Strategy and fundraising go together, like the chicken and the egg. Or dark and light. You can’t really have one without the other. That’s what I mean by a convergent approach.
To implement any strategy over time, you need money to do the work. But to raise money, you need to have a vision, a goal, and a strategy to get there. A vision is where you want to be at the end of the road. It should inspire you and touch your five senses. A goal is something you know you have to achieve, and something you can articulate to other people so that they can see it too. A strategy is the choices you make upfront to help you make decisions at each point along the path.
My convergent approach also means listening to multiple perspectives. What do the people receiving the service or consuming the product want? What do the people who do the work think will work best? How do the accountants want to see the reports? Does the board think this is part of our mission? Can donors understand the real need? Sometimes these are in conflict. But more often, asking the questions in advance and as we go along helps us all to do better work and to meet more of the needs of all the stakeholders.
The convergence of strategy and fundraising is needed for all nonprofit organizations. The mission statement for Robin Mohr & Associates is “We help nonprofits live up to their vision statements.” If you’re ready, set up a 15 minute call with me.
