A great thank you letter is much more than just a receipt or confirmation that a transaction has taken place. Here are a few reasons why thank you letters are so important:
1. They allow you to express gratitude
There are thousands of other nonprofits and amazing causes out there, yet the donor chose to support yours. Use the thank you letter to express just how grateful you are for their contribution and reassure them that they made the right decision.
2. They make the donor feel valued
Your organization wouldn’t be able to do the work that you do without the support of donors. Make sure they know just how much you need and appreciate them by sending a sincere thank you letter.
3. They help nurture your relationship with the donor
Every interaction and piece of communication you send to the donor helps build your relationship with them. The first thank you letter you send is often the start of that relationship and will inspire the donor to keep giving and keep engaging with your organization.
There are many different types of donations, and there are different thank you letters associated with each one. Here are some of the most common kinds of letters and when to send them:
Regular Gift: Send a physical thank you letter for any gift received and include a tax receipt.
Pledge gift: Send a thank you letter to individuals or organizations who make a pledge — a promise to donate a certain amount over a certain number of years. Don’t forget to send a separate thank you note after each of the installments comes in.
Fundraising: For donors who participate in fundraising campaigns, send a thank you letter to show appreciation for their support and effort in rallying the community. You can include a recap of the fundraising campaign and a personalized note about their impact, to show that they are part of something bigger.
In-kind gift: Send a thank you letter to individuals or organizations who make in-kind donations (for example, items donated to participants in your program or to sell at your auction).
Sponsorship: Send a special thank you to companies who sponsor your events and programs.
Event attendance: Send a thank you letter to every event attendee, especially if part of the ticket cost is considered a donation.
Major gift: For major donors who give a substantial amount and already have an established relationship with your organization, most templated letters will come across as insincere. Instead, consider asking your leadership to write a handwritten thank you note.
To help you get inspired, I drafted three sample thank you letters — two for monetary donations, and one for in-kind donations that can be downloaded here.
If you need any assistance with drafting your letter or managing your donor database Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss your needs!
]]>Procrastination can take anyone captive. We are busy, and it can be hard to get things done. How can we keep track of our personal and business lives? Enter the Virtual Assistant. These are skilled people that can help you get more done without extra stress.
Sometimes, business requires the mundane. We often procrastinate just that–the stuff we really don’t want to do. Guess what? You can avoid it by hiring a virtual assistant! Shift your focus back onto the reason you started the business and let your VA take care of the rest.
One of the biggest hindrances to accomplishment is being overwhelmed. We get overwhelmed when we feel overworked. We can prevent this by hiring a VA to take care of tasks. Success isn’t always determined by how many hours you spend tirelessly working on your project or business, it’s determined by how well we do it. You need rest and a clear head to be your best. Virtual assistants take care of the overload while you focus on the key aspects of running a successful business.
You can optimize productivity and strategy through virtual assistants. They are skilled in many areas and can rely on a few communications to get started. You need to provide adequate instruction so that they know your exact expectations.
Now that you know the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant. What’s next? Make a to-do list of tasks to accomplish. Prioritize and schedule when they need to be done. What skill sets or role responsibilities could you use to accomplish these goals? Prepare all the important information and documents to complete the job and (including login information to sites they would need to access) and begin your search for a VA.
A freelance Virtual Assistant, like myself, could be just what you need to help you and your business, giving you time to focus on what matters. I’m an extra pair of hands helping to move your business forward.
Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss your needs!
]]>First, let’s talk about what a quick grant is. These are grants that require basic information about the organization structure, a small description of the program that needs funding, and a few supporting documents. They don't require a long narrative, extensive statistics, or detailed budget justifications.
The best way to prepare for these types of grants is to have a "shell" grant that you can pull from that includes all basic information of your organization including:
And information on all of your programs including:
Along with this information you will need to have updated corporate documents readily available:
Once you have completed the shell grant and gathered all of your documents, you are ready to apply for grants.
Now that the hard part is out of the way, you are ready to start researching and applying for grants.
You will mostly find these grants through corporate giving. Try searching some of the well known corporations to determine if they offer grant opportunities, and if their funding opportunities align with your programs. For your convenience, I have compiled a list of 70+ corporations that donate to non-profits. That list can be downloaded here. Their applications usually ask for a brief description of your organization and program, and a few documents. Since you already have the shell application prepared, you can easily import that information info the grant application, in 5-10 minutes!!!
Additionally, you can reach out to local businesses via email or a mailed letter with a brief description of your program and how it will benefit the local community, and they may consider your organization for funding.
If your organization needs assistance with building your your shell grant or applying for applications, Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss your needs!
