It doesn’t matter if you’re a person, a company, or a nonprofit organization, we’re all doing our best to survive the coronavirus pandemic. Nonprofits are at an especially high risk of breakdown since they’re pushed to the brink. More than ever, people have increased needs for nonprofit assistance, yet donations are dwindling, and cash reserves are drying up. It’s a tough time for many, but survival is not out of the question. Here are some ideas that may help your nonprofit not only cope with but also outlast the challenges of COVID-19:

Get all hands on deck for ideation

Now is the time to concentrate on the basics that will hold your nonprofit organization together. Get all of your people together and brainstorm creative ideas for strategic survival. Host a Zoom or Teams meeting that includes everyone — volunteers, administrators, grant management, marketing and finance professionals, and board members — essentially have all hands on deck. When it comes to creative problem solving, give each person a say. Never consider any ideas postulated as “bad.” You never know when one will spark an amazing solution. Getting everyone involved will help to lay a strong foundation for rapid recovery. It will also help to make each person feel vested in the organization’s sustainable future.

Push fundraising beyond the initial transaction

We recently shared several helpful fundraising tips you could employ during a pandemic, but one of the best things you can do is reach out to your trusted partners and top donors. Cultivate, grow, and reinforce those critical relationships. Ask them if any are willing to go above and beyond to help during the crisis. Some large donors are conducting special fund-matching programs. For example, top board members of a well-known Atlanta-based, no-kill animal shelter made phone calls directly to donors requesting donations for a short-term fund-matching program. Real people took the time to make real calls and have authentic conversations. Be inspired! Efforts like these can go a long way toward getting extraordinary help.

Identify and utilize emergency funding

Beyond typical fundraising, nonprofits can obtain emergency funds through federal, state, and local governments, as well as private foundations. CharityCharge has put together a list of 7 emergency funding programs for nonprofits. One of them is through Facebook, which offers $100M in cash grants and ad credits to help nonprofits affected by COVID-19. Try conducting daily Google searches to find new sources of funding. You may be surprised by what you discover, especially in your area. For example, The New York Community Trust has recently created a $78 million COVID-19 rescue fund for New York City nonprofits. The Seattle Foundation administered a $14.3 million emergency program, releasing over $10 million to 120 organizations. Candid, a top informational resource for nonprofits, has established a beneficial COVID-19 funding webpage that has tons of opportunities available.

The time is now to creatively reimagine what your organization is and how it works to survive the pandemic.

Look to your people for ideation and skills to be highly effective as you change and adapt to fluid situations. Take full advantage of new, pandemic-related funding sources. When it’s all said and done, we’ll emerge into a changed world — one where there will be renewed enthusiasm for many nonprofit’s causes, including yours. All you have to do is survive.

Need a hand? We’re helping lots of nonprofits cope with the pandemic’s financial and accounting challenges. We’d be happy to help yours too. Nonprofit accounting is our specialty, and your success is our success. A consultation call with us is free. You’ve got nothing to lose and so much to gain. Let’s team up today.

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