Fundraising and sustainability of nonprofit organizations pose some of the biggest challenges in managing your nonprofit and successfully achieving your mission.  That’s why Bayou Community Foundation and the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Organizational Effectiveness Initiative are offering a full-day learning conference focused on fund development right here in OUR BAYOU REGION!

“Focus on Funding” Conference Agenda

REGISTER HERE!

Thank you to our generous conference sponsors:  Cenac Marine Services, Digital InSyte LLC, Synergy Bank, Simply Nonprofits, Buquet Distributing

Nonprofit Conference SPONSORSHIP Opportunities

Featured Sessions and Speakers

Keynote Address – “Creating a Culture of Philanthropy” with Susan Mancuso, Susan Mancuso Consulting

Everyone on an organization’s staff is an important part of the development team, and non-fundraising staff members are often the first to become aware of a prospective donor’s interests and capacity to give. Everyone either contributes to make successful fundraising happen, or to make it unlikely to happen. It is important to train everyone in an organization on the roles they play that impact donor giving, donor loyalty and donor retention.

“The Terrible T’s of Special Events: Trash, Toilets and Tents” – Susan Mancuso, Susan Mancuso Consulting

“Be a Data Savant:  Finding the Right CRM for Your Nonprofit” – Jack Murphy, Network for Good

So you’re ready to take your data management to the next level, great! With a variety of vendors and products to choose from, and limited time to sift through the noise, how can you best make an informed decision on choosing the right CRM for your nonprofit?  Attend this session to get agnostic, no-nonsense insight on the best practices for finding a right-sized CRM that enables and enhances your work, saves you time, and makes you data-driven, without breaking the bank.

“Marketing Your Nonprofit on a Shoe String Budget” – Sarah Hugg Centorino & Gretchen Hirt Gendron, Gambel Communications

In an ever-evolving world of communication, how can your nonprofit stay relevant? This session will help you unpack your overall marketing strategies through a PR lens. We will cover branding and messaging your nonprofit, as well as the basics of PR and how strategic messaging can help you reach your overall goals. Attendees will also have the opportunity to delve into PR tactics focusing on best practices that enhance programs and maximize development efforts. You will walk away from this session with a deep understanding of how to effectively communicate with your target audience and how to keep up with the ever-changing media landscape.

“Moves Management: Retaining & Upgrading Your Donors” – Ingrid Alvarado and Simon Spadaro-Bliss

In this session, participants will learn how to develop and implement a Moves Management plan to retain and upgrade donors from giving small gifts to becoming committed, major gift donors. Moves Management is a systematic, thoughtful method that helps development professionals build meaningful relationships to advance their organizations’ missions. At the end of the session, participants will be able to identify major gift prospects, create donor profiles, and develop a Moves Management calendar to guide informed solicitations.

“Volunteer Management: Engaging Volunteers as Unpaid Fundraising Staff” – Emily DiStefeno

You may be scratching your head to figure out how to clone yourself and get it all done.  You may be wondering how your development program will ever expand and reach higher dollar goals.  Join us for this interactive session and learn a step-by-step process for effective volunteer engagement and management, such as how to implement a 9-step volunteer management model, how to engage board members in fund development, and how to identify and groom a pipeline of fund raising volunteers.

“Using Social Media To Fundraise” – Mandi Cambre

We’ve all been told that social media is the future of fundraising, but how do you you know what’s effective and what’s just #FakeNews? In this session, we’ll discuss social media’s role in your organization’s sustainability, address the most common questions and barriers around fundraising with social media with a focus on Facebook, and share tips and tricks to adapt your current strategy and capacity to incorporate social media. You’ll leave this session with a plan to effectively use social media to engage, cultivate, and steward donors year-round.

Luncheon Presentation – A panel discussion with local grant funders who will share information about their grant programs and the types of projects and organizations they support, with Q & A moderated by GNOF CEO Andy Kopplin

Participating panelists include representatives from Chevron, Entergy Louisiana, Danos, LA Bar Foundation, Greater New Orleans Foundation, and Bayou Community Foundation.

“Focus on Funding” Conference Flyer

Bayou Community Foundation, with the support of the Greater New Orleans Foundation, provides free workshops and coordinates other activities for local nonprofit organizations to help our community grow and prosper.

As events and activities are scheduled, they will be listed on this page.

Our Generous Donors make all of these programs possible!

Nonprofits:  Sign up for the BCF e-newsletter to receive notices about upcoming BCF workshops and events!