Does your organization regularly attend nonprofit conferences? If you’ve not been to one before, you may not realize the significant benefits that they can bring. Conferences can provide learning and networking opportunities that aren’t possible through content. They’re also perfect for networking. This can help your organization find new ways to further your cause and…
Does your organization regularly attend nonprofit conferences? If you’ve not been to one before, you may not realize the significant benefits that they can bring.
Conferences can provide learning and networking opportunities that aren’t possible through content. They’re also perfect for networking. This can help your organization find new ways to further your cause and reach more donors.
Not sure which conferences could be a good choice for your organization? We’ve rounded up some of the best in this blog post, but we recommend doing more in-depth research into any that appeal. This means you can be sure your organization is making the best use of its budget.
Not sure what your organization can gain from regularly attending nonprofit conferences? Here are some of the significant benefits:
In no particular order, here are 16 of the best nonprofit conferences to attend in 2020.
Where: Baltimore, MD
When: March 29th-31st, 2020
What: AFP Icon is the largest conference for fundraising professionals. Topics for 2020 include:
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals and nonprofit communications professionals
Price: $289 to $1649
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Washington, DC
When: February 19th-21st, 2020
What: The 3-day conference is hosted by the Association of National Advertisers. Building your supporter base and maintaining stronger relationships with donors are key topics at the 2020 ANA DC Nonprofit Conference. Nonprofit professionals in marketing and fundraising roles can learn new ways to engage donors and be more creative when it comes to fundraising.
For 2020, some of the conference tracks include:
Audience: Fundraising professionals and marketing professionals
Price:
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Baltimore, MD
When: March 24th-26th, 2020
What: NTC is the longest-running nonprofit tech conference in the US. It’s an ideal opportunity to discover the many ways that technology can help your organization to deliver on your mission.
In 2020, there will be over 200 sessions on a wide range of tech topics, including:
Audience: Nonprofit communications/marketing professionals and fundraising professionals.
Price:
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Lincoln, NE
When: April 20-21st, 2020 (plus a separate Cause Marketing Bootcamp on April 22nd)
What: This two-day conference describes itself as a “boutique conference” and aims to inspire nonprofit professionals. Forbes has named it as a “must-attend nonprofit conference,” largely because of the thought leaders it attracts and the opportunity to talk to industry experts.
This year’s discussion topics include:
There’s also a Cause Marketing Bootcamp to help organizations create an effective marketing plan. This runs a day later and isn’t included in the ticket price.
If you can’t get there in person, there’s the option to watch the online stream of the conference.
Audience profile: Nonprofit marketing professionals, nonprofit fundraising professionals, and nonprofit leaders
Price:
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Austin, TX
When: May 27th-28th, 2020
What: The Engage for Good conference has a focus on social impact. It’s not only for nonprofit professionals — plenty of well-known brands attended in 2019.
The 2020 program is currently TBC, but for 2019, it included sessions on:
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals; Corporate Social Responsibility professionals; cause marketers; nonprofit leaders
Price: $395- $445 for workshops, and $995 to $1245 for the conference
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Austin, TX
When: September 29th- October 1st, 2020
What: If your organization wants to be more innovative with your marketing and online fundraising, this summit is a great choice. Leading experts in marketing and fundraising come together for innovative sessions. Attendees can benefit from receiving proven strategies to improve their fundraising success and get hands-on training.
Audience profile: Nonprofit marketers and nonprofit fundraisers
Price: $1295 (Standard Registration) – $1595 (Standard Registration and Pre-Summit Workshop).
Until April, there is a $550 discount on Standard Registration and Standard Registration + Pre-Summit Workshop tickets.
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: London, UK
When: July 6th-8th, 2020
What: As the largest professional fundraising conference in Europe, Fundraising Convention sees thousands of nonprofit professionals gather in London to share knowledge and expertise.
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price: TBC
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: National Harbor, MD
When: July 15th-17th, 2020
What: Integrated marketing and fundraising are hot topics at the Bridge Conference. 2020 topics are yet to be confirmed, but last year’s sessions included:
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals, nonprofit leaders, and nonprofit marketers
Price: $400 to $1155
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Boston, MA
When: April 21st-23rd, 2020
What: Aimed at seasoned nonprofit professionals, this conference is brand new for 2020. Planned sessions include:
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price: There is a waiting list for tickets, with Advance Registration prices available until March 16th, 2020.
