvement?  Consider a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats)
3. 
   2. Ask yourself, what kind of funding do  you need? Unrestricted income? Gifts in kind? Major donations for specific projects?

[Read more] Source: adviceforgood

How to ask for money

Use the right words, in the right order, at the right time to get the cash coming in

No one likes writing about or talking about money, but for most charities the effective ‘ask’ is the lifeblood of their organisation.

Here are a few tips to help with your fundraising writing.

Start with outcomes
Your donors want to know the impact that their money will have, so always start any writing about money with outcomes and achievements. Psychologists have shown people are much more likely to do what you want them to do if you give them a reason to do it. So never just ask for money without demonstrating – and proving – that their donation is an investment in the impact your organisation has.

Keep it simple
Your organisation may do 50 different things, but when writing about money concentrate on one area only. Too many options and ideas can breed procrastination. If you ask for this money, for this project, by this date, you present the reader with a simple yes or no decision to make right now.

Be honest about core costs
We all know asking for money to pay postage, lighting bills and transport isn’t a great sell. While you shouldn’t try to hide the fact you need to pay for core costs, you can weave them creatively into your fundraising asks.

Write the truth – that these costs are core to making projects successful – rather than an optional add-on you’d rather not talk about:

[Read more] Source: Gideon Burrows @ ngo.media

7 Tips for Better Fundraising Emails

Email marketing represents a critical component of online fundraising. In fact, in spite of the social era or perhaps because of it, more email is being generated. A growing minority of emails are read and responded to on mobile devices now. Contacting friends and supporters who may back your fundraiser via email cannot be overlooked.

For most nonprofits, email has been and remains the heart and soul of their online strategies. Even social media-heavy programs seek to engage more loyal supporters through email programs like newsletter, petitions, pledges, advocacy and more. The purpose is to build a house file.

So how can you make email work best for your campaign? Here are seven tips to consider.

1) Vet your list

Carpet bombing your entire rolodex and house file is not a great way to make potential investors feel good about receiving your email. If you are looking for support from friends, focus on creating a small list of people who will likely care about the effort. The email itself is an ask. If at all possible, a personal email to each fundraiser makes a big difference.

If you are a nonprofit, you will want a list that is opt-in, and not purchased wholesale. There are great solutions from companies like Care2 to develop email lists of customized, qualified parties who will opt-in to information from you. Spend the money to build a list, but don’t buy an existing one that is not directly associated with your cause.

There are many elements to consider in writing a great headline, but make no bones about it, this is essential. Only 15% of emails are even opened, according to Blackbaud. Creating pithy headlines that are active in tense, short in length, and clear in purpose are critical to success.

[Read more] Source: Inspiring Generosity via razoo

Future trends: Predictions for charity IT

We asked charities and IT suppliers alike for their predictions on IT trends in the charity sector over the next year, and received a huge response. Of course, cloud computing and mobile technology were frequently cited – so to avoid repetition just a few of the comments on these topics were included, with preference given to predictions addressing other interesting areas.

In our case it is improving our remote access capabilities to allow more efficient and more integrated work to be done by staff who are away from - or not based in - head office. In general I think that the maturing (finally) nature of the "cloud" and SaaS will (eventually) have an impact in how charity IT operates (assuming we all decide the security implications of having your data somewhere else are ok). In particular the scalability of this approach should mean that small charities can effectively operate
on the same type of systems as large charities.
Adrian Mitchell, IT manager, Variety Club

Complete pull to web-based apps (internal and external) paving the way for staff to use their own equipment within corporate networks (if all they need is a browser....not much for IT departments to support). This will be the norm in less than 10 years.
Paul Hughes, head of IT, the Stroke Association

[Read more] Source: Civil Society.co.uk

The 7 deadly sins of fundraising appeals – and how to avoid them

These points and tips are mainly written in the context of individual giving, although many are also just as relevant to events, community and legacy fundraising, membership marketing, volunteer recruitment or anywhere direct marketing techniques are used.  They represent the most common issues in fundraising appeals that I have come across and include suggestions to help you avoid the same pitfalls.

I hope that some of these insights and suggestions are useful to you and that you will test to prove or disprove them for yourself!

1. Beating around the bush
Many people seem to feel slightly embarrassed about asking for donations.  I only say this because there have been numerous occasions where I’ve been asked to remove most of the asks for a donation from appeal copy; once to the point that the first mention was almost at the bottom of the last page of the letter, almost as though it was an afterthought.

This is a fundraising appeal, not a magazine article or a short story, so get to the point and do it quickly.  You’ve heard of the saying, ‘if you don’t ask, you don’t get’, and never has this been more true than in this context.  Experience and testing tells me that the earlier you include an ask, and the more direct you are about it, the better the response will be.

Tips to uplift response & income:

• -Include your ask early – the earlier the better
• 
  -Repeat the ask several times throughout your copy
• 
  -Be direct – phrases like, ‘will you donate today?’, will be more effective than, ‘your support would be appreciated’

[Read in full, Tips 2-7] Source: Beautiful World

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October '11 - Grant Opportunities & Grant Activity items from all over the world helping you find possible sources of funding covering a vast array of giving interest areas | Ask the Expert: Starting a non-profit the smart way | Steve Jobs Found Much to Dislike About Philanthropy | Financing not Fundraising - 5 Lies to Stop Telling Donors | Wikileaks stops leaking and starts fundraising....and much, much more! View G&R October here

Social media is becoming essential to charity fundraising

Social media is becoming an essential part of charity fundraising, according to a paper from the Institute for Philanthropy.

