Tips You Need to Know About Fundraising For Nonprofits

Fundraising for your nonprofit can be exciting and rewarding, especially if you have an inside scoop on how to take your fundraising efforts to the next level. We have gathered some simple tips you need to know about fundraising for nonprofits. 

Tips You Need to Know About Fundraising For Nonprofits

Set Goals & Deadlines

The first step you should take when planning a fundraiser is to set your goals and deadlines to reach them more quickly. Before reaching out to potential donors for their support, be sure to determine the amount you are attempting to raise, and when you need it by. Give donors just enough time to donate, but not too much time. Typically, a sense of urgency helps raise more money in a quicker amount of time.

Know Your Audience

Knowing your audience plays a significant part in the success of any fundraising effort. Nonprofits who understand their audience tend to raise more money than those who do not.

Engage With Donors

Forming a good relationship with a donor can benefit your nonprofit organization significantly and allow you to help even more people in your community by engaging with donors. To learn about how to engage with donors, click here.

Host a Fundraiser

Fundraising events are a great opportunity to network with current and potential donors as well as the community face-to-face. With many unique ways to fundraise for your nonprofit, you can easily find the perfect fundraiser that your audience would enjoy.

Provide Convenient Donation Methods

As a nonprofit organization, it is critical to invest in convenient donation methods for your donors. Transitioning from traditional to online fundraising is more straightforward than you might think. It will increase your donor base from just the local community to national.

Thank Your Donors

“Thank You” goes a long way! Be sure to thank your donors for their contribution briefly and compellingly. This can be done via email or letter and should be sent soon after their contribution has been received.

Show The Impact Made

Once you have completed your fundraiser, don’t just move on to the next project. Donors like to see the positive effects of their contributions. Show the impact your nonprofit organization made with the proceeds of the fundraiser and also increase your chances of future donations.

A Helping Hand

Be sure to save those receipts when planning a fundraising event and know that ExpressTaxExempt is always here to be a consistent resource to you and your organization for all things tax exempt!

Visit our website for any tax forms that your tax-exempt organization may need throughout this year and save even more when you e-file with our recently reduced filing rates!

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How To Communicate Fundraising for Nonprofits

The summer is in full force which means it is prime time to start fundraising for nonprofits that will support the financial needs for the year. The support of your nonprofit fundraising depends heavily on how well you communicate your efforts through written, verbal, or visual communication methods. Today we will cover how to communicate fundraising for nonprofits to help your organization reach its goal.

How To Communicate Fundraising for Nonprofits

The message you send to donors can easily affect the decision-making process. Here are some tips that help with communicating fundraising for nonprofits:

1) Know Your Audience

Before you send anything to your potential donors, make sure you have a strong understanding of your audience so you can send the right message. Determine the demographic that you want to reach and find out what your audience responds to best.

Once you learn about your audience, compelling them is much easier. Remember to keep tone, language, jargon, etc. in mind as you start crafting your message(s).

2) Know Your Goal

It’s almost impossible to reach any goal when you don’t know what it is. Set your goal early on in the planning process so you can effectively incorporate it in your communications and strategy.

3) Keep Text Brief

Effective communication does not equate to extensive text. When writing your message, be sure to share enough information to inform the reader, grab their attention, and compel them to support your fundraising efforts. If your message is too long, you could lose the reader’s interest or even their support.

4) Personalize the Message

Always keep your target audience in mind when writing and make a personal connection. Readers that feel connected tend to give more easily! You would never write the same message for a millennial as you would your elderly audience.

5) Be Consistent

Once you have established a tone for your messaging, stick with it! Readers like consistency and will get the message you are trying send. This will not only cut down on the time you spend preparing additional messages but will also save your marketing budget major moola.

6) Avoid using Jargon

Nonprofit organizations and professionals tend to have industry-specific jargon that isn't used in our daily vocabulary. Avoid using this jargon when communicating with your audience, because nine times out of ten they won’t have a clue what you are trying to imply. When your audience doesn’t understand they are more likely to skip the call to action and move on. As much as you wish they would simply ask, this is likely not the case.

