Giving circles serve as a valuable source of funding for nonprofits, both small and large. Giving circles are groups of individuals who come together to pool their money, non-cash giving, time, volunteer hours and other resources. Once the financial and other resources are pooled, these items are given to 501c3 charitable organizations in the form of grants and contributions.

Within the nonprofit and foundation community, it is understood and agreed that 501c3 funding provided by giving circles is a big amount. Just how big funding circles are is not known as many of the funding circles are informal. However, based on our research, we estimate that there are greater than 1,000 giving circles in the US and collectively, they have given in excess of $200 million. You can find giving circles in all 50 states.

The U.S. Federal Government provides millions of dollars in grant funding to qualifying nonprofits each year. As a 501c3 tax exempt organization, you may be eligible to apply for these grants to support your current programs and launch new ones.

Grants can be searched and applied for on the www.grants.gov website. It is a common site for 26 federal agencies to post their grant opportunities and offer an easier way for the grantees to search and apply for the funding.

Crowdfunding has recently become a $16 billion industry and an important source of contributions to 501c3 organizations. Businesses and nonprofits all over the world have been successfully raising funds from crowdfunding campaigns, which are still a very new practice of funding. Crowdfunding is a fundraising model to collect small donations from a large number of people. One of the largest crowdfunding sites online is GoFundMe.

Hint for raising funds from crowdfunding. Your story should be unique and personal, show passion about your cause. Show your potential backers how the campaign will impact people’s lives. Tell them how your cause will solve the problem.

Matching Gifts Programs. Your 501c3 nonprofit organization already works so hard to grow its individual donor base, so looking into your donors’ employer matching gifts programs is worth a shot for additional funding. Many businesses of all sizes offer matching gifts programs to nonprofit organizations for each donation made by their employees. Most businesses contribute to a broad spectrum of nonprofits, matching donations at a standard 1:1 ratio, however other ratios are quite common as well. Combining the power of individuals and companies might double your revenue!

In order to receive a matching gift from a company, you would need to inform your donors about this opportunity. Nonprofits that encourage their donors to submit matching gift requests to their companies have a great success with receiving the corporate contributions. You may promote the corporate matching gifts on your donor forms, communications, and other social media, emphasizing how each donor can double the impact at no cost.

All successful 501c3 organizations have a good story. You must make sure that your 501c3 has a good story. That story should be the focus of your organization’s communication.

People are constantly learning and obtaining information from a wide variety of sources. Most people don’t like to read a bunch of numbers. Charts and graphs are okay, but to really get someone’s attention, tell them a good story.

Tell the story of how your after school tutoring program was implemented into a school and how the average grades rose from C to B+ for those 25 kids as a group. Share pictures of the kids (with parents permission) learning and having fun. Have a couple of the kids speak for 45 seconds about their experience in the program.

Where to share your stories? Share your stories at your events. Perhaps you have fundraisers, seminars, workshops or an annual gala. Want to get the story moving quickly, share it on as many social networks as you can, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest. These are some of the biggest networks out there and will provide you with the widest exposure for your 501c3 organization.

Who to share your 501c3 stories with? Share your story with everyone who will listen. Potential participants want to hear the story in order to know whether it is worth their time to join in your organization’s activities. Part of the reason people volunteer for organizations is because they wish to be associated with a positive story. And donors are willing to give to a 501c3 organization when they believe in what you are doing. There is no better way to convince donors than through a good story.

How often to share your story? Stories are shared constantly in some form. When you story is on one of the social network, it is being shared when you are asleep. When you have a weekly newsletter, you are sharing that story weekly with the subscribers. If your 501c3 has an annual gala, share the stories which are likely to have the biggest impact.

What goes in the story? There is no limit in terms of what to include in the story. Just be reasonable and remember who the audience is. Share something that will help your audience in their own life. Share positive outcomes and experiences. Start with something interesting.   Share stories that will touch the audience.

And most important – only share stories that are true and genuine.

Your organization exists to serve its participants. Stay focused on the participants’ needs, desires and wants. Make it easy and convenient for participants to access your activities.

Review the feedback of your participants. If your 501c3 organization services 1,000 participants, then there could easily be several good ideas generated from the feedback of these participants.

Keep your financial records updated. If you’ve got a bunch of receipts and banks statements in a box, now is a great time to catch up for 2017. Much easier to catch up on 6 months than 12 months at year end.

Start new fundraising programs. Take a look at what other nonprofit organization are doing and adapt. Make sure you are keeping up with the latest trends and means of raising funds for your 501c3 organization.

File the Form 990. The year 2016 form 990 should be behind you now. Get ready for the 2017 form 990 by tracking all the right information. Keep track of the organization’s achievements, programs, etc.

