SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP MODULE 5

ENTREPRENEURSHIP MODULE 5

Fundraising is the seeking of financial support for a charity cause or other enterprises , it is a process of raising or gathering voluntary contributions of money or other resources for ones social enterprises to function entirely . And they are several types of fundraising namely ; capital investments, crowd funding , investment from friends and family , investments from philanthropists , investments from professional funders grunts , loans interest free or with interest , personal savings , bid writing skills, cultivating new donors and others .

WHAT METHODS CAN I RELY ON TO FUNDRAISE ?

All sources of fundraising are valuable , but it makes more sense to understand feasibility and sustainability before applying a particular source of fund , one has to think about these questions : how much capital is required ? What funding sources suit my needs ? Can I rely on these sources to support my initiatives in sustainable ways ? How can I create a winning pitch to make sure that I win that amount? By the time one gets answers to these questions he/she will have a definite source to be applied .

I prefer grunts , which are offered by organizations , government agencies , foundations and cooperations in regular cycles they involve writing a proposal and submitting documents . The money offered is used over a specific time prescribed by the grunt and impact is reported periodically .

Another method I may choose is crowd funding though it is a limited process , it is a process that involves setting up a pitch on a plat form and call out for the crowd to donate or invest small sums of money , it is limited because the same people will not always donate . Another way is fundraising from friends and family , investments from philanthropists , investments from professional funders , applying for loans with interest or without , personal savings and more .

HOW CAN I ENSURE THAT I FINANCE MY PROJECT AND CAMPAIGN WISELY ?

Financing is another important part of running ones enterprises because each of the enterprises project comes with an expense , ranging from rent , staff salary , required raw materials , unicilary expenses and marketing . According to the research I have conducted , I have leant that nonprofit organizations are required to keep their community oriented services valuable for a smooth running of the enterprises , maintaining this requires creating an organizational structure that supports financial sustainability , because behind the curtains powerful and successful missions , innovative programs and good staffs and volunteers are backed up by financial activities and decisions , for a healthy organization one has to apply financial management practices to build flexibility and stability for both purposes ( present and future ).

1: Budgeting , matters in this field it provides all the required financial information to back up all the plannings , anual plans helps to point out what one intends to achieve each month of the year . Financing is a function of budgeting relaying on ones yearly income and collecting funds on a timely basis, Incase one is in need of raising a compaign to raise funds one can relay on that fund to meet a specific goal. Determining in advance gives room to identify a contingency fund which is a backup fund that will always maintain a minimum reserve amount of money, once one masters his/ her annual income he/she can choose where to divert the fund , which may serve a great help when it is most needed .

2 : Program costs , is also important aspect in the field of financing , it makes more sense if the organizations understands the real costs of their projects to allow them make decisions about contract terms , fundraising needs and program modifications . It helps to determine how much it will cost ? Is the enterprises in position to meet the demands right away or the demands should be postponed ? What projects and campaigns to be implemented the coming year ? The major expenditure to incur the coming year , can annual income match the expenditure? Can we maintain a contingency fund ? How to scale and back expenses and optimize money .

3: Accountability and transparency 4: Financial integrity 5 : Operating reserves .

6: Spending money where it counts is another source of Financing wisely, for instance working with a lean team of staffs one can apply this method by entrusting and empowering remote workers , it costs time in finding the perfect fit with a sense of self accountability so that they can take a broad goal and find a way out to get feedback . Recruiting on short term contracts is the best way to help weed out candidates before considering a full time hire . Financing is important in all fields , when implementing a project , when implementing a campaign , when a position or more is to be staffed , when infrastructure expenses are to be incurred , when a contractual labor is to be hired and more . So it makes sense to identify and cut back on wasteful expenditures with the help of drawing up ones financing approach .

WHAT SYSTEMS CAN I PUT IN PLACE TO MAINTAIN MY ACCOUNTS ?

Maintaining records and accounts of all the required transactions is very important to the smooth running of a social enterprises , relaying on the systems of protocols a professional account is the perfect one to relay on maintaining records promotes transparency , accountability and clarity in record keeping , the maintained records also play a big role in establishing ones credibility when seeking for funds . It is important from all angles to keep truck of all incoming and outgoing money it gives room to identify and cut back on wasteful expenditures . Relaying on professional support is also a good way to maintain accounts in ones social enterprises , because a professional will always produce quality account maintenance . Another way that counts is priotizing transparency in book keeping , being open to the board members and staffs , it builds trust with in the workers . Maintaining accounts also helps in being mindful of big tickets expenditures it gives room for better planning to avoid ending up in debts , one identifies and rules out wasteful expenditures . A greater portion of fundraising , financing and accounting is meant to establish , maintain and operate when ever an organization is in need of raising funds , it is expected to submit evidence of anual budgets well maintained records work as evidence , so it is of great importance to maintain the records safely , one can choose to maintain them digitally or offline , and I personally I am welling to apply both ways just Incase ? I believe I will not lose anything by applying both ways , i will take my time and search for affordable accounting software such as quick books any which will march with my nonprofit and I intend to reserve the offline copy to , the second option I would prefer applying is a cash basis it is a a system were one records expenses or incomes when one pays or receives them . Or income and expenditure account with a balance sheet with the help of receipt and payment account .