Episode 54: Funding the Future: Strategies for School Fundraising and Development

Jeff: Welcome to Elevate Your Event, your favorite podcast for transforming fundraising events. Join us weekly for expert tips and creative ideas to make your next event a standout success. On this episode, we joined CEO and founder Jeff Porter on the NXUnite panel, "Funding the Future: Strategies for School Fundraising and Development." The panelists delve into creative approaches, share success stories, and challenge some conventional fundraising norms.

Malou: Hello, everyone, and welcome to our panel. My name is Malou de Gracia, an NXUnite team member at Nexus Marketing and your moderator for today's panel. Today's topic is "Funding the Future: Strategies for School Fundraising and Development." Jumping into introductions -- I'd like to first introduce Betsy Oliver, who spent most of her 20-year fundraising career in the field of education. Since 2018, she has served as a consultant for various schools and nonprofits, and is currently the Director of Fundraising Services at Purpose Possible. Thanks for joining us, Betsy.

Betsy: Hey, glad to be here.

Malou: Also with us today is Jeff Porter, who is the founder and CEO at Handbid. He's no stranger to fundraising events, having participated in them for over 25 years. He ran his first fundraiser in 2005 and has managed over 50 auction events and fundraisers for his own charities, not to mention hundreds more with Handbid. Jeff, thanks for joining us.

Jeff: It's a pleasure to be here, Malou.

Malou: Also with us today is Rebecca Fowler, who is the SVP of Strategic Development at ShopRaise. With over 20 years of fundraising and marketing success, Rebecca's goal is to help organizations grow their revenue, thus allowing more time to focus on their mission. Rebecca, so glad you could join us.

Rebecca: Thank you.

Malou: And finally with us is Sarah Buswell, who is an account executive at Gravity. She has spent her career helping education and nonprofit industry clients work smarter and achieve results through innovative technology. Thanks for joining us, Sarah.

Sarah: Thanks, Malou. Excited to be here.

Malou: All right. Now it's time to hear from our panelists. Betsy, I'll have you start us off with the first question. How have school fundraising best practices changed over the last few years, and what have we learned?

Betsy: I think I would probably answer, like many of my colleagues here on the panel, and say that technology is probably one of the biggest changes for good that we've seen in fundraising for independent schools and higher ed as well. One thing that's really interesting is the ability for many schools to integrate their admissions systems and databases -- not only admissions and enrollment with the fundraising database, but being able to mesh those together has been a huge help. Rather than having two different systems talking to each other, you can really integrate them so you're speaking the same language, using clean information, and maintaining correct databases.

Betsy: Along the same lines, one thing I've seen that's really great when thinking of the alumni aspect -- whether it's independent school, higher ed, or even K through 8 -- is the ability for schools to use almost like a tailored LinkedIn of their own. A lot of these online directories have come so far over the years. What used to be a simple login where you could see your name and address has become almost a personalized LinkedIn page for the university, the college, or the school. That allows not only the institution to stay in touch with graduates -- because engagement leads to affinity, which leads to fundraising -- but also for alumni to stay in touch with each other. That kind of affinity is what you want surrounding the school. When you do go back and ask for annual fund gifts, a capital campaign gift, or an event ticket, they're more likely to participate. The use of technology has grown tremendously and helped a ton.

Malou: Thank you, Betsy. Sarah, I'm going to bring the same question over to you. What have we learned in the last few years?

Sarah: I see from a lot of our K-12 partners this intentionality that didn't necessarily exist 10 or 15 years ago. The old playbook was always to go to parents and alumni who have aged out of college and are ready to give back to their independent schools. But now I'm starting to see more folks reach out to the networks of parents, reach out to young alumni. There's an intentionality that it's not just parent participation -- there are so many other networks and footprints where we can grow our impact. Technology plays a huge part because often the way parents connect with neighbors, friends, and grandparents is through technology -- sharing fundraising, sharing campaigns, bringing this school presence into a digital world. Intentionality is my big takeaway -- schools are working really smart rather than really hard to raise funds.

Malou: Thank you, Sarah. Rebecca, over to you. How have school fundraising best practices changed?

Rebecca: In addition to what Betsy and Sarah said, I think technology has made it more efficient for the fundraising team to work smarter, not harder, and to communicate from year to year -- what they've done, how it's done. I remember when my kids were little, the old days you'd pass a binder or a whole box of paper, which is fine. But what's nice now is you can track everything. You want to be intentional about what you're doing, and you want to make sure you're fundraising in a really smart way. Not everything works from year to year. Technology is a great organizational tool, especially when working with a lot of volunteers in the K-12 space. You want to be mindful of people's time, use the right technology, and work with companies that offer the right technology.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Jeff, final thoughts on how school fundraising best practices have changed?

