Some
Extra local info
Quality Foods would like
organizations to call ahead and
make an appointment with the manager regarding donation requests.
Many businesses won’t give a
cash donations anymore, however
if the business is willing they can give you a cash donation, for which
you can
write a charitable receipt, deposit the money into your account and
then take
it out and go into the store and purchase a gift certificate for the
same
amount.
Most businesses have a budget
for giving donation for the
year and when they meet that quota they can no longer give for
the
remainder of that year. The
best thing
to do is be as organized as possible and plan your event well in
advance. Try to get
into the businesses with your
letters of request between January and March, when they have the most
money in
their budget.
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When asking for donations
After interviewing several large and small businesses in Powell
River, we developed the following tips to help
prepare non-profit groups before asking for donations.
- If you have any clothing or other items that will
clearly
identify you with your organization, it is a great idea to bring/wear
when you
go.
- Always bring in a letter, clearly stating what you
are
requesting. In the
letter make sure you
have the following information:
- Your organization's letterhead.
- Your organizations current contact information.
- The date of the event.
- A brief description of the event.
- What you are requesting.
- A brief description of who your organization is, and
what
your organization does.
- Find out the name of the business manager so you can
address
the letter to the right person.
- Try to plan well in advance. Most businesses need
at least two months notice to process your request and check their
donation
budget.
- If you can think of a win/win situation, where your
organization gets support, and the businesses get recognition then you
will
most likely have more success in getting the business' support. For example if you have a
hot dog sale
fundraiser outside of one of the local stores, the business can donate
the food
at little (or in most cases no cost to you), your organization gets to
keep all
the profits and the business gets recognition and possibly more
customers from
the attraction of the event outside their store…everyone wins!
- If you can offer the businesses any type of
advertisement at
your event, you will also most likely have more success at getting
donations. Many of
the businesses have
tables, tents, and banners that are available for use at events.
- Most businesses no longer give cash donations. They will either give
store gift cards,
prizes or food donations. Also,
any
request over $250 the local managers may have to take to head
office, so keep
this in mind, because you may need to plan even further in advance.
- Follow-up. If
you
have to leave your letter, without getting the opportunity to chat with
the
manager, then try to follow up within a few days to make sure they
received
your request. Then
follow up again in a
few weeks to see if they have made a decision, and again before the
event to
remind them of what they are donating and when, and make the
arrangements for
the donation pick-up.
- After your event, it is always nice to follow up with
a
thank-you call or letter to the businesses that have supported your
organization. Placing
an ad or writing a letter to the editor in the local paper is also a
nice way to thank your sponsors.
- When a business has supported your organization in
any way, it
is nice to put a little package together, with a letter and maybe some
photos, letting them know how their support helped your organization.
"Funded
in whole or part through the
Canada-British Columbia
Labour Market Development Agreement".
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