.WS is a 21st Century Fundraiser, long-term...

[RobOdum]

Hey y'all. This is my first week in GDI and my first post on the forum. This particular topic is near and dear to me. I've worked with non-profits both in the US and abroad for 12 years and currently serve a small, struggling urban Native American parish in the upper midwest.

I think the fund raising option certainly deserves more consideration. Bill Shore, founder of Share Our Strength, has argued for years that it is essential for all non-profits to create profit centers within their organizations. This is truer today than it was when Shore first started proposing the idea. Look at your community directory of non-profits, they are all fighting for shrinking slices of the charity pie. You have a low cost option with the potential to reap huge benefits for them. See who on their board of directors might be interested in the program and make your pitch. Don't know how to do that? Volunteer at the homeless shelter or serve on the food line at the soup kitchen, you'll make the right contact.

To those that think Churches will be offended by how you might profit from their efforts. Believe me, resource development is a huge business within the church world and you're offering a much lower cost item that can potentially bring in thousands of dollars (translate that into "blessings"). You might want to offer to buy half the DVDs for the church campaign if you're feeling guilty about benefiting from a church or non-profit. But believe me, there are professional fund raisers who will be charging much more and delivering much less.

If I were to approach the church market, I would first want to approach some of the less formal denonminations, maybe a non-denominational congregation with a pastor open to "prosperity theology". Assembly of Gods might also be a field worth mining.

This is something I must do as I've just found out that my mission board is cutting funding even further, my parisioner's pensions are not meeting their basis needs which translates into less money in the collection plate, and I've got to find $10000 for a new boiler in the church basement between now and next winter. You can bet I'm ready to work this non-profit market.

Go get em!

[ShawK]

Wow, I love the sites. This is more than a great idea. Parents Worldwide should be doing this. You really have something here. Where did you get the graphics for the sites?

Linda,

It is a GREAT idea.. I have thought about targeting schools, daycares, etc..

NOW if you think about it... If a PTA or whatever decides and the ORG decides
to sign up.. can you imagine the unlimited money they can make.. OMG $1 a month
for every website.. more value than selling one candy bar at $1.. MORE uselful..

THIS could honestly be something very good!!!  What I did for my kids sites..
Kyler.ws and Angalynn.ws   IS I put the links on their sites of where they like to
go.. SAVED their website onto the computer.. SO I am controlling their online
atmosphere...

PLUS think about this.. I believe a lot of schools are teaching internet/website stuff..
I think.. this coudl be a great way for them to have something of their own... CREATE
their own identity..  USE it as a school life journal.. etc..

There is a lot of possibility where I feel an ORG would look at it as a way of helping
kids with their own websites while increasing the monthly revenue for the school..
$10/month with hundreds of families involved over years to come.. could be
very profitable to a school.

Stacy Perez

[SeinB]

Very new here in my first couple of hours to be exact.  Just wondering if the school idea that began this thread ever made it to fruitation?  It seems like a nice concept but like all things worthwhile perhaps it had a few hurdles.  So did anyone try this idea and what obstacles did you encounter?

[Lynette Barber,]

Hi Group:

I am a licensed event planner and work with non-profits on fundraisers periodically.

The rules may be different in other countries and vary from state to state in the US.

Here's my take on these conversations about fundraising using GDI.... in the US..... 1. Check with the local government because some fundraising activities need to be registered.  2. Have the organization register the activity.  3.  If it is a small club they will need to go to the bank and open a seperate account using the documents from the corporation division.  4.  If it is a large organization they will sign up in GDI as a business so no individual in the organization is profiting from the endeavor.

Lynette Barber, Pres.
Our Marketing, LLC.

[BRobert1]

Just a suggestion.  If you are going to approach schools it is better to work from the bottom - up. Approach the kids first ( best if it's someone you know) to see their response. Grab the enthusiastic, ( at least two kids. Gives more credibilty and reinforcement when they are talking to the person in charge) walk them through the program until they are comfortable. Provide them with the tools; business card, flyers...
Have them approach the band, cheerleaders, et;. These activity direcors need to see it is something that as a whole everybody can do with the no trepidation and feel good about presenting it.

Real important is to let them know that this will tie in well with their other programs. You do not want to down play what they are already doing. The idea is to make them feel what they have done is important; yet what they can look forward to in the future is fun-draising in the 21st century. 

Maybe you could say to the activity directors ..Wouldn't it be nice if the congress gave us some of the money they waste on pork barreling and they had to  "throw bake sales".

[TeresaHulkovich]

I too am extremely interested and excited about this topic! I love the ad by GSmith! AWESOME....I really think you've got something here! I am wondering if anybody could take the time to go over "the approach" with such an organization with me? I really want to give this a whirl but am not quite sure how to give the presentation once someone was to reply to such an ad. I'll take ANY advise anyone is willing to give!!

