Charity Fundraising: Presentation Training for Charities

What presentation training exists for charities? How can you improve charity fundraising presentations? How do you create compelling charity presentations?

Meet the Author: Benjamin Ball

Ben is the founder of Benjamin Ball Associates and leads the presentation coaching and pitch deck creation teams. Formerly a corporate financier in the City of London, for 20+ years he’s helped businesses win with better pitches and presentations, particularly investor pitches. He is a regular speaker and a guest lecturer at Columbia Business School and UCL London.  Follow Ben on LinkedIn or visit the contact page. 

10 Steps to Better Charity Fundraising with Charity Presentation Training

UK charities are under pressure. With a tough economic environment and increasing demand for charitable services, there are more charities chasing fewer funders who have more demands upon their time and their money.

This means charity fundraising is more challenging than ever. And charity funders are looking more closely at the charities they back. Writing and giving effective charity pitches and presentations is more important than ever. 

Presentation Training for Charities Will Make All the Difference

A well-prepared pitch that speaks to your target audience in the right way will help you with fundraising and win support for your cause from local government, national government and civil servants.

Having supported charity fundraising with presentation training for charities for over 15 years, these are our recommendations for better charity fundraising pitches:

Creating a successful charity fundraising presentation involves a combination of clear communication, emotional appeal, and strategic planning. Here are the key steps in more detail so you can be sure your next pitch will be effective:

1.      Understand To Whom You Are Pitching

Every audience you pitch to is different. Every donor is different, and their needs vary. For foundations, they will have charitable objectives, styles and specific requirements.  Some are looking for measurable returns; some are looking for profile and kudos; some want to know how they are making a difference. When you establish their needs, you can address these in your charity presentation.

When pitching to government, at all levels of government, politicians face problems. They are generally delighted to be offered workable solutions by well-informed people. You need to explain how your charity can solve specific problems that ministers and councillors face, and ideally how those solutions map to stated government priorities.  And you need to help the people you speak to sell your solution internally. 

This means the research you do in advance is key. Know who you are presenting to, their interests, and their capacity to give.  Then, you can tailor your content to your specific audience. 

For example:  A few years ago we were helping Teenage Cancer Trust with a fundraising pitch. They were approaching a central London football club as a potential partner, and they had their very polished standard pitch ready.  While the pitch was great, it took no account of that football club and what they wanted to achieve in their local community.  By the time we finished, the fundraising pitch was completely re-written to speak to the needs of that club.  They won the deal.   

2.      Have Clear Objectives – know what you want

What do you want from funders, donors, ministers, local councillors, civil servants and potential partners? If you can’t sum up an “ask” that is definable and feasible, you are unlikely to get it. Make it as easy as possible for others to help you by making sure they know exactly what you want.

To achieve this, you should define your goals. Be specific about what you want to achieve with the presentation, such as a certain amount of donation or a specific number of new volunteers.  Clearly state what you are asking from the audience, whether it’s donations, time, or other forms of support.  It could be that ll you want from this meeting is a second meeting.  If you know that’s what you want to achieve, then you can focus all your efforts at achieving that.

For example, when we helped the CEO of Action Tutoring prepare for a UK Parliamentary Select Committee appearance.  Her initial pitch was all about the charity and the great work it was doing supporting students to pass exams.  We helped her simplify her story and then show how a small increase in government funding could make a massive difference to exam outcome and to the UK economy.  A few weeks later, the government announced a huge increase in its support for in-school tutoring services.

Why Pick Benjamin Ball Associates for Your Charity Presentation Coaching

At Benjamin Ball Associates, we’ve been coaching business people to improve their business communication skills for over 15 years.  Our coaching is fast and effective.  We work with individuals and with companies, one-to-one and in groups.  Call us today to learn more.

“I honestly thought it was the most valuable 3 hours I’ve spent with anyone in a long time.”

Mick May, CEO, Blue Sky

Our most popular training courses include:

• Presentation Coaching
• Public Speaking Coaching
• Investor Pitch Support and Coaching

Trusted by many great charities

Speak to Louise on +44 20 7018 0922 or email info@benjaminball.com to transform your speeches, pitches and presentations.

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3.      Craft a Compelling Story

At the heart of any successful charity fundraising pitch are great stories.  These could be stories about how the charity was started; stories about what the charity does; stories about the people the charity helps or stories about where the charity is going. 

Your stories should be created using all the best storytelling techniques.  They need to appeal to the heart, involve people and peril, be uplifting and be just dramatic enough so they are memorable.  All of this will help you create an emotional connection with your audience which will help you with better fundraising. See also media training for charities

For example: When we helped Impetus Trust with their fundraising pitches, we helped them create a series of stories that demonstrated the work they do and then tied these to the bigger picture of how Impetus Trust scaled successful charities so that they could help even more people.  It was a compelling pitch which has helped Impetus grow.

“In a few powerful sessions, Ben completely transformed the way we describe Impetus and deliver our key messages.” Said Amy Stillman, Impetus Communications Director.

He quickly captured the trust of our chief executive with constructive and creative suggestions. Ben really understands the art of communication, and helped us develop some new presentation tools to boost our effectiveness. We look forward to working with him whenever we have important things to say.”

4.      Appeal to Hearts and Minds Equally

Neither a purely emotional pitch nor and a purely rational pitch will work. Instead, you need a great balance of the two.  Typically, for a charity fundraising pitch you want an equal balance of logic and emotion. 

Getting this balance between logical and rational, between appealing to hearts and appealing to the mind, is tough, as every pitch is different, and every audience has different needs. 

