WEBVTT - Study Hall: HOW TO START A NON-PROFIT 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:01.960 What are the steps? Can you walk us through the 0:00:02.000 --> 0:00:05.400 steps of how to start a nonprofit? Five toho one 0:00:05.480 --> 0:00:06.360 ced three yep? 0:00:06.960 --> 0:00:09.080 Okay, So the first thing is you don't have to 0:00:09.160 --> 0:00:10.399 have a five on one C three. 0:00:10.480 --> 0:00:11.879 Can you just explain what a five oh one C 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:12.360 three is? 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:15.760 So a five on one C three allows you, according 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.560 to the IRS, to be tax exempt, which then allows 0:00:18.600 --> 0:00:21.959 all donors to write off anything that they contribute to 0:00:21.960 --> 0:00:26.479 your organization. It's very important if you need large amounts 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:29.720 of funding. If you don't and what you're trying to 0:00:29.800 --> 0:00:32.680 do can get by on like a fifteen hundred dollar 0:00:32.760 --> 0:00:35.600 budget or a two thousand dollars budget, you don't need 0:00:35.640 --> 0:00:36.640 the five oh one C three. 0:00:36.720 --> 0:00:39.000 That budget be monthly or annually annually. 0:00:39.040 --> 0:00:42.200 There's you know, it just depends on what you're budgeting for. 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:44.800 You know, some people have a plant project and they 0:00:44.840 --> 0:00:47.040 just want to plant things a couple times a year. 0:00:47.240 --> 0:00:48.519 It just depends on what you're doing. 0:00:48.640 --> 0:00:51.080 Yeah, I was told something like that. The process is 0:00:51.200 --> 0:00:53.440 very long, like in dependent on how much you need. 0:00:53.479 --> 0:00:56.360 So like you can apply for the five O one 0:00:56.480 --> 0:01:00.280 C three if you're making if you're anticipating having ten 0:01:00.280 --> 0:01:02.800 thousand dollars or less, yeah, that's the initial one, but 0:01:02.840 --> 0:01:05.440 if you're planning more that that process takes a lot longer. 0:01:05.600 --> 0:01:09.040 It does, and I actually so we incorporated the organization 0:01:09.120 --> 0:01:10.560 and then we filed for the five on one C 0:01:10.680 --> 0:01:13.440 three at the same time, and it was about three 0:01:13.520 --> 0:01:15.960 or four months later I planned our first annual fundraiser 0:01:16.040 --> 0:01:18.399 because we needed the funding to really get started on 0:01:18.440 --> 0:01:21.360 what we were trying to accomplish. And in my mind, 0:01:21.360 --> 0:01:23.760 I'm thinking, if you look online, it tells you you 0:01:23.760 --> 0:01:25.480 can get approved for a five on one C three 0:01:25.560 --> 0:01:29.920 between two to twelve months. So of course I'm always thinking, 0:01:29.959 --> 0:01:32.040 I'm always being optimistic, and I'm like, well, three to 0:01:32.120 --> 0:01:34.840 four we might make it. We didn't, so we did 0:01:34.840 --> 0:01:36.680 the first fundraiser, and of course people are going to 0:01:36.720 --> 0:01:40.000 get very minimal amounts because they can't write it off, 0:01:40.120 --> 0:01:43.240 and it's a it's a huge incentive for any donor 0:01:43.480 --> 0:01:46.200 to know that not only am I helping this cause, 0:01:46.319 --> 0:01:48.920 but I can also it'll help me with my taxes. 0:01:49.960 --> 0:01:51.960 So we didn't get it approved in time, but we 0:01:52.040 --> 0:01:53.480 ended up getting it a year later. 0:01:54.520 --> 0:01:56.440 So, all right, what's the process to get a five 0:01:56.440 --> 0:01:57.760 on one C three, Like, what do you have to 0:01:57.760 --> 0:01:58.200 do together? 