1. Staying Relevant:
Managing Library Nonprofit 501c3 Organizations
During the Coronavirus Crisis
John Chrastka, EveryLibrary Institute
Mary Wilonsky, Friends of the Dallas Public Library
April 7, 2020

2. Today’s Webinar Agenda
Audience: Leadership of mission-driven library-focused nonprofit
organizations.
Topics:
Operational Continuity
Board Concerns
Staff and Volunteers
Communications
Revenue Generating Activities
Enhancements
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

3. Your Co-Hosts
EveryLibrary Institute
John Chrastka, Executive Director
The EveryLibrary Institute a 501c3 nonprofit mission-driven organization
dedicated supporting the future of funding for libraries in the US and abroad.
john.chrastka@everylibraryinstitute.org
Friends of the Dallas Public Library
Mary Wilonsky, Executive Director
Friends of the Dallas Public Library supports the DPL system through advocacy,
fund raising, and assistance that lets us help shape the library in ways not
possible with City of Dallas budget allocations alone.
mary.wilonsky@fodpl.org

4. Operational Continuity
While library leaders are deeply involved in management during the crisis, the
economic impacts of the Coronavirus shutdown will most hurt the people public
libraries serve.
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

5. Continuity Issues
• Understand Your “Burn Rate”
• Reduce Expenses
• Systems and Data Integrity
• Investments and Banking
• Filing Deadlines and
Compliance
• Inventory, Facilities,
Equipment
• Employees and Contractors

6. “Burn Rate” - Cost Centers
• Payroll and Benefits
• Rent or Mortgage
• Utilities and Telecom
• Digital and Online
• Debt Financing
• Subscriptions and Recurring
• Fees and Overhead
• Poor Controls

7. Reduce Expenses
• Flexible or Fixed Expense?
• End It
• Negotiate It
• Suspend It
• Shift Costs
• Consolidate Sources
• Centralize Purchasing

8. Systems and Processes
• Passwords and
Administrative Access
• Email System and ‘Info’
Address
• Physical
Mail/USPS/Shipping
• A/P and A/R Functions
• Website
• Database(s)
• Phone, Internet
• Remote Office Tools and
Productivity

9. Investments and Banking
• Review Signature
Authority and Policies
• Bank Accounts
• Investment Accounts
• Signing Checks and
Debit/Credit Cards
• Accounting Software and
Online Banking
• Admins and Passwords
• Secure but Accessible
Locations
• Consult with the Lawyer,
Banker & Accountant
• Check with the Investment
Advisor

10. Filing Deadlines and
Compliance
• Federal 990 Dates Have Not Changed
• May 15, 2020 for December 31, 2019 tax year orgs
• State Dates may or may have not changed
• State annual report or annual registrations
• Payroll taxes and unemployment insurance
• Local Authorities
• Licenses, Permits, and Certifications
• Grants
• Federal dates have likely moved
• Philanthropy is case-by-case
• Contractual Obligations

11. Inventory, Facilities,
Equipment
• Keys and Security
• Rent or Mortgage
• Utilities
• Access to Site(s)
• Hardware and Office Equipment
• Vendor Resources
• Cleaning and Sanitation
• Upgrades and Patches

12. Staff and Volunteers
Taking care of your team with compassion, engagement, and good information.
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

13. Employees and Contractors
Reimbursable
Payroll Tax Credits
Available
Two Weeks of
Emergency Paid Sick
Leave
Twelve Weeks of
Emergency
Family and
Medical Leave
See Family First Coronavirus Relief Act : National Council of Nonprofits Coronavirus Resources

14. Employees and Contractors
Paycheck Protection
Program
(Emergency
SBA Loans)
Expanded EIDL &
Emergency Grants
(SBA Loans)
See CARES Act Guidance: National Council of Nonprofits Coronavirus Resources

15. Volunteer Team
• Minimize Risk for Volunteers
• Who can do what where and when?
• Minimize Organizational Risks
• Training and new protocols
• PPE
• Productive Work
• “I am reaching out to our volunteers. Is
there anything we can do for you? We
have some stuff to do that you
may be interested in.”
• Wisdom and Insights
• “What are you seeing, hearing,
experiencing?”