For example, you could start with a clear statement of the problem (logical) and back that up with some examples (emotional).  Then, describe how your solution solves that problem (logical) followed by case studies of people you have helped (emotional).  Like this, you can make your fundraising pitch more effective. With our presentation training for charities you will learn these techniques.

5.      Use Visual Aids If They Add Value

While it’s tempting to start creating PowerPoint slides early (it feels as if you are achieving something) we strongly recommend only turning to PowerPoint after you know exactly what you want to say.  Then, you can create engaging slides that add value to your pitch.  For example, a page of bullet points is unlikely to add value.  Whereas a single number, a photo, a graph or a process diagram might be invaluable to support your pitch. 

See how some famous charities use images to help them raise money.

6.      Build the Relationship

To be really successful at fundraising, you want to use every aspect of your charity pitch to build the relationship.  The better your relationship, the more you will succeed. 

For example, one simple technique for building relationships during a pitch is to ask questions.  When you show that you are curious about the person you are pitching to they are more likely to like you.  And the more you know about them and the way they are thinking, the easier it will be for you to find the right angle to build that relationship. 

Get presentation skills training for charities.

7.      Engage Your Charity Audience Throughout

The old days of giving a PowerPoint presentation for charity fundraising are long gone.  Its very hard to sell with PowerPoint.  Instead, aim for a highly interactive session packed with opportunities to have a high quality discussion.  For example, you can start your pitch with questions, you can ask for feedback throughout and you can create interactive elements throughout.

Most importantly, find a personal connection.  You might find this from your research in advance.  Aim to build rapport with those you are speaking to.  We are much more likely to work with people we like.

Prepare for questions:  Think through what the people you meet are likely to ask you. Prepare in advance just how you are going to respond. There is no need to be surprised by questions that you should have foreseen, and therefore planned for. You will come across as a more credible partner as well as an organisation with a worthwhile cause to champion.

8.      Be Fully Practised

Great fundraising pitches are made during practice.  Practice is not just about improving your delivery skills.  Practising your pitch means you keep working at it, changing it, improving it until you can’t get better. 

Some advice for effective practice:

• Practice with Others. Ask a colleague or friend to listen to your pitch and give you feedback.
• Practice Out Loud. Run through your pitch, perhaps video or record yourself. Listen to what you actually say, don’t just critique the performance. Check your timing. 
• Keep improving.  Don’t rehearse like an actor with a script.  Instead, practise like a tennis player; keep getting better. 
• Get Media Training for Charities. Learn how to talk to the press and be impressive

By practising properly (perhaps with a professional coach in a presentation coaching session), you can overcome nerves, deliver your message effectively, and command the attention of your audience.

For example, a couple of years ago we helped Amelia Morgan of Venture Trust prepare a killer fund-raising pitch via Zoom.  Not only did she transform her pitch, she got much more out of the session than she expected.

“Ben worked with me on a major pitch to investors via Zoom…“

“as a CEO of a charity seeking support from a range of organisations – landing on an informative pitch and call to action is a vital part of the role. I wanted to feel more at ease and confident.  We managed to showcase the pithy messages which brought the work of Venture Trust and the people we support to the fore.

“All the more pleasing, was that we secured not one but two investments in the space of 10 days! Ben has a lovely style, his skill in guiding, teasing out the important elements and building confidence was just what I needed. Thanks Ben.”

Amelia Morgan, CEO Venture Trust

9.      Follow-Up After Your Pitch

Your pitch meeting is when the real work starts.  You need to keep reminding your donor of your existence and that you are as good as you say you are.  Some ways you can do this include:

1. Send Thank You Notes: Send personalized thank-you notes to attendees along with any additional information requested.
2. Keep the conversation going: Give updates on what you charity is doing and tell them about milestones you have met.
3. And after you have the money, report back: Keep donors informed about the impact of their contributions with regular updates.

10.      Evaluate How Well You Did & Improve

If you want to get really good at pitching to investors, then you need to have a process for improving – a feedback loop.  This is what we do for all our pitches, and you are welcome to copy this or do something similar.

• Rehearse every important pitch rigorously.  Make this part of day-to-day activities, not a last-minute add-on that gets forgotten when you are busy.
• Immediately after the pitch, critique yourself.  Ask three questions:  what went well?  What did not go so well?  What shall we do better next time?
• Ask for feedback: Many people are happy to share their observations, if you ask nicely.
• Keep getting better: Continually refine your approach for future presentations. Our presentation skills training for charities is a good way to start getting better

By following these steps, you can keep building your skills and you’ll see the results from the number of fundraising pitches you close and support your cause.

Get Presentation Training for Charities to Improve your Fundraising

Over the last 15 years we’ve helped many charities with their fundraising using presentation training for charities. From Teenage Cancer Trust to Princes Trust to Impetus Trust to Action Tutoring. We’ve helped them craft great pitches and then coached them to deliver those charity fundraising pitches compellingly. We’d love to help you too.

Benjamin Ball Associates works with charities to help them to pitch, present and persuade more effectively. If you would like more information, call Louise Angus on +44 20 7018 0922 or email her at info@benjaminball.com.

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Why Choose Us:
Transform your pitches and presentations with tailored coaching

We can help you present brilliantly. Thousands of people have benefitted from our tailored in-house coaching and advice – and we can help you too.

“I honestly thought it was the most valuable 3 hours I’ve spent with anyone in a long time.”

Mick May, CEO, Blue Sky

For 15+ years we’ve been the trusted choice for leading businesses and executives throughout the UK, Europe and the Middle East. We’ll help you improve corporate presentations through presentation coaching, public speaking training and expert advice on pitching to investors.

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Unlock your full potential and take your presentations to the next level.

Speak to Louise on +44 20 7018 0922 or email info@benjaminball.com to transform your speeches, pitches and presentations.

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation