Note: 2019 was a great year for Nonprofits’ networking and sharing. We have an updated list of upcoming conferences for 2020. Here are the top 16 Nonprofit Conferences to attend in 2020. When you’re a nonprofit professional, everyday work seems to never stop – making it hard to find time for anything else. However, it’s…
Note: 2019 was a great year for Nonprofits’ networking and sharing. We have an updated list of upcoming conferences for 2020. Here are the top 16 Nonprofit Conferences to attend in 2020.
When you’re a nonprofit professional, everyday work seems to never stop – making it hard to find time for anything else. However, it’s important to leave the office bubble every now and then – especially when the world is rapidly changing and nonprofit professionals need to keep up with it.
There are many nonprofit conferences out there aiming to help nonprofit professionals enhance their knowledge of the various aspects of nonprofit management, including fundraising, marketing, technology, and strategy. Conferences such as nonprofit fundraising conferences provide information from experts and facilitate information-sharing. By attending them, you gain valuable insights that you can then take back home to your organization.
To help you out and narrow down the options, we rounded up 12 nonprofit fundraising conferences that can benefit your professional development and your nonprofit organization. These will be the most useful to fundraising and marketing professionals, but there’s a lot to learn even if you’re another department too – fundraising is the bread and butter for all nonprofits after all.
Where: San Antonio, TX
When: March 31st – April 2nd, 2019
What: More than 90 total educational sessions are waiting for you in San Antonio. Whether you want to master leadership, relationship building, securing the gifts, trends, and innovation, or all of the above, AFP ICON 2019 has the latest information to unlock your fundraising potential. Some of the sessions include insights on how to grow your Giving Day, how to use CSR trends to increase sponsorships, effective donor cultivation techniques, working with your board, how microaggressions hinder fundraising and much more.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price: $299-$1699
Where: Washington, D.C.
When: February 13th-15th, 2019
What: The Washington Nonprofit Conference is a three-day event where nonprofit professionals and marketers can exchange innovative marketing and fundraising ideas, generate insightful solutions and think creatively to help make the relationship with donors even stronger. Some of the conference tracks include Professional Development, Mid-Level Giving, Monthly Giving, Digital, and Storytelling.
Audience size: 150
Audience profile: Marketers, Fundraising Professionals
Price:
Where: Lincoln, Ne
When: March 25th – 26th, 2019
What: Chosen by Forbes as one of the must-attend nonprofit conferences, Cause Camp is an annual two-day nonprofit conference hosted by Nonprofit Hub in Lincoln, Nebraska and virtually, throughout the world. Attendees get ample time to take in the full Cause Camp experience and interact with fellow do-gooders, speakers, staff, exhibitors, and nonprofit professionals. Cause Camp aims to show nonprofits how to be more remarkable in the areas of marketing, fundraising, leadership, innovation, and more. Cause Camp doesn’t feature typical breakout sessions and tracks. Instead, they offer a one-track experience so that you don’t miss anything (and there are meditation and yoga sessions too)!
Audience size: 100+
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
Where: Denver, Co
When: September 24th-25th, 2019
What: The Nonprofit Innovation & Optimization Summit is specifically tailored to nonprofit marketers and fundraisers looking to grow their online fundraising. The two-day conference boasts proven and research-driven strategies from leading experts, hands-on training sessions, tools you need to grow your online fundraising and revenue, and networking opportunities. NIO handpicks digital marketing experts from around the world by attending a variety of marketing conferences. The conference is heavily focused on online fundraising, so there are over 16 practical, action-oriented sessions on email marketing, copywriting, landing page creation, content marketing, analytics, social media marketing, online advertising, marketing automation, and of course, testing and optimization.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit and for-profit professionals (fundraisers and digital marketers)
Price:
Where: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
When: June 12th-14th,2019
What: WCFC offers a unique and incredibly affordable opportunity for you to connect with up to 250 leading fundraising professionals working with charities and not-for-profit organizations in the lower mainland, throughout the province, and around Western Canada. The 2019 agenda is still being finalized, but 2018 featured topics such as building a successful digital fundraising program, building relationships to produce loyalty, writing s powerful case asking for support, essentials for successful fundraising, major gift fundraising, and more.
