Holding an event is one thing, optimizing it is another. Do you ever wonder if all of your work is paying off? Our expert guest Jeff Shuck, CEO of Event 360, will present an approach to analyzing fundraising events and maximizing an event's output. Your event experience matters, getting more of the right types of participant matters, and getting your participants actively fundraising and increasing gift amounts matters. Where do you even begin? We will show you how to start assessing your event year-to-year, putting you on the path to more powerful fundraising.

1. The Science & Art of Event Fundraising
Dianne Sheridan Jeff Shuck
Artez Interactive Event 360

2. Webinar Tips
• This webinar is being recorded and will be
available on our website short
• If you have any technical troubles, use the
“chat” feature
• We will take all questions at the end. Please use
“raise hand” or “chat” features
© 2009 Event 360 |

3. ABOUT EVENT 360
We create experiences that inspire
emotion, giving, loyalty, and change.
We offer three core scalable services:
• Strategic and fundraising consulting
• Event development and production
• Information technology
We have helped our clients raise
nearly $500 million to date.
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5. AGENDA
• The importance of focus
• The science
 The link between events and mission
 Participants, donors, and gifts
 The event lifecycle
 Several examples
• The art
 Articulating the mission
 Crafting the ask
 The secret is change
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6. THE IMPORTANCE OF FOCUS
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7. YOUR EVENT CHALLENGE
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8. YOUR FUNDRAISING CHALLENGE
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9. YOUR MISSION CHALLENGE
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10. THE EVENT IS
A MEANS TO AN END
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11. Mission
Revenue
Gifts
Donors
Participants
Event
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12. THE SCIENCE
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13. What benchmarks are important to you, and why?
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14. EVENT
• Facilitates mission by providing revenue through Mission
fundraising participants
• More events create more mission impact Revenue
because participants increase with number of
events Gifts
• Consider multiple events or multiple dates,
or both
Donors
• Event quality matters! It speaks to the care you
put into your brand and your mission
Participants
Key metrics:
• Number of events Event
• Participant satisfaction
• Repeat attendance
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15. PARTICIPANTS
• In general, more participants correlate with higher Mission
revenue
• However, a myopic focus on attendance leads to Revenue
many long-term problems
• Focus on recruiting participants who will fundraise
• What to watch for:
Gifts
 Time as a registrant correlates positively
with number of donors Donors
 Team membership correlates positively with
retention and fundraising
Participants
Key metrics:
• Average and median registration time measured Event
in days prior to event
• Team participation
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16. WHY PEOPLE PARTICIPATE
• Affinity to activity
 I like to run.
• Affinity to third party group
 I want to support my company’s initiative to take an active role in
the event.
• Affinity to participants
 I like to spend time with my neighbors.
• Affinity to cause
 I want my children to live in a world without breast cancer.
• Affinity to organization
 I believe strongly in Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
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17. REGISTRATION FEE
• The registration fee is a barrier to entry
• Con: Acts as a “price” that drives down attendance
• Pro: Helps you segment out people who have little
inclination to fundraise
• The biggest problem: Participants are allowed to
view the fee as an ending point rather than a
starting point
• Engage participants immediately upon
registration:
• Goal
• Self-donation
• Tools
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18. DONORS
• Donors are the key indicator of fundraising Mission
participants
• You can significantly influence the number of donors Revenue
• What to watch for:
• Goal activity signals fundraising awareness
Gifts
• Email activity signals fundraising activity and is
strongly correlated to funds raised
Donors
Key metrics:
• Number of donors Participants
• Average and median donors per participant
• Number of participants with zero donors Event
• Number of self-donations
• Number of participants with goal
• Average and median number of emails sent
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19. THE IMPORTANCE OF A FEW
40%
35%
30%
25%
20% Registrations
Fundraising
15%
10%
5%
0%
25th 50th 75th 90th 95th 99th Top 1%
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20. GIFTS
Mission
• The single best predictor of overall revenue
• Number of gifts is mainly influenced through
Revenue
effective participant communication
• Average gift amount can be influenced
Gifts
through donors directly
 Ease of use
Donors
 Suggested levels
 Timely acknowledgment Participants
Key metrics:
Event
• Number of gifts
• Average and median gift amount
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21. REVENUE
• The overall summary of performance
Mission
• Most organizations focus too heavily on costs
• To increase performance more than historical trends, Revenue
you must make operational and tactical changes
• Be aware of setting a revenue target based on your
budget need
Gifts
• Watch the $0 balance percentages: They show how well
you are developing a fundraising culture Donors
Key metrics:
• Overall revenue and fundraising revenue Participants
(gross and net)
• Compounded annual growth rate (benchmarked) Event
• Fundraising revenue per participant
