Presentation Talking Points and Guidelines

Presenting the Charity to the Chapter

If a nominated charity is selected for consideration at a meeting, the nominating
member or a representative from the nominated charity,
will be allotted five minutes to make their case and five minutes to answer
questions from the membership.  Making a case for support in the five
minutes that are allowed takes some planning.  The following includes some
guidelines and talking points to help presenters make the best use of their time so each
member can make an informed decision on how to vote.

Presentation Guidelines

Presenters only have a handful of minutes so make the pitch count!  Be prepared to
educate members about the charity being presented to the chapter for funding
consideration.  It helps to focus on a specific program that needs funding and to
talk about the people that a particular program will benefit and what it
accomplishes in your community. The more specific the information, the more the
members will be able to connect their donation with this charity.  Don’t speak in
generalities or your audience could get lost.

Tug at the hearts of the chapter as much as you inform their heads.  Try to leave
members with a sense of why you are passionate about this charity, and share at
least one story of a real person (or animal) that was impacted by the work of the
non-profit and how it made a difference to them in their life.

Presentations should be simple and not overly formal – no PowerPoint’s or
handouts!

Following are some suggested talking points for your presentation:

1. Start with an engaging opening line. (“Every month, 75 women in our community are involved in a domestic violence dispute.”)
2. State your name and the name and location of the organization.
3. Describe the service area of the organization and whom they serve.
4. State the organization’s mission statement and speak to what they do
   overall and how their services benefit the community.
5. Be prepared to speak to the organization’s finances, including the size of
   their annual operating budget and how much they spend on
   admin/fundraising.
6. Describe specifically how our funds will be used, providing some background, if possible, on the following: is this a new or existing program; does the charity have a plan in place to sustain the program after our funds have been used; how many people the funds will impact; whether the program is essential and what our community will miss if it does not get funded; measurements to be used to ensure success of the program and good use of the donation; whether the program is essential and what our community will miss if it does not get funded; measurements to be used to ensure success of the program and good use of the donation.
7. Don’t forget to tell a story of a person/animal positively affected by the
   organization.
8. End with a heartfelt ask and a thank you. Have Fun!