HOW TO SHOW YOUR FUNDRAISING

VOLUNTEERS SOME LOVE

Volunteers are one of the most important components of every nonprofit. They
are the instrumentality through which the organization is able to accomplish
their goals. Generating income for the nonprofit is just one of the many
responsibilities of your fundraising volunteers. Upon examination, it showed
that a vast majority of nonprofits are understaffed. This is because they
experience difficulty in retaining their volunteers. As a result, constant staff
turnover happens.

So what are the bad effects of constant staff turnover? To start, it is difficult to
constantly train new staff. It takes too much resources and manpower to
recruit, train and orient them. Though most nonprofits would gladly recruit
and train new staff, we find that this is counter-productive. The money and
effort wasted in looking for new volunteers may just be allocated to fruitful
objectives.

In order for an organization to retain their staff, they must feel that they are
valued. So what must be done to show your fundraising volunteers some love?
Well first, you need to come up with a scheme that will help your volunteers
ignite their commitment with the organization. To do this, of course you must
know why they chose to volunteer for your organization in the first place. After
knowing that, you will now know how you can keep them invested with your
nonprofit. Second, you must value their input. Ask them for their advice or
feedback. This way, they will feel that they play an important role in the
organization because they are taking active parts in the planning and
implementation of your activities. Always remember to maintain open
communication with your volunteers. Lastly, show them that they matter.
Recognize their efforts. This can be done by designating a day for your
volunteers. During this day, you can conduct a program where you can give
them awards and incentives. You can also give them reports containing the
results of their hard work.

I am sure there are a hundred different ways of showing appreciation to your

nonprofit volunteers. If you are not yet doing anything to make them feel
valued, do something about it now. Your nonprofit failure or success may
depend upon them.