When to Ask

Allow lots of time. Never rush anything free.

Give the donor time to fit in your in-kind donation after the paying customers.

Think well ahead, particularly if you have a deadline such as a special event. It is not unusual to ask a year before an event for donations of such items as entertainers or catering.

Have a firm idea of the timing that would be best, in case the donor asks. Donors may find it difficult to meet that deadline, so be willing to be flexible. They are more likely to try to fit in with you if they think:

• you are organized
• you have a specific need
• your approach has been well thought out

Donors usually have a yearly budget for in-kind requests. A company's fiscal year end may fall at any time throughout the year. With large corporations this should be your first question: when do I make my request?

Watch for off-season opportunities. Many suppliers are more willing to help when they're not busy.

A construction firm could do repairs on your property when work is slow. A hotel can provide meeting rooms when occupancy is down.

January and February or the summer months can be slow periods for a wide variety of businesses. For others, winter is a dead time. Ask them to tell you when their off-peak periods make it easy to give.

That doesn't mean you should wait until the slow period to ask. Just let donors know that you will be pleased to wait until the quiet season for the actual work to be done. Be sure to include the timing in your planning.

Example: Cineplex Odeon is marketing their theatres as meeting rooms and special events sites at off-peak times. Try approaching them with your event to offer some community exposure in exchange for free or reduced-price use of their facilities.

Offer benefits to the donor. Put their name on it. As an extra incentive to give, help the donor get more business. Offer to put the donor's name or advertising in your newsletter, event program or brochure.

Example: All faxes sent by Voice for Hearing Impaired Children bear the prominent message, “The facsimile used to send this document was generously donated to Voice by Lanier Canada, Ltd” and the Lanier logo.

Bonus: The supplier will provide their best, if the company name is going on it.

Example: The Royal Bank printed pamphlets for a festival in Burlington. They printed the bank's name on the last page of the brochure.

Mention your business supporters in all your printed materials, including ads, invitations to events and souvenir programs.

Example: The Canadian Vintage Motorcycle Group prints the names of its donors in its promotional pamphlets. At the top of the list in bolder type are the names of the six modern motorcycle manufacturers.

Bonus: The prominence of those six names is enough to guarantee any additional support the event will ever need, and their support adds immeasurably to the prestige of the event when it comes time to sell tickets.

If the big names are supporting you, then others are more likely to follow suit. The big names are also pleased to be acknowledged as leaders in their field. (Be honest, use this as selling point when you approach a potential major donor.)

Example: Performing groups acknowledge donors in their programs — ballet, symphony, choirs, local theatres, school music groups. Everything from flowers to furniture, car rentals to caterers. Almost everyone attending reads the program and many are saved as souvenirs.

Bonus: Publicizing the fact that you have in-kind donations enhances your image as good stewards of resources.

Share your advertising. Being associated with a nonprofit group in advertising is a great carrot to dangle in front of a donor. Marketing departments are particularly susceptible to this incentive. Positive exposure can be of exceptional value to image-sensitive organizations.

First, approach the media for air time or ad space. Once you've got it, include mention of your sponsors whenever you get the chance.

Newspapers and radio stations should be one of your first targets for a special event in-kind drive. If you can approach other donors with the promise of this type of publicity, asking may be easier.

Don't overlook billboards and transit ads. Ask how much the ads would cost if you had to pay for them. Tell the donor the cost to quantify the value of the return they will get on their investments.

For even more impact, get the radio station to bring their portable broadcast booth down to the site. Whether it's a special event or a key day in your campaign, offer the site or your office as a broadcast location. You'll attract crowds of potential donors.

Have the station interview donors, celebrity supporters, clients, staff, and volunteers. Have countdowns or targets that you can report on air to keep up interest.

Offer tickets. If the organization is having an event, offer the donor one or more free tickets or preferred seating. Offer to introduce them to the audience and acknowledge them, their company and their product. Suggest that they could send employees to boost morale or entertain customers to boost sales.