Philanthropy and Social Media gives advice to charities and funders on how to use social media for activities including fundraising, connecting with supporters and delivering their services.

It says social media is beoming increasingly important in driving donations. "There are organisations, groups and individuals who are using these tools to great effect," the report says. "Some have completely revolutionised their work by using social media.

"Social media campaigns can direct existing supporters to online and mobile giving portals, or encourage people to donate via text."

But it warns charities to make sure they show people exactly how they can donate once a relationship has been built with them. "Every barrier means money lost, so the path from conversation to donation must be as smooth and intuitive as possible," it says.

The paper argues that social media can help charities feed information from the front line to supporters, share knowledge with communities and other organisations, reach isolated groups and provide charities with feedback.

"Service providers should already be taking advantage of the opportunities to hear feedback from their beneficiaries provided by digital tools, and at the very least should not be ignoring conversations that are already taking place," it says.

Social media can be particularly useful to smaller charities because of the low costs involved, according to the report.
Online models provide more cost-effective ways to reach scale because, unlike offline interactions, the costs of inputs are not directly related to the potential number of people you can reach," it says.

{Read more] (PDF) Source: Institute of Philanthropy

Learn from rejected grant applications

The Art of Refusal: Promising Practice for Grant Makers and Grant Seekers

The full report of this research project, “The art of refusal: experiences of grant makers and grant seekers”, provides the findings of a study of communication experiences and practices, at the point of grant refusal, among selected grant making and grant seeking organisations. Its context was the frustration and disappointment being experienced by many grant seekers in a period of enhanced competition for funding, alongside the multiple pressures facing grant makers, in responding to grant seekers’ needs and in meeting their own range of obligations. The overall purpose of the research was to support learning and improvement in policy and practice among grant makers and grant seekers. A summary of the findings from the qualitative research undertaken for the project is provided at the end of this paper.

[View Report] Source: Cass Business School / Charities Aid Foundation (PDF)

Wikileaks stops leaking & starts fundraising

Due to the excessive costs of various lawsuits and the problems of a blockcade by nearly all large credit cards, WikiLeaks has stopped leaking and is diverting all power to shields aggressive fundraising in order to get enough money to fight the credit card companies in court. Bank of America, VISA, MasterCard, PayPal and Western Union all refused to accept donations for WikiLeaks on December 7th of 2010 and the situation has reached a particularly dire point.

While it seems that the companies engaged in the blockade have gotten what they’ve wanted, WikiLeaks doesn’t look like it’ll be going down easy. The site is not shutting down and is, instead, fundraising like crazy. On every page a “donate” window pops up and upon clicking the donate button, users are provided with several walkthroughs explaining exactly how they can donate so that the money actually gets to WikiLeaks.

Things do not look particularly good for WikiLeaks, but I think that this battle is far from over. If the resulting press from this announcement drives enough supporters to donate, WikiLeaks could very well manage to win in court if there are, in fact, no lawful grounds for this blockade as the site claims.

[Read more] Source: The Telegraph

Compelling tool to identify potential US foundation funders

Multi-million dollar funding opportunities at your fingertips

Updated daily, FoundationSearch, an American Foundation Research database,includes more than 120,000 US grant making foundations, representing billions of dollars in annual granting and includes tools to locate grants by type, value, year, recipient, donor and historical giving trends, and much, much more.

FoundationSearch is in our opinion the best database of its kind in the world. It provides more accurate, accessible information than any other comparable database and its unique features enable you to appreciably reduce expensive research time, make your choices significantly better informed, and considerably improve your chances of success.

If you would like to learn more about FoundationSearch or are interested in a free online demonstration please contact research@chapel-york.com for details and costs or visit Chapel-york online

[More information]

Steve Jobs Found Much to Dislike About Philanthropy

Steve Jobs wasn’t simply too busy for philanthropy. The Apple co-founder found many things about professional philanthropy—the jargon, showiness, and all the rich people who thought they could shake it up—distasteful.

In his new biography, titled Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson explains why the technology pioneer quickly abandoned the foundation he started in the mid-1980s.

“He discovered that it was annoying to have to deal with the person he had hired to run it, who kept talking about ‘venture’ philanthropy and how to ‘leverage’ giving,” the book says.

In an interview with The New York Times, Mark Vermilion, whom Mr. Jobs reportedly hired away from Apple to run the foundation, describes the philanthropy’s brief run a little differently. “He clearly didn’t have the time,” Mr. Vermilion told the newspaper.

He said that Mr. Jobs wanted to support projects focused on nutrition and vegetarianism, while Mr. Vermilion wanted him to promote social entrepreneurs. “I don’t know if it was my inability to get him excited about it,” he told The Times. “I can’t criticize Steve.”

Mr. Isaacson writes that Mr. Jobs was “contemptuous of people who made a display of philanthropy or thinking they could reinvent it.”

Even his wife’s charitable work didn’t convince Mr. Jobs of philanthropy’s value. Early in his marriage to Laurene Powell Jobs, a former Goldman Sachs employee, she helped to start the education nonprofit College Track. Mr. Jobs said he was “impressed” with her nonprofit work.

But Mr. Isaacson writes that he still remained “generally dismissive of philanthropic endeavors and never visited her after-school centers.”

He seemed to care more about how Apple technology could help nonprofits than donating his Apple profits to them. For example, Mr. Jobs once gave $5,000 to Larry Brilliant’s Seva Foundation. But he wasn’t more forthcoming.

“He instead worked on finding ways that a donated Apple II and a VisiCal program could make it easier for the foundation to do a survey it was planning on blindness in Nepal,” writes Mr. Jobs’s biographer.

Source: Chronicle of Philanthropy

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