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March 31, 2009

Association of Fundraising Professionals
Half of Charity Campaigns Plan to Extend the Length of the Drive, Survey Finds

With the recession making it harder to raise money, 51 percent of nonprofit organizations now in capital or endowment campaigns have extended the length of their drives, and another 11 percent have reduced the amount they are trying to raise.

That is the conclusion of a survey conducted in January and February by two Chicago companies, Campbell & Company, a fund-raising consulting firm, and Slover Linett Strategies, a research company.

The goal of the survey of more than 300 nonprofit organizations — which either were in a current campaign or had completed one in the past decade — was to assess how charities handle budgeting for large fund-raising drives.

Campaign goals of the respondents ranged from less than $1-million to $1-billion or more, with a median goal of $13-million. Colleges and universities had the highest goals, a median of $40-million, followed by arts groups, with $20.3-million. Those organizations also had the highest campaign budgets, with a median of $1-million for both arts and higher-education drives.

Among other findings of the survey:

• Thirty-seven percent of the institutions surveyed reported paying for the campaign through their operating budget. Another 17 percent said that they folded the campaign budget into the overall campaign goal.

• Less common methods of paying for campaigns included tapping reserve funds, obtaining a gift from one or more trustees or donors to cover the campaign budget, and tapping endowments.

• When asked whether and how they would do things differently in budgeting for a big campaign, 31 percent of respondents said they would engage in more formal campaign planning. Twenty-three percent said they would monitor campaign costs more closely, and 13 percent said they would fold the campaign budget into the overall financial goal of the drive.

• The average campaign budget included 39 percent for staff members, 22 percent for consultants, 19 percent for marketing, and 20 percent for other costs such as events, travel, and office expenses.

— Holly Hall

Tuesday March 31, 2009 | Permalink

Comments

1. Informative article since we are beginning to realign our thinking on the best way for us to roll out our next capital campaign. Thanks

   — Dana Eubank    Apr 2, 08:21 AM    #

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