0:01:58.440 --> 0:02:02.720 There's a long application. There's a long application, and you 0:02:02.840 --> 0:02:07.000 have to be organized and have everything you have to 0:02:07.040 --> 0:02:10.079 answer with as many details as possible if you want 0:02:10.080 --> 0:02:14.519 to get approved without questions first from the IRS. So 0:02:14.639 --> 0:02:18.160 mission statement. You need a mission statement, You need the 0:02:18.280 --> 0:02:20.320 name everything that you would need to do to start 0:02:20.320 --> 0:02:22.800 a business. You have to be very clear about what 0:02:22.840 --> 0:02:24.919 you're doing. And when I say mission statement, it's funny, 0:02:25.000 --> 0:02:28.120 I'm remembering this now. We the IRS actually came back 0:02:28.120 --> 0:02:30.640 and said that our mission statement was too broad and 0:02:30.680 --> 0:02:32.880 that's why we didn't get approved the first time around. 0:02:33.080 --> 0:02:36.600 I think the initial mission statement was to help foster 0:02:36.680 --> 0:02:39.640 and homeless you self comfort, that could mean anything. So 0:02:39.680 --> 0:02:42.280 then we had to go in and revise the mission, 0:02:43.200 --> 0:02:46.440 apply with the state to change that and then resubmit 0:02:46.480 --> 0:02:48.160 the application for the five oh one C three. 0:02:48.280 --> 0:02:50.360 Is something that you did yourself or did you have 0:02:50.440 --> 0:02:51.200 lawyers involved? 0:02:51.360 --> 0:02:54.200 I hired help. Yeah, definitely hired help. And I would 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:57.840 recommend if anybody doesn't already have that experience in the 0:02:57.880 --> 0:03:02.600 nonprofit sector, hire where you need, especially when it comes 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:06.760 to accounting. Get the support so that the first time 0:03:06.800 --> 0:03:08.560 around you're not making those mistakes. 0:03:08.680 --> 0:03:11.920 So when you had the narrow value mission statement, like 0:03:11.919 --> 0:03:13.920 what was your revised mission statement? 0:03:14.080 --> 0:03:18.000 So now the mission statement is helping foster and homeless 0:03:18.080 --> 0:03:22.320 youth self comfort by providing comfort items for bedtime and 0:03:22.440 --> 0:03:24.359 programs that inspires them. 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:26.239 To self soothe. 0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:28.959 And that was okay, all right, So you have that. 0:03:29.280 --> 0:03:31.480 You have to set it up as a business like 0:03:31.560 --> 0:03:32.040 you have like. 0:03:31.960 --> 0:03:35.839 An LLC setup, not an LLC. But it's the same 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:38.880 steps of like having to you don't have to trademark, 0:03:38.880 --> 0:03:42.360 but I highly recommend it because the work of a 0:03:42.400 --> 0:03:45.680 nonprofit easily inspires someone else to want to do similar work, 0:03:45.960 --> 0:03:47.920 and they can They can take your name and do 0:03:47.960 --> 0:03:51.040 it in another state if they want to, so trademarking, 0:03:51.120 --> 0:03:55.119 I highly recommend filing for the setup for the nonprofit 0:03:55.160 --> 0:03:57.360 the same way you would with the LLC for your state, 0:03:58.240 --> 0:04:00.360 and then applying for that five on one C three 0:04:00.400 --> 0:04:04.600 early if you expect or if you want to receive. 0:04:04.400 --> 0:04:06.280 Large funds, and it's like a fee for that. 0:04:06.800 --> 0:04:09.280 Yes, there's a fee. There's a fee for every application, 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:11.600 so you have to have some fund to get started. 0:04:11.600 --> 0:04:13.840 When I applied in twenty twelve, I think that the 0:04:13.840 --> 0:04:16.600 five on one SET three application was like eight hundred dollars. 0:04:16.839 --> 0:04:18.720 I'm not sure if it's increased since then, but yes, 0:04:18.760 --> 0:04:21.000 you definitely need something in order to get started. 0:04:21.080 --> 0:04:23.840 Okay, so you do the application, you get well as 0:04:23.839 --> 0:04:25.800 the five oh one C three is going through the 0:04:25.800 --> 0:04:28.120 process because they could take up to a year. What 0:04:28.120 --> 0:04:29.760 what else do you need to get off the ground 0:04:29.800 --> 0:04:30.960 to start the actual charity? 0:04:31.200 --> 0:04:31.680 Everything? 0:04:33.120 --> 0:04:33.599 Explain that. 