How-to guides on fundraising
Last updated
Last updated
The Global Investigative Journalism Network's Development Director Karen Martin has produced a comprehensive guide for journalism organisations seeking to secure funding. It draws parallels between the investigative process and fundraising, emphasizing the need for thorough research, compelling narratives, and strategic outreach. The article addresses the challenges faced by media outlets, particularly those without dedicated fundraising professionals, and explores various funding sources such as grants, individual donations, and alternative revenue streams. Martin also provides practical advice on cultivating donor relationships, perfecting grant applications, and navigating the evolving landscape of journalism funding.
In the world of grant writing, a strong proposal is more than just a compelling narrative; it’s also about presenting a well-crafted budget that supports your case for funding. David L. Wheeler's recent article in The Chronicle of Philanthropy explores how these two elements must work hand in hand to secure financial support. Whether you're navigating the philanthropic debate on overhead costs or ensuring that your organization's finances are in order, Wheeler provides actionable insights to help you build a convincing and sustainable grant proposal.
Unlock your fundraising potential with this free, self-paced course by Adam Thomas at Evenly Distributed, created for people new to fundraising in journalism . This comprehensive course offers 18 lessons over ten hours, featuring new frameworks and insider tips we’ve used to raise over €30m. Learn to strategically identify and prioritise funders, focusing your efforts to save time and boost your chances of success.
This ten-hour course is designed primarily for journalists & fundraisers looking to get funding from philanthropic foundations for journalism projects for the first time. It’s also for those who have fundraised before but are looking to refresh their strategy, reassess their goals, and find new funders.
Crafting an effective proposal starts well before the actual writing process begins. In this session from the GIJC23, Michael Randall, Karen Martin, and Bridget Gallagher share tips on how to create a plan that takes into account the timing of the process, the colleagues whose assistance you will need, the problem that your program will address, and how you will address it. You will receive tips on grant writing – and pitfalls to avoid, covering proposals to both private foundations and government agencies.
Prospecting for donors is the vital process of identifying potential donors for your organization’s programs and projects. In this session from the GIJC23, Michael Randall, Bridget Gallagher, and Karen Martin shared strategies and tools available to help you find donors with the financial capacity and interest to support your work.
This guide for financing digital journalism in Brazil is the result of a partnership between Associação de Jornalismo Digital (Ajor)and Repórter Brasil. It gathers tips for journalism organizations that are looking for resources offered by philanthropic organizations. Whether to launch your initiative, develop innovative projects, open up new fronts or to diversify sources of income.
In addition to the tips, Ajor and Repórter Brasil mapped 38 organizations that have the potential to finance Brazilian projects and organizations.
It’s not enough to simply have a great idea or great reporting. You need a team, you need travel, and you need support -- and, increasingly, that means you need fundraising. Whether you run a nonprofit, produce documentaries and podcasts, or are a freelancer, knowing how to fundraise is a survival skill for investigative journalists. In this video, the Global Investigative Journalism Network has brought together groundbreaking media donors from Australia, Europe, India, and the US to tell you what they’re looking for and how to navigate the sometimes arcane world of grants and donations.
The unexpected onset of the pandemic in early 2020 sent nonprofit organizations everywhere into crisis mode. Economic challenges forced fundraisers to press pause on many of their campaigns and launch new ones to adjust to their new realities and meet the needs of the moment.
At the Lenfest News Philanthropy Summit, Theresa Leinker, senior consultant at Schultz and Williams and director of ElevateNP, discussed the fundraising lessons learned during the pandemic and how organizations that rely on philanthropic giving can better prepare for and navigate crises. Here are some of the main takeaways:
Messaging is critical during crisis. For more on messaging, check out the recording of the Summit session on ethical storytelling for strategies on how to successfully tell your story while respecting the autonomy of your community.
Donors fluctuate — and that’s okay. “It’s a good reality check for us as fundraisers to understand that despite our absolute best efforts, the fact is that new donors who came to our organizations for the first time in 2020 may not stay with the organization,” Leinker said. “That doesn’t mean all is lost… but it is indicative that this is a very unusual time for philanthropy.”`
Deepening engagement can help retain donors. There are key values organizations can highlight to better attract and retain donors, including mission, impact, personal connection, and trust in the organization. During the pandemic, donors recognized the heightened need for philanthropy in alignment with these values, but it is important to note that this need has not gone away even as people begin to return to some pre-pandemic normalcy.
Organizations should do more to better prepare for future disruptions. Organizations can start by building a cross-functional team to manage fundraising efforts during times of crisis and identifying different audiences, such as existing donors, board members, or the broader community. The team should consist of people who can speak to these stakeholders best in order to increase communication.
The full presentation, and all other panels from the Summit, can be found here.
Crafting a successful funding proposal is a challenge for journalists around the world. Competition can be tough, so it’s important to find ways to make your pitch stand out.