]]>First, let’s think about the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant. While some people might think they can do it all… a virtual assistant can take a huge relief off of our shoulders. Here are just a few benefits:
Productivity in your business is so important. By hiring a virtual assistant, you can focus on the things that are most important. Obviously, you want to be focusing on the tasks that are going to bring in more revenue for your particular business.
Of course, the problem is that productivity can become limited if you’re bogged down with other small tasks that are taking up time. Shift those tasks to a VA, and this allows you to focus on your revenue-generating tasks.
By hiring a virtual assistant, you can take back some of your time. You can spend more time with your family or just have more “me” time. Or you can allocate more time on things that matter in your business, instead of rushing around trying to get everything done with the little time you have.
We all want to see growth in our business in the long term. You may be trying to grow your blog to be your primary source of income, or you may be using your blog to establish the know-like-trust factor among a greater number of potential nutrition or fitness clients.
If you hire a virtual assistant and outsource tasks correctly, most of the time you’ll see growth quicker. It goes back to the productivity factor, where you are able to block out your own limited time for the highest-yielding tasks – while your VA is able to tackle the smaller (but less specialized) to-dos.
Lastly, it can really help just having a peace of mind. Running a blog is hard; being a professional in your industry is hard. But hiring a VA can…
Now where do you start figuring out what tasks to outsource to a virtual assistant? Well, here’s a few things to get some ideas going…
Virtual assistants can take care of things such as:
You can hire out for things like:
You can hire a virtual assistant to do things such as:
These are just a few things you can hire out for:
Here are a few things to consider:
A freelance Virtual Assistant, like myself, could be just what you need to help you and your business, giving you time to focus on what matters. I’m an extra pair of hands helping to move your business forward.
Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss your needs!
One of my top responsibilities is making sure the organization is operating according to standards set by its funders and governmental agencies. I ensure that grant money is being spent only on allowable items (this applies to both in-kind and direct grant expenditures) and is being documented properly (i.e., with receipts, contracts, etc.), and also that everyone working on a grant is documenting his/her time and effort for the work performed.
Some funders may require audits/monitoring of the programs they allocate funds to. I assist organizations in making sure that their financial systems and grant deliverables are being processed in a systematic way to where they are always in full compliance with the contracts of their funder. I also assist with gathering the required documentation needed for the funder to conduct the audit.
Having a good set of policies and procedures in place is the first step in an organization effectively managing their grants. I analyze financial documentation and grant reporting systems, and with this information, I meet with leadership to show them how the practices, policies, and procedures of the organization may or may not be in alignment with the law or with funder regulations. I then work closely with these individuals to make suggestions for improvements over time.
If an organization is interested in returning to a funder for consideration in a future grant cycle, they must show proper documentation of how they have managed the grant that they have already received. I assist organizations with creating forms, spreadsheets, and other reporting tools that track grant activities and timelines against grant deliverables. I also prepare grant tracking calendars and train staff on their deliverables and how to complete reports.
Additionally, I will create a master binder and virtual folder for each grant that includes the application, contract, and deliverables, any important forms, and follow up reports. Organization is key to efficiently operating and managing grants.
Sometimes organizations have everything in place for managing their grants, but need the additional hands to take care of the reporting. I can take on the task of gathering all of the information from the financial and deliverable tacking reports, and submit the update to the funder in the appropriate format required.
If your organization needs assistance with staying on track of managing their grants, please Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss the best plan for you!
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As a business owner, I know you are passionate about the main goals of the business, but what about all of the small tasks that it takes to keep the business operational? The ones you dread doing or don't have time to do, but they are vital for the success of the business? That’s where a Virtual Assistant comes in, freeing up some of your valuable time by taking on these tasks for you.
Virtual Assistants complete so many jobs, but I’ve noted some below that might help you to think about what really is restricting your time or becoming a chore…
A Virtual Assistant provides flexible support, so you are only paying for the hours you need. There are no agency or recruitment fees to be paid (as there are with temp services) and no insurance benefits to consider. Instead of hiring an extra member of staff, a Virtual Assistant can support you as and when you need it, usually from their own home or office, meaning you do not have to provide desk space and equipment – another cost-saving!
You can always hire a Virtual Assistant for one short-term task to see if they are the right fit. The more detail and information you can give your VA to help them understand the project, the better they will meet your expectations, but remember your VA is also an expert in their field and may have some great suggestions for you to try out. Additionally, a Virtual Assistant is also a business owner, so success in your business is success in theirs.
A freelance Virtual Assistant like me could be just what you need to help you and your business, giving you time to focus on what matters. I’m an extra pair of hands helping to move your business forward.
Schedule a planning meeting so that we can discuss your needs!
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