There are many fundraising strategies that can help prevent you from spinning your wheels. Since I can't fit all of these great strategies into a short e-newsletter, I'm going to provide you with 10 of the very best. . .

1. People give to other people. People will give to people they know and trust; therefore, spend your time getting to know your donors and stakeholders and listen to what motivates them.
2. People give because of self interest and because they are ASKED. The number one reason people give is because they are asked to give. By getting to know your potential donors, you will learn what moves and motivates them and be able to better tailor your ask to their interests.
3. Money follows people. There is almost a direct correlation between the level of involvement that a donor feels and the size of their gift. It is a smart strategy to get people involved as volunteers, board members, and stakeholders first and then ask them to contribute.
4. Get to know the key person. When you are raising money, get to know key people in your community and ask them to introduce you to their network of friends, business associates, and families.
5. Grant writing is only 10 percent of the bread-game. People confuse grant writing with fundraising. As a general rule, when you receive a grant from a private foundation, corporation, or church it's not just the writing of the grant that led to your success. A grant award is a result of a culmination of research, interviews, understanding politics, community visibility, and good writing.
6. Be specific when asking for money. The fear of asking for money is probably the single biggest obstacle in raising money. However, when you do get up the courage to ask for money make sure you tell the potential donor why you need the money, how much you need and for how long you need it.
7. Plan ahead, raising money takes time. Individual donors can act rather quickly, but institutional funding sources can take many months to get you the money. Make sure you are clear on your cash-flow, so you are not spending time with long-term funding sources when you can't make payroll next month.
8. Diversify, diversify and diversify. This is your insurance policy. Make sure you have a revenue stream coming from many different sources. Also remember that some money (such as grant money) is uncontrollable, while other funding streams will be more within your control (like individual donors, special events, and contracts). Try to have at least 60-70 percent of your revenue coming from controllable funding sources.
9. Positioning of your organization is central to your success. Most organizations are not "positioned" well to raise money from corporations, governments, wealthy people, churches, etc. They lack the visibility and credibility to raise funds. For these organizations it is important to integrate media and marketing approaches so the community gets to know who they are.
10. Fundraising is an every day art. Fundraising should be an every day activity rather than something you focus on only at certain times of the year. Fundraising should be on the agenda at every board meeting, volunteers should know the organization's fundraising needs, and staff should be always selling the organization.