For years, I've seen the positive effect that strategic planning has on the ability to fundraise successfully, but I've never had quantitative data to back it up.

With that in mind, in 2020 we conducted a survey to learn more about the relationship between strategic planning and fundraising. We distributed a brief survey through our networks and gathered 169 responses from leaders of small nonprofits from six continents. From our research, we made two key conclusions:

1. Having a Strategic Plan Significantly Increases Fundraising Success

86% of respondents said that having a strategic plan had a positive impact on generating revenue (grants, appealing to donors, earned income, events, etc.).

Further, respondents said that, on average, between 36% and 45% of their nonprofit’s annual revenue can be attributed to the presence of a strategic plan.

2. Regularly Tracking a Strategic Plan Strongly Correlates with Generating Revenue

As indicated in the chart above, respondents that regularly reviewed, revised, and measured their strategic plan were over six times (58% vs. 9%) more likely to say that their strategic plan helps their nonprofit generate revenue.

Learn More

If you’re interested in reading our full analysis with accompanying tables and graphs, provide us with your email and we will send you the report.