7) Prompt Communication  

Give your readers an adequate amount of time to donate towards your fundraising efforts. If you wait until the last-minute to correspond with them, they will be more inclined not to give or simply “catch you next time,” which usually never comes around.

Set deadlines for when you want to send correspondence and stick to them. The more time you give the reader, the more support you may receive!

Next Steps

Once you have communicated your charity fundraising and collected donations to support the mission of your organization, be sure to keep a record of all donations for your annual IRS Form 990 filing.

ExpressTaxExempt is here for your nonprofit with all of its tax filing needs. You are in the business of helping others, now let us help you! Create a free account today and get back to making a difference in the lives of others.

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America's Got Talent....And So Does Your Organization!

If you’re a fan of the hit televised talent showcase “America’s Got Talent,” also known as “AGT,” your eyes may have been glued to the TV Wednesday night during the show’s season finale.

Out of the various stellar performances by the final round of contestants on the summer’s most-watched series, there is one in particular that’s receiving a lot of buzz.

Country superstar Shania Twain joined America’s Got Talent finalist Mandy Harvey for an emotional duet of Twain’s 1998 hit song, “You’re Still the One.” Harvey, who ended the show in fourth place, has been deaf for the last decade but continuously “wowed” the judges and viewers throughout the AGT season.

Although the latest season of AGT has come to an end, that doesn’t mean that talent showcases around the world have to cease too. Besides, there’s probably tons of talent within your nonprofit organization that can be showcased!

Talent Show Fundraiser

An easy way to highlight the talents of your organization’s members, their children, friends, and those in your community, is by hosting a talent show; which can also be a great fundraising event as well!

GIF via GIPHY

Simply form a talent show committee within your organization that will audition contestants, select judges, and plan the format of the event. Once the event is planned, decide on an admission fee (this can be as low or as high as you’d like), have a flyer designed, and promote your event locally and through social media.

Social Media Integration

A neat way to add a special touch to your event is by creating a Snapchat Geofilter. Geofilters are creative overlays that capture where you are or what you’re up to in a Snap. Create your own and surprise Snapchatters in the location you choose.

Also, hashtags can be used for sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as well (ex: #PantherIdol #CMHSGotTalent, etc) to inform others of your fundraising initiatives.

GIF via GIPHY

The Grand Finale

Whether it’s a spin-off of America’s Got Talent, American Idol, or even a religiously based version like Sunday’s Best, talent shows are a simple, easy, and fun way to raise funds while having a great time enjoying the various acts. You’d be surprised at how many singers, musicians, dancers, comedians and ventriloquists that are in your area.

When planning and hosting your event, be sure to keep track of any receipts, expenses, and funds collected throughout the process so you have accurate records when you e-file with ExpressTaxExempt to maintain your tax exempt status with the IRS. Visit our website for any tax forms that your tax exempt organization may need throughout this year and save even more when you e-file with our recently reduced filing rates! We’re available to assist you via phone at 704.839.2321 on Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST or reach out to us 24/7 via email at support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Turn Your Nonprofit Obstacles Into Opportunities

Nonprofit organizations serve a great purpose and make a significant difference in the community daily. Although the mission of nonprofits is positive, they are faced with various challenges along the way. Each challenge presents it own obstacles but can turn into opportunities for growth and overall victory. Here are some challenges that nonprofit organizations face and how to turn them around to make it work for your organization:

POLITICAL LEADERSHIP CHANGES

Regardless of the political party that you or your team may side with, a level of uncertainty comes with a new direction of local, state, and national governmental leadership. Groups such as nonprofits can be impacted by these changes due to the difficulty in being able to adequately conduct any long-term planning for their organization.

The best way to face this challenge is to sketch out annual objectives and goals for the upcoming year while also including backup plans that will allow you and your group to have another option to fall back on in case you have to derive from your original plan.

