Creating a successful fund-raising program

Citation

Hoffman, I.M. (2002), "Creating a successful fund-raising program", The Bottom Line, Vol. 15 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/bl.2002.17015aab.004

Creating a successful fund-raising program

Keywords: Fund-raising, Development, Library advancement, Philanthropy

Libraries of all types have become active players in the fund-raising game. Over the past five years, we have witnessed a tremendous growth in fundraising activities across the USA and Canada. This trend signifies the critical need for libraries to secure private funding in order to supplement shrinking institutional dollars. This being the case, libraries that embark on the fund-raising voyage most certainly want their programs to succeed. But what does it take to create a successful fund-raising program?

A successful program is one that:

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  achieves its annual and/or campaign goals;

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  builds a base of support for the future; and

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  helps the library fulfill its organizational vision.

Many factors contribute to the overall success of a fund-raising program. However, there are certain key variables to be considered for a healthy and successful program.

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  Aged to perfection. The age of a library fund-raising program is a significant contributor to success. As most of us know, it takes time to raise money and, as a result, the number of years engaged in fund-raising efforts is a critical factor of success. Funds raised during the first years of a new program are often quite low. This tends to change once the:

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    infrastructure for fund-raising has been firmly established;

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    the donor pool has been identified and qualified, relationships with donors have been developed; and

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    the vision of the library has been clearly articulated.

  If you are planning to implement a fund-raising program, it may take several years before the benefits of the program are visible.

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  Bigger is better. The next significant factor of success is the number of donors in your donor pool. Typically, libraries with the largest donor pools have the greatest success, and as it turns out, these libraries are the ones with mature fund-raising programs.

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  Lead by example. Another success factor is the involvement of the library director in the fund-raising effort. Involvement can loosely be defined as any type of hands-on fundraising including; developing donor strategies, setting fund-raising goals, donor cultivation, campaign planning, gift solicitations. Institutions with the highest dollars raised typically have directors who are involved in fund-raising, on average, 50 per cent of the time.

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  Time on task. Another factor of success is the length of time devoted to fund-raising activities. Library development directors who spend the largest percentage of their time on fund-raising raised the most funds. Development directors who spend at least 75 percent of their time with donors raise more funds for their libraries than do those who spend 50 percent of their time or less. These individuals also have the greatest success overall in raising funds for their programs. Those without other library responsibilities raise more funds. Development directors hired specifically to raise funds.

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  Go for the gold. Concentrate your fund-raising energies on higher capacity donors who can make major ($5,000 or greater) gifts. Major gifts work is seen as the heart of a successful fund-raising program. As such, it requires special attention and a significant amount of commitment of time and resources to have it pay off. In the long run, 90 percent of the money raised will come from major gift donors. However, major gifts require a lot of time and energy over an extended period of time before results start to show. Focusing on fewer big gifts, rather than on more small gifts, is a better use of your staff time. The benefit will be more money for programs at a lower cost-per-dollar raised.

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  Smart friends. Friends groups that have a fund-raising charge or focus are most beneficial to your fund-raising efforts. Be sure you know why you have a friends group and manage it accordingly. Community outreach, programming and luncheons are not to be confused with raising money. While these things can help bring visibility to the library, they are not a substitute for a comprehensive fund-raising program.

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  Raise the bar. Surprisingly, programs with the highest fund-raising goals typically raise the most. It appears that institutions that aim high in their goals have greater success in reaching their goals than those with more conservative expectations. However, be realistic in developing your annual goals, especially if your program is new.

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  Good connections. Libraries that can utilize and participate in an institutional-level fund-raising system can raise substantially more funds. Rather than trying to sustain a comprehensive fund-raising effort for the library, consider the level of access and support available through central fund-raising efforts (such as annual fund, planned gifts and prospect research). This connection at the institutional level may also provide a higher level of visibility for library needs, which in turn can help to showcase the library more effectively or provide greater access to unrestricted donors.

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  Hire the best. A seasoned development director (typically with four years experience or more) can "hit the decks running" with your fund-raising efforts. Librarian or non-librarian is up to you. Consider which is easier: to teach someone about the library or to teach someone about fund-raising. Either has the potential of getting great results, however a fund-raiser is less likely to be drawn into other library duties or responsibilities.

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  Factors to allow your development director to succeed. Know that your development effort is going to cost money in order for it to be successful. Make sure the budget can provide the development director with adequate office support, travel and entertainment support, and publications or other marketing tools. Focus your development director's time and energy on bringing in major gifts, not on planning the next library social event, managing the friends groups, serving on library committees and attending library meetings that are not about raising money. Finally, provide your development director with a vision that he or she can sell to prospective donors.

Successful fund-raising takes time, resources, and commitment. The program itself needs a chance to mature, and the development officer and the director of the library need to focus their energies on the task at hand. The more time the development officer can focus on fundraising, the greater the chance for success.

Remember, a new fund-raising program may take several years of support before the benefits of the program are visible, but overall, the effort will be worthwhile.

Irene M. HoffmanPresident of Hoffman Consulting, specializing in fund-raising, public relations, marketing and program assessment for libraries. She is a current and founding member of the Academic Library Advancement and Development Network