Describe how you collaborate with other nonprofits
Prove to your donor that you play well with others
I am sure that you collaborate with other nonprofits to reach your goal. This is because it takes a village to succeed at the work you do every day. It’s therefore important that you explain to your donor the special contribution your organization offers, and how your nonprofit supports others that are also working together to reach a positive outcome.
Read on to learn how to explain collaboration with the best result.
Reminder: This blog post is part of a seven part live training series that I published on my podcast to help you, my nonprofit friend, be the best fundraiser possible. I care about your success. Check out my podcast on any of your favorite streaming sites, and type in “Do Your Good.”
Use this plug and play template to make your case about collaboration:
We work closely with the following collaborators who help us achieve our mission ____ [list them and describe your partnership]
Check list:
Does your work require collaboration? If so, read on
Create a campaign plan and budget with your collaborators (a donor will be grateful when you create a joint budget with other nonprofits to achieve your goal because these same donors are likely getting pitched by multiple nonprofits. It can get confusing for a donor when you are unclear about how you all divvy up tasks to accomplish similar goals.)
Be open with donors about disagreements over strategy you may have with your collaborators. (It is totally fine to have disagreements over strategy - but you don’t want a donor to find out about it in the news - instead you want to lay it out for the donor privately - you may even ask a donor to fund a third party facilitator to help you work through the challenge. You may be surprised at how willing a donor will be to get engaged in helping you resolve a disagreement, but this is only if you bring them into the dilemma early, and with a solution-oriented attitude.)
Avoid this mistake
You forget to mention your collaborators and do not offer a clear explanation about each nonprofit partner’s unique role and contribution to the work.
How to get an A + in explaining collaboration! To get high marks you should put together a budget with your collaborators that clearly explains what each organization is doing to contribute to the cause.
Please download my free template that can help you to create a joint budget with your other nonprofit partners.