6 Corporate Fundraising tips for NGOs

“Organizations are either for-profit or not-for-profit; it’s hard to be both. That leaves most organizations with a dilemma – NGOs are usually short of cash (unless they are big and well-known or sit on an endowment). Companies, meanwhile, are expected not only to make money, but also to be responsible corporate citizens. There are lots of synergies here. Yet there are surprisingly few successful partnerships between NGOs and corporations.

I know this because for over a decade I worked for the Centre for European Reform, an independent think tank that takes no government money. During that time, I have made every conceivable fundraising mistake. Here are my lessons.

1. Speak in the company’s interest
If you work for a charity or other NGO, you are rightly proud of what you do. When you have finally managed to get an appointment with an executive or corporate affairs manager of a big company, you will spend most of your allotted hour telling them how your organization is changing the world. However, your counterpart is not paid to change the world. It’s their job to further the interests of the company. Therefore, do your homework about the company, its sector and its strategy. Use your first meeting to ask further questions about the company’s strategy and needs. Then spend 10 minutes at the end telling your counterpart exactly how your organization can help achieve its objective. Then ask for another meeting soon.”

Read the full post here.