You’ve done your homework and have identified some potential corporate partners that align with your organizational values, share a passion for your mission and have a product or service that is marketable to your stakeholders. Now what? How do you connect with these potential partners in a genuine way?

A warm introduction to a contact in the company can be much more effective than a cold call.  The goal is to develop long-term, win/win affiliations. How do you begin? By getting curious and engaging in honest, organic conversations about creating mutually beneficial partnerships. Both organizations must know, like and trust the other to create long-lasting investment.  

LinkedIn can be a powerful tool for opening doors to building relationships with corporate partners. A quick search of the company and its employees allows you to see connections you might have. Encourage your board members to search their networks as well. This is a wonderful way to engage them in...

Although fundraising and development go hand-in-hand, they are not one and the same. Each supports the other in building sustainable revenue for nonprofit and social impact organizations. 

How are they different? When talking about funding nonprofits, we primarily use the word fundraising. But most of work falls in the development category.  Here is an easy way to discern the difference:

fundraising = transactional

development = relational

Fundraising describes an activity that is transactional in nature. The focus is on immediate solicitation - The ‘ask’ or as I like to say, The Invitation.

Development on the other hand, is the building and nurturing of life-long relationships between the donor and the organization that results in revenue through donations AND advocacy in the community on your organization’s behalf. These relationships are cultivated and nurtured based on education, curiosity and attentive stewardship AND include solicitation - but on...