Jeff: I think COVID forced people to try virtual approaches and to use technology. What that opened a lot of our clients' eyes to is that it actually isn't that hard. In the past, we'd always be battling wrapping paper and popcorn and all the other things at the K-12 level that people felt were way easier than hosting a fundraiser. Then when they started looking at what digital tools could do, they came back and said, "This actually isn't that hard either." Whether it's an online peer-to-peer walk -- maybe you don't even need the cheerleaders showing up to do backflips in front of the kids for an expensive move-a-thon or walk-a-thon. You can do it virtually, save more money on what you're paying fundraising companies to do. Maybe you used to make $50,000 using those big fundraising companies and would net about $30,000. But now you're making $40,000 and it's only costing you five. The biggest best practice we've seen is people realizing they can do this -- and at a gross level they may not make quite as much, but at a net level, they're making considerably more.

Malou: Thanks, Jeff. We're off to a great start. Rebecca, I'll have you start us off on the next question. What innovative strategies and tools do you see schools adopting to enhance their fundraising efforts, and how are these strategies shaping the future of school fundraising?

Rebecca: So many. Again, you have to go back to technology. It has expanded the ability to reach family and friends across the country. That's one thing we've learned at ShopRaise -- people want to support nieces, nephews, alumni, you name it, but they can't physically do it. You couldn't sell popcorn to your aunt in California if you live in Chicago. Technology and the opportunity to expand fundraising all over the country is really what I've seen.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Jeff, over to you. Any strategies and tools schools should adopt?

Jeff: I mean, shameless plug aside -- mobile bidding technology at events tends to really move the needle. But even beyond that, I think all of us on this panel would say technology has helped. The question is how you're using it, and that has definitely evolved. What we saw in the beginning was people willing to try technology but not wanting to make other changes that would best utilize what the technology can do. For example, peer-to-peer fundraising works really well when you have competition. But when you hide all of that because you're afraid somebody's kid is going to get offended that another kid is raising more money, you diminish the opportunity.

Jeff: We had one client that forgot to privatize their event on our platform. Over the weekend, they generated about $30,000 for their move-a-thon, which was more than they made the year before. Then they freaked out on Monday and shut the whole thing down because they were afraid some kids were going to be offended. And I understand that -- there are privacy issues. But what we've seen happen is schools are now saying parents create the pages, the competition works, and they're going to leverage what technology can do to really maximize this.

Jeff: It's the same with auctions. One of the very first auctions we did with Handbid, the client said they wanted to only allow people physically at the event to win items. That's not really how auctions work -- the highest bidder should win. A lot of that has changed over the years. It's not just the technology, but leveraging what it can do -- early bidding, competition, especially around peer-to-peer -- that really drives results. Thankfully, we have very few of those conversations anymore.

Malou: Thanks, Jeff. Betsy, over to you. What strategies and tools should schools adopt?

Betsy: I'm going to piggyback on Jeff's point about peer-to-peer fundraising. Whether it's among parents for parent-giving at K-8 or K-12, or among alumni, that is the key to a really successful campaign. Community-driven fundraising is crucial in schools because it is such a tight-knit community. Whether it's through social media so people across the country can join in, getting alums involved from all over, or using more old-school approaches -- like putting an online thermometer right there in front of the school to generate excitement around the campaign, the event, the gala, the auction, the annual fund. Working within your community of parents, students, alumni, and grandparents through class agents, parent callers, phonathons -- really getting everybody involved and generating excitement is the key. In a way, it's kind of going old school, but you can take it into the 21st century with social media, online platforms, and online directories.

Malou: Thanks, Betsy. Sarah, what would you add to innovative strategies and tools?

Sarah: I would add what we at Gravity refer to as gamification -- this idea of how we build participation. I speak to more and more K-12 schools that are looking for new donors. That extends outside of K-12 into higher ed and nonprofits. Everyone is looking to build their pipeline, recognizing that for a lot of organizations, our pipelines are aging. A big part of that is gamification -- how we build excitement about what we're fundraising for, not just the cause itself, but the action of giving and building a philanthropic environment for a school.

