How to Get Donations for a Private Nonprofit Organization

Nonprofit organizations include groups that support the arts, charities, religion, politics, research and other organizations that support an issue or cause. These organizations don't generate profit, but they do accept and disperse money relating to their cause. In order to bring in money, they need to be able to obtain donations from various sources and sometimes have a tax-exempt status. Donations can usually be tax-deductible, so that can be used as a selling point for potential donors.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Phone Computer Printer

How to Get Donations for a Private Nonprofit Organization

1. Design a marketing plan for your nonprofit organization. Figure out what would be the best incentives to get people to donate money for your cause. Some ideas include giving people tax write-off forms or offering advertising to companies who help support your organization (on your website or paperwork that may be passed out at your events).

2. Approach local businesses and ask for donations. Sometimes it is easier to ask for donations in product form rather than monetary form and then use those donations as raffle prizes to raise cash for your nonprofit group.

3. Conduct a bake sale, car wash or other small fundraiser to get individuals to donate money to your organization.

4. Use online resources to solicit your friends and co-workers for donations. You can use networking sites like Facebook or MySpace to let people know about your organization and to tell them how much money you are trying to raise and what it is going toward.

Tips & Warnings

• Ask local businesses to sponsor your organization, if your nonprofit group is a local organization. Many local businesses are more likely to help out other local businesses, so this is a good way to get corporate sponsorship rather than having to go through a nationwide business.
• Don't make promises to sponsors that you can't fulfill. Make sure you have a marketing plan that will work for your organization and be able to explain it to potential sponsors.