ADEQUATE FUNDING

Along with new technology comes new ways that donors can give donations. A way to increase donations for your organization is by having an online portal that accepts donations. By accepting financial donations online, donors will feel that they can give in a more convenient way through their tablet or mobile devices. Also invent in a Square Chip Card Reader, a device which will allow your organization to receive payments through your mobile device or iPad.

LACK OF VOLUNTEERS

In order to reach the goal that your non-profit organization has set, a few extra helping hands may be needed. An easy way to gain these helpers is by reaching out to college clubs and organizations to receive some young, vibrant volunteers. Many college students are interested in lending a helping hand and gaining some community service at the same time. Also, a good bit of college organizations have a community service initiative that they strive to complete each semester. When it comes to community service, “the more, the merrier” is sometimes best.  

It is also important to keep record of any individual or group that volunteers with you, as most will need a signature or some form of verification from a designated leader within your organization validating the time they volunteered.

RETAINING/ENGAGING DONORS

Without donors, nonprofits cannot survive. The organization-to-supporter relationship is very important. Today’s donors do not want to think that all you want from them is their money. Rather than asking for money right away, find ways to engage conversations with supporters and give them an opportunity to get to know your organization and build an emotional attachment to your work and mission. These are some good ways to keep donors invested:

• Keep them engaged and let them know that they are an integral part to the organization.
• Let donors know where their money is going and what it is supporting. Give monthly or quarterly updates via email or newsletter.

INNOVATIVE & EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Many aspects of today’s communication are focused on digital outlets like social media, text messaging, and mobile app usage. Although the ways of communication have changed, that doesn’t mean that your donors have adapted or changed their preferred type of communication.

Due to this dilemma, organization leaders are having to find new ways to communicate their needs and announcements to various demographics. The best way to tackle this issue is by sending one message but taking an omni-channel approach.

Messages sent through social media would use a more “trendy” approach with non-extensive writing vs. a professional email or phone call that would be more conversational. It is also suggested and very important to survey the key constituents of your organization to see which method they prefer.

FINAL STEPS

By facing these challenges and turning them into opportunities, your organization can have an awesome year of philanthropy and service! As a nonprofit organization, it is crucial that you maintain your tax-exempt status with the IRS. ExpressTaxExempt, the #1 IRS-authorized tax e-filing solution for tax-exempt organizations, allows you to do just that. Providing security, ease, and peace of mind to organizations and its leaders, we respect the services that nonprofit organizations give to communities and are motivated to help with e-filing so you can get back to proudly making a difference in your community. With newly reduced rates, organizations can now save funds annually when e-filing. Pay us a visit at www.expresstaxexempt.com today and begin your e-filing process.

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Unique Ways to Fundraise for Your Nonprofit

Any leader of a nonprofit organization will tell you that receiving adequate funding for their organization can be somewhat of a challenge. Although charitable nonprofits usually rely on the generosity of donors to support their annual efforts, fundraising initiatives are sometimes necessary to assist with supporting the financial needs of the organization. We’ve provided some fundraising techniques that your organization can utilize for years to come!

FUNDRAISING TECHNIQUES

Collaborate with other Organizations

Reach out to other organizations in your area to host events and support each other’s endeavors.

Supporting each other can assist with finances by cutting the cost in half as well as unique ideas, planning, and execution and follow through.

Have Fun Activities Become Fundraisers

Find out what your community enjoys doing during their free time and turn it into an enjoyable fundraiser. People don’t mind giving or setting aside a few dollars to do what they enjoy.  Let’s take a Talent Show/Competition for example -- the cost of hosting a local talent show can be very inexpensive and if you have a few members of your organization that like to bake, you could sell light refreshments during the intermission of the event to make an extra few dollars. Other events such as a cook-off, charity tournament, scholarship banquet, or even the latest current trend, an escape room puzzle event.