Audience size: 250+
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals focused on fundraising
Price: $149 – $599 (Early Bird)
Where: San Diego, CA
When: October 28th-30th, 2019
What: The Nonprofit Storytelling Conference focuses on storytelling. Numbers and statistics won’t do the trick when it comes to fundraising. People respond to stories of the real-life impact of the good work that your nonprofit is doing. Learn the ins and outs of good storytelling and what motivate others to give and get involved in your cause. It offers inspiration on how to tell stories effectively and how to use them across multiple channels.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals focusing on donor communication and fundraising
Price:
Where: Bratislava, Slovakia
When: October 9th-11th, 2019
What: If you’re a fundraising professional based in Europe, you’re looking for something more affordable, or you’d just like to venture out, the CEE Fundraising Conference is for you. The conference creates networking and training opportunities for fundraisers, consultants, fundraising suppliers, Board members and CEOs of NGOs, semi-public or other private institutions. The meeting conveys inspirational ideas for fundraising by experienced experts from Central and Eastern Europe and mature markets beyond.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals focusing on donor communication and fundraising
Price:
Where: London, UK
When: July 1st-3rd, 2019
What: Fundraising Convention is held annually by the Institute of Fundraising and each year sees thousands of fundraisers gather at the largest professional fundraising event in Europe. Fundraising Convention features a number of tracks: The Bigger Picture; Community, Events and Volunteers; Digital; Individual Giving; Legacy Fundraising; Partnerships; Personal Effectiveness; Philanthropy; Trusts and Statutory. Fundraising Convention speakers come from across the industry deliver a rich, diverse and engaging range of workshops, case studies, and debates. Not only are there many learning opportunities, but there are plenty of social and evening events available as well.
Audience size: 2500
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
TBA
Fundraising Convention 2019 individual and group early bird tickets on sale soon.
Where: Melbourne, Australia
When: February 27th – March 1st, 2019
What: If you’re based in the southern hemisphere (or if many of your donors are), this might be the right conference for you. The theme of the FIA Conference, Your Time is Now, is all about sharing successes and learning from the achievements of others. Through presentations, masterclasses and experiences, you will be inspired, motivated and empowered to lead the way in fundraising and social change. The 2019 FIA Conference Program Committee has extended the program from six tracks to seven: Gifts in Wills; Community & Event; Individual Giving; Partnerships; Philanthropy; The Bigger Picture; Digital Trends & Innovation.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
$750 – $2800
Where: Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands
When: October 15th – 17th, 2019
What: The IFC is the flagship annual event of the Resource Alliance. The IFC is a global community of fundraising professionals, representing nonprofits working in every continent of the globe. The conference draws in over 1,000 delegates and offers high-quality production values and advanced content sessions as well as great networking opportunities. IFC sessions range from interactive masterclasses and deep-dive workshops to large scale plenaries and big room talks. You will have the opportunity to curate your own IFC experience according to content topics relevant to your work, such as Fundraising, Innovations, Leadership, and many more. IFC participants also benefit from more informal opportunities for peer-learning and community support.
Audience size: 1000+
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
TBA
Where: National Harbor, MD (adjacent to Washington, DC)
When: July 10th – 12th, 2019
What: For the last 13 years, the Bridge Conference has evolved to become the industry-defining event for nonprofit professionals. This is an event for nonprofit professionals and encompasses the entire industry. It features The Solutions Showcase highlights the latest technologies, products, and solutions available to nonprofit professionals. Additionally, networking is an enormous part of this conference. Coming together with other nonprofit professionals and hearing they are doing—or not doing, for that matter—provides a phenomenal learning opportunity. The Bridge Conference features tracks like Next Generation Direct Mail, Using Data Insights, Donor Stewardship, Building a Monthly Giving Program, Powerhouse Branding, and more.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
$225-$1155
Where: Seattle, WA
When: May 29th – 30th, 2019
What: The Learning Conference aims to push participants to think critically about changes they can make to their work to advance smarter grantmaking practices. Through a mix of session formats, speakers from inside and outside the nonprofit sector, structured networking, and informal discussions with peers, participants will explore ways to design and implement evaluation and learning approaches that generate stronger information, decisions, and performance.
Audience size: TBA
Audience profile: Nonprofit professionals
Price:
$750-$1450
Many nonprofit professionals find networking stressful and overwhelming. However, with a little bit of preparation and effort – anyone can make valuable business contacts. Networking is one of the top value propositions of almost every nonprofit conference. It’s a powerful lever to increase a nonprofit’s social impact by focusing on building network relationships.
Nonprofit conferences are an important part of staying on top of best practices and trends in the nonprofit world. They are also an important platform for nonprofit professionals to exchange ideas, learnings, and insights. Nonprofit conferences help nonprofit professionals collaborate across continents, sectors, and roles. They are also a goldmine of networking opportunities.
It can be hard to choose a conference that’s right for your nonprofit, so try and choose a conference that fits your budget, focuses on areas in which you and your profit need to grow in and that aligns with your team’s focus for the year. It’s also helpful if it provides plenty of networking opportunities with relevant contacts and aligns with your schedule and timeline in terms of dates and locations.
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Ilma Ibrisevic is a content creator and nonprofit writer. She’s passionate about meaningful work, sustainability, and social movements. If she’s not working, she’s obsessing over coffee or cooking. You can connect with her on Linkedin.
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Ilma Ibrisevic