6a pitching and friendraising with notes

Teacher’s Guide for Implementation III: Pitching and Friendraising
Every PresenTense workshops starts with a pre-
exercise. This one is a game that demands a bit
more involvement. The Instructor asks
everyone to close their eyes, and then walks
around the room, picking one person to give a
‘secret password’ to (it can be anything.
“Candy?” Your call). Then the Instructor returns
to the front of the room and tells people they
can open their eyes – and they should start
speaking with one another. The goal of the
participants is to meet each other, ask them
about themselves, find out what they value –
and see if they can give them some information
or an idea the other person values. If a person
who has the password is given an idea or
introduction or a piece of feedback they value,
Notes Here: they can tell the person who gave them that
value the password.

After the time is over, the instructor calls “stop”
and asks people to sit down, then asks the
original person with the password to raise their
hand, and then everyone else who got the
password to raise their hands.

(This workshops is built in such a way that it
can take 1.5hrs, or 3hrs, depending on the time
allotted. The big different in time comes from
the workshops. An instructor should adapt this
presentation based on the time for the session
before going to teach it. This slide could take in
total: 5 or 10 minutes, depending on how long
this workshop is to last. Total time of Pitching
and Friendraising Workshop: TKTK mins)

1

The exercise is an example of pitching and
friendraising. If the group was successful, most
of the room would have their hands up. The
point of it is that every body wins. The people
who have their hand up have the password
because they were able to provide value to
someone else. In other words, what we’re
talking about today is how to provide value to
people quickly, steadily and repeatedly so that
everyone will share in the good. (Time =3 mins)

Notes Here:

2

When seeking to raise resources, there are four
types of capital to keep in mind. First are
introductions – this is social capital. Those
introductions can lead you to other resources.
Second are insights – this is intellectual capital.
These ideas can help your project advance
more effectively and efficiently. Third are
financial investments – this is financial capital.
You use money to buy other things, so this is
important but not critical. Last is an investment
of time – this is human capital. Time is the
most important thing one can seek, because it
can be used in the most varied ways, and builds
community around an idea. The key for an
entrepreneur is to know how to get people
interested in giving their capital. (Time = 3
Notes Here: mins)

3

Pitching is a way to get people interested. It is a
chance for you to get people to know what you
do. (Time = 1 mins)

Notes Here:

4

And there are three core elements to a
successful pitch. First, a quick description of
what the problem is that you’re trying to solve.
That problem needs to be defined in simple
terms that enable a person to relate to them.
Second, a description of the solution to that
problem – which is what the venture is trying
to do. Last, a description of what a person can
do to help. And this should be an easy way to
help and get involved – a simple thing they can
do right away. (Time = 3 mins)

Notes Here:

5

Let’s workshop this. Take a minute to jot down
some notes, find a partner in the room, and
pitch them in three minutes. Try to keep each
section less than a minute long – partner, time
them. (Instructor, give them 8 minutes for this
– then ask someone to pitch the group, and get
people’s reactions. Did they understand the
problem? Believe in the solution? Do they
know what they can do about it?) (Time = 15
mins)

Notes Here:

6

But what if you’re stuck in an elevator, and you
have 45 seconds to tell someone what you do
and how they can get involved? Let’s try that
out. Take a minute to jot down some notes,
find a partner in the room, and pitch them in
45 seconds. Try to keep each section less than
15 seconds long – partner, time them.
(Instructor, give them 4 minutes for this – then
ask someone to pitch the group, and get
people’s reactions. Did they understand the
problem? Believe in the solution? Do they
know what they can do about it?) (Time = 10
mins, but can be 15-20 minutes if the session is
longer. In the longer case, go around the room
and have each person (but no more than 10
people) pitch the room in 45 seconds)
Notes Here:

