Most nonprofit organizations experience a gap between achieving their vision and obtaining adequate resources to do so. In our effort to bridge this gap, we have compiled tips that nonprofit organizations successfully use to save money on a daily basis.

Nonprofits save money through their talented work teams

  1. You should take care of your team, because those who regularly invest their time to support the cause deserve appreciation for their efforts. You should not focus only on the number of the team but on the quality of the work they provide and continue to provide.
  2. Hire contractors alongside trainees and volunteers, as some jobs require continuous attention and a higher skill level than what trainees and volunteers can offer. Temporary hires allow your nonprofit to save money when launching short-term or medium-term projects instead of employing full-time staff.
  3. Try to allocate significant resources for training aimed at both temporary employees and volunteers, and provide them with orientation courses in the early stages of their employment within the organization. This method will reduce the time it takes employees to train each new batch.
  4. Increase the number of professionals on your board, and focus on roles that represent a strong foundation for your tasks, such as lawyers, accountants, tax consultants, and field experts in your area, due to their ability to provide support for many important issues. They can also offer free advice when you need it.
  5. Try to leverage your online resources related to branding, marketing, and creativity. With the availability of free and low-cost platforms, such as “Canva” that helps in posting valuable content on social media, creating graphics for branding, and marketing processes, there is no longer a need to outsource such tasks.

Nonprofits save money through their staff offices

  1. Reducing office space and allowing employees to work remotely will help lower costs associated with larger facilities. Additionally, demand that service providers review your energy use and provide suggestions for cost reduction.
  2. Help your nonprofit save money by taking simple steps, such as exchanging emails instead of paper messages, using your coffee mugs instead of plastic cups, and reducing the use of paper and plastic products.
  3. Try to eliminate landlines and use mobile phones, as this method is considered more cost-effective to support personal communications for employees.

Nonprofits save money by controlling their financial resources

  1. Regularly analyze your expense program and annual budget, as this business practice is common because most nonprofits track expenses related to annual reports and fulfill requirements from donors and grants.
  2. Track discretionary expenses and analyze them regularly; this step will allow you to identify savings opportunities by spending less.
  3. Establish a protocol to monitor spending practices and create incentives for saving. For nonprofits to provide an environment where employees feel comfortable making discretionary spending decisions, they need to communicate openly about the importance of saving and spending money daily.
  4. It is crucial to diversify your organization’s income sources. In fact, this may seem like advice for getting money, but looking at this issue from another perspective is also important, as having multiple income sources is a means to ensure your plan's success.
  5. Regularly review your bills to ensure there are no errors in payment, and be sure to verify invoices when purchasing goods or obtaining certain services.

Nonprofits save money by avoiding unexpected and excessive expenses

  1. Protect your data and resources online by investing in cybersecurity measures that suit your organization’s needs, as this step saves institutions time and money and protects sensitive data in the long term.
  2. Make sure you have insurance against natural disasters and create online backups of files and paper records whenever possible. Additionally, maximize your nonprofit's savings by obtaining new bids each year to ensure you get the best insurance rates.

Nonprofits save money by seeking deals

  1. Take advantage of credit card rewards that can provide excellent deals for businesses. Notably, global nonprofits save money using travel card rewards, while cash-back rewards are significantly beneficial across various sectors.
  2. Nonprofits should utilize standard mail rates; when paper correspondence is necessary, check with the postal service.
  3. Exploit low-rent or borrowed office space your nonprofit has; this will require a quick online search or scanning your area to see if there are spaces dedicated to this purpose.
  4. Benefit from free resources from large companies providing various donations in the form of furniture or electronics in good condition; this will allow you to save on office supplies and offers an opportunity for companies to provide assistance.
  5. Take advantage of bulk purchasing of products and try to collaborate with other companies that have similar needs to enable suppliers to provide significant discounts.

Nonprofits save money by requesting discounts

  1. Check to see if you are eligible for sales tax or value-added tax refunds. Although you are not exempt from paying sales tax, some systems offer a refund option, and if this feature is available, apply through the relevant government agency.
  2. Review your bank for offers available for nonprofits, such as waiving interest rates or late fees if your nonprofit can demonstrate stable repayment habits after a certain period of time, as well as whether there’s a free checking account option, in addition to low annual percentage rate credit cards.
  3. Request discounts for your nonprofit, and do not hesitate to ask all product and service suppliers if you can obtain a special rate as a nonprofit organization.

Location: Nonprofit Rate