16. The Board
Your board members are all facing challenges now, too. For your organization, this
is a time to invite them back in to help as they can.
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

17. Recognize Their Capacity • They may not have
signed up for this now
• Ask for their
involvement and
commitment
• Understand their
limitations
• Leverage their networks

18. Board Member Roles and
Tasks
• Talk with Each Other
• Understand and
Address Continuity
Issues
• Understand the
Organization’s Needs
• Reengage Your
Mission, Vision, and
Values
• Focus on Revenue,
People, and Partners
• Review Your Charter
and Bylaws
• Review Your Policies

19. Communications
Your communications should always truthfully-focused on your mission, values, and
vision but tailored to different audiences in different ways and with different types
of messages.
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

20. Communications
From Your
Organization
Internal Team (Board Members and/or Staff)
Your Library (FOL and Foundations)
Your Clients & Constituents (Mission-Driven
Orgs)
Current Funders and Donors
Media Relations

21. Communication
Tips
Tone is key. Don’t send gloom and doom. People deserve
the truth but don’t go negative to try and make a point.
Amplify the Successes. Describe how it was done. It makes
you attractive to donors, volunteers, and partners.
Name the Failures. Describe why it didn’t work. It shows
your integrity in finding new solutions.
Encourage Use to populations that need the service or
program.
Build Support among never-users who have a value system
that’s aligned with your organizational work.

22. Internal Team
• LISTEN first, ask questions second.
• Recognize your own organization’s needs.
• Your Mission is the same, but delivery has
changed
• Tip: Everyone will want to talk about their
own experiences before asking you about
yours.

23. FOL and Foundations: Talk
with Your Library
If your library is projecting a revenue
shortfall, your role is significantly different
than if the library is projecting near-term
financial stability.
• LISTEN to leadership and staff
• Find out Library’s URGENT needs
• Help the Director triage the crisis; Partner
on a plan to re-open
• Talk about the long-term

24. FOL and Foundations: Looking
Past the Immediate Crisis
• Your library is a legacy anchor institution in your town, city, or county. It
needs to be ready to operationalize new programs and services quickly after
re-opening to the public that are aligned with the educational, economic
development, social cohesion, health and equity needs of the community
for recovery.
• Donors, philanthropy, and grantmakers want their money to go to work in
smart, fast, effective, and measurable ways. Money can flow to mission-
aligned programs and services - as well as to proven institutions and
organizations - for rapid-response projects.
• Positioning your organization as a partner with local philanthropy and
grantmakers now is very important. If you don't reach out to them
(especially new potential funding partners) they will not think to reach out
to you.

25. Mission-Driven Orgs: Talking with
Your Constituents or Networks
• The economic impacts of the Coronavirus shutdown will
most hurt the people that libraries serve every day.
• At the same time, library budgets will be cut.
• No one has all the answers now, but we are working to
ensure that our organization is properly positioned to
support our libraries – and the people they serve -
during this crisis and throughout the recovery.

26. Media
Relations
• Build use and awareness of the library
• Build support for the library
• Further your org’s mission and
purpose
FOL and
Foundation
• Stories from the sector. Hype libraries
and librarians.
• Showcase your expertise
• Build your brand
Mission-
Driven
Organizations
• Showcase the experts in this time of
crisis
• Highlight your legitimate agenda
Membership
Organizations

27. Revenue Generating Activities
It’s more than fundraising and talking to donors, but that is a core component.
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

28. Generating More Revenue
• Current Donors, Funders, Grantmakers, and
Philanthropy
• Small Donor Cultivation
• New Philanthropy and Major Gifts
• Grants
• Federal Programs
• Book Sales
• Sponsorships
• Fundraising Events

29. What Donors are
Concerned About Now
• Worried that their money
will be wasted.
• Want to give to a good
cause.
• Uncertain about the path.
• Want to create maximum
impact.

30. Deductions are
Back
The CARES Act allows taxpayers who don’t itemize to deduct
up to $300 more in charitable cash donations when they file
their 2020 return. If they do itemize, they can deduct 100%
of their gift against their 2020 adjusted gross income.
The bill also raises the annual limit from 10% to 25% percent
of taxable income for corporations.

31. Talking with Current Funders
and Donors
1. Reach out in the way they want to be contacted. Be
personal and not just personalized.
2. Always say: “May I share with you what is happening
at our organization right now?”
3. Open with the story of “why we are doing what
we’re doing”. Not a laundry list of activities.
4. Donors (and volunteers) want to know what's going
on and they want to know how they can help. They
are willing to help.
5. “Our work continues but it has changed for the short
term. Over the long-term it will return, and we will
need everyone’s help then too.”

32. Talking with Current
Grantmakers and Philanthropy
• Can they liberalize remove restrictions from
their grant requirements and scope in the
current situation?
• Major donors am are inclined to support “safety
net” organizations.
• Don’t assume that because the market is not
performing well that they won’t make a gift.
• The only bad communication is not
communicating right now.