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:38.040 So you need a website, okay, you need a marketing plan. 0:04:38.880 --> 0:04:39.920 You need a business plan. 0:04:40.080 --> 0:04:42.159 Marketing plan? Can we can we talk about that? Yeah? 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:44.360 Because all right, how do you before you even go 0:04:44.440 --> 0:04:47.000 into that, like this is you and someone up like 0:04:47.000 --> 0:04:48.160 the COVID, Like who. 0:04:48.120 --> 0:04:48.760 Else is doing this? 0:04:48.920 --> 0:04:52.320 So the co founder was my mother, but no she 0:04:52.320 --> 0:04:54.240 she was living her best life in Florida. So my 0:04:54.279 --> 0:04:59.159 mom was not involved in, you know, actually getting the 0:04:59.240 --> 0:05:01.400 organization started. I was doing this on my own with 0:05:01.440 --> 0:05:05.400 the help of friends who believed in me and the organization. 0:05:05.520 --> 0:05:08.600 So that's the next step in and I'll get back 0:05:08.600 --> 0:05:11.400 to marketing. But you need you need a marketing plan, 0:05:11.440 --> 0:05:14.960 you need a business plan, you need a board of directors, 0:05:15.600 --> 0:05:17.480 you need people that are going to hold you accountable, 0:05:17.800 --> 0:05:20.880 which most people don't know. So when you're applying for 0:05:20.920 --> 0:05:23.080 this paperwork. You can't just put your name on it. 0:05:23.160 --> 0:05:25.920 If people are giving donations, the IRS wants to know 0:05:25.960 --> 0:05:28.719 who else is tracking these dollars to make sure that 0:05:28.839 --> 0:05:31.560 you're not out here spending these these funds in the 0:05:31.600 --> 0:05:34.360 wrong way. So when I first started, and I think 0:05:34.400 --> 0:05:37.320 most people when they start nonprofits, it's usually people that 0:05:37.360 --> 0:05:40.400 are very connected to you as well as the mission, 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:42.680 and so they'll sign on to support you. And that's 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:46.040 usually how the board starts, and then eventually it grows. 0:05:46.240 --> 0:05:48.200 You have to have a board of director, yes, how 0:05:48.160 --> 0:05:48.640 many people? 0:05:48.839 --> 0:05:49.119 Three? 0:05:50.279 --> 0:05:53.120 Non Negultimately you have to you have to they have 0:05:53.200 --> 0:05:54.800 to have titles or just board a director. 0:05:55.920 --> 0:05:58.080 Yes, and they need titles. So you need a president, 0:05:58.680 --> 0:06:00.400 you need a treasurer, you need a secretary. 0:06:00.520 --> 0:06:03.080 And that's New York State's the end of a federal 0:06:03.160 --> 0:06:03.760 New York state. 0:06:03.880 --> 0:06:08.520 Okay, so all right, you have those three people. Those 0:06:08.560 --> 0:06:10.400 people have to actually be active. 0:06:12.240 --> 0:06:15.440 They should be active. So here's the thing. It's like 0:06:16.000 --> 0:06:20.719 it kindly recommended because they're putting themselves on the line 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:24.320 by signing that paperwork. Right, So if you have someone 0:06:24.400 --> 0:06:26.560 signed as a secretary and it's your cousin, but they're 0:06:26.600 --> 0:06:29.719 not actually doing the work. If you get audited or 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:31.840 there's an issue, they're going to come looking for you 0:06:31.880 --> 0:06:34.680 and your cousin. So everybody should understand how serious it 0:06:34.720 --> 0:06:36.280 is when they are signing that paperwork. 0:06:36.680 --> 0:06:37.920 Okay, can we talk about marketing? 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:38.880 Yeah? 0:06:38.960 --> 0:06:41.920 So how do you put together marketing plan for a nonprofit? 0:06:41.960 --> 0:06:45.080 Or it's because it's different, right, Like we're marketing. Let's 0:06:45.080 --> 0:06:47.320 say we want to market our podcast, right, or you're 0:06:47.360 --> 0:06:51.200 marketing a product. Right, it's a little different than marketing 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:55.839 for a nonprofit because it's charity. Yeah, so it's like, 0:06:56.440 --> 0:06:58.440 you got it. It's kind of in my opinion, it's 0:06:58.480 --> 0:07:01.720 it's a little delicate because you don't want to make 0:07:01.760 --> 0:07:06.320 it seem like you're selling something. But obviously you need funds. 