People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

Maya Angelou (1928-2014): American poet and civil rights activist

 

FUNDING APPLICATIONS & INCOME

There are three broad categories of where you can source fundraised income: Individuals, Corporates, and Trusts and Foundations.

 

Individuals
Giving is often as a result of a personal connection to your cause (i.e service user), a desire to be altruistic or because you’ve made a specific ask for their support. Examples of how individuals support you include:

    • Donations – given freely, with no expectation of anything in return, and generally unrestricted for support of your activities.
    • Memberships – annual support in return for a range of benefits (e.g newsletter, discounts and access to your services).
    • Events – ranging from things like a small-scale bake sale or quiz, to a large-scale Gala Night or mass participation event (e.g Half Marathon).
    • Campaigns – restricted fundraising in support of a specific project and delivered through a range of communication channels.

Corporates
Businesses are concerned with the impact of your work and how their support will make a direct difference. There are also some benefits that can help with client and networking events (such as free or discounted tickets or access ‘behind the scenes’), but the main focus for businesses will be the return on investment (RoI). Given the current challenges facing disposable income and the economy, making a strong ‘Case for Support’ will put you in the best position for securing corporate funding.

 

Trusts and Foundations
There are thousands of trusts and foundations across the UK – ranging in size, eligibility, sector remit and application requirements – and accessing them can often feel like an uphill struggle. Freckle can help by guiding you through the process and writing clear and concise applications that tell your story.

 

In all cases, people give to people, so the relationship you have with prospective and current donors and funders is vital. The same is also true of the relationships between all levels of an organisation’s staff and volunteers. Freckle can help you to identify, cultivate, steward and manage your relationships, by providing training and support, and further details can be found here.

The first step is to say hello.