11 Marketing Communications Activities for Fundraisers, Part 1

Levy offered these tips for planning how to network:

Make a list of the individuals and organizations most important to your success. (It does not need to be a long list.)

• Agree on “who owns whom” … which staff and board members will take responsibility for building a networking relationship with each of these individuals and organizations. Be realistic about how many contacts each of you can handle.
• Review your organization’s yearly calendar to identify good potential points of contact (performances, show openings, board of visitors day, yearly conferences, etc.).
• Inventory the tools you have to share with these contacts. What do you have to offer them? What will be most effective in keeping them up to date on your organization (monthly newsletter, quarterly report, annual report)? Make sure it’s delivered in a personal manner.
• Agree on how often you will reach out to these contacts.
• Evaluate the list on a yearly basis — drop and add as appropriate.

5. Plan to update your website
“You need to make sure that your website accurately reflects who you are as an organization. None of you are stale or stagnate, and your website shouldn’t be either,” Levy said. “Everybody needs to be thinking about how your website can be updated.”