Many of you are probably working on some aspect of grant writing and/or fundraising right now. I know I am. So I was really interested in this short article published over at Network for Good on 6 words every nonprofit should avoid.

A lot of people have asked me about how social media can be used to benefit SANE and other victim service programs. People feel very intimidated by the process, which is a shame, because I think it's an incredibly approachable and democratic tool. And I think we could harness its broad appeal and reach to allow for not just awareness and fundraising campaigns, but also recruitment efforts. If anyone's using social media to help with recruitment I'd love to hear from you!
 

This month in Free-Range Thinking, Andy Goodman discusses the use of stories and data in garnering support for projects. I mention it because we frequently talk about effectively making the case to hospitals and community foundations, particularly in this economic climate. It's a short article, so I encourage you to check it out (PDF). And if you like what you read, you might want to consider subscribing to the monthly newsletter.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy hosted an online discussion yesterday on using Facebook Causes to promote nonprofits. Sadly, I just heard about it this morning, so I couldn't attend. But it's archived on their site and available for viewing (it's transcripts of the session, not video). For those of you toying with this approach to fundraising, it's worth checking out.

Its only 9:15 am and I have already fielded two questions this morning on SANE/SART funding, so I am going to take that as a sign from the blogging gods and get a post up on finding funders.
 

Did you know that the Foundation Center now has a librarian available to chat with you in real time as you tackle grant writing and fundraising issues? It's a great resource for those of us with immediate gratification issues (e.g. when emailing that question just doesn't get a quick enough response).
 
Keep in mind that there probably won't be anyone available for live chat at 11:30 the night before your grant is due, so plan accordingly:)

Last week over at Networking for Good, there was a teleconference on storytelling as an online fundraising technique.

Before I get on a plane for Seattle this morning, I wanted to talk briefly about cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA). It's the technique of selecting among competing wants when resources are limited, a position most SANE programs know well. Do we get a shiny new piece of equipment or do we send 5 nurses to SANE training? Do we add 8 more hours a week to our coordinator position or do we start paying call time? We have a lot of competing wants in our world, and often a paucity of resources.

Good morning from sunny Anaheim! This morning, I just wanted to put up a quick post on some financial management resources developed by the Nonprofits Assistance Fund. Their site has a couple great tools that might be helpful for some of you looking at your current budgets and shaking your heads--or looking at next year's budget predictions and worrying. Among the items you'll find are:

Enterprise Community Partners has a great fundraising tutorial on their site. It's comprised of 7 sections that give you a comprehensive guide to the fundraising process: