Fundraising For Dummies, 4th Edition

Chapter 18

Organizing, Implementing, and Celebrating Your Annual Fund

IN THIS CHAPTER

Checking out what annual funds are

Planning your annual campaign and putting it in motion

Evaluating your campaign’s success and preparing for the next one

Your annual fund is the heartbeat and largest revenue producer of your nonprofit organization’s fundraising program. In both good and bad economic times, your annual fund is what keeps your organization going, which means it also needs to be the center of attention of your fundraising efforts.

Most people are familiar with the annual fund drives held in their communities. You receive requests from the United Way, your local zoo, churches, and schools, just to name a few. Even with this familiarity, however, most people who are approached to give have no idea of the work involved in running an annual fund campaign. Although each annual fund drive is different, careful planning, collaboration, and good management — along with effective result tracking — are key ingredients to a successful annual fund that has the potential to grow over time, no matter what the economy is doing at the moment.

This chapter introduces you to the basics of annual ...