Are you a small nonprofit wondering if you're too small to establish an endowment fund? The truth is endowments are not only for large organizations. Small nonprofits can benefit greatly from setting up a nonprofit endowment fund. In this blog post, we discuss the misconceptions small nonprofits have about endowments and the benefits they can provide for financial stability, sustainability and attracting donors.

In our last post, we discussed what the great wealth transfer is and why your nonprofit should start preparing now. Here are five ways to prepare for the great wealth transfer so you can maximize your potential donations.

In the upcoming decades, older generations are expected to pass on the largest amount of wealth in history. This wealth will be left to younger generations, taxes and nonprofits, changing the landscape of philanthropy in more ways than one. If your nonprofit isn’t prepared for this shift in paradigm, you will find it more difficult to raise the funds you need. In this article, we discuss what the great wealth transfer is and why you should begin preparing now.

Growing your nonprofit endowment is important for the long-term success of your organization. By providing sustainable funding, an endowment allows you to spend less time worrying about finances and more time accomplishing your mission.

Many organizations make the mistake of not utilizing their current fundraising campaigns to increase their nonprofit investment. Every special event, giving day, and year-end appeal should be used as a chance to increase the impact of your endowment.

Giving Tuesday is a great opportunity to educate and inspire your donors. They need to know they have the opportunity to give a gift now that will live on into perpetuity. No need to do all the work of a special endowment campaign! Here are a few tactics you can use to leverage Giving Tuesday to promote your nonprofit endowment.

Every year, many Americans are required by law to withdraw money they have no immediate need for. This leaves a great opportunity for nonprofits to increase their revenue by tapping into money already on the table.

In this article, we’ll explain what Qualified Charitable Distributions are, how they benefit your organization, and how to attract more of them. We’ll even share a free QCD Appeal Letter Template for you to send to your donors and raise more money!

You invest a lot of resources in acquiring new major donors: 

• Hosting events
• Implementing marketing campaigns and ads
• Spending immense amounts of time building relationships, meeting with donors, following up with them and engaging with them
• Creating and printing informative materials, such as brochures, website content, email nurture campaigns, success stories and so on
• Attending outreach events and community presentations

And the list goes on.

But once your hard work pays off and a person makes a donation, what happens next? Most organizations will send a form thank you letter on letterhead, or maybe a handwritten thank you card. However, once that thank you is sent, most organizations immediately direct their energy back on acquiring new donors. This results in the newly converted donor being left in the shadows, forgotten about and never engaged with again.

Your stewardship plan can consist of any engagement that fits your organization, donors and mission. Here are 12 ideas to add to your major donor stewardship plan.

Your stewardship plan can consist of any engagement that fits your organization, donors and mission. Here are 12 ideas to add to your major donor stewardship plan.

Imagine that one of your donors suddenly has a large sum of money in their account. They don’t have a plan for this money yet, and they remember connecting with you a few months ago. They decide to give a major gift to your organization that helps you serve your mission and take care of your staff.

What if we told you this happens every year to many Americans? People who are required by law to withdraw funds from their retirement account to avoid penalties, but don’t have an immediate need for it. Many of these people choose to make a qualified charitable distribution to benefit both the organization and themselves.

In this article, we will explain to you what Required Minimum Distributions are and how to ensure your organization takes advantage of these major gifts.

You spend hours designing an eye-grabbing outer envelope for your direct mail appeal to increase the chance of being opened. Then you spend even more time crafting your appeal letter, pulling on emotions with your heart-warming story and creating a problem the donor wants to help solve. 

But you never receive a donation.

What happened? Why are so many of your donors not converting after being moved by your appeal? The answer could be your remit envelope. 

Just like the outer envelope’s job is to entice the donor to open your piece of mail, the remit envelope has the critical job of inspiring the donor to send it back with a big check. Sometimes the appeal letter was thrown out weeks ago, and the only thing that remains is the remit envelope. If it is confusing, illegible, or not direct, they will get distracted and not follow through. If it is generic and vague, they will forget what it is for, and it will end up in the recycling bin.

You can use the remit envelope to highlight a specific program or fund you would like to increase contributions towards. Highlighting your endowment fund on your remit envelope is a great way to raise awareness about the fund and grow direct gifts. Many major donors do not know about the different options they have to make a gift, and it is up to you and your remit envelope to educate them. 

Here are four tips to grow your nonprofit endowment fund using your remit envelope.