We are all aware that fundraising does not get any easier, each year the challenge gets tougher as we are expected to deliver targets within tight budgets.
So spending a day in February in Solihull will help transform your knowledge and become a smarter fundraiser by learning from others.
For me, by taking a breath with the chance to spend a day with like-minded colleagues across the hospice movement, I believe the 2018 Hospice UK fundraising conference will deliver a real punch and a perfect nectar for hospice fundraisers and boost confidence for the year ahead.
Working collaboratively, harnessing the collective wisdom of all delegates, strengthens impact and our ability and capability to raise more funds.
The event will also help open my eyes to the myriad of opportunities that are there and how they could work to improve fundraising at Eden Valley & Jigsaw Hospice.
After almost four years in the role, I am aware of the Achilles heel to hospices versus the big national giants like Macmillan, BHF and CRUK. I look back at my ‘previous life’ working at the MS Society and being spoilt with budgets that stretched into the hundreds of thousands.
National charities tend to have armies of staff, huge digital and analytical teams, marketing departments (with more than one member of staff!) communications departments, key account managers to manage huge corporate partnerships and resources to deploy and blow the local hospice out of the water when it comes to raising funds in the community and business. I know this can make for very depressing reading, so that is why events like this conference can help redress some of this imbalance of financial resources…
We just cannot compete at this level, but, it is my belief if we work more closely, share winning ideas, talk about our unique selling points and how these can be maximised, then the day in Solihull will be a real treat.
And there is going to be a stellar line-up there too.
Mark Astarita, formerly fundraising director at the British Red Cross, is one of the most impressive fundraising leads in the UK and his session alone is worth the delegate fee.
In my fundraising role, having the chance to spend a whole day (as well as the travel time) thinking about future plans, getting new tips, and chatting with new found friends in the queue for the lunch time sarnie are all great reasons for wanting to be part of it.
I hope you can make it. I know the event will shape future thinking, will encourage fresh approaches and give you the opportunity to head back to the office and enthuse colleagues for a brilliant 2018 of hospice fundraising.
For more information visit Hospice UK fundraising conference 2018
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