SASHA IVANOVA/SHUTTERSTOCK
Last summer, a nonprofit organization in Chicago that supports abused women and children canceled its annual fundraising gala and held a virtual event instead. The results weren’t bad.
Fundraising targets fell, but audience reach grew, said Joanne Walsh, the development director of the nonprofit, Connections for Abused Women and Their Children.
“More people got to engage with our brand and mission,” she said.
The pandemic may be easing, but the group is going virtual again this year, Walsh said.
So too is Silver Lining Mentoring, a nonprofit organization in Boston that connects mentors to youth in foster care. It held a half-hour virtual fundraising event last year and is doing so again this year, said Anne Bowie, chair of the organization’s board of directors and a longtime donor.
“We were able to engage friends, family and interested supporters from all over the country,” Bowie said.
Other nonprofits are returning to in-person events. Youth Go, a nonprofit in Wisconsin, plans to hold a haunted trail walk in October (though it is canceling two other major fundraisers, an annual music festival and a haunted house tour).
And more people are attending events, notes Lisa Wolf, vice president at Westfall Gold, a firm that specializes in high-end event fundraising.
“People are longing to experience community,” Wolf said. “We all realized through the pandemic the one thing that we all, really, most of us enjoyed, really was being together. And then, to be together to have an impact, and with that shared purpose, is really important.”
Another benefit of in-person events is that they’re generally more lucrative. More than half (58%) of respondents to a recent survey of nonprofit organizations conducted by Grantstation said they raised less money in 2020 than in previous years, despite efforts to replace funds via additional grantseeking, virtual events or social media campaigns.
For some, the path forward to fundraising – whether to return to in-person events, stick with virtual ones or cancel them altogether – may not yet be clear. But the answer doesn’t have to be one or the other, said Beth Ann Locke, a fundraising consultant with the Gail Perry Group.
Many groups are taking a hybrid approach, mixing traditional events with online registration, digital storytelling and remote participation.
“Some of our pivots actually expanded accessibility in a beautiful way for people who were unable to have access,” Locke said.
National nonprofits in particular are pursuing a hybrid model, with small, in-person events supplemented by a large virtual presence, according to Soraya Alexander of Classy, a company that helps nonprofits raise funds.
“Nonprofits want to maintain some element of virtual accessibility and engagement moving forward because of the extended reach it provides,” she said.
Many people are ready for a return to cocktail parties, galas and other in-person events. More than half of donors (57%) will be comfortable attending an in-person event before the end of this summer, according to a survey commissioned by OneCause, a provider of fundraising software. And even more (71%) will be ready to do so before the end of this fall. That said, more than one in five (21%) won’t be ready until the end of this winter.
The Toolbox
Consider the following suggestions when charting your course forward.
- Check local stats. Before deciding whether to hold an in-person event, check state and local agencies to determine virus spread in your area and health and safety guidelines.
- Communicate public health information clearly. If you’re holding an in-person event, explain in detail the public health protocols your organization is taking to ensure health and safety.
- Think small. If you’re holding an in-person event, consider putting tables farther apart, which may decrease revenues but could increase comfort levels and ease people’s back to transition to “normal.”
- Budget appropriately. If you’re having a virtual or hybrid event, remember to account for pricey audio-visual and tech support costs. To get the full cost of an in-person event, track hours that salaried employees put into putting them on, which often go uncounted.
- Offer virtual alternatives. Engage those who aren’t comfortable with attending an in-person event by offering to host a virtual tour, tea party or something else.
- Test electronics. If you’re using digital technologies to sell tickets, ask a friend or coworker to buy a ticket through the online portal to ensure the process runs smoothly and that communications are clear, warm, and welcoming.
- Consider print invitations. Some donors, especially older ones, may not be as familiar or comfortable with online ticketing and registration.
- Announce in-person events early. If your group is planning to host an upcoming event in person, let people know about it earlier than you would otherwise. The summer is a good time to announce events planned for next winter or spring.
- Diversify revenue sources. To protect against future emergencies, consider a variety of fundraising tactics, such as sponsorships and direct mail appeals to individuals. Don’t rely exclusively on events to meet fundraising targets.
