Capital campaigns are a common way through which organizations can collect resources they require for their development. Many organizations have development and expansion plans that exceed their annual budgets. To achieve such plans, organizations could use a capital campaign to raise money from their stakeholders and donors. However, it is not guaranteed that such campaigns would accomplish the goals. Thus, adequate planning and execution is inescapable for the campaigns to succeed. For organizations like the Preservation Hall Foundation, shouldered with the responsibility of preserving heritage and offering public programs, a capital campaign would be a reliable way to raise funds to achieve its goals. The current analysis delves into the capital campaign in Preservation Hall Foundation, its opportunities and challenges, and the essential considerations when preparing for the campaign.
The capital campaign offers the foundation opportunities to improve its status. First, the capital campaign gives the foundation a chance to bond with the stakeholders. For instance, when the Asian Art Museum conducted a capital campaign in 2019, the Campaign Chair and Board Co-Chair, Akiko Yamazaki, asserted that the generous donation portrayed the passion their stakeholders had for the museum. Yamazaki also pointed out that this campaign depicted the value that stakeholders associated with the museum (Asian Art Museum, 2019). This expression by Yamazaki implies that the museum bonded more with the stakeholders by engaging in a common course. The campaign also gave stakeholders a chance to contribute directly to the museum’s success, building a stronger sense of ownership and identity. Similarly, the Preservation Hall Foundation would use the capital campaign to induce a stronger sense of ownership among the stakeholders, engage stakeholders in new ways, and strengthen their relationship with the foundation.
The foundation has an opportunity to leverage the increased use of technology-based platforms like social media to reach many donors. In contemporary society today, many people use social media platforms daily, making it easy to pass information to them and borrowing from the crowdfunding projects used in the Smithsonian Institution’s capital campaign, which turned out to be successful (Di Mento, 2018). The Preservation Hall could work with experts in New Orleans to design online campaigns to trigger a conversation about the foundation’s intentions and attract donors. The campaign could also help attract new stakeholders who are currently unaware of the foundation’s presence and operations, leading to more audiences in the future.
The other opportunity is that the campaign would provide the foundation with the resources required to carry out projects that the foundation cannot afford using its annual budget. To prevent stagnation and slow development rates, the foundation could use the campaign to raise funds to renovate the preservation hall in New Orleans and enhance its ability to preserve the musical heritage of the city and support its musicians. According to Martin (2022), the Preservation Hall, which had single-handedly saved New Orleans jazz from extinction, had numerous activities that required resources, including paying musicians who played at the hall to sustain them and giving stipends to struggling artists like Will Smith, who received about $1,000 per month during the pandemic. Therefore, the capital campaign gives the foundation an opportunity to continue its operations. Apart from the opportunities, the campaign could also have some challenges.
The first challenge is that the target population may not understand the need to participate in the campaign and its importance. As observed in the Smithsonian Institution’s campaign, one of the campaign’s co-chairs, Alan Spoon, asserted that some target donors might argue that their taxes already helped the organization, which means there would be no need to raise more money (Di Mento, 2018). A similar challenge could affect the Preservation Hall Foundation because some target donors may need help understanding the limited federal funding the foundation received and may not find it necessary to donate to an institution that already received government funding.
The second challenge is donor fatigue. In a fundraising process, donors may only be willing to donate for a short time. In areas like New Orleans, where there is a lot of funding, and the population may be composed of few wealthy people, donors may not be willing to donate for long. As Sydnor (2020) explains, donor fatigue is a common challenge in campaigns because it means the campaign may fail to reach its targets. In this case, the Preservation Hall Foundation may have to engage people from different areas beyond New Orleans to reduce instances of donor fatigue. The challenges may reduce the chances of achieving the campaign’s targets. To increase the chances of a successful campaign, the foundation should consider the necessary measures to increase its success.
One consideration is ensuring a clear objective for the campaign. Donors want to know the reason for the campaign and the roles that the campaign would play in promoting service delivery and other activities. Borrowing a leaf from the Smithsonian Institution’s capital campaign, the clear objective in the Kickstarter press triggered a conversation among potential donors, most of them saying: ‘I did not know the Smithsonian required gifts from people like me’ (Di Mento, 2018). Such conversations can only start if the objective is clear because people would not feel obliged to donate money to a project whose intentions are unclear.
The other consideration is that the campaign should have a compelling case for support. Donors would be more convinced to give their money if the campaign gives compelling evidence of the ways in which the foundation uses its resources. For instance, the foundation’s campaign should clarify that it pays the rank-and-file musicians at the hall $200 for four sets per night, band leaders earn $240 a night, while Preservation Hall Jazz Band members, who work as gig workers, earn $270 each (Martin, 2022). Such information could convince donors that the foundation needed the funds and that giving their resources would play a pivotal role in sustaining the preservation activities.
The other consideration is leadership. A reliable leadership team would be a good start to ensure the campaign meets its goals. Without experienced, committed, and reliable leaders, the campaign would not meet its goals because the goal setting, decision-making, and planning would be impaired. For instance, in the case of the Asian Art Museum, the Campaign Chair and Board Co-Chair Akiko Yamazaki and his wife, Jerry Yang, donated a $1 million challenge grant. The challenge grant attracted donors, who gave $400,000 in one night (Asian Art Museum, 2019). Such leaders motivate the campaign and induce a spirit of donation because they lead by example. The Preservation Hall Foundation should consider having such strong leadership to propel the campaign’s goals.
The other consideration is to have a preliminary gift range chart to guide the campaign. The guide would give a path for the donors and the campaign to follow. Also, the guide would be used to determine when the campaign is on the right track and monitor its progress. For instance, if the campaign does not meet its goals within the first month, the gift range would be helpful in detecting the deficit. Also, donor cultivation would help prepare the donors to give gifts. As seen in the Smithsonian Institution’s capital campaign, the $54 million from the Gates Foundation and $30 million from Boeing would only have been received if the campaign had engaged the donors effectively (Di Mento, 2018). Thus, the campaign should consider a similar approach in the campaign.
Conclusively, the Preservation Hall Foundation’s capital campaign could meet its targets if the campaign team plans and executes the proposed approaches effectively. The donors should understand the goals of the campaign, understand the limited funding by the government, and have adequate motivation to donate. The campaign should ensure reliable leadership, promote a technology-based campaign, and cultivate donors to give gifts. If carried out well, the campaign could provide the foundation with the resources required to preserve and support arts and music in New Orleans.
References
Sydnor, K. P. (2020). Organizational Influence Within a Non-Responsive Contemporary Philanthropic Donor Environment (Doctoral dissertation, Northcentral University).
Di Mento, M. (2018, April 18). Smithsonian’s $1.9 Billion Capital Campaign Unleashes Lasting Change. The Chronicle of Philanthropy. https://learn-us-east-1-prod-fleet02-xythos.content.blackboardcdn.com/
Asian Art Museum (2019, October 9). Asian Art Museum Reaches $100 Million in Capital Campaign; Announces New Matching Grant Challenge. https://about.asianart.org/press/asian-art-museum-reaches-100-million-in-capital-campaign-announces-new-matching-grant-challenge/
Martin, B. (2022, October 5). He Inherited a New Orleans Jazz Institution. What Does He Owe? The New York Times Magazine. Accessed on March 24, 2024 from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/05/magazine/new-orleans-jazz-preservation-hall.html
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