Sarah: I'm all in on pitting class years against class years or alumni groups against alumni groups. Gamification also allows you to go to your major donors and say, "Would you mind contributing an additional $10,000 to help us build this competition?" Unlocking $10,000, $5,000, or $25,000. You're giving the opportunity for those major donors to feel as though they are playing a huge part. It creates a more compelling ask when you approach them. And for those folks making their first gift -- $5, $10, $15 -- they feel like they're playing a big part in unlocking a larger challenge and making a huge impact.

Sarah: When Giving Tuesday rolls around, I'm always looking at the challenges -- where I can double my donation, triple my donation, match employee donations. Those are terrific strategies that schools are starting to employ. In terms of tools, the rise of technology reflects the age of our donors. Younger donors want to text to give, are more willing to do peer-to-peer fundraising online, and respond to video stewardship and video outreach. Those are tools that are completely new compared to the last generation.

Malou: Fantastic insight, Sarah. Here's our next question, and Jeff, I'll have you start us off. If schools have a goal of engaging donors personally and building long-lasting relationships, what tips do you have?

Jeff: How about using tools that actually store their information? That's where I'd start. In higher ed or private ed, they have that -- it's not atypical. But a lot of competitors don't store that information -- it's event by event. You're registering again and again and again. As an end user, it's frustrating because you just registered for an event a month ago and now you're having to give all your info again. That tells you they're not tracking what you're doing, which makes it hard to build a relationship.

Jeff: At Handbid, we did that from the start, which was a little different in our space. People felt that events and mobile bidding were just a one-time transactional thing. But our point was -- get them in, get their information, make sure it's accurate, because you're going to want to use that as a starting point for a relationship. And then once you have that data, what are you doing with it? There are so many charities that capture data and then don't do anything with it. How are you re-engaging with your donors? How are you making it easy for them to connect with you?

Jeff: I love my university, but I got a paper postcard survey from them -- fill out checkboxes, put it in the mail, put a stamp on it, send it back. That's way too much work. That's the kind of thing where everybody needs to think about -- maybe it's an Instagram Reel, maybe it's an email list, maybe it's a Facebook group. Make it something where people can find you and connect with you anywhere on their phone, just a couple of clicks away.

Malou: Thanks, Jeff. Rebecca, any insights on engaging donors personally and building long-lasting relationships?

Rebecca: I think first you have to understand your donors and how each generation is different. Building on what Jeff said -- I'm not going to communicate with a boomer the same way I communicate with a Zoomer. Find out more about who your donors are, who your supporters are, and give them free tools of engagement. Not everything needs to be a fundraising request. It doesn't always have to be an ask. You need to get to know how to communicate with those people.

Rebecca: I'll put in a shameless plug about ShopRaise -- we offer a free tool that allows supporters to engage with their nonprofit or school every time they shop online, engaging with the logo and the brand. Engagement doesn't always mean fundraising, but engagement and branding do lead to fundraising eventually. Understand your supporters, communicate in different ways. If you've got younger supporters, create a fun TikTok video or two and share it with them.

Rebecca: Don't forget those alumni. One of our first accounts was my son's high school hockey team -- he's graduated college and grad school, that's how long ago it was. We still have people from his hockey team who use ShopRaise and shop online and are some of our biggest supporters. Their kids have long since left the school. People who have a good experience at your school can be some of your biggest supporters long after.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Sarah, any tips on engaging and building long-lasting relationships with donors?

Sarah: Before my response, I wanted to piggyback off Rebecca. One of the best pieces of advice one of our partners gave us for K-12 schools -- he's the director of Student Affairs, and as students graduate, he tells them, "I will not ask you for a dime for the first ten years that you are considered an alum. That is when we should still be serving you. We are here to support you, make sure you complete your college education, that you're in the workforce, that you have a good foundation. But just know that year eleven comes around -- I hope you'll look back and evaluate where you are and wish to give back." I think that's such a great approach -- set the expectation that you'll give back someday, but build the foundation first. Alumni are always going to be a great source of people we can continue to build relationships with.

Sarah: In terms of building communication and relationships -- as Jeff said, if you can't trust your CRM, if you don't trust your donor data, you're shooting yourself in the foot. I see organizations doing incredible work with donor follow-up. First and foremost, I hope everyone sends their thank-you immediately following gift receipt. A good rule of thumb is that before you make another ask, you're telling donors where those dollars went. Thank them, tell them where the dollars have been spent, what cause they've supported, and then work in some storytelling.

