Don't Forget to Ask for Money

This is very important: don't forget to ask for money.

Elisa Ortiz wrote a nice piece called "Forgetting what’s important"
(which was recently featured in a Nonprofit Blog Carnival).

Here is the meat:

"For a nonprofit, invariably the first thing to go is professional development and travel money followed closely by marketing/PR budgets...

"Here’s the deal: you may not have to try and attract more clients, but you sure as hell need to attract more donors and more people that can advocate for you to their friends and connections. How is a nonprofit supposed to do that when it has locked down and shut out marketing, outreach and PR efforts entirely?"

An excellent point.

This is obviously a difficult time for nonprofits. Spending a dollar on an advertising campaign is a dollar not being spent on feeding a hungry child, healing a diabetic mother, training an illiterate adult, or more.

But if you don't invest in the future of your organization, there may not be such a future. And the hungry kids, sick moms and illiterate masses depend on you to be there.

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This Month's Blog Carnival cites Raiser's Razor

May 2009 Nonprofit Blog Carnival includes Raiser's Razor

Thanks to Elizabeth Clawson at the Nonprofit Congress Blog for including my article, "State of the Sector: Welcome to Nonprofit 3.0," in this month's Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

I also encourage you to view the other posts:

• Alan Strand talks about the differences between the funder and the program. 
• Jake Seliger informs us of new grant money available through HUD 
• Peter Grandstaff supplies us with an amazing list of free resources. 
• Anna Farmery explains the importance of social media to branding. 
• Elisa Ortiz kindly reminds us what is important.

Thanks , as always, to Kivi Leroux Miller's Nonprofit Communciations Blog for leading this effort. 

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