Corporate giving currently accounts for nearly 10 percent of allcharitable donations nationwide, and most experts agree that theflow of corporate resources earmarked for nonprofit programs is onthe rise. Yet, many fund raisers are held back from tapping thisgold mine by the fear they don t know how to "play the system"correctly. When it comes to soliciting corporate funds, even oldhands at private fund raising find themselves stymied by the lackof clear-cut answers to such critical questions as: "How do I findout which companies give and how do I obtain information aboutthem?" "Who are the funding decision makers, and how do I appeal tothem and cultivate relationships with them?" "What hidden stringsand pitfalls should I be aware of when soliciting corporatefunds?" Successful Corporate Fund Raising provides in-depth answers tothese and all your questions about finding and winning corporatefunds. The distillation of Scott Sheldon s more than two decades ofexperience as a corporate fund raiser, it provides a completeblueprint for developing and maintaining successful corporatefund-raising programs at nonprofits of all sizes. The book begins with an in-depth exploration of the world ofcontemporary corporate giving. It explains the key differencesbetween private funding and the "strategic philanthropy" practicedby many corporations. It describes the various forms corporategiving most commonly takes, including cash, in-kind, andvolunteerism. And it clearly spells out the motivations, perceptions, expectations, and conditions driving most corporatefunding.The lion s share of the book is devoted to schoolingreaders in effective low-cost strategies for locating, obtaining, and managing corporate resources. Organized around the five keycomponents of a successful corporate funding initiative, itprovides step-by-step guidance on how to research corporatefunders, cultivate relationships with key personnel, solicitcorporate resources, evaluate the efficacy of fund-raisinginitiatives, and manage funded programs. It also supplies a wealthof forms, questionnaires, sample letters and proposals, checklists, and other valuable tools that can easily be adapted for use in yourorganization. Successful Corporate Fund Raising is an indispensableworking resource for all nonprofit fund raisers, developmentmanagers, agency executives, and board members. An expert s guide to finding and winning corporate support for yournonprofit organization. This book shows fund raisers and executives at nonprofits of allsizes how to take advantage of the current corporate fundingopportunities. K. Scott Sheldon provides a fresh, insider s look atcontemporary corporate giving, and he develops a complete blueprintfor developing a corporate fund-raising program. Step-by-step, hewalks you through the entire corporate fund-raising processand:
* Describes proven fund-raising strategies and techniques that canbe integrated into virtually any nonprofit organization
* Alerts you to the common pitfalls to corporate solicitation andshows you how to avoid them
* Explores the impact of new technologies on corporate fundraising
* Details solid strategies for taking advantage of resources otherthan cash, including in-kind donations and volunteers
* Illustrates key points with fascinating and instructivereal-world case studies
* Arms you with an array of forms, checklists, sample documents, questionnaires, and other valuable tools