“I want money. That’s what I want,” sang Barrett Strong in his 1959 Motown hit Money (That’s What I Want). There comes a time in every arts and cultural professional’s life when they can relate to those lyrics on a spiritual level.
It may be in a personal capacity, given the dire salaries, or on a professional level, chasing funding in a landscape of budget cuts and efficiency savings. With regard to the latter, we have all been there and are probably still there.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like budget cuts are disappearing any time soon – like a bad house guest, they are going to be sticking around and we must grin and bear it (like always) while we push through and seethe under a veil of calm.
In this grim environment, Sheldon Wolf offers a glimmer of hope in his book A Practical Guide to Fundraising for Small Museums: Maximising the Marketing-Development Connection. It’s a mouthful, but it does what it says on the tin. The basis of the book is people – understanding people in general and those in our particular sector.
Before we think about fundraising, Wolf turns the idea on its head and starts with the needs of donors and not those of museums. To this end, the book has a focus on audiences, donors, members, sponsors and trustees, and how to build these relationships.
Wolf ’s guide straddles the realm of a practical management textbook, with its pyramid diagrams and sample letters, and that of a self-help book, telling us to go on holiday and “be kind to yourself ”.
His style of writing is far from the tedious, dry textbooks one usually has to endure for anything remotely to do with business or management. To my surprise, I read three- quarters of the book in one sitting and didn’t even realise it.
At times, Wolf is reminiscent of a motivational speaker, as we are told: “Don’t talk about superlatives. Be the superlative.” This is probably a good place to point out that Wolf has worked in marketing and development, largely in US museums and theatres, and that the book is focused on our American counterparts. Although almost everything he outlines in his book can be transferred across the pond, I did find myself asking at several points whether particular aspects did in fact apply to the UK.
For instance, Wolf writes about sharing e-lists between organisations, but I’m not sure how feasible this is in the new world of GDPR rules. Also, I don’t think many, if any, museum development teams would readily share this information if they could.
Perhaps I am being too pessimistic about the publication, but I do think the realities of the sociocultural and economic context are somewhat absent. We can’t ignore that for every museum wanting to engage prospective funders, there are tens if not thousands more venues – it’s cut-throat and competitive.
A Practical Guide to Fundraising for Small Museums is full of handy tips and guidance, and a lot of it is good, if not common sense, advice. From giving a blow-by- blow account of how to run, programme and effectively communicate during a patron- based or fundraising event, to ideas for sponsorship packages and a range of sample copy for funding, stakeholder, and campaign requests, this is a useful book.
As someone who manages a handful of small arts and cultural organisations, Wolf touches on so many points that I recognise in my day-to-day working life. It was like he was talking directly to me about my organisation, similar to having a one-to-one consultancy session.
I am working with fundraising consultants at the moment and almost all the advice and action plans Wolf supplies are exactly what we are doing. I found the book useful in giving me confidence to question and make suggestions. This truly is a practical, user-friendly guide that will empower you to try your hand at fundraising.
Elizabeth Scott is the head of the Guildhall Galleries, London
Rowman & Littlefield, £22.95 ISBN 978-1538103265
It may be in a personal capacity, given the dire salaries, or on a professional level, chasing funding in a landscape of budget cuts and efficiency savings. With regard to the latter, we have all been there and are probably still there.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like budget cuts are disappearing any time soon – like a bad house guest, they are going to be sticking around and we must grin and bear it (like always) while we push through and seethe under a veil of calm.
In this grim environment, Sheldon Wolf offers a glimmer of hope in his book A Practical Guide to Fundraising for Small Museums: Maximising the Marketing-Development Connection. It’s a mouthful, but it does what it says on the tin. The basis of the book is people – understanding people in general and those in our particular sector.
Before we think about fundraising, Wolf turns the idea on its head and starts with the needs of donors and not those of museums. To this end, the book has a focus on audiences, donors, members, sponsors and trustees, and how to build these relationships.
Wolf ’s guide straddles the realm of a practical management textbook, with its pyramid diagrams and sample letters, and that of a self-help book, telling us to go on holiday and “be kind to yourself ”.
His style of writing is far from the tedious, dry textbooks one usually has to endure for anything remotely to do with business or management. To my surprise, I read three- quarters of the book in one sitting and didn’t even realise it.
At times, Wolf is reminiscent of a motivational speaker, as we are told: “Don’t talk about superlatives. Be the superlative.” This is probably a good place to point out that Wolf has worked in marketing and development, largely in US museums and theatres, and that the book is focused on our American counterparts. Although almost everything he outlines in his book can be transferred across the pond, I did find myself asking at several points whether particular aspects did in fact apply to the UK.
For instance, Wolf writes about sharing e-lists between organisations, but I’m not sure how feasible this is in the new world of GDPR rules. Also, I don’t think many, if any, museum development teams would readily share this information if they could.
Perhaps I am being too pessimistic about the publication, but I do think the realities of the sociocultural and economic context are somewhat absent. We can’t ignore that for every museum wanting to engage prospective funders, there are tens if not thousands more venues – it’s cut-throat and competitive.
A Practical Guide to Fundraising for Small Museums is full of handy tips and guidance, and a lot of it is good, if not common sense, advice. From giving a blow-by- blow account of how to run, programme and effectively communicate during a patron- based or fundraising event, to ideas for sponsorship packages and a range of sample copy for funding, stakeholder, and campaign requests, this is a useful book.
As someone who manages a handful of small arts and cultural organisations, Wolf touches on so many points that I recognise in my day-to-day working life. It was like he was talking directly to me about my organisation, similar to having a one-to-one consultancy session.
I am working with fundraising consultants at the moment and almost all the advice and action plans Wolf supplies are exactly what we are doing. I found the book useful in giving me confidence to question and make suggestions. This truly is a practical, user-friendly guide that will empower you to try your hand at fundraising.
Elizabeth Scott is the head of the Guildhall Galleries, London
Rowman & Littlefield, £22.95 ISBN 978-1538103265
