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Keen to be flexible?

National Arts Fundraising School (NAFS) - Dancer - Online Programme - Pink

The online version of the School enables you to develop your fundraising skills and confidence in a flexible, accessible way, working around your everyday demands. We limit places to 15 so you get all the personal support and guidance you need to turn your new skills and confidence into a powerful strategy.

The core programme runs over four consecutive weeks- offering a mix of recorded watch-when-you-want videos, live tutorial sessions, and personal one-to-one coaching. Before and after the four core weeks there are onboarding and implementation sessions. There is a lot to cover!

Your core commitment is probably 4-5 hours a week with around 3 hours of live online work. But even the live sessions are recorded, to help manage birthdays, holidays, last minute meetings, emergencies and more.

Book here for the the online programme. Not sure? Reserve your no-commitment provisional place to be at the front of the queue if you think you might want a place.

Need all the detail in one place?

National Arts Fundraising School — Online Typical Timetable PDF cover thumb

We’ve put together all the info on the Online School content in one place. Why not download it to review or share with a colleague?

Download Timetable

Your Online Journey

The online programme is designed to offer you a structured flexible way to build your skill and strategy over five weeks, with pre-school and post-school coaching and engagement to ensure you can make the most of your investment. Read on to find out more. And if you have a question don’t hesitate to contact Clare Segal, administrator.

National Arts Fundraising School | Your online journey infographic

A Journey Guided by Your Personal Coach

Throughout the School you’ll have a personal coach guiding you through the process. They’ll have one to one session with you before the school and after, plus small group sessions over the five weeks.

Want to know more about the coaching team?

Ellie Turner
I think the NAFS team have done a great job with their new on-line school. I’d recommend it highly for anyone keen to step up to the next level in fundraising.
Ellie Turner, Outdoor Arts and Events Producer

What’s different online?

We’ve worked hard to make online NAFS interactive and engaging. Much of the time we’ll be using Zoom, but with a difference using breakout rooms and added interaction with platforms like Slido and Stormboard. We’ll even have small WhatsApp groups for chat and sharing ideas offline. And you’ll have a weekly chance to chat one to one with the programme leaders. 

  • The chance to absorb and reflect with 2x 1.5 hours a week contact time, and the rest free for ‘work’.
  • Personal programme leader support, and guaranteed personal catch up every week.
  • More ways to learn with case studies, small group Zoom sessions, plenaries, and course work.
  • Opportunities to actually develop your strategy in real time.
  • Catch up learning: every session recorded so you can catch up when suits you.
  • Small group learning opportunities in a group case studies home team.
  • Back up materials included with the 350-page workbook to help develop your learning.
  • The chance to share experience and insight with other participants sharing your situation
Ahmet Ahmet
The emphasis on real-life case studies and applying learning to your work is so important to make the learning practical.
Ahmet Ahmet, Outreach Director, The Stage

How about the investment?

The online programme involves pre-programme webinars, one-to-one coaching, 4-week online programme, comprehensive 350-page manual, and 90 days free online support for an all-inclusive price of £1,199.00.

Maija Handover
The course is brilliant. I’ve been so impressed how the online format works.
Maija Handover, Director, Sound UK

Benefit from 28+ key modules

Every NAFS programme is adapted from the results of your pre-programme questionnaire and your initial One to One coaching.

Whichever option you choose, you’ll increase your knowledge and confidence in different sources: individual giving; major donors; legacies; trusts; and commercial sponsorship. We’ll also share techniques and channels: endowments, capital campaigns, face to face, direct mail, proposals and online. Finally, we’ll help you shape all this into a sustainable strategy. Only NAFS offers this integration.

See below for the topics we cover. For 2024 we’ve updated more modules and made them available as recordings.

Charlotte Bowen
Who thought that fundraising could be fun and interesting? NAFS just made it so with their engaging and expert advice during their intensive course which left s feeling motivated and with the belief that anything is possible.
Charlotte Bowen, The Culture House & Birdhouse Grimsby

Principles of Fundraising

Successful fundraising is underpinned by a number of key principles drawn from disciplines as varied as psychology, sociology and marketing. We’ll share these with you, and show you how to apply them in your setting.

Choosing a Structure

The way you’re organised – legally and from a people perspective – can make a massive difference to your ability to attract funds. We’ll explore the options available and help you establish the best structure for success.

Creating a Value Proposition

To succeed in competitive world of fundraising you need a Value Proposition — a way of distinguishing your offering from others. We’ll show you how to create and share an effective Value Proposition — making your agency or project stand out.

Developing your Strategy

Over the programme — Online, In Person or In Person Plus — you’ll discover how relevant each of the 26 modules is to your own strategy. (You’ll also establish which are not suitable.) The result? An integrated strategy tailored to your organisation and its ambitions.

Writing a Strategy

So you’ve got lots of strategic thoughts, and some good ideas, but how do you shape them into a robust plan that you can share with senior managers or your Board? In this module we help you write a plan to win support and investment and deliver results.

NEW! Donor Demographics

What are the differences between, say, millennials and boomers in terms of attitudes, channels and propensity to give? We explore some of the surprising similarities- and differences- and how to make use of them in your fundraising.