7

And what if you’re walking up to someone in a
conference and you want them to get to know
you? What then? Well you have 15 seconds.
Let’s try that out. Take a minute to jot down
some notes, find a partner in the room, and
pitch them in 15 seconds. Partner, time them.
Go back and forth until you get it right.
(Instructor, give them 4 minutes for this – then
ask someone to pitch the group, and get
people’s reactions. Did it get their attention?
Do they know what the person wants from
them? Do they understand the problem?
Believe in the solution? Do they know what
they can do about it?) (Time = 10 mins, but can
be 15-20 minutes if the session is longer. In the
longer case, go around the room and have each
Notes Here: person pitch the room in 15 seconds – and
have people go more than once if they want to
improve it while others pitch)

8

Once you’ve got people interested, you need to
know how to answer the ‘Now What?’ and for
that, we have a few suggestions. This is a five
tiered system for getting people involved, each
according to the level of interest and depth of
history you have with people. We’ll review it
quickly here, then go into each of them more
in-depth. First, the Board is a traditional vessel
that people use to get very involved people to
take formal responsibility. Second are Steering
Committees – smaller groups with less formal
responsibility over the whole organization, but
who can lead specific processes. Third is the
general mass of volunteers, who are individuals
who want to help, don’t exactly know how, but
are willing to do a task or two here or there to
Notes Here: help out. Fourth are partners from other
organizations or causes that are willing to help
you while you help them. And last are donors,
individuals who love what you’re doing, will not
volunteer with tasks, but are willing to give
money. Let’s go into each one individually.
(Time = 3 mins)

9

A board is a set of devoted supporters who take
personal responsibility for the life of the
organization and trust one another to work like
a team. Boards should be composed of people
who have shown that they are committed to
the organization, and want to make it one of
their top priorities with their time. These
individuals are thereby willing to take on what
is known as “fiduciary responsibility”: legal
responsibility for the organization, how it runs,
and more. It is because of this responsibility
and commitment that many boards are
composed of donors or investors: they are
personally committed to giving the organization
the resources it needs to survive. But that
doesn’t need to be the case. Board members
Notes Here: can give any of the three W’s to help the
organization gain resources: Wealth, Wisdom
and Work. To maintain this devotion, however,
we recommend keeping the board manageable
and small, with 5-7 people at its core. (Time = 3
mins)

10

Steering Committees are for those individuals
who are more willing to commit, but do not
have a long history with an organization. These
are individuals who are willing to give regular
time to the organization, and are willing to start
taking on strategic responsibility for particular
sub-goals of the organizations. (for example,
recruiting volunteers, planning a trip, etc).
Steering Committees should be action-case
specific, focused on a certain type of activity or
responsibility that is reoccurring so they can
grow their feeling of ownership and become
leaders in the organization and its cause. The
more well defined the zone of responsibility is,
the more Steering Committee members will be
willing to go above and beyond and lead the
Notes Here: charge. You can help this by clarifying also the
structure of their involvement. Do they meet
weekly? For how many hours? What is their
specific job description? The more structure
you give, the more freedom they’ll feel to give
back. (Time = 3 mins)

11

Volunteers are individuals who are interested in
the organization, devoted to the cause, but
can’t commit. Generally, people will start as
volunteers, then get more involved on a
Steering Committee, and possibly join the
board. In other words, this is the ticket into the
organization. Use it well! Make sure you ask
them for an ‘atomic task’: a very specific,
achievable task that is time bound and provides
a sense of accomplishment. This sense of
accomplishment cannot be overplayed:
volunteers do not owe you anything. They are
helping because they care about the cause, and
if they work through you that’s your blessing.
The more personal benefit you can provide
them from contributing through your
Notes Here: organization, the more likely they will be to
remain and continue to help. So get to know
them – they are the most valuable assets you’ll
raise. (Time = 3 mins)

12

Not everyone needs to get involved with the
organization to help the organization, of course,
and recruiting partners can help the
organization solve a lot of its challenges
without having to do everything on its own. Get
to know potential partners through an
environmental scan. Complements and
Collaborators are the most likely to help. Find
out what they need, and build opportunities for
mutual benefit. The more you highlight benefits
from your partnership to your partner and to
the rest of the world, the more people will hear
about both of your organizations and get
involved. The bigger the pie, the more
everyone eats. (Time = 3 mins)

Notes Here:

13

And for those individuals who have more
money than time, and would like to give but
can’t afford to give their time, you can give
financial opportunities. The key to speaking
with donors about what you need is to
recognize how much they think they can give –
and give them the opportunity to help you at
that level. Think of this just like giving hours: if
someone has only one hour to give a month,
make it possible for them to give that hour and
see the accomplishment. Tell them how much
they helped. And if they can’t give much, but
are willing to tell others that they should give
to the organization, then you’ve helped your
funder become a fundraiser. (Time = 3 mins)

Notes Here:

14

All of this is to say that the lifecycle of any gift
always requires patience. The more patience
you have, the more long-term payoff you can
get. Let people work through you, see the
effect of their actions, sense how they had
impact – and over time they will give you much
more of their time and money than if you
started off with a bang. (Time = 2 mins)

Notes Here:

15


Notes Here:

16

So let’s go into a few online platforms that can
help you with this process, because these tools
can cut your time and let you work with many
more people than otherwise possible. We
chose a few tools to help – but there are many
more out there that you should explore. First
there is Change.org, a site that enables people
to start petitions and let others know about
their cause. This is a wonderful way to get to
people and spark their awareness of their
problem. It’s also great to use in a pitch (for
example, “27,000 people agree that…”).
Getting the word out lets you start to get
people involved. (Go online if you can, ask the
group for a cause, and start a campaign right
away) (Time = 7 mins)
Notes Here:

17

As people get involved they’ll want to identify
more with your cause – and Causes is a great
platform to help them do so. It connects
directly into Facebook, and has been one of the
more popular apps in Facebook for a while.
Causes enables people to donate their birthday
wishes to the cause, get involved in projects,
and raise money. (Take a moment and set
something up around one of the projects in the
group) (Time = 7 mins)

Notes Here:

18

Then, as people get more involved and you
want to get them to take on additional financial
responsibilities, Network for Good can help
build relationships and a giving network. It has
a lot of tools for nonprofits and donors alike,
and is well worth while to develop and build.
(Time = 2S mins, 7L) (Instructor, if you have
time and this is a longer presentation, take
another 5 minutes and show them the site and
how easy it is to set up).

Notes Here:

19

Finally, make sure your venture is listed. Charity
Navigator is a great tool to build credibility –
and there are a few other such services that
provide third party information and ratings to
donors. You can only get listed if you are a
registered charity, so for some ventures this
may not help. For social enterprises there is the
B-Corporation, and other tools are developing
by the day. The key is to find a way to get
validation externally – so you can say, “Don’t
take my word for it…” (Instructor, ask them
about a Not-for-profit organization they know
and search with them for it and its statistics
(Time = 5 mins)

Notes Here:

20

All of these online tools, however, will never be
a replacement for trust. People invest in
people. (Instructor, ask if anyone here gave
time or money in the last month, and why. Ask
who it was that asked them to give it, and how
they asked). The key is to take this
understanding into the world: be a good
person, and do good for people. The more
good you do, the more good there will be. And
so we’ll take a five minute break here, and
practice how we can be more effective at
reaching out and engaging people.

(Time = 2 mins)

Notes Here:

21

Now, let’s try this out with a series of
workshops, to build out your networking
skills. Here are some key values and
instructions for a one-on-one conversation
(Instructor, ask the participants to read
these out, one person per number. Then
get two volunteers to come up to the front
of the group, and show how they can put
this into action. Instruct them to take two
minutes to network, with one of the people
role playing the entrepreneur, and another
person the potential friend or funder. Let
them play it out. Give them positive
feedback. Ask for feedback from the group
with the focus on – did they live up to the
first four rules? How can they follow up?
Notes Here: Once the two people are done role-playing,
as the room to break up into pairs – to find
someone in the room they haven’t had as
much contact with, and to play it out. Give
them 5 minutes to have one person role
play the entrepreneur and the other the
friend/funder, and then switch). (Time = 10
mins)

22

Now let’s say you’re at a meeting or a panel
discussion and it lets out. What do you do
to meet people in the room ? Here are
some key values and instructions for a
Lightening Networking (Instructor, ask the
participants to read these out, one person
per number. Then get two volunteers to
come up to the front of the group, and show
how they can put this into action. Instruct
them to take 30 seconds to network, with
one of the people role playing the
entrepreneur, and another person the
potential friend or funder. Let them play it
out. Pay attention to body language. Did
they seem inviting? Are they smiling? Are
they giving enough personal space but not
Notes Here: too much? If you feel comfortable with
scenarios such as “two on one” or “one on
two” play them out [i.e. scenarios when one
person interrupts two people already
networking, with the entrepreneur as the
person in the networking, or when the
entrepreneur tries to get into a conversation
with two people speaking.] Give them
positive feedback. Ask for feedback from
the group with the focus on – did they live
up to the first four rules? How can they
follow up? Once the two people are done
role-playing, as the room to break up into
pairs – to find someone in the room they
haven’t had as much contact with, and to
play it out. And once they’re done, try to cut
into another group’s conversation. Give
play the entrepreneur and the other the
friend/funder, and then switch). (Time = 10
mins)

23

Now let’s say you’re at a conference booth
– how do you meet people, have them
remember you? Here are some key values
and instructions for conference networking.
(Instructor, ask the participants to read
these out, one person per number. Then
get two volunteers to come up to the front
of the group, and show how they can put
this into action. Instruct them to take 30
seconds to network, with one of the people
role playing the entrepreneur standing at a
conference booth, and another person the
potential friend or funder walking around
the room. Let them play it out. Pay attention
to body language. Did they seem inviting?
Are they smiling? Are they giving enough
Notes Here: personal space but not too much? If you
feel comfortable with scenarios such as
“two on one” or “one on two” play them out
[i.e. scenarios when one person interrupts
two people already networking, with the
entrepreneur as the person in the
networking, or when the entrepreneur tries
to get into a conversation with two people
speaking.] Give them positive feedback.
Ask for feedback from the group with the
focus on – did they live up to the first four
rules? How can they follow up? Once the
two people are done role-playing, as the
room to break up in half – half
entrepreneurs at booths, half people
walking around to check things out . Give
play the entrepreneur at a both and the
other the friend/funder, and then switch).
(Time = 10 mins)

24

Finally, for every day things, we have
casual, relaxed conversation. Don’t forget
this is the most important part – and this is
how you follow up any quick and light
connection up with. (Instructor, ask the
participants to read these out, one person
per number. Then get two volunteers to
come up to the front of the group, sit facing
each other as they might in an office or
café, and show how they can put this into
action. Instruct them to take 3 minutes to
talk, with one of the people role playing the
entrepreneur following up on a connection
at a conference, and another person the
potential friend or funder interested but still
not sold. Let them play it out. Pay attention
Notes Here: to body language. Did they seem inviting?
Are they smiling? Are they giving enough
personal space but not too much? Give
them positive feedback. Ask for feedback
from the group with the focus on – did they
live up to the four rules? How can they
follow up? Once the two people are done
role-playing, as the room to break up into
pairs to try it out. Give them 5 minutes to
have one person role play the entrepreneur
at a both and the other the friend/funder,
and then switch). (Time = 10mins)

25

Great work everyone – remember, practice
makes perfect. The whole point of this is to
build connections with people, learn about
them, and help them do good. Our key
takeaway is: Be authentic, gracious,
and courageous. Remember,
everybody needs somebody--you can
help! (Time = 3 mins)

Notes Here:

26

6a pitching and friendraising with notes

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6a pitching and friendraising with notes