If you plan for your charitiable organisation or social enterprise to be around for the foreseeable future, then start your strategic approach to engaging business,  don’t leave it to luck and probability.

Often, many charities view businesses as grant givers expecting a generous cash donation because they have a great cause and a great profit!  Many complain how uncaring business people can be – frustrated when they don’t recognise all the hard work done in the voluntary sector.  Many charities give up when they receive no response to their targeting efforts.

With this in mind, Hunts Forum hosted the ‘5 easy steps to engaging business’ event back in May, alongside Rachel Hales, from Get Synerised. At the end of the event , local charities were energised to plan strategically and systematically their approach to business. They were able to fully understand what they are asking for, what they can give in return, how and who to ask too.

Many attendees were reminded that although they continue to do great work, and can often be admired greatly by a business, they needed to ask themselves if they wanted to forge an ongoing relationship and would the business be the ‘right fit’? Many forget to ascertain if the relationship will take up more resource and value than the benefits they yield.

Feedback on the day from one of the attendees;

“I loved being part of Rachel’s course, I actually thought to myself that I should be a corporate fundraiser by the end of it, she clearly plans her materials well and just has that ability to shift thinking and plant enthusiasm.”