Example: The Canadian Diabetes Association is the organizing charity for the reception and dinner surrounding the National Hockey League Annual Awards. They search for hockey fans at the executive level of potential donor companies and key marketing executives. They exchange a small number of tickets — to maintain exclusivity — for donations of products or services. They promote the value of entertaining clients who are fans or the opportunity to network in a relaxed environment.

The same approach can work at the local level on a smaller scale.

Attract customers. Some retailers can provide both product and a place to hold your event.

Example: IGA Supermarkets often donate food for a barbecue held in their parking lot. This raises money for the nonprofit group, and also attracts customers to go shopping.

Example: Brewers Retail (beer distributors in Ontario) agreed to help a charity collect and return beer bottle empties.

Usually this requires hundreds of volunteers walking countless miles and large numbers of vehicles. In this case, the nonprofit group approached the donor with a well thought out plan to minimize the effort and maximize the results.

Brewers Retail parked tractor-trailers outside each of The Beer Stores in the community. Volunteers for the charity approached customers on their way into the stores asking them to donate their empties, and loaded the cases into the trucks. Total take for the one-day drive: $17,000; total cost: nil.

Bonus: Brewers Retail spent nothing extra to bring in the trucks which would have been needed to take away the empties if they had come in across the counter. They also gained a considerable amount of favourable publicity from the event. A win-win situation!

Sell the product. If a donor gives merchandise to be sold to raise money for nonprofit group, this can build customer loyalty or be an opportunity for sampling.

Example: Gevalia coffee company gave samples to a Vancouver classical musical group which:
a)sold their brand at intermission, and
b)had volunteers package the product in gift baskets to resell.
This provided the company with exposure to an upscale target market group.

Help with staff development. Many companies are already aware that loaning personnel improves morale, provides exposure to a wider range of learning experiences, and can provide training, avoid layoffs, and create or improve a positive community image.

Reward the donor. When businesses give, thank them, as publicly as possible. Positive feedback pays off many times over.

• Have a ceremony. Put the donor's name on the item, if that's appropriate.
• Offer signs they can post in their window. Plaques for their walls.
  Example: A number of years ago, the Ontario branch of a national health charity gained the ongoing support of a local radio station for their major annual fundraising event. The station provides on-air time in the form of announcements and frequent mention by their disk jockeys. Each year the charity stages a ceremony in the station's lobby to present an updated plaque acknowledging the donation. The most recent plaque, prominently placed, boasts an accumulated total of over $168,000 worth of donated air time!
  Bonus: Best Sign Systems is one of serval companies that engrave bricks and tiles for donor recognition in walkways, lobbies and public areas. They claim up to 500% increases in donations with effective use of their product.
• Invite the donors to see their donations in use.
• Announce their names at meetings.
• Have clients write letters of thanks — kids can do oversize art that can be posted in a store window, in an office or on a reception area wall.
• Honour the best at a fundraising dinner, lunch or breakfast and have the food, beverages and location donated.
• Designate an “Official Supporters” list just like the Olympic Committee.

Business donors should end up feeling they made a wise investment. That takes lots of reinforcement. Be known as the most appreciative nonprofit group in town.

Don't spend money thanking donors and volunteers. That seems like a waste of their money. For plaques, try asking the manufacturer to donate them and offer to put their name on it, too. Do it all for free.

Plan How You Will Ask

Find out why they give

There are basically three reasons people give to nonprofit group:

Self-interest: It affects them or people they know personally, whether it's a disease, an art form, a social problem or an education — or they get benefits.

Clout: Somebody important to them is doing the asking.

Passion: They care deeply about your cause.

Researching your potential donor should tell you which of the above apply and can be most effective. It can be all three — which should get you an immediate and generous response.

Give them results.

`Need' is a negative word. People don't give because you need something. They care more about the results you can accomplish.

Focus on ends, not means. Remember that people give to people. They want to know who will benefit from their gift.

Go armed with all the details to quantify the value of the goods or services to your organization.