Keep your volunteers interested and excited. Keep your volunteers in the loop in terms of your accomplishments over the last several months and the expectations for the remainder of 2017. Discover new ways of interacting and communicating with your volunteers.

Add a new technology to your 501c3 organization’s operations. Technology changes constantly with many opportunities for nonprofits to benefit from new technology on the market. You can find new different ways of reaching participants and donors; ways to increase efficiency; etc.

Document board member changes. Good management techniques will show donors, volunteers and participants that your organization has a good management team and know how to operate properly.

Be Innovative. Do things a little different or a lot different. Innovation comes in many forms and may be small steps or big steps. You may add an entirely different program to meet the mission of your organization. On the other hand, you may just add an additional location where your services are offered.

Nonprofit organizations grow and succeed not only with the support of the community and grant funding, but also with the continuous implementation of good management practices. We compiled a few recommendations of best principles and practices for nonprofit management.

– Independent Board.

It is very important to have like-minded, knowledgeable, and resourceful individuals to serve on the board of directors. It is beneficial when board members have some experience in both business and nonprofit management, which can significantly help your organization steer towards achieving its goals. It is recommended that board members are unrelated to each other through family or business.

– No Inurement.

Avoid situations of benefitting the organization’s insiders (directors, officers, or members). A typical example of private inurement would be paying for the insider’s personal (not related to the organization’s activities) expenses. This conduct may result in monetary penalties from the IRS and possible 501c3 status revocation.

– Organized Staff.

Whether you are dealing with paid personnel or volunteers, you are responsible for their oversight. Nonprofits should follow all legal employment requirements and provide a safe work space. It is also advised to implement specific and clear policies for the staff to follow to help the organization achieve its mission.

– Transparent Financial Records.

Throughout the year, nonprofits should keep a good track of their revenues and expenses. If this is properly exercised, preparation and filing an annual return 990 will be a less intimidating task. Charities are required to file a return with the IRS for each year of their existence. Filing a 990 in a timely manner not only keeps a nonprofit in compliance with the IRS, but also benefits its donors by showing them financial transparency. Current and potential donors will be able to see the program accomplishments, board of directors’ information, and how the organization distributed its funding.

– Strategic Planning of Effective Programs.

Each nonprofit should develop a solid plan on how to advance its mission. It can be a short term or a long term plan. For example, a short term plan can be to feed the homeless every Sunday. A long term plan can be opening a homeless shelter and resource center. While planning, you have to account for available finances, staff, location, etc.

– Use of Technology and Information Systems.

Nowadays, nonprofits are using a wide variety of technology and information systems that help them stay efficient, cost effective, accurate, and compliant. Social media help them stay in touch with current donors and gain new contributors, and various software assist them with bookkeeping, staff management, grants tracking, etc. Using proper technology will enable nonprofits to grow and evolve.

Hiring employees and contractors is a great way to create jobs in the community; however, let’s face it – if you are a small nonprofit, your funding might be too tight to afford a paid workforce. Each nonprofit needs to acquire and sustain a pool of volunteers that will be available to help during a charitable event, fundraising event, or whenever needed. Some tips for healthy and productive collaboration include:

The incentive. Keep your volunteers interested and motivated; encourage them to achieve great results by explaining the goals of the organization and the benefits it brings to the community and society in general.

Show interest. Understand what they want, why they like and support your organization. Do they receive anything in exchange for their services except personal satisfaction?

Ask for Help. Set expectations – tell them what needs to be done and how. They are here to help you, thus you need to be clear and straightforward with what you want them to do. You will do the planning, while your volunteers will help you implement it.

Build the relationship. Learn more about their job, hobby, family, and causes they support. The goal is to use their services in the future again. Invest some of your time to get to know them. A Personal approach is always appreciated.

Request Collaboration. Make them feel like a part of your organization.  Invite them to important meetings and let them share their opinion. Your volunteers are your team, and they will often have some valuable ideas. In fact, your volunteers who also help other nonprofits will bring fresh experience to the table.

Treat. Provide water, snacks, and t-shirts that the volunteers can keep and use to spread the word about your organization; provide a free lunch. Little tokens matter.

Provide Feedback. Give them a feedback about the good work they did. Feeling appreciated will make them come and help again next time when you need them. Share the impact of their work with other volunteers.

Communicate. You don’t want your volunteers to hear from your organization only when you need them. Make sure that you communicate and share information about the success of your organization regularly. Manage and update a contact list with all volunteers.

Show Appreciation. Instead of a cliché “thank you” note, you can include a short summary of the good work they did with pictures and their names on your organization’s website and/or social media. Always acknowledge their participation and input. Remember that a bit of “bragging” about your team is a powerful motivation engine.