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How can nonprofits support local communities?

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A guest post by Harry Lopez

If you run a nonprofit organisation, consider your local community to be the heart of your cause. The people surrounding your doorstep are those who will bring the biggest positive impact to the recognition and success of your organisation.

Nonprofits are an integral part of society. They are the voice of the people they serve, heal, protect, shelter, educate, support, rescue and nurture. Often it is nonprofits who offer life-saving aid and life-changing support and opportunities for disadvantaged people. They are the voice of the heartbroken, the struggling and those in need.

So how exactly can nonprofits support local communities?

Community of many hands

You are a part of your community

Be an active part of the community

To support your local community, you must first be an active part of it. So get involved in the social club, run a stall at the summer fair, donate new art equipment to the local schools, and help to serve tea and coffee at the village hall.

Loyalty is extremely important when it comes to keeping your followers repeatedly donating and supporting your nonprofit. Making a positive impact in your community will not only help you to continue spreading kindness, but it will also improve your brand recognition and help to increase the visibility of your cause.

After all, the more people you can reach, the more donations you can receive, and the bigger impact you can have for your community and the lives of those who are loyal to your organisation.

Be the voice of change

Often, it is nonprofits who pave the road to change. From wildlife conservation, environmental protection, ending child marriage to promoting equality and social justice, it is because of their positive impact on their communities and people world-wide that these organisations are remembered and admired.

Whatever your cause is, brainstorm ways you can directly help the people around you in line with your brand values. Be there for important events that matter to your people, and become their voice and advocate. By doing so you will inevitably start conversations and begin to build relationships with the people around you.

In time you will gain their trust and respect, and help to strengthen the overall fabric of your community.

Give back to your warriors

You need people who are passionate about your cause to make your organisation successful. Whilst you may aspire to eventually have a worldwide following, the best place to start is with the people on your doorstep. You may be surprised just how many of your neighbours resonate with your cause. Most people are empathetic and so long as you act with integrity and goodwill, they will be glad to help if they can.

Make sure you give back to your warriors, those who are loyal to your cause and shout about it from the rooftops. Show them how much you appreciate them by supporting them with acts of kindness. There are many ways you can give back to your community, from simply publishing an appreciation post on your social media pages, to gifting a loyal donor their weekly food shop.

Be there for your people

Be your community’s hero, the people they turn to when they need a helping hand. Giving back shows that you care and are willing to spend money raised to help further the lives of everyone in your local community.

Work on gaining the trust and respect of the people around you by recognising a need and finding a creative solution. This can be as small as organising a group of volunteers to go litter picking, or as dramatic as collecting donations of clothing, home supplies and food for a local family who have suffered a house fire.

If one of your local supporters has lost a loved one, make it your business to know about it and send them a card and some flowers. These acts of kindness build your integrity as a brand and grow the trust and loyalty of your donors.

Become a community hub

If you are looking to boost your brand’s impact and get to know the people of your community better, why not host a monthly or weekly meeting? You may be able to hire the village hall or community centre for a couple of hours to invite everyone to come and have a cup of coffee and chat about what they feel is important to their community. Discussion can be open ended, or planned if there is a specific campaign you are planning and would like opinions on.

You may find some people come to enjoy the relationships they build at your meetings, and soon you will have created a mini society of loyal followers for your cause.

Harry Lopez is a financial advisor who specialises in giving unbiased advice to nonprofit start-ups. Harry works closely with many entrepreneurs to ensure their businesses are environmentally friendly and will positively impact the lives of everyone they reach.

Web Accessibility: Why It Matters for Your Fundraising Events

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A guest post by Ira Horowitz, Cornershop Creative

Have you been hearing a lot about website accessibility lately? Most website owners have. Accessibility has become a hot topic in networking groups, on social media, and in many offices. Chances are, it was one of those conversations that led you to read this article today.

So what is accessibility? It’s making sure your website can be seen by anyone, anywhere, on any device, regardless of physical or mental impairment. Impairments can include disabilities, distractions, bad lighting, full hands—anything that might keep you from fully enjoying a website.

Having an accessible website means more people can enjoy your website, which is awesome. You may also be interested to know that many of the things that make your website accessible also help with user experience (UX) and search engine optimization (SEO). You probably recognize those as the other big topics in the world of nonprofit websites.

In short, accessibility is good for everybody, including your nonprofit. Read on to learn three reasons why it matters so much when it comes to improving your organization’s fundraising results.

Reason #1: Having an accessible website empowers you to expand your community.

One of the most common questions asked by nonprofits is, “How can we get more supporters to come to our website?”

Accessibility is a great answer.

