The world of corporate giving and fundraising more broadly can be opaque, to say the least. Corporations, for instance, don’t always report on where their philanthropic dollars are going the way that a foundation does, and figuring out the right person to talk to at a corporation isn’t always as clear cut as identifying an individual prospective donor. You’ve probably even heard that there isn’t much corporate giving in the arts these days. All this means is that you just need to get a little creative, and that shouldn’t be a problem for you — as a Fractured Atlas member, creativity is what you do best.

Savvy arts entrepreneurs chase any and every funding opportunity under the sun. If this describes you, you’ve already got a robust plan to solicit individual giving and know which foundations best aligned with your work. So you’re probably also eyeing that yummy, yet problematic, buffet of corporate cash. Before you try to fill your tray with these dollars, it’s important for you to know the distinction between corporate sponsorship and advertising. Any support that you receive from a corporate funder will fall into one of these two categories.

Individual donor prospecting can be as easy as getting better acquainted with people you already know. Fundraising to support your work as an artist can be intimidating, especially if you’re thinking strictly in terms of who you know and whether you’re comfortable asking them for money (or in some cases, asking them for money yet again). But the truth is that you can do it! For decades, individual artists have raised the funds to make their careers as artists, and if you think and talk about yourself as a professional, we believe that you can, too. Of course, there are some best practices to consider as you formulate your plan for ensuring that you can sustainably bring your art to your community now and in the future.

When preparing a grant application, it can seem counterintuitive to think of the funder you’re applying to as a resource. However, no one can answer questions about an application better than the institution that made it! Calling the funder is one of the most effective tools in your grant-writing toolbox.

How many of you made New Years resolutions? How many of you have already given them up? I wouldn’t be too surprised if many of the resolution setters have already given them up, and we’re not even a full month into 2018. This is one of the reasons why I think there is a better solution to planning goals, and that solution is OKRs.

Back in September, we looked at some of the key principles of Ciara Pressler’s Game Plan. Pressler suggested that a good game plan must be measurable, because “if you can’t track it, you won’t hack it.” But what does it mean to have a measurable game plan?

From time to time, we feature one of our fiscally sponsored projects who have been successful at using our program to advance their art/cause/career. Today, we’re featuring Time to Tell.

If you haven’t yet heard of Void Academy, we’re excited to make the introduction. Void Academy strives to make an impact in the art world by providing free and affordable resources to help artists sustainably fund their work and make a living. Their first free online course Fundamentals of Crowdfunding offers insights into the history of crowdfunding, how to set yourself up for success before you launch a campaign, and more. It is a valuable guide for any artist looking to use crowdfunding as a tool to fund their work. (And keep reading to learn how Fractured Atlas members can access other Void Academy courses at discounted rates.)

There are a lot of resources out there to help fundraisers think about, plan for, and execute a year-end appeal. But if you’re not a full-time fundraiser or someone who thinks about this stuff all the time, then you may find yourself getting anxious once you start reading any of the extensive how-tos available online. (Especially since many will tell you that you should have started planning 2–3 months ago.) Today, I’m giving you permission to accept what you can do for a year-end appeal with limited time, money, and resources. But first, what’s a year-end appeal? In general, a year-end appeal is a letter that reminds your donors and patrons of the important work that you do while encouraging them to send a contribution by the end of the year. As you may already know, making a charitable donation by the end of the year can be compelling for tax purposes, but it’s possible that some of your donors have access to a matching gift program through their employer that may also have a year-end deadline. In addition to these financially-motivated reasons, most donors give because they truly believe in the mission of an organization or project, and many make donations to celebrate the holidays.

From time to time, we feature one of our fiscally sponsored projects who have been successful at using our program to advance their art/cause/career. Today, we’re featuring Drawn To Help.