Almost every yeshiva and non-profit organization is just a few years away from an important milestone anniversary that should be leveraged to motivate donors and raise more money. Anniversary campaigns will always re-energize your existing corps of dedicated fundraisers by providing them with new and promising opportunities to generate awareness for their cause.
During my upcoming presentation Be’ezras Hashem at the “Raising the Bar” Fundraising Seminar next week at the DoubleTree Hotel in Tarrytown, one of my sessions will discuss many action ideas on exactly how to leverage the opportunity. I would like to take this opportunity to share with the loyal Yated readership a sneak preview of how to already start thinking about developing a concept, message and campaign timeline and the accompanying marketing materials you will need to be successful — from save the date cards and newsletters to “memento” publications.
Perhaps you may have seen, or even have in your possession, one or more of the many books that Bottom Line Marketing Group had the zechus to publish on behalf of venerable organizations commemorating milestone anniversaries. These include the centennial celebrations of Mesivta Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin and Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem/Yeshiva of Staten Island. The same concept works just as successfully for relatively newer, but still well-established organizations, such as the one we produced for Yeshiva Toras Chaim of Florida for their 25th anniversary. An excellent book was produced by Artech of Lakewood for recent fifty-year anniversary celebration of Yeshivas Telz Chicago.
No other memento offers a better way to position and brand a school or organization and generate awareness of their day to day work and long term impact. I first began to appreciate the power of the book in my formative working years when I had the privilege to gain valuable experience at ArtScroll, where I assisted in putting out more than 100 seforim and books. There are few things more inspirational, prestigious and permanent than a stunning, full color, hardcover book that you can use to increase your fundraising directly and indirectly in the following ways:
– Recognize your founders with a Founder’s Circle feature
– Make chapters available for dedication
– Recognize honorees and top donors
– Galvanize donors, alumni and community members, etc.
This is not to say that everyone will or should produce such a book. Obviously, there are also the costs to consider. While the overall costs might seem expensive, the emes is that almost all clients have had their campaigns sponsored by a donor who wishes to see the organization’s prominence documented in a permanent way.
Those are the nuts and bolts of it, in a nutshell. This session will Be’ezras Hashem be of great value even if you don’t have a big anniversary coming up, because the new funds you raise will help ensure that you reach that milestone anniversary in much better financial shape than you ever thought possible. I’m really looking forward to seeing you there.
