Pros give a handle on how to cash in
A PAIR of East London professionals have pooled their years of experience in the fields of social development and marketing to write a book about how the non-profit sector can generate income without relying on the tightly squeezed donor funder or corporate sector.
Galit Cohen, 47, who has a 17year background in the NGO world and marketing and media guru Lynette Howe, 47, who owns a marketing company, have written Putting Charities to Work: How to Make Money
for Good which gives practical advice about how to recognise and use resources already at an NPO’s disposal to make an income.
The book is available for free download from Amazon from today until March 5 and after that will cost R105.
“The whole funding world has changed,” said Cohen, who has worked in Israel and south Sudan and been part of rescue missions in the Philippines, Haiti and Oklahoma City following natural disasters. She is now the director of Ripples for Change which works in rural areas in the fields of early childhood development, job creation and community-based organisations.
“Donors don’t want to be seen as a bottomless pit and they want to fund long-term projects in order for impact to be felt. They also don’t want to be relied on endlessly and want to see that an NGO can run independently of funding. Also, international donors have buzz word changes. A few years ago it was HIV, then TB, then multidrug resistant TB. They see South Africa as privileged and that the South African government is strong enough to fund projects.”
Howe said that donors, including corporate companies, were suffering from “donor fatigue”.
“Some see it as a small ask, but companies are getting so many requests that they prefer to align themselves with an official cause where they get a return for what they do, such as publicity.”
With this in mind, Cohen and Howe’s book contains useful tips on how NGOs, schools, clubs and churches can become financially self-reliant.
“The book tells organisations how to make money themselves by looking at the resources they have,” said Cohen. For instance, is there a back garden to grow and sell herbs? Are there ways your school can make money from recycling? People tend to rehash the same things like big walk sponsorships and book sales, but they could sell fencing space for advertising or brand reply slips to parents. You can sell space anywhere.”
Another way to make money to fund projects is to hold events such as golf days or music concerts, and the book provides step-by-step instructions to do this successfully.
A follow-up book to Putting Charities to Work: How to Make
Money for Good is already in the works and will be available in December. —