33. Small Donor Cultivation
Continue to cultivate new donors during the crisis. Tell the
story about your work, what’s happening, how you plan on
continuing your work.
• Listen
• Tell stories of your success to demonstrate competency.
• Tell stories of failure to demonstrate integrity.
• Make it easy for people to help if they able to help. Create
low-barrier ways to contribute.
• Most personal donors will never use the program or need
your services. They give based on their personal values and
deeply held beliefs.
• CARES Act allows taxpayers to deduct up to $300 in
charitable cash donations when they file their 2020 return

34. New Philanthropy and Major
Gifts
Your board needs to be equipped with a relevant story about
how you are handling the situation now and how you’re
looking forward to continuing the work.
• Community Foundations may release ‘emergency funds or
rapid response’ to keep the local non-profit sector healthy
in times of crisis.
• Donor-Advised Funds are somewhat recession-proof
because of their giving requirements.
• Major Donors look to support effective organizations that
are the most stressed.

35. What to Ask For
• Staff and overhead are a reason to
ask for donor money.
• Invite lapsed donors to come back
and join you again in this mission.
• Try to convert annual donors to
monthly donors.
• The work continues during and
after the pandemic. Ask for help
with something specific. Invite
them in a transparent way.

36. Communications
Tips
Embrace all the
technology you can
Reach Out. If they
don’t hear from
you now then they
will think that you
do not need
anything.
Consider a “crisis
revenue plan” and
reach out to your
top donors in an
authentic and
transparent fashion
Simplest: “How are
you doing? I
wanted to reach
out and let you
know how we are,
too.”

37. Resistance to
Donor
Cultivation
Your board members, staff, or influencers may feel like it isn’t the right time to cultivate
donors right now.
• Philanthropy and private foundations are required by law to give away a certain
percentage of their funds every year regardless of economic conditions.
• Grantmakers and philanthropy continued to fund projects throughout the Great
Recession. In this Coronavirus time they will want to fund projects and institutions that
are able to prove results or fix failures.
• Your nonprofit organization is a natural mission-driven partner.
• Giving lags the stock market - both on the way down and the way back up.
• Please understand that the money is going to be granted to someone else if you are not
positioned as a partner now.

38. Enhancements
Realign, reset, or reposition as necessary. This includes
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020

39. Other Learning Resources
Around the Ecosystem
• How to Combat COVID-19 Related Misinformation
https://everylibraryinstitute.easywebinar.live/covidwebinarreplay
• Library Giving Day/Fundraising, Rob Bloom, March 31, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c19zkm1D1SQ&feature=youtu.be&utm_campaign=L
GD-COVID19-Why-Continue-Fundraising-Webinar-
Recording&utm_source=cm&utm_medium=email&utm_content=LISTEN+TO+WEBINAR
• Navigating COVID-19 Fundraising Challenges - Rob Bloom, March 18, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpSNeJbAo6o&feature=youtu.be&utm_campaign=CB
A-Navigating-COVID19-Fundraising-Challenges-03182020-
Webinar&utm_source=cm&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Navigating+COVID-
19+Fundraising+Challenges
• The United For Libraries webinar, Engaging Library Supporters During the COVID-19
Pandemic, April 4, 2020
https://united-for-libraries.teachable.com/courses/enrolled/841725

40. Greatest Task for a Library-
Aligned 501c3 Nonprofit Org
Right Now:
Get Outside of Your Silo Immediately
• More than 250 community foundations in all 50 states have
collectively mobilized more than $375.4 million million to
provide critical support to those affected by Covid-19,
according to new data from the Community Foundation
Public Awareness Initiative.
• To date, community foundations have publicly announced
nearly $64 million in grants to local nonprofits. Many others
are expecting to allocate their first round of grants within
the next week.
https://www.commfoundations.com/

41. Staying Relevant
Definition of Relevant
1: having significant and demonstrable bearing on
the matter at hand; b: affording evidence tending to
prove or disprove the matter at issue or under
discussion; c: having social relevance
2: PROPORTIONAL, RELATIVE
• Boost your social media (all
channels).
• Update/clean database.
• Record keeping and catch-up.
• Write more thank you notes.
• Call donors more often.
• Block time to think about
fundraising daily.
• Ask for gifts as appropriate.
• Don’t be tone-deaf with your
messaging.

42. Be Bold in a Crisis
• Stop Doing Some Stuff.
• Look at Roles. Change Roles.
• Consolidate Organizations.
• Move to “Values-Based”
Purchasing.

43. Staying Relevant:
Managing Library Nonprofit 501c3 Organizations
During the Coronavirus Crisis
John Chrastka, EveryLibrary Institute
Mary Wilonsky, Friends of the Dallas Public Library
April 7, 2020
@everylibrary | @fodpl Staying Relevant – 7 April 2020