47 - Fundraising for a Startup Nonprofit

7-Figure Fundraising Podcast

Trevor and Tarren Bragdon discuss how to think about fundraising for a startup nonprofit.

We have a lot of people new to fundraising who find us through the podcast and we’d wanted to do a podcast specifically for fundraising for a startup nonprofit.

• 3 phases of a Startup Nonprofit
  • Idea phase - Finding the product and market fit
    • Read the book The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick
  • Proof phase - show your idea works - pilot or small scale success
  • Scale phase - figuring out how to take things that work on a small scale and make them work on large scale
• Theory of Change Formula
  • What is the Problem
  • What is your Solution?
  • Why are you the best team to solve the Problem?
  • Write out your theory of change in less than 140 words.
    • Refine and edit.
    • You'll want to be able to explain it in about 1 minute
• How to introduce yourself - to new people and talk about your nonprofit
  • Problem, Solution and then a Story
  • Introduction from The 1-Page Marketing Plan by Alan Dibs
  • “You know how [state the problem you solve]. Well I’m starting a nonprofit that [insert your solution here]. In fact, [give a story about your solution]”
• Start working on your pitch -
  • See our short video on How to Build a Pitch
    • Elevator Close Video
  • We have a video on this and a short course on Udemy on how to build a pitch - almost 600 students enrolled
• Phase 2 the Proof phase - showing your idea works - pilot or small scale success
  • Communication with donors key
  • Start thinking about the size of the nonprofit you want to create
  • Building out your team

Wrap up

• To grow your fundraising as a Startup, focus on these steps.
  • Idea Phase
    • Ask why isn’t this done already
    • Develop out your theory of change
    • Create your introduction and begin your pitch
    • Begin testing your idea on a small scale
    • Pitch donors and listen to their feedback
    • Expect a lot of No’s
  • Proof Phase
    • Decide the type of nonprofit you want to build
    • Build out your team
    • Figure out how to scale

To see all the show notes visit: https://www.7figurefundraising.com/podcast/

To learn more about fundraising and our training visit: 7FigureFundraising.com