WHAT THE FUNDRAISING
96: The People Behind the Products: 8 Million Dollars in 45 Days with Vance Roush
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“It is possible (to raise large amounts of money). The world is generous. But there are certain keys that maximize your opportunity for success.”
– Vance Roush
Episode #96
Overview
In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast…
It’s easy to feel intimidated – or even a little clueless – when it comes to leveraging potential funding sources like stock, cryptocurrency, ETFs, or IRAs. But when we’re avoidant, says my guest on this episode of What the Fundraising, we’re leaving money on the table. Vance Roush, Founder & CEO at Overflow isn’t suggesting that people running nonprofits need to become experts in any of these non-cash vehicles. We just need to partner well! That’s why this former Google employee, who recently raised $8 million in 45 days to secure a new church for the growing congregation he founded, developed a platform to manage and educate both donors and fundraisers. “We have an opportunity to unlock unprecedented amounts of generosity if we can remove that friction,” says Vance, who is tremendously optimistic about the future of solving problems like climate change and homelessness. Why? Because there is a palpable entrepreneurial energy among young people who want to do more than make apps and widgets. Vance has seen first-hand a growing wave of collaboration and innovation that he believes will move the needle on the most intractable social inequity.
You’ll learn about how Overflow is working to create a giving platform that – with a single button – opens up entirely new windows of possibility for donors with stock, crypto, and other non-cash resources. The net result? An increase in average donation amounts. And who doesn’t want that? So, as Vance says, it’s time to harness Silicon Valley’s venture-capital approach to fundraising by getting bold, risking failure, and inviting our prospective funders to go on the journey with us!
Please note: This episode is a part of a very special series called The People Behind the Products. More than ever, nonprofits care about the company behind their technology and service providers. What’s the underlying mission and vision of the company? What do they stand for? And how are they thinking about the sector and serving nonprofits? This series is an opportunity to get to know some of my favorite nonprofit technology companies so that the next time you’re making a tech decision, you can understand a little bit more about the people behind the product. There is no sponsorship or industry money behind the production of this series and the editorial content was at the sole discretion of the What the Fundraising team.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
- (02:18) Vance’s journey, migrating from an early job with Google to early-stage startups developing internet products – all the while building the church he and his wife started from seven people in a living room to a congregation of 4,000 with a $32 million venue!
- (03:48) While fundraising for his “startup” church, including an intensive campaign to raise $8 million dollars in just 45 days, Vance deployed his Overflow platform and tools to reduce “friction.”
- (06:41) The evolution and optimization of tech-based methods for giving, from PayPal and other phone-based apps to a variety of non-cash assets.
- (07:30) About Donor-Advised Funds: Donor options can include stocks, ETFs, IRAs, mutual funds, cryptocurrency, and other non-cash assets.
- (08:03) Technology is still catching up, but Vance’s vision includes a simple button that donors can touch to start the process of funneling non-cash assets to organizations and causes – the exciting intersection at which Overflow is operating.
- (08:30) Vance details the campaign he and his church mounted to raise $8 million in 45 days. How did they do it? Combining traditional and non-traditional methods of giving.
- (11:08) About the messaging around giving non-cash assets. The main drivers behind the choice to give via alternatives like stocks or cryptocurrency:
- Opens the imagination to – and jogs interest in tapping – a whole pool of resources that can easily be converted into charitable giving.
- Offers real tax benefits, with Overflow as part of an education process with regard to things like avoiding capital gains.
- (13:55) Vance advocates for – and messages around – abundance. Even in the midst of current down market conditions, he and his team look for options and the right avenues to pursue (for instance positions in oil companies, which have not been as hard hit).
- (16:47) Vance believes many fundraisers are intimidated by engaging with donor vehicles like crypto because they lack a knowledge base. But you don’t need to be an expert. That’s a role for advisers, educational podcasts, and platforms like Overflow.
- (15:24) The literal reason for Overflow’s existence is its team’s core competency in terms of understanding and facilitating a range of giving models, their tax implications, associated paperwork, and regulations.
- (20:03) What Vance’s research and observations have revealed about the nonprofit fundraising space:
- A surge of talent and resources moving into the sector.
- Technological and strategic innovations.
- Visionary new efforts and models to develop global solutions to issues like homelessness through cutting-edge technologies like 3D printing.
- (19:49) About the trendline towards many of the best and brightest, most tech-forward and innovative thinkers flocking to the nonprofit sector and trying to solve huge issues like global warming and clean water.
- (23:20) The challenges ahead for nonprofits and what’s necessary to respond:
- (26:00) Why fundraisers should take a page from the Silicon Valley venture capital playbook: Be willing to fail, often and publicly!