The International Journalists' Network (IJnet) offers to talk about crafting a winning pitch across two webinars, offering valuable insights into how journalists can secure financial support for their reporting projects and discussing the topic from the perspective of grantmaking organizations. Here are some key takeaways for developing a strong funding proposal: - Showcase your recent work - Demonstrate the thought you put into your reporting plan - Identify your intended audience Research past successful grants and the reporting that has resulted from them
In these webinars, IJnet gathered together journalists who have developed successful funding proposals in the past provided insight on what worked for them when applying for grants, and are proposing tips to consider when crafting a winning pitch :
Do your research
Identify your target audience
Highlight your past reporting on the issues(s)
Collaborate with other journalists especially if the funders say this is important
Follow the timeframe identified by the funders
Demonstrate the intended impact of your reporting
Develop a clear reporting plan
"If funding is hard in normal times, it’s even harder during a global pandemic where face-to-face connections are replaced with email chains and Zoom meetings." By Yaling Jiang, Splice
At Splice Beta Online, MDIF’s Kevin Brockland, who has vast experience in investment banking and private equity before becoming a media investor, offers tips on what entrepreneurs should think and do at every step of the way.
Start early with fundraising, as it may be more difficult and take longer than you think. “It’s a time-consuming process that requires attention from the founder and from the senior management,” Brockland says. “So it’s important to be prepared and be organized.”
Make an investor pipeline consisting of three key segments: screen, connect, pitch. Check out this one made by U.S. seed accelerator Techstars.
While seeking connections to investors, create a “forwardable email” so it’s easier for your network to send introductions
Know your market, your critical KPIs, and prepare a monthly cash flow statement.
Know your cash needs.
The Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) has curated a database of resources ranging from basic donor research, traditional fundraising, crowdfunding for investigative projects, and a database of journalism grants and fellowships at the GIJN Resource Centre.
The GIJN resource centre features information on:
Fundraising research resources: by Bridget Gallagher, from a presentation at GIJC19.
How to write a proposal: a list of resources with tutorials and tips.
Information for donors: a list of recent reports that can help would-be donors make sense of the field. They address issues such as measuring the impact of investment in journalism, working with media organizations and picking good projects.
Tips on how to plan and carry out a crowdfunding campaign and some case stories from those who have done it.
A database of the latest journalism and investigative journalism grants and fellowships.
A list of tips and ideas from fundraising experts
Based in Amsterdam, Free Press Unlimited, helps local journalists in conflict areas to provide their audience with independent news and reliable information.
Media viability is a broad concept. On Free Press Unlimited’s resource website, you can find an explanation of the definition and framework of media viability that is used for this resource guide. This is followed by an exploration of digital transformation and how this transformation has impacted the viability of media around the world in many different ways.
Finally, this section includes a summary of the viability of media today, differentiating between media in challenging environments (economically and/or politically) and media operating in relatively free and developed contexts. On the further reading page, you can find abstracts of and links to key resources on media viability.
Moreover, Free Press Unlimited focuses on practical support for media outlets to improve their viability providing .
a list of accelerators and media labs around the world
an overview of toolkits and guides, describing how certain aspects of the operating or business model (including the relationship with the audience) can be adjusted for the better
information about Free Press Unlimited’s programme called ‘Roadmap for Media Growth‘ (in this programme, media are encouraged to explore opportunities and innovate within the limitations provided by the contexts in which they operate).
Luminate has been supporting media through good times and bad.
Melanie Hui leads Luminate’s portfolio in Southeast Asia was previously Vice President of the Chandler Foundation, where she managed the organisation from its inception, devised its grant-making strategy, identified high-impact development grantees, and led its strategic engagements with other funders and partners.
She spoke at Beta about how to cultivate a long-term relationship with your donor that goes beyond just money.
FundsforNGOs is a social enterprise established with the purpose of increasing the sustainability of NGOs across the world. The organisation accomplishes this by providing online resources for NGOs to increase their awareness and access to donors, resources, and skills. They use technology to spread knowledge from experienced fundraising experts to NGOs around the world and increase their capacity.
The organisation has a comprehensive collection of free resources for NGOs looking to improve their fundraising skills and offers information on a range of topics including:
simple tips for fundraising for small NGOs
numerous articles on how to approach donors,
and much more...
For the past two decades, Bridget Gallagher, founder of Gallagher Group, has worked as a fundraiser helping profits and not-for-profit funds. Bridget launched Gallagher Group in 2010 in response to a need among growing non-profit media organizations to navigate the donor universe, articulate their theories of change, and measure their impact.
In a conversation with Global Investigative Journalists Network’s Caroline Jarboe, Gallagher offers some practical tips on how to hone your pitching strategies.
Bridget presents best practices for getting funding with proven strategies relevant to many nonprofits. (Courtesy GIJN)
For those just starting out in fundraising or those who simply want a refresher of the basics, the Charity Aid Foundation toolkit will help you put the foundations in place for an effective fundraising strategy.
The resource page also gives tips on :
In this video, you will learn the essential foundations of fundraising as well as what really matter for fundraisers and donors but also keys to being an effective fundraising organisation and more.
Civitates regularly organises such sessions where grantees and funders sit together and exchange freely. The goal is to challenge the feeling of the power dynamic that often exists in a funder-grantee relationship.
"There is nothing a grantee can’t ask a funder. We should come back to the practice of open discussions. Also, the ‘Ask me Anything’ format works only if both sides are very open."
Maribel Königer, Director Communications, Journalism, and Media, ERSTE Foundation
Mohamed Nanabhay, Deputy CEO of the Media Development Investment Fund talks about, among other things, how the MDIF decides which businesses to invest in, and why he thinks the pandemic has provided an opportunity for independent media to thrive.