Tell them in dollars and cents (if you can), and human terms, what good their donation will do.

Maximize the approach

Consider if you want to send a client or staff person with the volunteer asker to support the request.

This depends on the size of the request, the status of the donor you're seeing, the asker's relationship to the donor and the nature of your organization's work.

Ask yourself, how it would help and how much it will help. If the answer is “Not much”, or “He or she can do it best one-on-one”, send the asker alone.

If you do send two people, have them sit down and discuss their approach and goals before the visit. Make sure each understands his or her role and that they are comfortable working together.

The right pairing can provide an effective one-two punch. It allows one to sit back and observe while the other makes the presentation.

Put it in writing, but only if you have to. Some companies require an initial written submission. This is often the case with major corporate donors who receive hundreds of requests daily.

Your first contact must be a request for their guidelines. Find out exactly what they want to know and then tell them.

Make your letter as brief, comprehensive and effective as possible. Before you send it, have someone outside your organization read it to make sure:

• that it's not too long or rambling
• that it is clear and understandable and doesn't require any further explanations, and
• that it has human interest.

Send them everything they ask for or explain why you can't. If they make no specific requests for supporting material, include some basic pamphlets if you have them, but don't overload them. Too much material makes them wonder how wisely you're spending your donors' dollars.

How to encourage companies to give

The Business Committee for the Arts asked corporate arts patrons in New York why they gave to the corporate arts.

They responded in classic marketing terms, listing corporate citizenship (91%), enhancing image (65%), media coverage (35%), product promotion (28%), and increasing sales (20%). The underlying message was that they wanted a return for their dollars.

What better way, then, for a corporation to get exposure for its corporate citizenship, product or services (and a tax deduction) than through a high visibility gift of its product or services?

The Committee summarized the recommendations as follows:

·	Make reasonable requests for support	63%
·	Understand corporate goals and objectives	54%
·	Provide project and organization budgets and lists of other supporters	50%
·	Include marketing plans and requests	28%
·	Show willingness to work with business to develop programs that meet the company's corporate mission	26%

The key is to understand your potential donors' marketing mission, whether they're a corporate giant or the local store, and to demonstrate how they can meet those goals by giving product or a piece of equipment to your organization.

Excerpted from the Taft Fundraising Institute Monthly Portfolio, “How to encourage companies to give”, July 1992, vol 31, no 7. Reprinted with permission from the publisher.

© the Taft Group, 12300 Twinbrook Parkway, Suite 510, Rockville, MD USA, 20852. Phone: (301) 816 0210

Let People Know Your Needs

Once you have your list together, let everyone know what you need.

Start at home. Put the list in an attractive, easy-to-understand format. Print lots of photocopies.

• Give copies to staff and volunteers.
• Put copies on the bulletin board and in the newsletter.
• Talk it up at board and committee meetings.
• Circulate the list. Print it neatly on a big piece of paper and put it in your doorway or window.

Spread it around.

• Write a letter to the editor.
• Ask volunteers if they can get it put up on their company bulletin boards or included in company or trade newsletters.
• Print a catalogue suggesting gifts people could give their community, and distribute it through stores or newspapers.

Christmas is a particularly good time to do this, though Mother's Day, Father's Day, Thanksgiving or any occasion may be appropriate for your group. If your organization has a `day', `week', or `month', circulate it then.

If you do choose an occasion-specific theme, be sure to have it printed well ahead. For example, for Christmas, get it printed in September for October/November distribution.

In producing the catalogue, your first approach should be to a writer and designer, and then a printer. See if you can get them to give you your first in-kind donations to start the ball rolling. The catalogue can be as simple or as glamorous as you can manage.

Don't worry if it's not slick, just well designed, presentable and well thought out. In some cases, modesty of presentation is a plus. Don't forget to use recyclable or recycled paper and ink, and say so in the publication.

You can even update it with stickers or a stamp, saying “SOLD” and listing the names of the generous individuals who have helped reduce the list.

