It’s no secret that there are a lot of moving parts when it comes to effective nonprofit fundraising. From onboarding and motivating volunteers to pinpointing the right target audience, the list is endless. On top of everything, there’s the pressure to be efficient and select fundraising strategies that are just right for your specific nonprofit and niche.
How do you choose an efficient and effective fundraising strategy? Rather than sitting back and seeing what other nonprofits are doing, take a calculated approach to choosing your fundraising methods. You can determine if your overall fundraising approach is successful by tracking your hourly fundraising rate.
Read on to learn how to calculate your general hourly fundraising rate and use this information to drive a more streamlined fundraising approach!
How to Track a Nonprofit Hourly Fundraising Rate
The math is simple; it’s the time tracking that can become a bit tricky! Your hourly fundraising rate equals your annual fundraising budget or fundraising portfolio divided by the amount of time you spent fundraising for the year. You can also use this formula to track your nonprofit fundraising rate per month or quarter!
Instead of adding up the hours for the year, simply track your hours for the period of time for which you want a calculation. You can be as precise or loose with your numbers as you want. Just remember, the point is to help you gauge how effective your fundraising efforts are.
Using Your Hourly Fundraising Rate as A Strategy
Remember, this isn’t an exact science! It is difficult to account for every second spent fundraising. However, this formula can give you the information needed to pivot your fundraising efforts if needed mindfully.
Although some strategies may seem like a good idea at first, the data may show otherwise. Keep track of your hourly, quarterly, and yearly fundraising rates to see if what your nonprofit is doing is effective.
Is your organization sufficient in retaining donors? Have you tapped into your ideal target audience? Do donors need more information about your nonprofit or feel more connected to the cause? From the appearance of your nonprofit website to the day your volunteers speak with donors, there are endless aspects to consider when analyzing your fundraising strategy.
Mindset also plays an important role in effective fundraising. When you can see what is possible, your nonprofit as a whole will adopt an abundance mindset. Whereas spinning your wheels with the same lackluster outcomes will put your nonprofit into a scarcity mindset that isn’t conducive to desired results.
Want to learn more about this strategy and other innovative nonprofit tips and tools?
Join me on What the Fundraising, where I interview and chat with prominent members of the nonprofit organization sector. Here, we discuss burning topics surrounding fundraising and how to manage an effective nonprofit.
Also, check out all of the valuable Resources and Articles available to help you on your journey to growing a successful nonprofit. I am passionate about helping nonprofit leaders say “no” to ineffective fundraising approaches and steer them toward more successful methods.
