Wouldn’t it be great if Apple, Google, and Facebook just decided to support your next fundraising event out of the blue? Maybe throw a little bit of Musk’s or Bezos’ fortune into the mix? Unfortunately, the vast majority of fundraisers go unnoticed by these behemoths, leaving us to find support, either financially or otherwise, from other sources.
While this might seem like a setback at first glance, turning to local businesses for fundraising instead can easily become a blessing in disguise. Unlike multinational corporations and conglomerates, local businesses have a vested interest in their local communities’ and residents’ welfare, and getting involved in local charities, causes, and fundraising efforts, more often than not, results in a win-win for everyone: charities reach their goals and local business owners build meaningful relationships and partnerships with the communities they serve.
Collaborating on charitable events with local businesses can take many forms. In addition to making direct financial contributions, local businesses can host joint events such as charity dinners, auctions, or raffles; provide in-kind donations such as goods, services, or labour that reduce the costs of raising funds or act as a drawing card to increase public participation; or further promote your fundraising efforts to their clients or social media followings.
Finding local business support for your fundraising efforts can be a challenge; however, by following our tips for getting local business support for fundraising below, you can leverage local connections to amplify your fundraising efforts.
1.Identify potential business partners
While casting a wide net and approaching every local business in sight might end up yielding positive results, you’re much more likely to find local businesses willing to support your cause through a careful and targeted approach.
A good place to start is to try to find out which local businesses have previously contributed to community causes. This task is often easier than it seems because local fundraisers and their sponsors frequently appear in local media, including newspapers and online community boards. You could potentially even approach non-competing local charities for advice on who to approach.
Another way to find local sponsors is to attend a local chamber of commerce or business networking event. If taking this approach, be upfront and direct about your intentions, but be forewarned that you might be turned away at the door. If you can get in, however, it’s a good opportunity to interact with business owners directly and gauge their interest in community involvement.
One last tip is to consider the business’ relevance to your cause. A local bicycle shop is much more likely to contribute to a fundraiser to upgrade the local skatepark than a knitting supply store, just as a local health food store might be more inclined to contribute to a community garden fundraiser than a luxury car dealership.
2.The pitch
Once you’ve identified one or more businesses you’d like to approach, arguably the hardest part of the process starts—the pitch. In the pitch, you have to convince the business owner or manager to support your fundraiser, persuading them to part with their hard-earned income or to contribute products, services, labour, or time to your cause. Although you could approach the business through digital channels, you’re much more likely to get the result you’re looking for by making an appointment and meeting with the business owner in person.
For your pitch to be successful, it is vital that you highlight the benefits that they will receive by contributing. Increased visibility and positive perception in their community, a reputation as a business that cares about local causes, and positive representation in local media are all strong driving forces that can sway a potentially reluctant business owner. Providing examples of past partnerships with your charity or organisation and highlighting its successes can also go a long way.
It’s important to create a win-win situation for both the fundraiser and its supporting businesses. At zero, or absolutely minimal cost to you, you can sweeten the deal in the pitch by proposing specific ideas on how the partnership can benefit the business. You could offer to feature their logo on products (if relevant); display their promotional material, such as banners, at an event; link them in social media shoutouts, especially attractive if you’ve managed to partner with popular social media influencers; or give them the opportunity to speak at your event.
Another point to remember that can make or break the pitch is to be prepared to answer any questions thrown your way. You’re very likely to be asked serious questions as to how the business’ contributions will be used and who will benefit, as well as questions about transparency, liabilities, and accountability. If, at any point, the person across the table gets the impression that you are unprepared, dishonest, or reaching for answers that you’re unsure of, the chances that they’ll contribute to your cause drop significantly.
3.Maintaining the relationship
Let’s imagine that you found the sponsors you were looking for, met your fundraising goals, held the event, and benefited those as promised. All is done and dusted, right?
Wrong!
A critical step in leveraging the power of local business support for fundraising efforts that is often overlooked is maintaining the relationship. Providing detailed feedback to the business on the outcome of the fundraiser, including how their contribution helped you achieve your goals, is a great way to both show your appreciation and motivate the business to support fundraising efforts in the future.
Going one step further, public post-event thanks in social media posts, local newspapers, or bulletin boards can also help give local businesses that support worthy causes the recognition and publicity they deserve.
Keep the door open for future collaboration by staying in touch, updating them on developments in your fundraising efforts (without continuously asking for further donations), and inviting them to community events or follow-up meetings.
If you found this article informative and interesting, feel free to read our related article titled “Building a Community: How to Foster Long-Term Support for Charities.”