How to Handle In-Kind Donations in Your Budget

In-kind donations can and should be accounted for in a budget.

• This acknowledges their real value.
• It may also encourage donors to make more in-kind contributions to you.
• In-kind donations may also be eligible for matching grants.
• Finally, it shows your good stewardship of resources to the public.

Divide in-kind donations into two categories:

a) cash equivalents and
b) windfalls.

Cash Equivalents

Cash equivalents are goods or services which you budget to purchase.

These do not change your budgeting for expenses in any way.

Let's say you intend to acquire a computer worth $10,000. It's irrelevant to you and the expense budget how you acquire the computer. That $10,000 could be a small part of a government grant, or from 70 different donors, or an in-kind donation of the hardware itself. It may even be a combination of these. The same applies whether it is office equipment, printing, or goods to be used in projects.

In this particular case, show a line item for “Computer… $10,000” on the expense side of the budget.

Then compile a list of the in-kind donations you will solicit in the year ahead.

Some items would be cheaper to buy, given the staff time necessary to get them donated. Finding the others becomes part of the work plan.

Always note exactly what is needed with full specifications, so it can be requested properly. If variations are acceptable, say so. If an IBM-compatible computer isn't available, will a Macintosh or Amiga do just as well?

Also note the deadlines. If the items are not donated by a set date, then you will go ahead and purchase them instead. If you need the computer up and running by September 1, allow time for installation and training. You may need to know definitely whether or not you'll have the computer donated by August 1st, so you can purchase it instead.

Thus, you may have a list like this at the beginning of the year:

In-kind donations to solicit:
approx. retail value

On the income side, when the donation in kind is received, include it, just as you would for any cash donation. Where the income budget shows, for example:

add lines for:

Windfalls

Windfalls are items that you did not intend to purchase. They are not in your expense budget or your work plan at the beginning of the year.

Ideally, windfalls will all be of immediate use. Someone may offer you desks, a used fax machine or some other equipment, which you may accept, even though you had no intention of buying such items this year.

Some in-kind donations, however, may create secondary problems. If a donor offers 100 tons of milk powder which you had not planned on purchasing, you may accept it or decline it. If you accept it, you must then arrange warehousing, transportation and distribution. These secondary expenses, too, may be found in kind or paid for out of other donations.

You do not plan for these windfalls. You have no intention of going out to get them. Although it is reasonable to anticipate that some will be offered each year, and the value of these might be projected based on past experience, you can't know which items may appear.

For all these reasons they are not included on the expense side of the budget at the beginning of the year. Thus, in January, no item would be shown in the budget forecast.

During the year, those that are accepted should show up on the income side of the budget. Do this in the same way as above.

When the items are then used, they are added to an amended version of the budget.

For example, you may start the year with an expense budget of $10,000 for medical supplies. You plan to pay for these from donations. During the year, a pharmaceutical company donates these plus another $50,000 worth. You accept. The amended budget now shows $60,000 for medical supplies on expenses and on income.

A footnote explains these were:
a) in kind and
b) a one-time windfall.

It is important to footnote these as windfalls, so that no one is surprised if your budget for medical supplies reverts to the $10,000 level in subsequent years.

If they are accepted in one fiscal year and not used in a project until the next year, it may be appropriate to arrange a carryover. Thus the income would show the donation in kind in one year, and the expenses would be in the next. Footnote both.

How to report in-kind donations on your audited statement

For your audited statement, it may be necessary to differentiate between in-kind donations for which you can issue a tax receipt, and those for which you cannot.

For practical purposes, it is simplest to say you can issue tax receipts for goods, but not for services. There are a few exceptions to this, but by and large the rule applies. In a footnote to the financial statement, include the following lines:

Donations reported in this statement include:

Tax-receiptable donations of
goods in kind totalling $__________

Non-tax-receiptable donations of
services in kind totalling $__________

Donated fixed assets are recorded at fair value when received. Donated materials and services which would otherwise be paid for are recorded at fair value when provided.