0:07:06.320 --> 0:07:09.200 We don't talk about fundraising, but you need funds, So 0:07:09.240 --> 0:07:10.920 how do you how do you do that? Like how 0:07:10.920 --> 0:07:12.120 do you market for a charity? 0:07:12.720 --> 0:07:15.520 I think the two most important things to consider when 0:07:15.560 --> 0:07:20.040 marketing is who is your target audience? And then also 0:07:20.440 --> 0:07:23.200 what are your donors need to see and understand in 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:27.320 order to give. So the more your donors know, the 0:07:27.360 --> 0:07:31.480 more they will give. Period making sure that in everything 0:07:31.520 --> 0:07:34.960 that you do, whether it's just utilizing social media, that 0:07:35.080 --> 0:07:39.560 every image, every caption, every meme, everything that you're sharing 0:07:39.960 --> 0:07:44.160 explains the mission clearly. Transparency is the number one thing, 0:07:44.240 --> 0:07:48.680 and trying to solicit donors. Marketing, so making sure that 0:07:48.880 --> 0:07:52.480 you are marketing towards the people that you need to 0:07:52.480 --> 0:07:56.160 do the service. Right. So when I started this organization, 0:07:56.560 --> 0:08:00.160 I wanted to market this towards people who run the 0:08:00.160 --> 0:08:02.560 foster care agencies in New York City as well as 0:08:02.560 --> 0:08:05.400 the homeless shelters, So figuring out what do they need 0:08:05.480 --> 0:08:07.840 to see in order to understand what our services are 0:08:08.040 --> 0:08:10.840 and that sometimes it's simply putting together a kit that 0:08:10.960 --> 0:08:14.960 explains and breaks everything down. Here's the mission, here's our values, 0:08:15.240 --> 0:08:18.400 here's our logo, here's our one year plan, here's the 0:08:18.480 --> 0:08:21.720 program that we can provide or the curriculum, just depending 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:24.640 on what you want to do and ironing all of 0:08:24.640 --> 0:08:26.960 that out so that they can understand it and then 0:08:27.000 --> 0:08:29.040 they choose whether or not they want to work with you. 0:08:29.880 --> 0:08:32.400 So you're pretty much I mean, you're not selling in 0:08:32.440 --> 0:08:35.160 the sense of an item, but you're selling your vision 0:08:35.200 --> 0:08:35.840 and your passion. 0:08:35.920 --> 0:08:37.920 Yeah, in a sense, right, yeah, and making it clear. 0:08:37.960 --> 0:08:41.400 I mean, there's another nonprofit friend of mine runs an 0:08:41.440 --> 0:08:44.440 organization called Kicks for the City. It's a very simple mission. 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:47.480 They give shoes to the homeless. So when all of 0:08:47.520 --> 0:08:53.200 their packaging, they're showing photos, images of sneakers, images of homeless. 0:08:53.520 --> 0:08:56.240 So people can just simply connect the dots. Here's the mission, 0:08:56.440 --> 0:08:58.280 there's a value, and here's what it looks like if 0:08:58.320 --> 0:08:58.720 you give. 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:01.960 It's easy. So all right, So the biggest part of 0:09:02.559 --> 0:09:06.040 charity nonprofit organization is that you have to have money. Right. 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:09.880 It's actually a business. Right. That's something that people need 0:09:09.920 --> 0:09:13.400 to understand too. If you think about running a nonprofit 0:09:13.720 --> 0:09:16.240 successful now, yeah, is that you have to run it 0:09:16.280 --> 0:09:20.080 like a business because it is a business. Right. So 0:09:20.120 --> 0:09:23.360 we're going to talk about funding. So nonprofits get majority 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:26.079 of their funding from donors. Right, how do you really 0:09:26.080 --> 0:09:27.920 depend what's the other ways? 0:09:28.000 --> 0:09:31.920 Yeah, it depends. You can get a majority through individual donors, 0:09:32.200 --> 0:09:37.160 through state funding, through federal funding. Those are the three 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:37.760 main ways. 0:09:37.840 --> 0:09:40.760 Yeah, let's let's let's talk about donors. Yeah, how does 0:09:40.920 --> 0:09:43.240 how is some what's the one on one blueprint to 0:09:43.280 --> 0:09:46.600 attract individual donors, real the men so. 0:09:46.520 --> 0:09:49.960 That they understand the cause and make sure that you 0:09:50.000 --> 0:09:53.680 are speaking to people who care about that mission, that 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:57.640 specific mission. So with Precious Dreams, I had to find 0:09:57.640 --> 0:10:00.720 a way how do I connect the issue a fostered 0:10:00.720 --> 0:10:03.360 homeless youth and make it relatable to someone who's never 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:05.640 been in those shoes. So the first thing that we 0:10:05.679 --> 0:10:09.400 did was target parents, because parents understand the importance of 0:10:09.440 --> 0:10:12.800 comfort items. So I remember my first year, I would 0:10:12.800 --> 0:10:14.679 have meetings and one of the first questions I asked was, 0:10:14.880 --> 0:10:18.280 do you have kids, what's their bedtime routine? Do you 0:10:18.320 --> 0:10:20.480 read to them? What do they do? They sleep in 0:10:20.520 --> 0:10:24.160 pajamas And it immediately brings them to this happy place 0:10:24.160 --> 0:10:26.080 of thinking of like what that looks like for their 0:10:26.160 --> 0:10:28.840 kids and how important it is to them. And then 0:10:29.160 --> 0:10:33.720 I would help them vision what a typical night looks 0:10:33.720 --> 0:10:36.319 like in a homeless shelter, or what a night looks like. 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:38.360 For a far earners. 0:10:38.360 --> 0:10:38.720 What's up? 0:10:38.840 --> 0:10:41.280 You ever walk into a small business and everything just 0:10:41.440 --> 0:10:44.120 works like the checkout is fast, there are seats of 0:10:44.200 --> 0:10:47.840 digital tipping is a breeze, and you're out the door 0:10:47.880 --> 0:10:51.720 before the line even builds. Odds are they're using Square? 0:10:52.240 --> 0:10:54.800 We love supporting businesses that run on Square because it 0:10:54.920 --> 0:10:57.880 just feels seamless. Whether it's a local coffee shop, a 0:10:57.960 --> 0:11:00.440 vendor at a pop up market, or even one of 0:11:00.440 --> 0:11:03.520 our merch partners. Square makes it easy for them to 0:11:03.559 --> 0:11:07.400 take payments, manage inventory, and run their business with confidence, 0:11:07.760 --> 0:11:11.080 all from one simple system. If you're a business owner 0:11:11.280 --> 0:11:14.679 or even just thinking about launching something soon, Square is 0:11:14.760 --> 0:11:16.800 hands down one of the best tools out there to 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:20.800 help you start, run, and grow. It's not just about payments, 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:23.800 it's about giving you time back so you can focus 0:11:23.880 --> 0:11:26.600 on what matters most ready. To see how Square can 0:11:26.640 --> 0:11:31.439 transform your business, visit Square dot com backslash go backslash 0:11:31.520 --> 0:11:35.680 eyl to learn more that Square dot com backslash, go 0:11:36.120 --> 0:11:40.320 backslash eyl. Don't wait, don't hesitate. Let's Square handle the 0:11:40.360 --> 0:11:42.880 back end so you can keep pushing your vision forward. 