Playing in a New Arena: Scoring with a Successful Virtual (Now Hybrid!?) Fundraiser

In this session, Shelby Davies-Sekle and Nicole Kinard will discuss fundraising good that came out of the pandemic – pushing them out of their typical, nonprofit fundraising dinner box and stretching their strategies to adapt to the times and provide a fresh experience for our donors.

Join this dynamic duo as they share new insights and learned strategies from 2+ years in the pandemic trenches. They will share how they converted a 700 person gala (2019) that struggled for fundraising engagement into widely successful virtual and hybrid formats (2020, 2021), and how they are embracing the future of fundraising with new event ideas learned (and tossed out) during the pandemic.

What’s next? What’s new? How can you grow your events? Learn their secret roadmap for fundraising event strategy including: innovative sponsorships, marketing and communications, and programming and production.

Key Takeaways:

• Analyze current fundraising event strategies for opportunities to expand to a virtual/hybrid format.
• Determine components needed to successfully activate and engage both an in-person and virtual audience.
• Reimagine the typical annual fundraising dinner format and think creatively about introducing new elements to provide variety to guests.