• Overall revenue per participant is misleading and
basically useless
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22. THE EVENT LIFECYCLE
$1,800,000 40000
$1,600,000 35000
$1,400,000
30000
$1,200,000
25000
Participants
$1,000,000
20000
$800,000
Fundraising 15000
$600,000
10000
$400,000
$200,000 5000
$0 0
1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009
Your tactics should change based on your place in the lifecycle.
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23. SOME BENCHMARKS
Driver Benchmark
Number of Participants 2,500
Fundraising Per 2008 average was $859; median $110
Participant
Fundraising Growth 2008 average was 280%, median 15%
Attendance Growth 2008 average was 45%, median 11%
Registration Fees 75% of events have a registration fee;
average fee is $27
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24. EXAMPLE: DRIVING ATTENDANCE
Number of Participants 1,100
Total Fundraising $165,000
Percent Participants on Team 60%
Percent Participants with Goal 40%
Percent Participants at $0 65%
• Small event with good fundraising
 Growth in attendance will drag fundraising performance but is probably
worth it
• Action steps:
 Focus on participant acquisition
 Drive team participation
 Consider registration fee incentives
 Continue to bolster fundraising culture
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25. EXAMPLE: ATTENDANCE VERSUS FUNDRAISING
Number of Participants 21,059
Total Fundraising $1,105,000
Percent Participants on Team 80%
Percent Participants with Goal 61%
Percent Participants at $0 85%
• Question the ROI of any attendance-based activities
 The event already has healthy attendance
 A fundraising culture is lacking
• Action steps:
 Drive team fundraising through team captains
 Segment and focus on getting participants with goals off the dime
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26. THE ART
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27. MISSION MATTERS
• Ultimately, the event is a mission vehicle – Mission
so, the mission must resonate throughout
the event Revenue
• The more you rely on the event and the Gifts
less you rely on mission, the harder you will
have to work to establish a fundraising Donors
culture
Participants
• Do not take for granted that people agree
that your mission is important, let alone Event
even understand what it is!
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28. THE CHALLENGE OF MATURITY
• Internal
 Get comfortable from our success
 Struggle to maintain the same level of passion
 Make assumptions
 Feel certain jobs are „done‟
• External
 Changes cause brand confusion
 Lose differentiation amongst competitive clutter
 Lose edge - known for marketing, not for effectiveness
 Big, but better?
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29. How would you ask for support in one sentence?
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30. THE POWER OF CASE
• A clear, compelling statement describing
what you do and why it is important
 Problem: “Over one million women are
diagnosed and 465,000 women die
each year of breast cancer worldwide.” Our Our
work vision
 Work: “We‟re working together to save
lives, empower people, ensure quality
care for all and energize science to
The
find the cures.”
problem
 Vision: “An end to breast cancer
forever.”
• The case is NOT the description of
everything you do or aspire to do. It is a
tool to ask for support.
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31. YOU MUST ASK
• In event fundraising, there are two „asks‟ – we ask people to
participate and they ask people to give
• The number one reason people do not give is because they
are not asked
• The “Six Rights” of the Ask:
 Right person asking the right prospect for the right
amount at the right time for the right reason in the right
way.
• Make it easy: Templates, emails, reminders, address books
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32. YOU MUST THANK
• Relationship management is
key
• People give for 3 basic reasons:
 To feel good
 To belong
 To be acknowledged
• What is the participant/donor
perception based on their
experience?
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33. THE POWER OF EXAMPLE
• While the power of event
fundraising comes from the
bottom, the leadership must
come from the top
• Is the board all participating?
• Are they fundraising?
• Does the board have a
fundraising goal?
• Does the staff?
• What culture have they
created?
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34. THE SECRET IS CHANGE
• Ultimately, different outcomes come from a change in the way we act
• Rome was not built in a day
 The next two sessions will cover more specifics.
• What can I do immediately?
 See what percentage of your participants raise nothing.
 Review your internal conversations and event messaging asking,
“Do we focus on fundraising?”
 Think through your event from a participant perspective – how
are you removing obstacles and excuses for the participants not
to fundraise?
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35. QUESTIONS
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36. More webinars for you
The Artez Mobile Communicator
Tuesday, March 23rd at 11:30 a.m. EST (North America)
Give your Golf Tournament Fundraiser a Makeover
Thursday, March 25th at 2 p.m. EST (North America)
Expert Guests:
Linda Yielding, Manager – Special Events, Reach for the Rainbow
Kelly Hagerman, Program Manager – Events (GTA), Kids Help Phone
Register at www.artez.com
© 2009 Event 360 |

37. Calendar Notes
• March 30th – ArtezInterAction USA, Washington, D.C.
Hear from top fundraising strategists & digital experts including :
Dan Pallotta, Ted Hart and Dharmesh Shah
More info @ www.artez.com
• April NTEN in Atlanta & AFP in Baltimore
Please come by & say “hi” to us!
© 2009 Event 360 |

38. Thank you
www.event360.com
© 2009 Event 360 |

39. Thank you
Check Out “Digital Fundraising Podcast” on iTunes
Follow Artez on Twitter: @artezonline
Become our friend on Facebook: /artezinteractive
© 2009 Event 360 |