The work of [name of the group] depends on the voluntary service of many members and others. Since these services are not normally purchased by [name of the group] and because of the difficulty of determining their fair value, these donated services are not recognized in these financial statements.

Keep a list of in-kind donations, showing what was given, at what value, by who, and how it was solicited. Update this list regularly. Give copies to everyone who is helping with donations.

A Sampling of Major Corporate Donors'
In-Kind Donation Policies

Air Canada

Air Canada will give travel passes. Passes can be used by the organization, or for a guest speaker. They can also be used as door prizes or in a free draw, but not for auctions or raffles. Passes must be used within a set time.

Preference is given to humanitarian and environmental groups. Large groups are more likely to get support.

In sports, Air Canada supports golf locally and nationally, and amateur hockey only at the national level. They generally do not provide charitable support for minor athletic groups, hospitals, school fairs, beauty pageants, racetracks, yearbooks, or religious or political groups.

Air Canada has a very small budget, greatly reduced from previous years. They could fill half their planes with nonprofits' requests.

They like to attend if you are holding an event. Air Canada wants exclusivity as the only airline involved.

The best time to contact them is March and April for passes to be used by the end of August. Their guidelines change constantly.

Air Canada policy requires a brief, written request. Outline clearly who you are, what work your group does, how the passes would be used, what marketing or promotion you plan and any other information that supports your request. Keep additional materials to a minimum. “I don't need to see your annual report,” says Sandy. “The simpler and more straightforward the request the better”.

Petro-Canada

Petro-Canada makes donations of oil and gasoline vouchers. These are specifically made at the local level.

Both local and head offices donate office equipment when their facilities are upgraded.

Request a copy of Petro-Canada's booklet on their Corporate Contributions Program from the head office. Though for the most part it outlines financial support available, it also provides vital information on the types of groups funded and details how to apply for assistance. Most importantly it says: “Particular emphasis is given to locations where we have substantial operations.”

Xerox Canada

Xerox can provide everything from a copier to a golf putter with their trademark on it. Donations can include service and supplies for the products. Request a copy of Teamwork: Xerox Canada and the Community.

In-kind requests are best made at the local level. District Managers are provided a budget that they may hand out in kind or in cash.

Pat Lytle, Corporate Contributions, Head Office, emphasizes that they want brief but comprehensive written requests. These must show that the organization has done its homework in finding out Xerox's donation policies and addressing their request to the proper department. “Obvious mass mailings addressed, `Dear Friend' are simply discarded. We just don't have time to read them. On the other hand we don't want the glossy brochures and large packages of unnecessary materials. We're not impressed by the waste of contributor's dollars, and we'll just send them back”, Pat explains. “Just send a two- or three-page proposal. If it's reasonable and within our guidelines, we'll call if we have any questions.”

IBM Canada

IBM supports nonprofit organizations with in-kind donations through its Fund for Community Service.

IBM employees, retirees or their spouses may request the donation of a computer system with printer for a nonprofit group with which they work. They must have spent at least one year with the organization, donating at least 10 hours volunteer time per month during that time. All requests must be made in writing by the employee.

Targeted are groups for the disabled, disadvantaged, seniors or the environment. Excluded are religious, political, educational and solely recreational groups. Most applications are reviewed on individual merit.

Employees should verify that their group qualifies under the general guidelines before making a formal, written request.

Apple Canada

Apple has a limited donations policy. They fund “nonprofit organizations developing either software or hardware devices on the Macintosh computer for the physically disabled”. This applies to both in-kind and financial support. Request further details before sending an application.

Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Ltd

Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Ltd reports that approximately 95% of their corporate giving is through “donations of equipment, software and services which the company manufactures or provides.” They give away $1.5 million worth of computer and medical equipment a year. “However, requests exceed available resources by about 40:1.”

“The balance of 5% goes to matching grants for the United Way and universities or for small cash donations to community groups recommended by staff in branch offices across Canada.”

