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The #ONE way to increase ROI and funding revenue that no one is talking about - volunteer engagement!

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We’ve used the big events, galas, golf tournaments, but here’s a longer lasting way! The way to increase your ROI and funding revenue is being very intentional in your volunteer engagement. Volunteers become evangelists for your organization with the most effective word of mouth promotion! Keep reading to learn how to increase your organizational ROI and funding revenue!


Effective, efficient and a well implemented volunteer engagement strategy is the longer lasting way to increase ROI and funding revenue! Implementing effective and efficient volunteer engagement strategy is a whole profession and I address how to implement those skills in separate articles.


Engaging volunteers will better your funding individual ratio, surplus ratio, volunteer participation, increase missional impact, increase community awareness, and increase financial donations. I’ll address each one with an example budget and numbers at the end.  


Funding Individual Ratio: What is the funding individual ratio? How an organization's assets compare to their future liabilities. With more individuals engaged effectively with your organization (volunteers), they will be more likely to give you funds, time, and resources which increases your assets coming from individuals compared to future liabilities. It grows your capacity for future growth and gives cushion for any future downturns/challenges.


Surplus Ratio: What is a surplus ratio with volunteers?  It is the operating surplus or deficit expressed as a percentage of operating income. Volunteers expand the capacity of work and impact. When you have engaged volunteers, they are getting more tasks done, more outreach accomplished, and more donations of money or items, giving a surplus ratio based on the same operating income.  The organization is doing more with the same operating budget. 


Impact goes beyond just numbers. Lives are changed (staff, volunteer, and clients, community impacted).


Volunteer engagement is not free. There needs to be financial and supervisory investment in some infrastructure, supplies, appreciation, nametags, time of staff.  However, it pays good dividends in better ROI!


Volunteer Participation: An effective and efficiently run volunteer engagement process will attract volunteers who want to make a difference and impact, want to know their time is valued and appreciated. Volunteers will tell others of their wonderful experience and recruit more volunteers.


Increased Missional Impact: With more people, finances, and resources at hand, organizations can focus on making more impact - more food shared, more animals cared for, more people visited, more blood collected, more disaster assistance given, more homes built, more more more of whatever the impact is of your organization.


Increased Community Awareness: Volunteers are members of your community.  They talk with their neighbors, friends, acquaintances. They will be asked - what do you do, or what did you do last week and they’ll mention that they helped build a home, represent a child in the system, donated blood, shared meals, or whatever they do at your organization. This word of mouth is even more powerful than a social media post, ad, or other types of outreach. The more satisfied volunteers you have, the more the word gets out into the community. And if you prepare and have easily accessible ways for them to share your organization, they’ll help spread the news faster. Create a business card they can have in their pocket or wallet, to share about how to connect with your organization or make a social post they can easily share online.


Increased Financial Donations: Volunteers give their time. If they are actively and effectively engaged with your organization, they will be more likely to support your cause with their finances, gifts of items or other needs you may have.

By the numbers 

(I am using round numbers as example, but you can add your own numbers)


Organization 1

Budget: $450,000

End of year balance: $0

Impact: only what 3 people can do while running everything admin, mission, promotion, etc.


By the numbers:

  • Salary 3 FT staff with benefits, etc.: $225,000

  • Operating budget (lights, heat, building upkeep, supplies, admin, IT support, etc.): 75,000

  • Mission costs (meals for homeless; pet food, cages, towels; containers for storage of supplies; costumes for theater, stage sets, equipment; etc.) : $150,000

  • No volunteers, so 3 FT staff are doing EVERYTHING


Organization 2 with effective and efficient volunteer engagement and 30 volunteers

Budget: $450,000

End of year balance: $2500+ (from volunteer donations) that can be spent in addition to budget AND equivalent of 7 months full time staff person added at $33,490 value

Impact: 

  • Increased meals served, pets saved, homeless helped, etc. with the extra time and funds. 

  • Increased ROI. 

  • Increased funds and other donated items (physical items like dog food, containers, clothes, etc.)

  • 20 people raising awareness about your mission in the community recruiting more donors and volunteers


By the numbers:

  • Salary 3 FT staff with benefits, etc.: $225,000  

    • Volunteers adding 7 months of full time staff person 

  • Operating budget (lights, heat, building upkeep, supplies, admin, IT support, etc.): $75,000

  • Mission costs (meals for homeless; pet food, cages, towels; containers for storage of supplies; costumes for theater, stage sets, equipment; etc.) : $150,000


Volunteers are integrated into all strategy plans and included as part of the staff (albeit unpaid). 

  • 30 volunteers engaged effectively and efficiently

  • Financially = added $2500

    • 10 give $50 each = 500

    • 10 give $200 = $2000

    • 10 give supplies to your cause (pet food, blankets, containers, etc.) saving org from purchasing them - increasing surplus ratio

  • Time = added 7+months of 1 full time staff person time at value of $33,490

    • 5 give 100 hours annually (8 hours a month)

    • 5 give 50 hours annually (4 hours a month)

    • 10 give 25 hours annually (2 hours a month)

      • Equals 1000 hours annually

      • Independent sector “value of volunteer time” average across US is $33.49

      • Equals $33,490 value

      • Equals 7+ months of 1 Full time staff person time

  • Outreach into Community = added nonpaid advertising word of mouth

    • 30 people talking about your mission 

    • 20 people recruiting their friends and family to be involved in your mission

    • 15 people sharing your social media posts

    • 1 maybe that is social media savvy that will help you create posts and reach even more people

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