By making your website more accessible, you are opening your nonprofit up to a whole new  audience. Once people of all abilities can access your content, they can learn everything they need to know about your cause, which makes them much more likely to participate in fundraisers of all kinds.

Having more active supporters means that more people will be sharing your content, or talking about your cause with their friends. This kind of self-perpetuating growth is the goal of every organization, whether you’re new to the sector or have been around for a while. Investing in accessibility upgrades for your website gets you off to an excellent start.

Reason #2: Nonprofits whose websites aren’t accessible may be subject to legal action.

In an equal society, everyone should have a chance to participate. This is the idea behind the American Disabilities Act (ADA). Since 1990, this law has helped prevent discrimination against people with disabilities by ensuring that public spaces are accessible to everyone.

Recently, the internet has been under scrutiny in courtrooms across the country, with plaintiffs asking the courts to consider the internet a public space.

Guidelines for this kind of widespread accessibility have already been developed. They are known as Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). There are three different levels for WCAG:

  • A: This is considered the bare minimum for a website to meet. Many websites already meet this level, or could with minimal effort.
  • AA: Most web users will be able to access your website at this level. Experts urge all websites to shoot for AA compliance.
  • AAA: This is the highest level of accessibility and is ideal for the majority of users.

Since so many web elements cannot be made AAA compliant, it is not currently encouraged to try and make an entire website AAA. You can, however, have a mixed approach to be as accessible as possible. Offering fonts and high-contrast colors that meet AAA standards is still wonderful, even if other elements on your website only meet A or AA standards.

Right now, WCAG is a recommendation, not a mandatory requirement. But since having an accessible website has so many benefits, the best thing to do is get ahead of the curve now and invest in accessibility upgrades before they become law.

Reason #3: Prioritizing accessibility can help boost your brand image, drawing in support for your cause.

Nonprofits are known for being compassionate members of their communities. Becoming a champion for accessibility and equality is a good way to prove this impression true.

When you make a genuine effort to make your website more accessible, you are sending the message that your organization really cares about people and wants to do the right thing by making an effort to communicate with everyone it can reach. This will reflect positively on your brand, and ultimately, the cause you fight for every day.

Bonus: Quick Tips to Make Your Site More Accessible

Now that you’ve decided to make your website more accessible, here are some bonus tips to get you started!

Though there are plenty more things you can do, this list includes some nonprofit web design strategies that will help you meet the minimal requirements for accessibility:

  • Enable keyboard controls so your audience can navigate without a mouse.
  • Make sure your website is accessible for screen readers, and include a skip button for screen readers so they can skip through the menus.
  • Use a heading hierarchy to break up the content and guide readers through your content. Start with a single heading 1 (H1), then use H2s to title sections, H3s for subheadings under H2, and so on.
  • Use simple language. A 6th- to 8th-grade reading level is recommended.
  • Include alt text for images and photos.
  • Pay attention to color contrast. Minimum of 3:1 for large text, 4.5:1 for paragraph text. The higher the better.
  • Keep forms simple, short, and navigable by the tab key.
  • Use fonts that are easy to read, and don’t use more than three different fonts on your website.
  • Set your paragraph text at 16 px or larger.
  • Make sure 200% zoom is possible without interfering with the messaging of your site.
  • Offer player controls instead of setting videos to autoplay.
  • Include closed captions, transcripts, and audio descriptions for all multimedia content.
  • Use more than one indicator for important elements like links. For example, links should be blue and underlined.
  • Monitor the performance of your website to ensure it loads in three seconds or less.
  • Check your website on several browsers and devices to make sure it looks good on all of them.

To take your efforts to the next level, consider working with a nonprofit web design consultant. According to Cornershop Creative, these professionals understand the nonprofit sphere and can help make your website the best it can be for everyone within your site’s reach. They can handle the more technical aspects of web accessibility, setting you up to welcome more visitors to your website!

Ira Horowitz head shotAuthor: Ira Horowitz

With 15 years’ experience, Ira is an expert in nonprofit online communications and online fundraising. His work has resulted in increased funds and resounding supporter engagement for hundreds of organizations.

Ira oversees our project management team and works with clients to provide our clients with the best possible final product. He also manages all of our strategic engagements and helps guide nonprofits to determine their long-term strategy goals for online communications.

Fundraising Tuesday: How to Solicit Auction Items for Your Upcoming Event

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A guest post from Kelly Velasquez-Hague at OneCause

In order for your auction to be a success, you need exciting items. Determining which items to procure and how to solicit them can be challenging, even for the experienced fundraiser. You should include a variety of items in your auction that engage audiences and encourage them to bid. The main questions are: Which items will resonate? And where can I get them?

Let’s start with the first – what items should I put in my auction?

