Marketing’s Cousin: Fundraising
Sometimes ministries get confused. Fundraising is not a component of marketing. Marketing helps you fund raise but it is not a core function of fundraising. Fundraising is marketing’s cousin – related but not family.
Fundraising is one of the most difficult thing any non-profit ministry has to do. Well, it is difficult if there isn’t a passionate leader. No one can passionately share the heartbeat of a ministry like the leader – the spokesperson. Take a look at your ministry. Who is the one with the strongest sense of vision? Who is “the leader”. That is your chief fundraiser.
It is that person who bleeds the vision. It is that person who oozes excitement and passion for the success of the vision. It is that person who leads the charge on fundraising. Now, marketing can support the efforts of that leader and their team. Marketing can craft the message clearly and communicate it concisely in print, digital, and supporting peripheral items. But, the high-return results of fundraising are only realized when the leader engages their passion and shares it sincerely and transparently…and shamelessly with potential supporters.
A fundraiser like that never has trouble raising the necessary funds – because that kind of passion is exhilarating and people who connect with a passionately communicated life-changing, world transforming vision will support it in abundance.
I came to this topic today because within the past few months I have had several discussions around the role of fundraising and its correlation with marketing. Then today I read 25 Random Things About Fundraising at Ministry Best Practices and it got me thinking about the topic once again. Take in Bill Reichart’s points and the article he links to. Fundraising is important in ministry. Let’s do it with excellence!
Image from Flickr: Rick
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Comments
Thanks for the link and mention – Bill
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