Imagine the feeling of getting your paycheck after rough days at work or receiving a good amount of money for your organization? It feels heavenly, right? But can you also imagine the horror of watching your funds slowly turning into bubbles and disappear in no time or, worse, having no idea where all your money went? Fear not! We offer you easily editable, professionally written, fully customizable, and ready-made budget templates. These will help you track down your expenses and save you from future money-related dilemmas. Especially if you are managing a nonprofit organization, we have a start-up nonprofit budget, nonprofit marketing budget, nonprofit budget worksheet, and a lot more templates that will aid you in budgeting. Do not waste this wonderful chance and download these high-quality and Premium templates now!
What is a Budget?
Basically, a budget is a calculation of profit and expenditure over a particular period of time. Budgets are multipurpose; hence, you have the freedom to create one for personal or marketing use. For businesses and organizations, budget sheets are viewed as an interior tool used by the administration and are frequently essential for reporting by exterior parties.
How to Create an Effective Nonprofit Budget?
The number of nonprofit organizations recorded with the IRS from the year 2005 up to 2015 accelerated from 1.41 million to 1.56 million, which is equivalent to 10.4%, according to nccs.urban.org. The name of your association lies in your hands. That is why you always have to remember that you are not only doing a personal weekly budget where you can easily modify anytime soon but a very important document that could make or break your and your organization’s future.
Whether you’re making a nonprofit event budget or a nonprofit fundraising budget, keep in mind that it all falls to one point: trustworthiness. Thus, here are some tips that would help you construct your own budget worksheet comprehensively. Scroll down now!
1. Start with Planning
Budget and planning come together; hence, budgeting without planning results in confusion and puzzlement, which is why you should start with a good budget plan before jumping to the next step. List down the important things, especially if you want to conduct an event or project, such as the estimated quantity and cost of the materials and services needed, the total and allocated resources, and the assumed date of the program. In that case, you will be able to work neatly and smoothly.
2. Be Neat and Concise
When it comes to money-related activities, everyone becomes cautious and meticulous because one wrong move in handling the finances, especially if it is other people’s money, your name, and integrity will be stained. Thus, in preparing a budget proposal, worksheet, or plan for your nonprofit organization, make it brief and organized because you are presenting a very delicate and technical document to your heads and not a random and creative essay.
3. Begin the Math
Start the estimation and computation, but be careful with the numbers. It is better to monthly budget because it will be easier to track down your revenue and expenditure than budgeting annually where you have to undergo a long process since tracking down a 365-day worth of expenses and income is not that simple. Although you are budgeting by month, make sure to present an annual total for a more comprehensive result. Also, compare and contrast the predicted variables to the actual numbers monthly so that you can check for discrepancies and figure out why they occurred and how to solve it. Prioritize your target, emphasize the totals, solve the inconsistencies, and consider the occurrence of inflation.
4. Proofread before Submitting
You must present your budget sheet to your heads before publishing and implementing it so that they could review and deliberate if they would approve it or not. Therefore, make sure that your budget is free of errors and mistakes before submitting it. Make time for a thorough inspection, then edit if there are things that need some editing. After you proofread, submit it to the board and wait for the approval.
5. Publish
The only time that you are allowed to publish the budget is when you are given the authority to do so. If that happens, it means that you have presented a well-made and comprehensive budget report. You are now authorized to implement what you have created.