0:11:46.520 --> 0:11:48.720 This episode is brought to you by P and C Bank. 0:11:49.120 --> 0:11:51.880 A lot of people think podcasts about work are boring, 0:11:52.120 --> 0:11:55.960 and sure, they definitely can be, but understanding a professionals 0:11:56.040 --> 0:11:59.280 routine shows us how they achieve their success little by little, 0:11:59.640 --> 0:12:03.320 day after day. It's like banking with P and C Bank. 0:12:03.800 --> 0:12:06.600 It might seem boring the safe plan and make calculated 0:12:06.600 --> 0:12:09.720 decisions with your bank, but keeping your money boring is 0:12:09.760 --> 0:12:13.080 what helps you live or more happily fulfilled life. P 0:12:13.200 --> 0:12:18.040 and C Bank Brilliantly Boring since eighteen sixty five. Brilliantly 0:12:18.080 --> 0:12:20.720 Boring since eighteen sixty five is a service mark of 0:12:20.760 --> 0:12:23.439 the P and C Financial Service Group, Inc. P and 0:12:23.520 --> 0:12:27.080 C Bank National Association Member FDIC. 0:12:28.320 --> 0:12:30.679 Poster kid who's sleeping in a room with five other 0:12:30.760 --> 0:12:34.280 families on a mattress that's on the floor, and immediately 0:12:34.840 --> 0:12:39.280 they feel connected, you know, and then they want to give, 0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:43.800 They want to save someone because they can't understand how 0:12:44.120 --> 0:12:46.319 someone else could be lacking what their child has or 0:12:46.320 --> 0:12:49.000 what they have that they were taking for granted because 0:12:49.040 --> 0:12:51.680 they just did never thought about the person who lacks. 0:12:51.880 --> 0:12:54.280 It's a commonality, like we were all children at some point. Yeah, 0:12:54.280 --> 0:12:56.520 and we probably all have gone through some experience as 0:12:56.559 --> 0:12:58.199 a child, whether it was like somebody putting you to 0:12:58.280 --> 0:13:01.440 bed or the bad time routine. I want to go 0:13:01.520 --> 0:13:04.720 to the fact of state funding and federal funding, so 0:13:04.840 --> 0:13:07.720 like how does that work and are there acts or 0:13:07.720 --> 0:13:10.080 initiatives that the state provides are just like you know, 0:13:10.120 --> 0:13:12.080 what I should target them or how do you go 0:13:12.120 --> 0:13:13.360 about it? 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:18.160 It depends on what you're doing. Again with the nonprofit, 0:13:18.400 --> 0:13:22.760 So if you're providing a service for schools or for educators. 0:13:22.800 --> 0:13:25.760 It's very easy to go after state funding. If you 0:13:25.920 --> 0:13:28.760 are providing sneakers to the homeless, it's a little harder 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:31.440 to get those grants approved because they might not see 0:13:31.480 --> 0:13:34.800 the importance in that work. So yeah, it just depends 0:13:34.840 --> 0:13:38.120 on what you're doing. But those applications are available online. 0:13:38.800 --> 0:13:41.920 There's a full list of the state money that's available, 0:13:42.200 --> 0:13:45.120 federal money that's available, and you just have to see 0:13:45.160 --> 0:13:46.400 whether or not you fall along. 0:13:46.640 --> 0:13:49.920 So okay, So how important is grant writers? 0:13:51.120 --> 0:13:56.760 Grant writers are very important. They're very very important, especially 0:13:56.800 --> 0:14:00.720 if you don't have relationships with a lot of individual donors, 0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:05.240 because you need one of the other grant writers. And 0:14:05.320 --> 0:14:09.040 also researchers are another a whole other animal because a 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:11.200 lot of times, and we learned this the hard way, 0:14:11.280 --> 0:14:13.439 I thought, you know, let's let's find a grant writer. 0:14:13.800 --> 0:14:16.200 You find the grant writer and they're like, okay, so 0:14:16.240 --> 0:14:19.520 who's doing the grant research because that's a whole nother job. 0:14:19.720 --> 0:14:21.560 Yeah, I'm not even heard of that side. What's their 0:14:21.640 --> 0:14:24.360 job to do to research everything? 0:14:24.520 --> 0:14:28.320 Yes, and it takes hours because there are so many 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:32.480 grants available, But there could be one small thing in 0:14:32.520 --> 0:14:36.120 that grant one requirement and your organization just doesn't fall 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.080 under it. So making sure before you waste anybody's time 0:14:39.200 --> 0:14:42.800 and they're writing this full proposal that you fall in 0:14:43.000 --> 0:14:45.400 on all of the requirements that are listed for that 0:14:45.440 --> 0:14:46.560 one specific grant. 