Thanks,
Teresa Hulkovich.....my friends call me Terri 

[Rick Allison]

I have an idea to raise money for my Iraq veterans charity, and I wonder what ya'll think.  I would sell .ws packages (web address, website, e-mail, forwarding, etc), and the proceeds would go to the charity.  Participants in fundraiser could use the products however they wish, but my selling point would be for them to point the address at their online, personal profile (like I have RickAllison.info pointed at my MySpace profile).

I was going to do this through Network Solutions or GoDaddy.com, but there is no residual revenue from doing that.  I would only get a small commission off of the first sale, and that would not serve to finane the veterans charity each month in the long term.

Another question: do we all have just one .ws website, or is there more than one? 

Please respond directly to me as well as here on the message board.  

"Rick in Amarillo"

[BBruce]

Hi, I am pretty much a newbie to GDI, I have been with it for a little while but am really just now starting to use it.  Anyway, I want to use GDI to make money for churches, or other not-for-profit organizations.  So I am wondering what is the best way approach organizations to raise money for them with GDI?  Thanks for the help!

[Rick Allison]

I've thought about using .ws as a fundraiser for my veterans' charity (VetFund.com) that will help wounded Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to retrain for new careers.  It is a way that people inside of GDI can support these wounded warriors, too, but I would also promote .ws products to people outside the company as a way to promote their personal (web profile) sites or business sites, too.

If you and your team would be interested in helping veterans through the GDI program, please send me a PM.

I'm not sure I could sell .ws as a fundraiser to other non-profits, but I think it could work for my company's long term financing needs.

Live long and prosper,

"Rick in Amarillo"
Great Site
VET Fund, Inc.

[NBRATCHETT]

 :)very encouraging and positive! this is my first day really reading in the forum. i was nervous but your insight helped me alot!

[AmySignor]

Wondering if anyone has gone further with the fundraising as it relates to church organizations? I had been mulling this over in my brain for a couple of weeks when I drove by one of the many, many churches in my area and noticed that their website (listed on the sign in front of the church, you know, the one where lots of churches put scriptures that change each week?) anyway, their website is actually a .WS site! I poured over it looking for some sign that they were using it to raise money but couldn't find anything.

I really love the idea in the post a couple of years back of using the main organization's site to host 'bricks' that would link to sites of individual members...

Also, for a church community, even a medium sized one like my own, I think one way is to literally just 'do the math' in a one-on-one meeting with the decision maker. So, say there are 1000 families enrolled in a church, parish, etc., and they were able to get somewhere in the range of 20-50% participation in the fundraiser.

If you show them exactly how to achieve the fabulous bonus offered by GDI (i.e. make sure they sign their members up in groups of 5), at 20% participation, they will bring in $4,000 in bonus money right away, plus the ongoing $200 a month...at 50% participation, it's $10,000 in bonus money, plus the $500 a month residual. WOW.

Yet another wow - how about a fundraiser that allows people who participate to start generating their own income from it, while helping the organization even more? Show me a Sally Foster or Scrip or candy bar sale that can do that!

-Amy

[S Couch]

I am looking for information on how to set GDI up as a fundraiser. Any help that anyone could offer would be most appreciated.  Thanks!

[GreenD]

I see that this thread started back in 2005.  It's got some great ideas in it.  I'd appreciate any updates on the progress of any of these ideas.  Especially the one about running an add in the paper requesting 3 non-profits to test run fundraising concept.  I'd like to know if anyone has had any success with churches also. 

[BattleD]

Hello, everyone.

I am a real newbie in GDI; I just started yesterday.  I have been thinking about GDI-based fundraising for charitable causes (funding for Christian Education).

I was thinking about forming a foundation or similar organization that is funded by GDI yet are independent from churches, nonprofits, etc.  Then, the foundation or similar organization could make contributions or make funds to be available to churches, nonprofits, etc.  That way, GDI Affiliates would NOT be profiting from or appear to be profiting from churches, nonprofits, etc. At the same time, churches, nonprofits, etc. would not be at risk of losing their nonprofit status by a GDI business.  What are your thoughts?  Thanks for your feedback. 

David S. Battle 

[Brandi Edwards]

This is my first week also in GDI. Yay me!

One of the first options that came to mind was fundraising. This is an excellent option!

I am a member of a non denominational chuch and I grew up in Church of God in Christ. I believe that all organizations and denominations will be open to fundraising with GDI. They really wouldn't be concerned with you the GDI rep benefitting from it, that's how the candy and cookie companies profit as well. It's all in your approach. You know that you are going to benefit from it, however, show them how they "will" benefit from it.

In all efforts remain positive, and cancel out the negative with ACTION. There's a first time for everything and no then doesn't mean no always.

I am going for it and I will continue to come back with updates on my efforts. There's a yes out there with my name on it.

spread love.