Savvi: A recurring revenue stream for nonprofits

Photo by Clifford J. Steele

Savvi’s new fundraising program resonates with nonprofits

Target audience: Nonprofits, cause organizations, social change advocates, foundations, NGOs, social enterprises, educators, community organizations.

Guest post by Kiley Newbold
Savvi.com

There are plenty of people in the world who want to give.  That’s evident by the billions of dollars given to charities each year. But talk to any nonprofit and you’ll find the challenge is in how to engage supporters, get them to donate, and then the really tricky part – get them to keep donating again and again. What if nonprofits could create a residual and continuing stream of fundraising revenue? That’s the idea and question that brought a consumer shopping mobile app into the nonprofit fundraising world.

How Savvi works with nonprofits

Savvi.com began almost two years ago as the brain-child of a partnership between Banyan Ventures and the nation’s largest merchant discount network – boasting over 320,000 participating merchants in more than 30,000 zip codes. Darin Gilson, managing partner of Banyan Ventures, suggested that this powerful merchant network wrapped in agile, mobile technology could be an incredible solution to the crazy world of deals and discounts. And with that, Savvi was born. From the beginning, the aim of Savvi was to provide consumers with a simplified approach to saving. We wanted to create something that empowered people to save on things they actually needed. We spent hours discussing the core principles behind Savvi. In short, we became very passionate about what we were building and the impact it could have.

It’s that internal passion that helped us connect so readily with our nonprofit friends. Listening to any nonprofit advocate is one of my favorite things. Most often, it is clearly evident that they believe in their cause so deeply that it courses through their veins. And their enthusiasm is easy to catch. That’s likely why there’s no shortage of worthwhile causes around the world — in general, people care and want to make a difference. But there is so much to do, and providing support usually costs money.

Recurring revenue for nonprofits

That’s often where that enthusiasm hits its first rough patch. There is always a glimmer of hope and perhaps a small hint of frustration in the eye of those nonprofit advocates when they begin to talk about what they wish they could do – if only they had more funds.

The shape of a business almost always tells a deeper story. Savvi is no exception. As we built something we felt passionate about, we kept running into other passionate people. It didn’t take long to realize that Savvi was a perfect partner for our nonprofit friends. As we discussed the possibilities, we often heard the same refrain:

• We need something of real value to give our supporters
• We need something that gives us a significant share of the money gathered
• Fundraising takes up so much time, because we have to constantly raise more money
• Fundraising can’t cost more than it brings in

Savvi seemed to fit the bill perfectly. So we launched our Savvi for nonprofit fundraising program.  Essentially, nonprofit partners are able to offer Savvi to their supporters through a turnkey solution, and Savvi shares a generous portion of the membership fees on a monthly and recurring basis.

• Supporters gain real value while supporting their cause
• Savvi shares 30% of all membership fees generated through the nonprofit partner
• The recurring, monthly membership nature of Savvi allows nonprofits to build sustainable fundraising revenue streams
• Savvi is free to nonprofits and requires very little upfront time to implement

Savvi is now helping nonprofits, both large and small, all across the country. Whether it’s sending a team of doctors to Mexico, providing relief to victims of natural disasters, or raising money for scholarships, Savvi is quickly becoming a very popular tool to solve the fundraising dilemma while giving the nonprofit supporters real value in their everyday life.

Align your nonprofit with Savvi

1. Visit http://business.savvi.com/strategic_partners/charities and fill out the form.
2. A member of the Savvi team will contact you to discuss your organization’s needs.
3. Savvi will work with you to customize some marketing and outreach materials.
4. Plug Savvi into your existing fundraising efforts, or launch new campaigns.
5. Start earning recurring commissions to support your organization’s efforts.

Learn more about Savvi through their blog. You can also keep up with us:

• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On Pinterest.

Have any questions?