Sandra emphasized that the key to getting a donation is “a good written submission, tailored to Hewlett-Packard, with our names spelled correctly — not one asking for an IBM computer!

“They must show some attempt to find out about us and what we do. The letter should be personally signed and include a return address. We often reply, sending a copy of our guidelines, to ask for more information. We are amazed at how many do not write again — some groups just aren't properly prepared.”

Examples of support to grassroots groups include a donation of $10,500 worth of computers to Global Action Plan, London Branch “to manage their environmental programs. We usually prefer that donated equipment is not used for administrative purposes, but one of our employees was heavily involved with the organization.”

As an example of Hewlett-Packard's support to disabled people's groups, they gave Access Place $23,000 worth of printers and scanners “to show disabled people how they can adapt everyday equipment to their needs.”

WordPerfect Corporation

WordPerfect has a nonprofit licensing policy that allows licensed WP software owners to donate outdated or surplus software to agencies providing services to the poor or needy.

The owner of the software must write to WP Corporation, stating:

• the name of the agency to whom the software is to be given and a contact name,
• a brief description of the purpose and activities of the agency, and
• the software product and license number.

If the request is acceptable, WP Corporation adds the organization to its database, issues them a new license number and permission to use the product free of charge.

At present, WP Corporation also provides discount certificates for upgrades and new products. This policy is reviewed every six months. They do not foresee any major changes at the this time.

This means that the organization has to find companies that have such product available. Get in touch with local software dealers to see who's been buying upgrades. Arrange with local newspapers to print stories. Design flyers to send out or posters to put up in stores or on company or community bulletin boards asking for potential donors.

Lotus Development Canada Limited

Lotus will donate “one copy of any product per organization per year”, according to their printed eligibility guidelines. “You are encouraged to determine which product will be most useful to advancing the purpose of your organization.” The programs offered include Lotus 1-2-3, Freelance Graphics and AmiPro (word processing), for either DOS or Windows.

In addition, Lotus allows the free transfer of `retired' programs to nonprofit organizations. The owner of a program that is no longer used may apply to transfer ownership to a nonprofit organization of his or her choice.

Applicants must be registered charitable organizations and provide their Revenue Canada number.

Lotus provide forms to make either kind of request. Write or fax to ask for them. Use the same active approach as suggested for WordPerfect. Your organization has to initiate the contact with potential donors.

Polaroid Canada Inc

Polaroid has developed a series of Fundraising Kits to meet the incredible demand for donations. The kits include a camera, packs of film and cardboard frames. Prices for the packs range from $250 to $935. Polaroid suggests that each mounted photo costs the organization about $1.25 and can be sold for up to $4.00.

Their handout includes tips on where and how to use the packs, and ways to maximize the sale of the pictures. Since a camera comes with each pack, it can be raffled off at the end of the event. Everyone who buys a picture fills out a ballot to win the camera and one or two packs of film. This is a great way to gather names for future fundraising.

Orders can be sent by fax and are delivered through local camera shops. If organizers want more mounts and/or film, Polaroid suggests they talk to the local dealer to whom the initial order is sent about further discounts. “In this way, both parties are looked after — the dealer with repeat business and the fundraiser with a discount on film and mounts.”

Kwik-Kopy Printing

locations across Canada

Kwik-Kopy locations are franchised, and their decisions depend on the profitability and good will at each location. Each owner makes his own decision on donations based on a `marketing perspective':

• the funds available,
• the market to be reached by the product,
• the appeal/impact of the organization,
• the prominence given the printer's name and address, and
• the recognition expected (plaques, signs, photos, letters for store wall).

The Printing House

TPH Group supports local organizations that benefit the communities they serve, both registered charities and nonprofit organizations, with particular interest in children. Only one application per organization is considered each year. Their pamphlet includes an application form.

Gift vouchers in various denominations are given to organizations meeting their guidelines. They can be redeemed at local outlets.

In return, they require “appropriate recognition as a corporate sponsor through the use of our corporate logo and `The Printing House' designation.”