0:14:46.760 --> 0:14:50.600 And most of these grants government or private, or like 0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:51.360 a mixture. 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:54.800 Of a mix. Yeah, private, public, state, federal. 0:14:54.640 --> 0:14:56.800 And you could just google and probably find a lot 0:14:56.960 --> 0:14:58.640 as far as different causes. 0:14:59.200 --> 0:15:01.440 Yeah, a lot of the are very public. Some are 0:15:01.480 --> 0:15:06.520 invite only, which are harder to apply for. But so 0:15:06.560 --> 0:15:09.840 there's a lot of private, especially like family foundations, where 0:15:09.880 --> 0:15:14.360 they've set up to give finances annually to different organizations, 0:15:14.720 --> 0:15:19.480 but they don't want to have thousands of applications coming in. 0:15:19.560 --> 0:15:22.560 There are over one point five million nonprofits in the 0:15:22.720 --> 0:15:25.920 United States. So if you are a very small, like 0:15:26.040 --> 0:15:29.040 three or four person run organization where you're trying to 0:15:29.120 --> 0:15:31.560 just simply give out twenty thousand dollars a year, you 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.920 don't want one point five million people applying. And so 0:15:35.000 --> 0:15:37.360 what they'll do is they'll restrict it to a certain 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:41.160 county or a certain state, and people will have to 0:15:41.240 --> 0:15:44.200 know someone in order to get in. It's kind of like, like, 0:15:44.640 --> 0:15:46.120 I don't want to say mafia, but like you have 0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:49.480 to know somebody in order to even figure out what 0:15:49.560 --> 0:15:51.560 their application process is to get in the door. 0:15:52.600 --> 0:15:54.800 So where does your funding come from? 0:15:55.200 --> 0:15:58.200 Most of a majority of our funding comes from individual donors, 0:15:58.480 --> 0:16:02.520 and that is a gift that I've been able to 0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:05.480 receive because of the work that I've done, so in 0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:09.480 having that that history, that job history at places like 0:16:09.520 --> 0:16:12.840 Madison Square Garden, where I've been able to develop relationships 0:16:12.880 --> 0:16:16.120 with the one percent in New York City, or you know, 0:16:16.160 --> 0:16:18.320 the athletes and artists that come through and they're invited 0:16:18.360 --> 0:16:21.040 to sit courtside at our games, the gary Ves of 0:16:21.080 --> 0:16:23.520 the Internet, like all of those people I developed great 0:16:23.560 --> 0:16:26.960 relationships with by them seeing my work ethic but then 0:16:27.040 --> 0:16:31.280 also my character, seeing that I am someone who is 0:16:32.600 --> 0:16:36.360 responsible but kind. And so when I approach those people 0:16:36.520 --> 0:16:41.120 about giving to my nonprofit, the answer is yes more 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:41.560 than no. 0:16:42.200 --> 0:16:46.360 So do you have because like I think, Deary Ferguson 0:16:46.600 --> 0:16:50.120 Robin Hoood Dinner is like five thousand dollars minimum, It's 0:16:50.160 --> 0:16:52.240 like five thousand dollars per plate to end. Yeah, and 0:16:52.320 --> 0:16:55.840 it sold out. You can't get in and so that's crazy. 0:16:55.880 --> 0:16:59.400 But like how do you price? How do you ask 0:16:59.440 --> 0:17:02.160 for money? Like do you do it in galas? How 0:17:02.160 --> 0:17:03.800 do you know how much to ask for? 0:17:04.600 --> 0:17:12.399 There's so many ways to fundraise, so many ways. So 0:17:12.520 --> 0:17:14.800 one thing that's very important we talk We go back 0:17:14.840 --> 0:17:18.520 and talk about boards, right, your board of directors should 0:17:18.560 --> 0:17:21.520 be very diverse and they should have a network far 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:24.480 beyond your reach so that they can go out as 0:17:24.520 --> 0:17:28.960 ambassadors and promote your organization to receive funding from anyone 0:17:29.040 --> 0:17:33.159 that they're connected to. Then you can utilize social media. 