Are you making best use of fundraising volunteers?
Howard Lake | 26 February 2010 | Blogs
With volunteer centres reporting an increase in enquiries, an obvious question to ask is whether your charity is making best use of this free resource.
Most charities use volunteers in some capacity, but not all recognise how they can support fundraising. So what are the benefits of volunteer fundraisers and how can they best be used?
The availability of new volunteers may be the silver lining in the recession and they can offer numerous benefits.
Firstly, volunteers offer additional capacity, so you can do more than you otherwise would. They may need some training and basic expenses, but beyond this, they are a profit centre for your fundraising.
Secondly, volunteers have access to people and networks which you may not, so use them to reach out beyond your existing support base.
Thirdly, they often have skills and experience which are not available in your organisation, so use them!
So how can volunteers support your fundraising efforts?
Events – use volunteers to plan and run events for you. This greatly reduces the cost and thereby increases the profit margin;
Public collections- if staffed by volunteers, public collections (e.g. street collections or door to door) are a great way to raise extra cash at very low cost;
Major gifts – using volunteers to network and solicit larger donations is very cost effective. They will need some training, but the return on investment is excellent;
Legacies – with some basic training, you can use volunteers as legacy ambassadors, asking people one-to-one to remember your charity in their will (probably the most effective form of legacy fundraising);
Office support – volunteers can be invaluable in the fundraising office, carrying out research, updating records and even learning the skills of grant applications;
E-bay shop – use a volunteer to run an E-bay site for your charity, selling donated goods online. They will achieve better prices than through a charity shop!
When times are tough, it pays to get the best out of volunteers, so why not contact your local volunteer centre, to see who is waiting to raise funds for your charity? Alternatively, you can advertise for them through your newsletter or website. Clearly, there are issues about motivation and management of volunteers, but if you get it right, volunteers can be a valuable addition to your fundraising team.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.