Be Involved in Your Community

Giving back to your community is always beneficial in more ways than one. It pays to educate the community about what your organization does. By making donors aware of your community service initiatives, many will feel comfortable supporting your various endeavors and fundraising efforts. People tend to not give to groups that they know nothing about. The more exposure your organization receives, the better.

Crowdfunding

This is considered to be peer-to-peer fundraising by way of members asking their friends, family members, and coworkers for donations prior to an event and then having them participate in the event.

This type of fundraising is ideal for a marathon, walkathon, pageant, etc., and is a great way to directly involve donors.

FUNDRAISERS

When conducting planning for your organization annually, it can be a challenge to find different ways to raise money. Here are some various fundraising ideas that can be done:

FUNDRAISERS	FUNDRAISING EVENTS
50/50 Raffle or Basket Raffle Bingo	Silent Auction
Sip and Paint	Talent Show / Lip Sync Competition
Recipe Books	Battle of the Bands
T-Shirt Sales	Comedy Night / Karaoke Night
Polar Plunge	Gala
Engraved Bricks	Marathon / Walkathon
Wrapping Paper Sale (Holiday Seasons)	Rainbow Tea
Car Wash	Classic Car Show
Baby Photo Contest	Cooking Class
Penny Drive	Trivia Night
Appreciation Grams	Dinner Theatre
Pie Throwing Contest or Dunk Tank	Date Auction

For more neat fundraising ideas, click here.

Be sure to save those receipts when planning a fundraising event and know that ExpressTaxExempt is always here to be a consistent resource to you and your organization for all things tax exempt! Visit our website for any tax forms that your tax-exempt organization may need throughout this year and save even more when you e-file with our recently reduced filing rates! We’re available to assist you via phone at 704.839.2321 on Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST or reach out to us 24/7 via email at support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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How to File a Schedule F for Foreign Activities

Any exempt organization with activities conducted outside the United States need to report information about those international actions on their IRS Form 990.

Activities can include grants and other assistance, program-related investments, fundraising activities, program services, and more.

Reporting this type of information is done using Schedule F and is for various geographic locations like Antarctica, Central America and the Caribbean, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and much more.

Here are some helpful guidelines to follow from the IRS when filing a Schedule F:

Part I - General Information on Activities Outside the United States
The first section of Schedule F is for organizations with aggregate revenues or expenses greater than $10,000 from grantmaking, fundraising, business, investment, or program services outside of the United States. The IRS doesn't require any expenditure from services provided in U.S. for recipients inside and outside the U.S.

For Line 1, indicate whether the organization maintains records to substantiate the following:

• The monetary value of its grants and other assistance
• The recipients’ eligibility for grants or assistance
• The selection criteria used to award grants or assistance

Responses to Line 2 will go on Part V of the Schedule F. You should describe the organization’s procedures for monitoring the use of grants and assistance outside of the U.S. - this can include details from periodic reports and accountings, field investigations, or third-party audits.

Line 3 requires you to enter details for each type of activity conducted any time during the filling year for each region. If the organization has many activities per area, list each one separately for the same location name. Report any investments by regions as well; however, they should be separate from other activities listed in the same area. And you can list all investments from a particular region as a single entry.

It is not necessary to report any foreign investments indirectly held through a pass-through entity in the U.S. because the entity is not physically in a foreign location. You also won’t need to list any investments from entities located overseas that trade on a U.S. stock exchange.

Important: Listing funds transferred to a non-interest bearing account outside of the United States for program services is not necessary for Line 3; however, once those funds are used, the IRS requires you to list them on Line 3, Column F.

Complete the chart for Line 3 as follows

• Column A - List each region in which your organization conducts its foreign activity
• Column B - List the number of offices in each region
• Column C - List the number of employees, agents, and independent contractors in each region
• Column D - List the type of activity conducted in the region (i.e. fundraising, program services, etc.)
• Column E - Give a description of the particular type of service for any program services listed in Column D
• Column F - List total expenditures and investments in each region

With Lines 3a through 3c for Column B, report the total number of offices in foreign locations maintained by the organization during the tax year - don’t count any one office more than once. You’ll also enter the total number of employees and the overall sum of expenditures and investments on Lines 3a through 3c for their respective columns.