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:35.240 There's a lot of ways that you can raise money 0:17:35.280 --> 0:17:38.160 on social media. There's a lot of platforms like get smart. 0:17:38.240 --> 0:17:40.280 Dot com is a platform that you can pay for 0:17:40.680 --> 0:17:43.399 where you can set up fundraising pages. But then it 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:45.720 also gives you text numbers, so like the Text to 0:17:45.800 --> 0:17:48.200 Give where you can send out a number and say, 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:50.640 if you text this number, you can donate twenty five 0:17:50.720 --> 0:17:54.400 dollars instantly. That's a platform that allows you to do it. 0:17:55.359 --> 0:17:58.639 Galas are very important. Selling a ticket to provide an 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:01.719 experience for somebody is the easiest way to fundraise. Who 0:18:01.720 --> 0:18:04.000 doesn't want to come to an open bar experience or 0:18:04.040 --> 0:18:06.480 to see a performer to go out to have a 0:18:06.520 --> 0:18:10.280 good time. So galas are honestly probably one of the biggest, 0:18:11.760 --> 0:18:15.400 the biggest ways that nonprofits are able to generate funds, 0:18:15.640 --> 0:18:18.800 especially for precious streams. It's definitely our our go to 0:18:18.920 --> 0:18:22.159 every year. You have an annual gala, yes, every fall. 0:18:23.000 --> 0:18:27.080 So on the business side, how do you know? All right, 0:18:27.160 --> 0:18:30.640 you run an organization, not you, but just anybody, right, 0:18:30.720 --> 0:18:35.960 and that's your job. So you have to make a living. 0:18:36.119 --> 0:18:39.199 You have to you know, provide for yourself, right, So 0:18:39.640 --> 0:18:42.639 how do you know or what's the rule of thumb? 0:18:42.800 --> 0:18:44.840 Like how much money should you be taking for your 0:18:44.880 --> 0:18:48.280 own personal It never really seems like it's right because 0:18:48.280 --> 0:18:49.760 it's like a charity you don't want to take, but 0:18:49.800 --> 0:18:52.080 it's still a job. But you're doing something, you know, 0:18:52.119 --> 0:18:54.840 and you've got to get compensated for that obviously. So yeah, 0:18:55.119 --> 0:18:56.880 especially like when you're the owner of it, because it's 0:18:56.920 --> 0:18:58.719 up to you, Like how do you determine, like how 0:18:58.800 --> 0:19:01.480 much money you take from that as your personal salary? 0:19:01.800 --> 0:19:05.760 So I think the most important word when it comes 0:19:05.800 --> 0:19:13.680 to thriving in the nonprofit space is transparency, and annual 0:19:13.800 --> 0:19:17.359 reports are important. An annual report is more than just 0:19:17.400 --> 0:19:19.200 the nine to ninety which you need to fill out 0:19:19.200 --> 0:19:21.359 every year so that the government knows how you're spending 0:19:21.359 --> 0:19:24.840 your money. But an annual report will break down exactly 0:19:24.880 --> 0:19:28.480 how much money went to operational costs, to programming, to 0:19:28.880 --> 0:19:32.280 office supplies, to everything. And a lot of times big 0:19:32.359 --> 0:19:35.240 donors want to see where every dollar went last year, 0:19:35.560 --> 0:19:38.160 and if you can show that, then they will give more. 0:19:38.400 --> 0:19:40.520 Like I said earlier, the more the more that a 0:19:40.600 --> 0:19:43.920 donor knows, the more they will give. So we always 0:19:43.920 --> 0:19:46.480 make sure that we're very transparent about what we give, 0:19:46.840 --> 0:19:49.439 but then also making sure that they see the numbers 0:19:49.440 --> 0:19:52.120 that they that they that they'd want to see, right, 0:19:52.240 --> 0:19:55.520 So like, if I'm giving a dollar, I want to 0:19:55.600 --> 0:19:58.080 know that at least seventy five cents of my dollar 0:19:58.160 --> 0:20:00.440 is going to go to the wards the ch children 0:20:00.680 --> 0:20:02.720 and the images that you're showing me in this deck, 0:20:02.920 --> 0:20:07.080