The First Meetings
Now that you have a team together to kick off the fundraising drive, you need to decide how it will work. Whether you are about to launch a direct mail campaign, a beauty pageant, or a car wash, you will need to hold fundraising meetings. Even in this day of e-mail and conference calls, nothing beats the face-to-face, in-person meeting.
Keep the momentum going! Once your committee, group, or posse is formed, get together within two weeks. Don't give volunteers a chance to lose interest. Always have something planned for the meetings; you don't have to have a massive agenda, but make sure there is a purpose.
It is essential to keep people returning to subsequent meetings, maintaining the level of interest and enthusiasm for the fundraising goal. You want to make sure that people feel at ease in meetings. If people feel good and are in a comfortable setting, they will be more likely to participate in the discussion.
Meeting Preparation
Prepare and distribute an agenda for each meeting that includes a clear purpose for the meeting beyond the obvious: to discuss the fundraising efforts. Be as specific as possible!
Prior to your meetings, set some basic rules of procedure to maintain a sense of order and keep things running smoothly. Many nonprofits use Robert's Rules of Order — a precise format for running a meeting — to handle meeting protocol. Depending on the size and nature of the group, you will adapt your own version of this antiquated, but still widely accepted, method of governing meetings.
Meeting Tips
Make sure you have allowed sufficient time for everyone to know about the meeting. Send your letters or e-mails a couple of weeks prior to the date. Invite only the people who need to be there. Follow up with people who have not responded as the date approaches. Set a start and an end time, and keep track of the time as you go. Do not allow one agenda item to dominate the meeting unless it is considerably more important than all others.
It is important to try to involve everyone present in the discussion. If new members are present, make sure to introduce them or have them introduce themselves. As the meeting progresses and more people participate, try to keep the discussion from going off on tangents, and limit unnecessary side chatter.
Have someone record minutes at your meetings. Key decisions and a clear list of who is responsible for which task should be on paper — or archived electronically. Electronic minutes can be distributed to members so that everyone remains on the same page.
Finally, have refreshments! However, try not to let refreshments get in the way. Position them away from the main meeting area or set a specific time for a refreshment break.
Even an informal group should run the first meetings with some sense of structure and a touch of formality. It sets a tone that will be helpful once everyone has become more comfortable with one another. Frequently, once the members of a group get to know each other, more socializing or nonproductive discussion dominates the meeting. As a result, not much gets accomplished. If you start off with some formality, a separation of “meeting” and “socializing” has been set.
Running a successful fundraising meeting also means keeping one eye on the goal at hand and the other on the clock. Remember, if people leave a meeting feeling like they have gotten something out of it besides cake and coffee, they will come back for the next fundraising meeting — which should be planned before you adjourn the present one. If people leave shaking their heads because the meeting ran until midnight, they won't return.
To keep the meetings interesting and the members coming back, you may try varying your meeting place. Sometimes, small nonprofits and other groups engaged in fundraising efforts will meet in people's houses. This alone can draw people who are curious about seeing each other's homes. If your nonprofit or school board has a standard meeting place, you might try a variation by having a lunch or dinner meeting. A new twist on an old theme may keep people coming back.
It is important to schedule both a start and an end time for the meeting. This way, you let everyone know the meeting is carefully planned around the agenda and you are cognizant of people's need to end at a reasonable time. Two or two and a half hours is a good length for a meeting.
Goals of the Meeting
Your first fundraising meetings should set the plan in motion. If you are seeking donations for an auction and no one has gotten any donations by the third meeting, then the approach is wrong, the cause has not been clearly identified, or your members are going after the wrong donors. Likewise, if you are embarking on a phone or direct mail campaign, you can get early feedback from those doing the calling or receiving the return mail. Early in the planning process, meetings can provide a chance to evaluate and remedy unproductive situations before they continue.
When you are planning a fundraising event, the early meetings give you an opportunity to establish a timeline to work toward the specific fundraising dinner, auction, or bikeathon. Again, you will be able to evaluate your progress from meeting to meeting and see how you can get back on schedule if you have fallen behind.
Finally, schedule enough meetings to maintain enthusiasm and keep everything running on time. However, do not hold meetings for the sake of meetings. Many groups meet again and again without rhyme or reason out of force of habit. This is not productive.