This all depends on your nonprofit’s mission and audience. Nonprofits and donors are all different, but they share a common passion for making the world better through your cause. So to determine the best items, ask yourself:

  • Popular: Are they popular with consumers? If shoppers like them, your donors will too.
  • Unique: Are they one-of-a-kind? Specialty items and experiences resonate well.
  • Rare: Are they hard to get? Rare or hot market items fare well in any auction!
  • Mission Focused: Do they connect to your mission or offer opportunities to engage with your cause? Mission related items or experiences can be a big hit.

Whatever you choose, your items should inspire multiple bids, create excitement, and entice donors to engage in your fundraiser.

Now, for the question of where do I get my items?

To maximize revenue and minimize expenses, your nonprofit will have to get creative when it comes to procuring in-kind donations.

We recommend the following best practices to help you and your team solicit items that are guaranteed to motivate donors and help you drive auction success:

  • Form an item procurement team.
  • Consider your audience.
  • Brainstorm item ideas.
  • Write donation request letters.

Whether you’re hosting a silent auction, a live auction, or an online fundraiser, these best practices can mean the difference between hitting your goals and falling flat. Let’s dive in.

Form an item procurement team.

The item procurement process has multiple moving parts, so we recommend dispersing responsibilities across a team. Create an item procurement committee that will work together to solicit the best items for your charity auction. This allows you to cast the widest net and resources to secure the best items with little to no cost.

When building your item procurement team, look for the following individuals:

  • Staff members
  • Devoted supporters
  • Community or board members with social connections
  • Creative individuals (artists, entertainers, designers, etc).
  • Corporate supporters who’ve donated in the past

Taking the time to select people who are passionate, connected, and creative ensures will give you the widest reach and diverse interests needed to assemble an amazing auction!

Consider your audience.

Your audience’s interests and demographics will largely determine what types of items or packages people will be interested in purchasing, whether that’s a local dining experience, nonprofit merchandise, or even a day spent playing with puppies if you’re an animal welfare organization.

If you’ve hosted an auction in the past, review past performance data to understand which items people liked best. Consider which items received the most bids, which items received the least bids, and the average bidding amount. This helps you zero in on the types of items your audience engaged with as well as their price range, and your auction non-performers (so you don’t spend time procuring them again) .

Besides data from past events, ask around! Talk to your top supporters and browse other local charity auctions. Getting first-hand knowledge on what’s hot and what’s not can help you tailor your auction to the trending needs and wants of your donors. We guarantee, put what they want, what they like, what they can’t easily get in your auction, and you will reap fundraising success!

Brainstorm item ideas.

According to the OneCause guide to charity auction items, the most popular items tend to fall into these categories:

  • Classic auction items, like gift baskets, certificates, and memorabilia.
  • Auction Wow Factors, travel packages, unique dining experiences, or VIP seats at the next big sporting event.
  • Auction baskets, bundled items that together create fun and package value.
  • One of a kind art, which can perform incredibly well in school auctions or for causes where hand-made items are highly valued.

Include a variety of items and spread them out across categories. Expanding your item selection can help your nonprofit appeal to different donor interests and budgets, further maximizing bids.

Write donation request letters.

Once you’ve made a wish list of your ideal item selection, you’re ready to begin the outreach process for support. Requesting sponsor or in-kind donations is essential to any fundraiser auction, as it will be too costly for your organization to buy all the auction items.

A great way to receive support for your auction fundraiser is by researching businesses with corporate philanthropy programs. According to Re:Charity, corporate charity comes in many forms, including in-kind donations and sponsorships.

For example, your nonprofit can ask a restaurant to provide a free dining experience that you can auction off in exchange for marketing at your future events. Alternatively, your organization can request funding for costly event expenses like catering or venue expenses.

Your nonprofit can also reach out to supporters who may have access to items you need or are willing to donate funds. You’ll need to craft an effective donation request letter. Your letter should be personalized to the recipient, provide a clear call to action listing the items you are looking for or the financial support you need, and explain the impact of their contribution and how the auction’s results will help power your nonprofit’s mission.

To make your donation request more effective, add storytelling elements that demonstrate the tangible impact your nonprofit has on the community. For instance, you can describe a constituent your nonprofit helped or a recent project you completed and how this was made possible through donor support. Use vivid detail and emotional appeal to encourage your recipient to take action.

Kelly Velasquez-Hague brings over 20 years of fundraising, nonprofit management, and sales/marketing experience to her role as the Director of Content Marketing for OneCause.

As a member of the OneCause sales and marketing team, Kelly manages all of the company’s content strategy and execution. She is passionate about empowering great missions and loves that her current role allows her to continue to help nonprofits reach new donors and raise more funds for their cause.

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