{"id":23214,"date":"2022-06-01T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-01T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/?post_type=article&p=23214"},"modified":"2026-01-15T15:43:27","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T10:13:27","slug":"fundraising-from-a-funders-point-of-view","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/kn-in\/article\/fundraising-and-communications\/fundraising-from-a-funders-point-of-view\/","title":{"rendered":"Fundraising from a funder’s point of view"},"content":{"rendered":"

India’s social sector has evolved significantly over the last decade. Today, there is a somewhat better recognition of the role nonprofits play in both supporting the most vulnerable communities as well as in nation-building. Yet, fundraising remains the biggest challenge for nonprofits. These two realities—the criticality of nonprofits and the complexities around raising capital—behove us to consider fundraising as perhaps the most important aspect of running a successful social sector organisation today.<\/p>

As funders, we have been fortunate to work with many pioneering organisations addressing some of the hardest problems facing Indians. Over the last decade, there is much that we have observed about fundraising through our work with more than 100 nonprofits. Here are some of our most noteworthy takeaways.<\/p>

1. Fundraising is a core activity, and not a distraction, for an organisation<\/h3>

In recent years, organisations and leaders in the social sector have increasingly started to accept fundraising as a ‘core’ part of the job—as central as programmatic work itself. It is not a distraction from the ‘main work’. It deserves time, attention, and proactiveness. Therefore, to be successful, fundraising teams need to be entrepreneurial, passionate about the mission, and powerful ambassadors of the organisation. In early-stage nonprofits, founders may need to spend 40–50 percent of their time in fundraising and cultivating a culture of fundraising within the organisation.<\/p>

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2. A good fundraising set-up is one of the best investments an organisation can make, and this needs to be ‘fit for purpose’<\/h3>

A good fundraising team is undoubtedly one of the best early investments a nonprofit can make. Fundraising ambitions must be commensurate with and ideally ahead of the organisation’s own growth ambitions. Designing a fundraising set-up should be done in a ‘fit for purpose’ manner, that is, by taking into account the organisation’s stage, capabilities, and ambitions.<\/p>

In early stages, it is common for fundraising to be entirely founder-driven. <\/p><\/blockquote>

Today, multiple models exist for nonprofits to choose from. In early stages, it is common for fundraising to be entirely founder-driven. Some organisations, such as Nudge Foundation<\/a>, have dedicated fundraising personnel or teams. Others such as Pratham<\/a> combine fundraising and programme delivery, which are managed end to end by the same person or team. Nonprofits can also leverage external partners—such as individual consultants or organisations like Dasra<\/a> and Samhita<\/a>—that crowd-in capital from high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) and CSR funds. In recent years, institutions such as ILSS <\/a>and ISDM<\/a> are increasing the supply of fundraising talent, which is a huge positive for the sector. Some organisations have even leveraged community relationships for fundraising. Jan Sahas<\/a>, for instance, incubated 12 community-based organisations across India to raise funds in a targeted manner, and now community contributions account for nearly half their funding.<\/p>

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Playing close attention to the strategies of funders can help nonprofits enhance the depth of their engagement with them. | Picture courtesy: Vivek Thakyal<\/a> \/ CC BY<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>

3. A good fundraising pitch strikes the right balance between storytelling, explaining your strategy, and data<\/h3>

A strong pitch incorporates a few different elements. To start with, it is useful to have a simple description of what the organisation does upfront. Believe it or not, as funders we are often unclear about what exactly an organisation does, even after going through its fundraising material. Once this is in place, think about how you can use the following:<\/p>