Part II - Grants and Other Assistance to Organizations or Entities Outside the United States
Exempt organizations with any recipients outside of the U.S. that have received grants or assistance of at least $5,000 need to be reported in this section. On Line 1, you need to list those recipients in the chart provided. Enter each organization or entity on separate lines. If you require more space for additional beneficiaries, you can attach duplicate copies as needed.

In this section, list cash or noncash grants and assistance based on the accounting method from your organization’s financial statements - you’ll need to describe this process later on in Part V. You should also report grants no matter the source of the funds or whether the organization chose the recipient.

Important: Completing Columns A or B in the chart isn’t necessary.

Finish the rest of the chart for Line 1 as follows

• Column C - Enter the region where the principal foreign office of the recipient organization is or where grant funds are getting used
• Column D - Describe the purpose of grant funds with specific terms like general support, school, construction, or medical supplies rather than broad words like educational or religious
• Column E - Enter the total dollar amount of cash grants, in U.S. dollars, for each recipient
• Column F - Describe how your organization disburses cash for each recipient (i.e. cash payment, check, money transfer, etc.)
• Column G - Enter the Fair Market Value of noncash properties in U.S. dollars
• Column H - Enter a description for any noncash goods or assistance listed
• Column I - Describe the method of valuation for noncash properties

On Line 2, report the total number of recipients from your list on Line 1 that is either recognized as a charity by the foreign country, recognized as tax-exempt by the IRS, or has provided a section 501(c)(3) equivalency letter. With Line 3, enter the total number recipients that are not classified as described in Line 2.

Part III - Grants and Other Assistance to Individuals Outside the United States
Similar to Part II, this section is for exempt organizations who have given at least $5,000 in grants and assistance directly to foreign individuals or foreign groups for the benefit of a particular foreign individual.

You need to complete the chart in Part III the same way you did for Part II, Line 1. Be aware that for Part III, Column A, you’re going to use the same terms that you used for Part II, Line 1, Column D. The IRS also needs an explanation in Part V for any estimated numbers you come up with for Part III, Column C.

Part IV - Foreign Forms
Any exempt organization filing a Schedule F must complete Part IV by answering each question from Line 1 to Line 6. It could be possible to answer each question as “No,” if applicable. But for any question answered “Yes,” the IRS requires you to the file the additional form listed with the question.

Part V - Supplemental Information
The final section within Schedule F is for you to provide detailed explanations for the following parts you answered earlier:

• Part I, Line 2 - Methods for monitoring the use of your organization’s grants and assistance outside the U.S.
• Part I, Line 3, Column F - Methods used for accounting expenditures on the organization’s financial statements
• Part II, Line 1 and Part III - Methods used for accounting cash grants and noncash assistance on the organization’s financial statements
• Part III, Column C - Methods used to estimate the number of recipients

You can also supply any other explanations or descriptions as needed, but for anything written in Part V, you should write out the corresponding part and line of the schedule. For any tax-intensive questions regarding your organization’s activities outside of the U.S., we recommend speaking with a certified professional or contacting the IRS directly at 877.829.5500.

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How Schools Can Acquire 501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt Status

It’s typical for schools and Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)/Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO) to be recognized as a 501(c)(3) organization and have tax-exempt status. However, there is a common misunderstanding when a school has 501(c)(3) status, but the PTA/PTO does not and vice-versa.

Both groups are eligible to apply for tax-exempt status, and with it comes benefits from being a 501(c)(3) organization. Here is some important information for schools or PTAs/PTOs interested in becoming tax-exempt.

Exemption Status for Schools
Schools usually receive a tax identification number (TIN) from the IRS - this number works much like a regular social security number, so there isn’t any tax exemption implied with it. The IRS typically views public schools as government entities in which they are automatically exempt from federal income tax.

