The case of the missing case
“A case for support is the rationale underlying fundraising; it is the reason nonprofit organizations deserve philanthropic support. Without a case for support, a nonprofit does not have the right to seek philanthropic support, to raise money.”
Of the 5 “Root Systems” I’ve identified as essential to any organization’s fundraising operations, Case Development is going to be the most questionable.
And I get it. There is no software solution for developing a case (unless you count those AI writing machines… but please don’t). It’s not necessarily a “system” in the technical, definitive sense of the word.
Granted, BUT:
Your case is the base of all fundraising. Every system either leads into, or out of the case. It is the heart of your organization, and therefore fundamental. It’s an essential (although intangible) tool for fundraising.
Every charity has a case, not everyone knows how to talk about it. Most staff and volunteers can tell you what their organization does. They can also likely articulate the problem that they are trying to address.
However, your case is not the what, it’s the WHY.
Why is your cause important?
Why is your organization the one to address it?
Why should people give?
If we channel the self-help gurus for a moment, you can also think of your case as “your why” but on an organizational level. I think this is really helpful. Conceptualizing it this way speaks to core motivations, and understanding these can help you create sticky messages that resonate with supporters and future supporters.
The “why” is something that should be baked into the culture of an organization. It’s (part of) what brings us to work everyday, keeps your volunteers motivated and ✨ very importantly for fundraisers ✨ - inspires people to donate.
Systems for Case Development
If we’re starting from scratch, it is helpful to think of your case as both internal and external.
The internal case is a “database of information and knowledge” that you can build and maintain and use as a sort of resource library for any number of fundraising and communications tasks.
From the information contained within the internal case file, one can create an external case, the “case statement” or “case expression.” Traditionally, this was a shiny, expensive printed booklet that fundraisers delicately slid across the table when lunching with the millionaire next door.
These days, the external case can be expressed in many different forms: a landing page, a tweet, a Post-it! (my friend, if you can fit your case on a Post-it?! 🏆bravo). And it’s not just for major donors but for EVERYONE touched by your organization including beneficiaries/participants, advocates and volunteers.
So, how does one understand and share their compelling case? There are many roads to take, but here is the basic map:
Gather your case resource documents and keep them all in one place that is accessible to everyone in the organization.
A “case resource” document is anything that helps to tell the story of your organization. For example:
Reports (Annual, impact)
Grant templates
Program descriptions
Recorded or written interviews with founders, executives, senior volunteers, etc.
Testimonials, quotes or photos
Survey results (donors, participants)
AGM minutes or presentations
2. Organize these documents as best you can; it should be fairly easy to navigate
3. Assign responsibility of maintaining and updating the Case File to one role on your team. The person in this role will have the tasks of a) adding new resource documents to the file and organizing as appropriate; and b) archiving outdated materials.
4. Add a tour of the “Case File” to your general onboarding process. Everyone joining the organization should have at least a basic understanding of the contents.
👏 👏 You now have an internal case for support (and a basic system for updating and internally sharing this information!) 👏 👏
The next few steps are to help develop the external case. There are many ways to get there, and the end product will look different depending on your audience and objectives. Basically, you’ll want to:
5. Develop some key messages that communicate the “why” of your organization. Key messages can be identified by:
Talking to various people connected to your organization and asking them why this work is important; why they donate, volunteer/work, come to events, etc. You can gather this information through interviews, surveys or informal conversation.
Reviewing the outputs from these conversations and identifying some of the common themes. Highlight some of the responses that are especially heartfelt or compelling.
Compiling these highlights and segmenting by audience (ie. volunteers, monthly donors, members, former board members - whoever you’ve got); save these in your Case File.
(Note: this is the part of the external case that is easiest to systematize. And what it can look like is creating regular processes for collecting the type of feedback that will enhance your key messages. Think: annual surveys, participant testimonial collection, etc.)
6. Develop external collateral that “tells the story” of your organization, using your key messages to share with various audiences. With this, we could go a hundred different ways, producing printed pamphlets, building out an entire digital communications strategy, all the way up to redesigning your website.
7. Finally, share the dang thing. Don’t just create a case statement for the heck of it, make a plan to spread the word. Will you be bringing it in printed form to your next donor meeting? Will you be sending it as part of a new donor welcome package? Will every board member get a copy? Every volunteer? Every staff member?
Your case statement will be a beautiful and useful asset if created with intention.
This is a lot. Building a case can start out small - maybe with just the internal resource documents in one place. With that, we’ve got our first Root System ready to go!
Next week: let’s crunch some numbers and take a look at the key financial systems needed to keep the books in good order when it comes to revenue, tax receipts and monthly reconciliation.
PS - My “Fundraising Operations Checklist” is now ready to download. Use this handy guide to help with your fundraising operations self-assessment. Check things off your list with ultimate satisfaction ✔️✔️✔️✔️