- (26:50) Vance’s Parting Advice for Fundraisers:
Follow
Vance Roush
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- The title of Vance’s forthcoming book (March 2023) is: “Silicon Valley Fundraising: How to Inspire Donors to Give Crypto, Nft’s, Stock, Etf’s, Real Estate, and Other Non-Cash Assets.”
- About New Story, pioneering solutions to end homelessness.
- If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link.
- If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point!
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TIPS AND TOOLS TO IMPLEMENT TODAY
- It’s important to identify which of your fundraising efforts are suffering from donor “friction” at the wrong time.
- There are very real tax benefits associated with giving stock and it’s a selling point in the solicitation of funds. You don’t have to know all the details, you just have to give donors resources to learn and prompting to talk to their financial advisors.
- When the going gets tough, look for options. Providing education, ideas and new avenues for giving is a great way to weather economic and giving downturns.
- Does your organization avoid soliciting stock, crypto, and other non-traditional donation sources because they’re unfamiliar or uncomfortable? Time to get educated and get a partner who can help.
- The fundraiser is a conduit, you do not need to be the expert in everything.
- Here’s a heartening trend: All indicators are that talented entrepreneurs, inventors, designers, and innovators, in general, want to pursue something bigger than profit – like creating solutions to inequity.
- We understandably want to be conservative and protect our fundraising sources, but some element of risk-taking – and even failure – is necessary to move forward and grow.
FAVORITE QUOTES
- “It is possible (to raise large amounts of money). The world is generous. But there are certain keys that maximize your opportunity for success.” - Vance Roush
- “If we know that actually most of the wealth in this world is tied up in non-cash assets, why isn't there an easy button on our websites to allow somebody to give from their stock portfolio, their ETF, their mutual fund, their crypto wallet?” - Vance Roush
- “We have an opportunity to unlock unprecedented amounts of generosity if we can remove friction.” - Vance Roush
- “Just turn on the news and everything's going down. That can breed limitations. That could breed worry. It could breed even fear … (but) our job is not to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to funders. Our job is to continue to present to them really exciting opportunities.” - Vance Roush
- “I feel like we make a lot of decisions for our donors ahead of time, and there's a lot we could learn by really giving them the opportunity to make choices and figure out what's the right fit for them at the right time.” - Mallory Erickson
- “A lot of times we as fundraisers think we need to be the smartest people in the room. No! You just need to be the best selector of partners. That's your job, right? Your job as a fundraiser is actually as a dot connector.” - Vance Roush
- “Some of the smartest people I know are flooding to this sector … because leaders are rising up and saying, ‘You know what? Profit is important, but it has to be purpose plus profit. It has to be something deeper that we are trying to solve here than just building the next app or next widget.’ ” - Vance Roush
- “I've never seen so many talented people going into the philanthropic sector. And what's really exciting is I think we’re in the early innings of something really transformative in our work.” - Vance Roush
- “It's either we make bigger bets now or it's too late. And that's not a doom and gloom message. I don't believe that our future is doom and gloom. I'm very optimistic about it. What I'm saying is, that optimism needs to lead towards bigger bets.” - Vance Roush
- “Something we really can learn from the venture fundraising in Silicon Valley is that whole mindset around inviting people to build in public, to be a part of the journey, to believe in the change that we're trying to create.” - Mallory Erickson
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Get to know Vance:
Vance Roush is the Founder and CEO of Overflow and on mission to inspire the world to give. Specifically, Overflow unlocks unprecedented levels of generosity by empowering Nonprofits, Foundations, Churches and Corporations to accept non cash assets like stocks & crypto with ease. 90% of wealth is in non cash assets and orgs are still mainly fundraising for cash. Overflow is fixing that. Outside of Overflow, Vance serves on the board of Nonprofits, as well as VIVE Church as a Founding member His background is in tech from companies like Google. Him & his wife, Kim, live in the Silicon Valley with their 4 children Lennox, Emerson, Tatum, & Wesleigh Dior
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I teach nonprofit fundraisers to bring in more gifts from the RIGHT donors… so they can stop hounding people for money. Fundraising doesn’t have to be uncomfortable.
- CEO & Creator of the Power Partners FormulaTM
- Disruptor in the funding sector, changing lives everyday
- Relentlessly committed to the movement of money into the nonprofit sector
- Focused on win-win partnerships that allow fundraisers to be authentic and empowered in their work
- Over 15 years working in nonprofits (managing director and ED of multiple fast-growth organizations)
MALLORY ERICKSON
episode transcript