Even though schools are automatically tax-exempt, that doesn’t mean the IRS recognizes them as 501(c)(3) groups. Like many other organizations, schools must complete an application to receive 501(c)(3) status from the federal government. Any organization seeking exemption status has to file IRS Form 1023 - if approved, the IRS mails a “Determination Letter” that identifies the organization as a 501(c)(3) group.

You can ask your school’s principal whether or not it has 501(c)(3) status - the determination letter from the IRS is mostly likely filed in the school or district office.

Exemption Status for PTAs/PTOs
A PTA/PTO can operate independently from the school - in such cases, the PTA/PTO is not automatically tax-exempt and will need to file a 1023 form to apply. Conversely, if the PTA/PTO is storing its funds using the school’s tax identification number, then the organization is seen as an extension of the school.

Most parent-teacher groups use their school’s TIN thinking that it’s common; however, experts explain that as long as the organization’s money is not from an account using the school’s TIN, then their group classifies separate from the school. If it is separate, the PTA/PTO can register for its own tax identification number.

There are a few services available for PTAs/PTOs to automatically register as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization without submitting a Form 1023 or paying any filing fees. These services can also assist with getting a federal TIN, state incorporation, and 990 returns for your group. After receiving 501(c)(3) status. Donors may ask for a copy of the determination letter - this letter ensures your organization is a federally recognized charity and that charitable contributions towards your PTA/PTO are tax deductible.

Why Apply for Section 501(c)(3) Status
Other than preventing income taxes imposed on revenue earned by your school or PTA/PTO, there are more benefits with receiving 501(c)(3) status. With an exemption status, you can request for an increased number of grants - public and private donors usually require tax-exempt status for funding which can bring in more money and resources for the school.

Organizations that are recognized as 501(c)(3) legally exist as separate entities. Key members and employees typically aren’t held directly responsible for debts from the organization though special circumstances may apply. And with any litigation event, courts can only access assets that belong directly to the organization - not from individual members.

The most common advantage is that purchases are exempt from state sales tax. Keep in mind that regulations may vary from state to state, so check with your nonprofit association for more information. And once your organization or school receives its tax-exempt status, remember to stay compliant with IRS rules and file your 990 form each year.

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Reporting Endowment Funds with Form 990

On Part IV, Line 10 of IRS Form 990, you must answer if your exempt organization held any assets in temporarily restricted endowments, permanent endowments, or quasi-endowments - the ownership of these funds are either directly with your tax-exempt group or a through a related organization.

If you answer “Yes,” then you need to proceed to Schedule D, Part V. Here are a few guidelines from the IRS about reporting your organization’s endowment funds:

Endowment Assets
The IRS requires you to enter the amounts of current and prior year contributions, grants, administrative expenses, and asset transfers to the organization’s endowment funds. List your estimated percentage of total endowment funds along with any information on other grants that aren’t in your group’s possession.

Types of Endowment Funds
The IRS breaks down endowment funds into three categories - the funds you report will fit either one or all of these classifications:

• Temporarily Restricted Endowments - Donor-restricted gifts that provide an income source for a specified amount of time or until a particular event occurs.
• Permanent Endowments - Donor-restricted gifts that provide an ongoing source of revenue and includes the stipulation that invests and retains the principal.
• Quasi-Endowments - Also known as Board-Designated Endowments, these are funds established within the organization from either unrestricted donations or organizational funds.

Even though there are different types of endowments, you report them all together as a lump sum for the current and prior years and then provide a percentage amount of the current year-end balance for each classification.

Possession of Funds
You need to indicate whether or not there are any endowment funds owned by unrelated organizations or any related organizations. If funds are in possession of a related organization, you have to confirm whether or not those groups are listed on a Schedule R. Finally, the IRS requests you describe the intended uses of the organization’s endowment funds in Part XIII of the Schedule D.

With ExpressTaxExempt.com, you can enter all your information regarding endowment funds on a single screen, and we automatically generate it correctly on your Schedule D.

