Here is the problem… Overall donations in Canada are on the decline. In fact, last year they reached the lowest point in last 10 years (source: Fraser Institute 2016 based on CRA tax data). And the situation is expected to get worse placing many nonprofits at “financial crossroads” (source: Imagine Canada 2016).

Where is that money going? Well according to Stats Canada 2015 survey, besides increased food and living prices… the available spending income is going to recreation / entertainment, personal / health care, and tobacco / alcohol (all increasing). Cineplex, Netflix, and restaurants income is all growing.

How can small and medium nonprofits compete with these giants, with their massive marketing budgets, and their extravagant experiences (restaurants reporting 38% of people eat out multiple times a week)? Moving a few dollars from a competitor nonprofit will not change this pervasive customer shift. We need something much greater. We need something that can stand up against Netflix and Cineplex.

COALITION between multiple nonprofits (or with private firms) is the only logical answer. It’s an approach where two or more nonprofits come together to achieve a social change with a greater impact then they could achieve independently. The more parties involved, the greater is their cumulative impact.

Coalition is NOT a new idea. In fact it has existed since at least 2011. Perhaps the biggest proponent of this Collaborative Impact Framework is Mark Kramer (Senior Fellow at Harvard University). We already have some excellent examples of this approach. In Calgary (Canada), 21 organizations partnered to deliver a joint Plan to End Youth Homelessness. In Somersville (MA, US), multiple nonprofit + private + city agencies partnered to deliver and annual Shape Up Somersville program.

Here are some obvious and less obvious benefits of a coalition effort:

• Bigger buying and negotiating power when dealing with various service, marketing, and media agencies… allowing you to compete with marketing budgets of large private companies especially around the busy Christmas period where many nonprofits raise a large % of annual donations.
• Shared access to wider range of grants, corporate, and other funding especially for funds that require participation of private companies
• Staff and resource pulling / sharing including higher talent staff not typically available to medium and small-size nonprofits.
• Shared customer and market research enabling more intelligent and effective fundraising efforts

How to start a Coalition?

• The most important thing is to identify a common cause / purpose to rally around.
• Find partners that share this purpose (even competitors).
• Identify a single specific effort you all believe in and want to collaborate on… Even consider it an experiment.
• Deliver this single effort (quick win) and build trust before exploring more substantial efforts.

Why is Coalition often ignored? It’s simply not common in North America. It however is very common in Europe and many third-world countries.