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Adapting practices

Victor Dugga talks about adapting a UK fundraising model to the Nigerian context and the importance of recognising cultural sensitivities.

Fundraising is not an exact science. What works at one institution may fail at another. You will need to adapt and modify your practice to suit the individual characteristics, resources and audiences of your institution.

If you are in a start-up situation then do not be daunted by the success stories you hear from other institutions – the funds they have raised and the number of alumni they are engaged with. Instead, listen to how they achieved their success and consider how their activities might be adapted to your own institution.

You may hear their stories less often, but many institutions have suffered setbacks and failures. Listen to these stories and learn from mistakes as well as successes.

One size doesn’t fit all

The scale of activities must be proportionate to the size of your institution.

You cannot expect to immediately be up and running with multiple fundraising and communication channels. You need to roll out activities in a carefully considered manner, constantly reviewing and tweaking them until you find the right formula for your institution and stakeholders.

You cannot expect to immediately be up and running with multiple fundraising and communication channels. You need to roll out activities in a carefully considered manner, constantly reviewing and tweaking them until you find the right formula for your institution and stakeholders.

Listen to your stakeholders and develop an awareness of their attitudes around fundraising. It is likely that you will have to spend some time engaging them before you can begin a fundraising campaign.

If you try to do too much too soon you will increase the probability of failure, as you will not only alienate your potential supporters, but you will spread your resources too thin.

Testing out new fundraising materials, fundraising activities or alumni services can be a great way of growing an activity that will produce the optimal results for your institution. It is also a way of engaging your stakeholders in development efforts.

Know your context

Where you are fundraising can make a real difference to how you fundraise. How you ask a prospect for a major gift in Kenya is likely to be very different from the process you would follow in Nigeria or South Africa.

Attitudes toward philanthropy, money and being ‘asked’ can vary significantly among cultures. You need to amend your practice according to where it is being applied and respect cultural differences.

That said, the basic premise of identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship is universal. It is the application of these basic tenets that needs adaptation.