Non-Profits and Fundraising: Small Business Can Benefit
Whether you are a small business owner or you market for local businesses, getting involved with non-profits and fundraising will make a difference in your bottom line. Once people in your community see that you care about causes that are important to everyone, you will be perceived as someone who is helping to make your community a special one.
I learned this quite by accident when I began volunteering and joined my local Rotary Club as a way to get to know others in my community. At this time I had just begun marketing for a family member’s small business and did not see any connection between my business and helping out in the community by volunteering and taking an active role with fundraising for a variety of causes.
Early on I had agreed to help out with a fundraising event that brought several non-profits together. That evening I met a variety of local people, including a dentist, an electrician, and the owner of a small hardware store. Purely a coincidence, I had invited my family member, a handyman for whom I had just begun marketing to join us. Within an hour I saw the relationships form, and by night’s end I had a new outlook on the part that getting involved in non-profits by volunteering and fundraising played in the community at large.
Within two months the handyman’s business took off, as a result of referrals and friendships made that evening we were all working together to raise money for some local causes. And I began getting calls as well, mostly to help established local businesses develop an online presence.
Find a local non-profit whose mission resonates with your core beliefs and values. Attend a meeting and see what you can volunteer for right away. Get to know the other members and share what your business is about as well. Doesn’t it just make sense that we would feel more comfortable going to a dentist or having a handyman in our home after we had worked alongside them on a worthwhile project?
And after you have done this several times, consider joining the group of organization you have been volunteering with. See if there is a way for you to sponsor a fundraiser or be a part of an upcoming event. So many events attended by local business owners are almost directly related to their business. For example, a home and garden show raising money for veterans can be an excellent fit for a handyman. A fundraiser for the local hospital or a medical clinic is a good fit for a dentist or chiropractor. It’s all connected if you see it this way, and even if it doesn’t seem like it at the time, your volunteer and fundraising experiences will always show you in a good light within your community. The handyman continues to meet his neighbors at these events, and soon they are calling him to repair a kitchen faucet or to install a ceiling fan.
Get involved in non-profits and fundraising and your small business will flourish. You may also be interested in my article on networking for small businesses.
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I’m author and online marketing strategist Connie Ragen Green. I work with entrepreneurs to create multiple streams of online income and would love to connect with you. Pick up my Online Entrepreneur’s Blueprint and get started right away.
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