Growing Individual Giving

Central to any contemporary strategy is a powerful individual giving approach — engaging audiences, visitors or users and turning them from supporters to donors. In two modules we show how to build inclusive and sustainable individual fundraising.

Personal Action Planning

This final module will help you crystallise the key learning from the School, and help you identify specific steps for practical action back at work using 5 key focus questions. You’ll have the chance to buddy up with a fellow participant to share ideas.

NEW! Fundraising Storytelling

Stories, our most ancient way of communicating, are a powerful way to share ideas. Neuroscience tells us they’re more memorable than data and create powerful connections to the cause. You’ll learn how to shape your ask with an impactful story.

NEW Engaging Major Donors

Major donors, the fastest growing area of giving, are able to make a massive difference to many cultural and heritage agencies. This session explores how to identify potential and engage with High Net Worth Individuals.

Building Supporter Journeys

If you’re going to be successful you need to have a supporter journey and a stewardship strategy for every prospect. These complementary tactics shape how you can align the whole organisation around engaging donors.

Making the Ask – in person

How confident are you at asking major donors and business leaders for money? This session offers skills and tactics which will allow you to influence others in on the phone or in a meeting. You’ll get personal feedback on your impact.

UPDATED Online Engagement

Can Social Media really deliver fundraising success… or a digital diversion? These two linked models offer an insight into what is working in social media terms and how you can make the web worker harder for you — promoting donor and potential donor engagement.

Impactful Personal Pitching

This module offers you the practical opportunity to actually ‘pitch’ for money in front of an audience and then get detailed video feedback on your effectiveness. Before the pitch your coach will offer insights and practical tips on how to make an impact.

Focus on Foundations

Trusts and Foundations contribute £4B to UK charities including significant sums to culture and heritage. But to secure your share you have to understand how they really make decisions. (Not what they say!) Discover the 7 success steps.

Sponsorship and CSR

Companies are still investing in the arts. But the money is proving tougher to get. Over two modules we show you how to maximise your chances of sponsorship or CSR success – and how to turn one-off success into a long-term relationship.

Running Major Appeals

At some point in your fundraising career you’ll have to run a major appeal – a campaign, endowment or capital project. This module walks you through the five phases of a successful major appeal and exposes the five major mistakes to avoid.

NEW! Donor Decisions

Understand the latest thinking on how donors make decisions and the implications this has for you. We’ll be sharing insight from a major six-month research project with 10 UK arts organisations– applying neuroscience to fundraising.

Volunteer Board: friend or foe?

Volunteers can be a huge resource for you – helping bring contacts and ideas to the table. But these boards need careful management and a clear brief. We’ll explore how to recruit a high performing board and keep them on track.

Writing Powerful Proposals

Often the only way you can communicate with a funder is in written form. We’ll share the results of our original research which shows that structuring your proposal differently can increase your chances of fundraising success by up to 25%.

Legacy Programme Bootcamp

If you have an older audience legacies and in memoriam gifts can be a major source of support. But how do you create a legacy programme without seeming too cold and calculating? We’ll show you the key steps.

Crowdfunding: magic & myths

Does crowdfunding really work for the arts? In a fast-paced session we’ll look at examples of what works and what definitively doesn’t work when raising money from the crowd — helping you to avoid expensive mistakes.

Case for Support Playbook

At the core of your fundraising sits the Case for Support (C4S). But how do you make yours stand out? We’ll introduce you to the NAFS Playbook, allowing you to share messages clearly and powerfully to different audiences.

Stewardship and Donor Love

Securing donors is only part of the challenge. How do you steward them… and make them feel really loved? In this module we’ll explore how to keep donors and supporters on board for a long-term relationship – discover donor love!

Membership or Superclub?

Old school membership models can actually be a drag on resources and time. To succeed you need to turn your Membership into a Superclub — matching benefits to contribution. We’ll show you how organisations have done this successfully- and you can do it too.

NEW! Measuring Success

How do you really measure success in fundraising? And how do you agree with your boss the most appropriate model? In this module we’ll explore the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches — Return on Investment (RoI) versus Life Time Value (LTV).

Local Authority Fundraising

Raising money if you’re LA or Leisure/Culture Trust needs specific approaches. But be prepared to be encouraged by what is possible. We’ll share case studies of success from Lambeth to Lincolnshire.

Hard-to-Fundraise Causes?

So you’re a producer, an individual, a partnership, a CiC, unknown or even a touring company… Learn how to adapt your approach and structure to succeed in raising cash.

What about my other work?

One of the advantages of the flexible online programme is the ability to learn and develop your strategy while balancing other work or personal commitments. PLUS the video on demand catch up means you never have to miss a session.

Detailed Dates for Online

September 2024

2nd-24th September 2024

Structured pre-recorded video modules at your own pace with 1.5 hour live online coaching/tutorial sessions: 2-3, 9-10,16-17, 20, 23-24 September 2024.

 

Bernard Ross (Headshot)
We’ve spent almost a year perfecting the online experience. It’s interactive, engaging with one-to-one coaching, small group sessions, quizzes, case studies, and the chance to focus on your own challenges. Every session is recorded and uploaded to our secure server so you can catch up later if you miss a session.
Bernard Ross, National Arts Fundraising School

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