New Report Features Fund-raising Advice to Aid Nonprofits

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Nonprofit Network (MNN) released its latest edition of its Commonwealth Insights report series. The report, titled “From the Experts: Advice to Inform Your Organization’s Fundraising,” features advice from interviews with four successful Massachusetts nonprofit fund-raisers in an effort to inform and support year-end fund-raising efforts of nonprofit organizations.

In an early 2017 survey of its membership, nearly 60{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of MNN member nonprofits cited fund-raising as the largest challenge facing their organization. With many nonprofits currently accelerating their fund-raising operations to coincide with the end of the calendar year, MNN believes this report will be useful to its over 700 nonprofit members representing every region of the state, as well as members of the state’s nonprofit sector at large.

“Fund-raising is an ever-present challenge — and opportunity — for all types of nonprofits. This edition of Commonwealth Insights focuses on ideas that can help nonprofits take their fund-raising to new heights,” said Jim Klocke, CEO of the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network.

The report is centered on general strategies for fund-raisers to consider in their efforts and is supplemented with actionable advice. In a fast-paced and changing fund-raising landscape, all four experts agree that the need to consistently engage donors and provide them with new, creative ways to be involved with a nonprofit organization is critical to building and retaining support.

The report also touches upon a concern of those working in fund-raising, particularly at smaller organizations: that current events and overwhelming needs from across the country and world could further heighten the competition for donors’ support. The interviewed experts agreed that, while this concern is understandable, donors of all ages are looking for even more ways to support causes they care about.

“I think that many people are looking for more ways to make a difference, and I think that is what we need right now,” said Margaret Keller, executive director of Community Access to the Arts in Great Barrington, one of the experts featured in the report. “Donors are more engaged and more committed than ever.”

This is the third edition of Commonwealth Insights MNN has published in 2017. Earlier editions focused on federal tax reform and the Earned Income Tax Credit. The series is made possible by support from the Barr Foundation.