Sarah: In the case of schools, if your CRM is collecting data on student participation, clubs, activities, and colleges students went on to attend, start bringing in those connections. Maybe it's a teacher who taught calculus and a student is now graduating with a math degree, or a past athlete getting a thank-you letter from the athletic director. Those stories are really impactful if we can identify what was important to a family, an alum, or a student in their experience at the school. Personalization is the key, and the starting point is our data -- collecting good data and updating it as we have more information on donors.

Malou: Thanks, Sarah. Betsy, what are your thoughts on building long-lasting relationships?

Betsy: I think alumni development teams at schools and universities have a real vested interest in creating an awesome student and family experience. While they might not be as hands-on in the classroom or on the field, just try to get to know as many folks as you can -- parents, grandparents, family members, students. Be a member of the community. Get to know them, remain a familiar and helpful face throughout their time at the school. So when you do make that ask years later, there's that connection.

Betsy: It is important to educate current students about the role of philanthropy and what they're benefiting from. Hopefully these students will serve as future volunteers as well. A lot of colleges and universities do this really well -- maybe it's Founders Day or something similar where you point out places around campus that benefited from philanthropy. Signs around campus showing how philanthropy made a huge difference in the physical structure and history of the institution. Educating and creating an environment where philanthropy is welcomed and understood is really important.

Malou: Thanks, Betsy. Sarah, here's our next question. How can schools successfully integrate digital strategies into their fundraising mix while preserving the essence of traditional approaches?

Sarah: I think the term "omnichannel" is going to become more and more apparent in fundraising -- this idea that technology is not meant to replace our fundraising efforts but to aid them. I think back to when direct mail was all the rage and that's where all the budget went. Then the phonathon was introduced. Then email. And it's always this thought of "email is here, so that's the death of the phonathon" or "the phonathon is the death of the print piece." But all of those play an integral role in fundraising strategy.

Sarah: A terrific starting point is evaluating your calendar of outreach and being open to researching technology. I take calls throughout the year where folks just say, "We're interested in AI -- can you tell me more?" or "We're interested in video stewardship." Easy plug-in points these days are things like video stewardship -- video is very hot. This younger generation responds to video and text messages. Some data shows text messages are opened within the first three minutes and at a 90 percent rate. Those are the types of numbers where, if email campaigns are performing low, you might want to swap in or limit something to introduce texting or video as a new strategy. It's always a balance -- it starts with learning and then goes into how does this add to our campaigns rather than take away.

Malou: Thanks, Sarah. Betsy, any advice on integrating digital strategies while preserving traditional approaches?

Betsy: Technology and digital resources don't need to replace tried and true forms -- they can enhance them. One suggestion would be for schools to research and possibly invest in a digital fundraising and volunteer management system. Going back to how successful peer-to-peer fundraising is in a school setting, a tool like that is really important. It takes your traditional class-agent peer-to-peer method -- a very successful and traditional way of fundraising in schools -- and brings it into the 21st century, making it easier and more seamless for everybody.

Betsy: I would also say think about text campaigns -- text to give, especially as we're looking at Gen Z and younger millennials. Making it very easy to give is important, especially around key dates like year-end, Giving Tuesday, or a school's own day of giving around Founders Day or an anniversary. And of course, for galas, auctions, or big fundraising events as well.

Malou: Thanks, Betsy. Jeff, anything to add on how schools can integrate digital strategies?

Jeff: It was the second half of the question that made me chuckle a little -- "preserving the essence of traditional approaches." What do I really want to preserve that's traditional? I start there thinking -- what about traditional fundraising do I want to preserve? The revenue, the relationship, the connection with a donor? And then why does digital necessarily eliminate that? It may not. But to Rebecca's point, you kind of have to know where your donors are at and how to connect with them. It's not about ripping the band-aid off and tossing all traditional methods out the door. But you've got to have a plan for how to manage and facilitate that transition, and you need to stay ahead of your donor base.

Jeff: What we see a lot of times -- and this is kind of the classic innovator's dilemma -- is organizations saying, "These are my donors, this is what they like, this is what they're comfortable with, and I don't want to change that." We still hear that. "My donors are a little older, they don't really like technology, so at an event, we're going to go back to paper bid sheets." What's the tradition you're trying to preserve there? Less money -- because paper bid sheets generate less. The fighting and stress of people elbowing around an auction area? I don't think so. What you're trying to say is "I don't want to make my donors uncomfortable." And that's where innovation is going to outweigh the uncomfortableness.

Jeff: My dad is 82, and he deposits his checks on his phone now. COVID made him do that. He knows how to use Zoom. He knows how to order a Starbucks coffee on the app. These things happen. Yes, some people will be uncomfortable. But as you integrate, you have to ask yourself -- where do I want to be in three years, five years, ten years? Who are my donors going to be? What will they prefer? You've got to partner with companies that are going to help you get there -- thinking about what innovation will bring you, not what it takes away or who it makes uncomfortable. Create a transition plan.

