When the Board Asks "Why Are We In A Federation," Tell Them This

Good Afternoon Patrick,
I hope your day is going well. I have a question for you. I have been handling the CFC donation payments and donor name downloads for thank yous for the last two years. Members of our Board of Directors have inquired as to why we use a federation for CFC donations and are not an independent agent. Can you please give me some insight on this question as to the benefits that we receive by affiliation with your organization? I’m uncertain as to the procedures one would have to go through to become an independent entity. I believe that it is very beneficial to be a member of Maguire/Maguire, and would appreciate any help you might give me on this matter!
Thanks again for any help. Enjoy your day.

Dear Deb,

This is a good question, and one I get all the time. The first thing I do is send the board member to the appropriate federation web site (in your case, www.conservenow.org). The web site explains the mission and operation of the federation and includes a list of member benefits. Then I recommend they go to my web site and log on to their charity's online portfolio to review all the information posted there. And if it's not just the question of why be in a federation but also wanting to understand how workplace campaigns function I encourage them to watch the hour-long training video "Workplace 101," which is also on my web site.

Or you could just tell them this:

1. If we weren't in our federation I'd have to process reports and payments monthly from 300 separate local CFCs instead of getting one report and one payment that represents the proceeds from all of them.

2. If we weren't in our federation we would be listed in the "unaffiliated" section in the CFC campaign brochures, and our CFC income would drop 40% or more because few donors who are interested in conservation or preservation issues scan that section.

3. If we weren't in our federation we would receive most of our donor names on paper and I'd have to manually enter them.

4. If we weren't in our federation we wouldn't be participating in $50 million worth of corporate employee fund drives in addition to the CFC, which in our case represents $12-15,000 a year that we otherwise wouldn't have.

5. If we weren't in our federation we'd lose access to our share of the pool of gifts that donors have made to the federation itself to be shared by all the federation's members. That share pays for almost our entire cost of membership in the federation.

Here's the full list of member benefits from the federation web site:

MEMBERSHIP SERVICES AND BENEFITS - Campaigns reaching an estimated 10,000,000 employees, depending on your local presence eligibility and state charitable solicitation registration.
Access to the Combined Federal Campaign, 30 state employee campaigns, scores of municipal, county and university campaigns, United Way campaigns in Washington DC and San Francisco, and various independent corporate campaigns.
Automated "sign & go" applications (after first year of participation) including electronic processing and receipt.
Application assistance for campaigns where you can qualify directly, e.g. the Philadelphia, PA, and Dayton, OH, United Way campaigns.
Donor names & addresses keypunched and forwarded electronically, pre-formatted for download to your contributor database.
Monthly electronic funds transfer of gifts directly to your bank account.
Members share in "undesignated" funds and gifts made to the federation, as available.
Private, workplace campaign online portfolio, where members can check the status of their gifts and distributions at any time, review a three year history of workplace campaign giving, keep up to date on individual marketing programs, and download exclusive workplace training and education materials.
Inclusion on our federation's web site, which features "search" capability to help donors find you and information to motivate them to give to you once they do.
Automatic notification of campaign speaking opportunities, kickoff events, "agency fairs", and other opportunities to promote your agency directly to donors.
Complete workplace campaign marketing support, including but not limited to: campaign marketing packet, annual training conferences, copy writing and consulting service for campaign brochure statements and other campaign marketing materials, and assistance with custom workplace development plans and (optional) mass media display advertising.
E-Commerce Giving: This is an optional service available to our members. It is an online donation form that goes on your web site and allows donors to make credit card gifts to you via a secure server. Visa and MasterCard donations are processed free of charge and American Express donations are assessed a low transaction fee of 2.85%. It's a great service if you don't have your own on-line credit card processing system. ( Click here to see an example of the form)
Vehicle Donations: Through a partnership with VDAC (Vehicle Donations to Any Charity), we offer you a zero liability vehicle donation system. You can accept vehicles from anywhere in the country. We handle the towing, issue a charitable receipt to the donor, auction the vehicle, handle the transfer of title, etc. All you have to do is receive the money. Donations can be accepted online, or via a toll free number.