Fundraising in the era of coronavirus

By Wayne Gurley
President & Creative Director

As I write this, schools around the country are closing, events are being cancelled and people are self-quarantining due to the coronavirus.

It seems everyone will be affected, including fundraisers.

And yet, the impact on your organization doesn't have to be as severe as it might be, especially if you use direct mail, email, social media or recorded telephone calls.

The important thing is not to completely cancel your fundraising activities. Like a big freight train, a fundraising program is easy to stop, but more difficult to get cranked up again running at full speed.

According to consultant Jeff Brooks, "cancelling is the 100% sure way to seriously damage your fundraising revenue."

You can read his full post here: The way COVID-19 WILL destroy your fundraising -- if you let it

Jeff says, "Fundraising you don't do is guaranteed zero revenue. It's also lost opportunity that you can never get back."

If you are a medical or health organization, you may have an opportunity to raise funds for needed supplies - like masks, gloves, testing kits and protective clothing or treatment protocols.

Think of ways you might use this situation appropriately to let your donors know their help is desperately needed.

Art and culture organizations will experience a drop in income due to cancelled shows and events. You could ask donors to help "keep you going" until things return to normal.

Cash flow for arts and culture groups is always a big challenge anyway. It could make the difference between future existence or non-existence.

Jeff continues: "If you face increased program costs and/or drops in revenue, let your donors be heroes and help you get through it. Do fundraising about it. This is one of those moments where you can help your donors really feel good about making a difference when times are hard."

Here's more info from the Moceanic blog: COVID-19 and Your Cause.

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