Jeff: Everybody has brought the same idea to the table -- you want a connection with a donor. To do that, you need to get all that information about donors into one spot -- what class they were in, how many events they've attended, what their preferences are, what they bid on, how they've donated. Then you can start to intelligently use that. When someone asks Sarah about artificial intelligence, the first question is -- do you even have data to use AI with? Do you have any history of that information? That's where we start with a lot of our clients -- getting them comfortable with letting go of traditions they think are the important parts, and focusing on how to advance to the next level with their donors.

Malou: Thank you, Jeff. Rebecca, anything to add?

Rebecca: Omnichannel -- absolutely. That was my favorite thing I've heard because you can't do just one thing only. You need to talk to people and meet them where they are. Having said that, some traditional fundraising practices from the past just don't work anymore, and the amount of time to implement them -- you've got to look at ROI. Whether you're a PTO or running an alumni association, you have to look at how much time you're putting in.

Rebecca: But know your school. For K-12, some traditional methods still work. We offer a flyer with a QR code, which is very successful because schools do have in-person events where they gather people. One of our schools recently gave out a flyer at pickup time and got a huge boost in fundraising the next couple of weeks. So we don't need to throw everything out the window. But we do need to sit down and analyze what works and what doesn't. That's the biggest part. Maybe you do have to eliminate some things, and it does make some people uncomfortable, because people will adapt.

Rebecca: Your parents are still going to be your number one fundraising source. If texting has a 99 percent open rate, then use that. Look at what's working, analyze it, and don't be afraid to eliminate things you've done in the past just because you've done them. Sometimes you have to reinvent yourself, look forward, and work smarter.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Jeff, I'm going to have you start us off with this one. What key performance indicators should schools focus on when evaluating the success of their fundraising campaigns?

Jeff: When we do KPIs at Handbid, we think of two types -- lead measures and lag measures. A lot of organizations focus on lag measures, which are the results of something that's happened -- total revenue generated, total number of bids at an auction. Those are important. But on the lag measure side, when it comes to fundraising, we like to track engagement, because engagement is what's going to drive revenue.

Jeff: For a classic auction, we look at how many bids per active bidder. If somebody's bidding, how many bids are they placing? Certain numbers tell us the auction was set up correctly, everyone had enough time and chance to bid, and there was decent stuff to bid on. You've created competition inside your event. Same thing with peer-to-peer -- it's not just how much money a page is raising, but how many individual new donors did that page get? That's engagement. How many donations did that page get? Also engagement. Active bidder rate, how many texts came in on an inbound keyword, participation rate across the board -- how many people showed up, how many donated, bid, or participated.

Jeff: On the lead side, lead measures are the things we as charities and fundraisers actively have control over. How many opportunities did I give people to give? How many events did I run? How many times did I message them to keep them connected? How many broadcasts, emails, texts am I sending? Those are the things that create engagement. Even at an event -- the beauty of mobile technology is that if you open your auction on Tuesday or Wednesday and the event is Saturday, you can communicate through the week. Every time you send a message, they pick up their phone, check their bids, and go through the process. Those intentional actions correlate to results on the lag side.

Malou: Thanks, Jeff. Sarah, over to you.

Sarah: Jeff covered a lot of the basic KPIs. I'd add participation in terms of class numbers as a really big one -- tracking parent participation, securing gifts for each grade, and comparing against goals. If we're wanting to get fancy, we start evaluating ROI on the tools required to get to these KPIs. What did it cost? What was my cost of donor acquisition? Which tools had the highest return on investment for the dollars raised?

Sarah: That's the next step -- looking for ways to grow, tearing apart the system, figuring out where to plug in new products, pull some out, or find redundancies. There's something called shelfware -- the idea that you bought technology ten years ago but never used it, and now you just pay for it. You've got to evaluate how you're raising money and where it's coming from. KPIs vary with each organization, but participation and engagement are always the big ones.

Malou: Thanks, Sarah. I see an audience question from Dominic. Rebecca, I'll have you start us off. What advice do you have for a very small school just starting to fundraise?

