Discover the different areas of fundraising

By partnering with businesses to raise money, corporate fundraisers are focused on building relationships, often through formal ‘corporate partnerships.’ The idea is that the charity benefits from a proportion of income and, often, volunteering hours, with the company gaining corporate social responsibility progress and new skills for their employees.

Direct fundraising can be broken down into a number of methods, including telephone, direct mail, email or face-to-face fundraising. Regardless of the method, it essentially involves encouraging individual members of the public to donate - ideally on a regular basis.

• Direct mail is one of the most traditionally used forms of fundraising. It’s a great way to reach both new donors and existing supporters who might not be online, and it offers an opportunity to share more detail than an email or social media post. Great mail packs can offer powerful storytelling and impact reporting, can do wonders for brand awareness and building empathy, and are often kept in the household, re-read and even passed forward. However, mail campaigns can be expensive, have long lead times, and require specialist knowledge, creative skills, and compliance, often through agency partners.
• Email marketing is a much faster and more flexible channel, meaning it is ideal for urgent appeals and instant impact. It can be relatively easily customised, designed and segmented to an individual’s preferences, making it great for personalised communications and building relationships. With so many emails coming into our inboxes, fundraisers need to be able to cut through the noise with timely, relevant messaging and persuasive copy.
• Telephone fundraising is just that – calling people via the phone. It can be a brilliant way to recruit new supporters and to build on relationships with existing supporters through a real, two-way conversation both hearing their stories and sharing your own. It’s a method that can be used for a multitude of asks – from appeal donations and regular giving, to lotteries and raffles, events support and legacy pledges. There are lots of rules around it, so it’s important to be aware of them.
• Face-to-face fundraising is professional fundraisers interacting with members of the public, in person. The fundraiser tells them about the charity, its mission and programmes of work, building empathy for the cause and asking for support. This can be carried out on the street, on the doorstep, or in private sites such as shopping centres or event venues. It can mean fundraisers standing in busy areas encouraging passers-by to either donate, usually by signing up for regular giving via a direct debit. It is a highly effective way of recruiting new donors for charities needing to build their donor bases. It requires strategic investment and planning for considerable returns.
• There are numerous ways to raise money through digital platforms, including via your charity’s website, social media, charitable giving portals, crowdfunding platforms, online advertising, messaging apps and more. Persuasive messaging and images are crucial, as is the ability to accept online donations via your website.

Charities run events all year round, raising money through sponsorship, participation in activities or attendance. From the local community fair and charity gala dinner or auction, to the largest annual events such as the London Marathon, or off-the-wall activities like sponsored skydives and fire-walks, events are great opportunities to raise significant sums of money while showcasing your charity to more people and building deeper connections and loyalty amongst your supporters.

Legacy gifts are those left in someone’s will. This is one of the more meaningful and long-term decisions people make when it comes to charitable giving. The job of a legacy fundraiser is to nurture long-term relationships with supporters, building awareness and understanding of the opportunity to help a charity and its beneficiaries by pledging a gift when they write their will. The legal and administrative aspects of legacies are also important considerations, and fundraisers need to be well versed in these aspects.

Alongside regular donations from the public, some high net worth individuals make large donations that can provide a bulk of funding and give an immediate boost to a charity’s work and sustainable future. These tend to be smaller numbers but can be highly beneficial to a charity. By researching opportunities, prospecting, and forming relevant relationships with potential major donors who have an affinity with the cause, fundraisers can play a huge role in helping to secure the future of a charity.

Another way to generate income for your charity is to apply for grants and income from trusts and foundations. These are legal entities set up by a group, company or individual that has decided to set aside money specifically for charitable support. The usual way of achieving income is to write a formal application that explains what you need the money for, how your charity’s work impacts beneficiaries, and how you will spend the money through a project plan and budgets.

Charities often have relationships with communities, be they geographical, demographic or for people with shared interests. Supporters might take part in different activities and events to raise money for the charity. It’s important to understand each individual group, provide useful guidance and materials, and be a great face of the charity to engage with.