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Brisbane, Australia
When: February 26th-28th, 2020
What: If your organization is based in Australia (or you have lots of donors based here), the FIA conference is a good one to add to your list. It gathers together like-minded nonprofit fundraising professionals to share achievements and learn from each other’s successes.
Planned sessions include:
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals
Price: $695 to $2810
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Washington, DC
When: June 2nd-3rd, 2020
What: Thought leaders from around the world come together to kickstart about how to innovate change for organizations. The Social Innovation Summit markets itself as “business innovation meets social transformation.”
The program for 2020 is yet to be finalized, but 2019 sessions focused on topics such as:
Audience profile: Nonprofit leaders and nonprofit professionals
Pricing: $1295 to $1895
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Chicago, IL
When: October 29th-31st, 2020
What: The Nonprofit Storytelling Conference is the ideal platform for learning how to craft and tell compelling stories and engage donors.
2019 sessions included topics such as
If you can’t attend the conference in person, video access is available.
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals and nonprofit communications and marketing professionals
Pricing: $695 to $845. Early Bird discount of $400 ends on March 31st, 2020, after which the regular ticket price will apply.
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Boston, MA
When: June 9th-11th, 2020
What: The 3-day Collaborative conference is hosted by Classy and is intended to give nonprofit professionals and social impact leaders a platform to get inspiration and new ideas. You can learn best practices around using tech and data, raising funds, and marketing to grow your impact.
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals; nonprofit communications and marketing professionals; nonprofit leaders
Pricing: $350 for team tickets and $395 for individual tickets
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Las Vegas, NV and Newport News, VA
When: March 11th. 2020 (Las Vegas) and March 20th, 2020 (Newport News)
What: The Nonprofit Labs are a deep-dive day of networking and learning best practices to take back to your organization. The day focuses on providing practical strategies to help nonprofits be more effective in fundraising, communications, board development, and management.
Audience profile: Nonprofit fundraising professionals, nonprofit communications and marketing professionals, nonprofit board members, and nonprofit leaders
Pricing: $80 to $99
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Chicago, IL
When: April 22nd-25th, 2020
What: Better Together 2020 is The Salvation Army’s quadrennial National Advisory Organizations Conference (NAOC), and it’s aimed at Advisory Organizations Members, Community Relations & Development, and Emergency Disaster Services professionals.
Over 150 workshops are delivered, including sessions on:
Advanced Tracks include major gifts, planned giving, AND digital fundraising.
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals in advisory organizations, community relations, and emergency disaster services
Price: $450 until January 31st, 2020. This rises to $500 until March 20th, 2020 and $525 after April 25th, 2020.
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Where: Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
When: May 18th-21st, 2020
What: Marketing, communications, and development professionals from cancer-related organizations come together to share ideas and gain new ideas about delivering on their mission. It’s a unique opportunity to network with people from similar organizations and with a shared mission.
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals from organizations involved in the fight against cancer.
Price: $275 for 1-day attendees to $800 for non-members attending the full conference.
Please be aware that pricing is correct at the time of publication and may change as the conference approaches.
Attending a nonprofit conference for the first time can be scary, especially if you’re not confident about networking. If you’re well prepared and have already laid the groundwork, nonprofit conferences can be highly rewarding.
To get the most from any nonprofit conference, put these tips into practice:
For more tips on how to make conferences work to your best advantage, check out our detailed guide on networking at nonprofit conferences.
Nonprofit conferences can be a great platform for expanding your knowledge about best practices in the nonprofit sector. They can also help your organization find new ways to connect with donors.
There are plenty of conferences to choose from, which can make it challenging to pick one that you’ll get the most from. The right nonprofit conference(s) for your organization can depend on your budget and what you’re hoping to get from it.
Sally Aquire is a copywriter with a background in crafting communications and fundraising for a women's center. She writes about fundraising, nonprofit management, and wellness initiatives.
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Sally Aquire