Rebecca: My biggest piece of advice is look at your past fundraising and really analyze what works. Often, smaller schools do what's always been done because "that's how we do it." Don't do that. Analyze your fundraising, be realistic about KPIs, and make sure you're running a fundraiser that might not require a lot of volunteers. You may need a more technology-focused approach to help with that, because labor-intensive fundraisers sometimes aren't efficient. Analyze your fundraising, see what your resources are, and don't be afraid to try something new. Do the research -- PTO Today has a wealth of information on fundraisers. And use free tools like ShopRaise, because you can set it up and use it year-round.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Betsy, any tips for those just starting to fundraise?

Betsy: If you don't have a development office in place -- assuming it's a K-8 or K-12 independent school -- there are great professional organizations I'd encourage you to join. NAIS, the National Association of Independent Schools, and CASE, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, are two excellent organizations. They have scholarship opportunities for conferences, online or in person, with some of the best fundraising advice I've ever received. There are also ways to share resources with fellow fundraisers at schools of all sizes. Reach out to counterparts in your town or city.

Betsy: Also, you're probably able to tell which family members and parents are going to be really involved and helpful. Reach out to them, take them to coffee, take them to lunch and say, "We are just starting out, we have this much to raise, and I need you on my team." They will likely be your ambassador and help spread the word.

Malou: Thanks, Betsy. The hour is going by quickly, so we're going to wrap up. I want to get one final piece of insight from everyone. Sarah, I'll have you start. What do you see as the future of school fundraising, and how can schools get ahead today?

Sarah: The future is really about this being a team effort, regardless of whether you have a one-person office or a 25-person office. Building a culture of philanthropy and giving back -- that's the future. Where it used to be one person making all the phone calls, all the coffee meetings, and all the solicitations, it doesn't have to be like that. Our communities are excited to get involved and work alongside of you -- whether it's a parent, a current student, or a board member. Ask them to be part of your cause. There's so much success when we take on fundraising from a community perspective rather than just one office.

Malou: Thanks, Sarah. Betsy, thoughts on the future and how to get ahead?

Betsy: I think it's really important to diversify funding sources. Parents are going to be the number one source of gifts for traditional independent schools. But as more schools try to diversify from a socioeconomic perspective and encourage more financial aid opportunities, you need to fund that. Consider grants and foundation funding -- that's something I'm working with a few private school clients on right now. Grandparents, aunts, uncles -- people are willing to support their family members. That could be a gift to the annual fund. Start with young alumni, even very young alumni. Diversifying those sources is important, in addition to stewarding parents and faculty and staff.

Malou: Thanks, Betsy. Rebecca, thoughts on the future?

Rebecca: Three words -- research, invest, and organize. Research your fundraising opportunities -- join Facebook groups, look at the organizations Betsy mentioned. Don't be afraid to invest in technology because it's going to save you time and make you fundraise smarter. Organize your fundraising -- review past fundraising, make sure you're doing things that are working, and look at whether people are burning out. Look at your resources within your school community. You have people who are digital marketers, organizational experts. Everybody has their niche. Don't be afraid to ask people to take a small piece of it. Often people are afraid to get involved because they think they'll be sucked into hours and days of work. Break it down. And don't be afraid to ask for help -- most of you are volunteers and that's okay.

Malou: Thanks, Rebecca. Jeff, final thoughts on the future and how to get ahead?

Jeff: All the answers are spot on. You've got to think about diversifying your fundraising, and having a more diverse source of funds helps. The question is how you do that. It's a combination of being willing to embrace technology, being willing to try things, and not being fearful of having some things fail. That's how we learn -- by trying to implement new technologies, new approaches, new strategies, and then learning from that. That learning is what's going to advance us further.

Jeff: Lastly, partner with people who will help you. Companies like ShopRaise, Handbid, Gravity -- all of us are out there thinking about what's coming next. How can our clients best use that technology? What makes sense? We're going to mitigate that risk for you considerably. If you're thinking you don't know if you could try something advanced, talk to one of us first. Whether you end up using our technology or not, at least here at Handbid, we're always willing to share our opinion and what we think are best practices in the industry. Good luck with it.

Malou: Great advice. And with that, we've reached the end of our panel. A big thank you to our panelists for sharing their insights today, and a big thank you to our audience. I hope you enjoyed yourself and learned something that will benefit your work. It has been a pleasure speaking with you all. Have a nice rest of the day, everyone.

Jeff: Thanks for tuning into this week's episode. We hope you discovered effective strategies for school fundraising and development. If you enjoyed our show, please take a moment to leave us a review. You can find us on Apple, Google, and Spotify. Don't forget to subscribe for more great content. And if you're a fan of video, check us out on YouTube. Until next time, happy fundraising.