Contact our U.S. - based support team for any other questions or concerns about reporting endowment funds - we’re available at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST or send a message at your convenience with support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Tax-Exempt Retention for Hospitals

With the most recent changes in tax-exempt requirements and healthcare reform, nonprofit hospitals are facing several challenges with exemption classification and retention. Experts say that nonprofit hospitals receive about $13 billion in tax exemptions annually - that’s a significant amount of money that law officials believe can efficiently fund federal, state, and local programs, if imposed.

However, the opposition argues that enforcing taxes on nonprofit hospitals will not only affect staff, medical programs, and equipment but also lead to higher payments for patients. Even though there is no mandated threshold, state laws typically expect a nonprofit hospital to provide charitable services that value over 1% of gross receipts.

Here are a few other suggestions from tax professionals about maintaining tax-exempt status for a nonprofit hospital:

• Comply with the new tax-exempt requirements established by the Patient Protection/Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
• Express the hospital’s capabilities of accepting Medicaid and Medicare patients and services for low-income patients
• Develop rebuttable cases that show reasonable compensation relationships
• Build and retain documents showcasing charitable benefits and charity care the hospital annually provides for the community
• Prove that any money received for community benefit purposes is used exclusively for that activity such as medical research or health education

State courts have also established reasons that can prevent tax-exempt entitlement for a nonprofit hospital:

• Little or no patients receive free or discounted care
• The value of free care provided is minimal
• Immediately refers unpaid bills to collections
• Charges full rates for uninsured patients
• Fails to provide straightforward benefits to the community it serves

It’s critical for board members to review their hospital’s methods and operations each year and ensure that they’re following the guidelines to classify as tax-exempt. It’s just as important as being compliant with the IRS and filing your annual 990 form with Schedule H.

ExpressTaxExempt’s cloud-based service allows nonprofit organizations and hospitals to file 990 forms, schedules, and extensions quicker and easier than paper filing. Contact our U.S. - based customer support team for any questions or assistance with electronically filing tax-exempt returns. Call us at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST or send a message to support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Reporting Organization’s Program Service Accomplishments

Part III of IRS Form 990 and 990-EZ requires you to report your exempt organization’s program service accomplishments. A program service is typically the major ongoing objective or mission of your nonprofit or charity. The IRS lists many examples of exempt services including

• A hospital's provision of charity care under its charity care policy
• A college's provision of higher education to students in a degree program
• And much more

Here are a few instructions directly from the IRS about reporting program services on your 990 tax return:

Organization’s Mission
You begin Part III by describing your organization’s mission as articulated in your mission statement or as adopted by your organization’s governing body. With ExpressTaxExempt.com, you also have the option of indicating if your group hasn’t established a mission.

Service Changes from Prior Year
You need to answer whether your tax-exempt group offered any new, significant program services not listed on your prior Form 990/990-EZ, or ceased conducting, or made major changes in how it performs, any program services. You can describe any new services or changes on a Schedule O.

Description of Program Services
You are responsible for describing program service accomplishments for three of your organization’s largest program services - if you have less than three, then describe for the number of services you do have.

The services you list are typically measured by the total expenses incurred, but you should include the following with your descriptions:

• Accurate measurements such as clients served, days of care provided, number of sessions or events held, or publications issued
• The service's objective for both the current period and a long-term goal
• Reasonable estimates for any statistical information if exact figures are not readily available

You need to be clear, concise, and complete with your descriptions. The IRS doesn’t recommend attaching any brochures, newsletters, or articles about your organization. If you need more space for explanations, you can use Schedule O.

Other Information
For each program service you list, you must also provide total expenses included on Part IX, and total grants and allocations, if applicable, included with your total costs. You’re also responsible for reporting any revenue derived directly from the service.

With ExpressTaxExempt.com, you can quickly and easily enter this information in minutes. Our application automatically generates your additional descriptions onto Schedule O and also calculates revenue, expenses, and grant values with the entries provided in the respective section.

Call our U.S. - based support team for any questions or assistance with entering program service accomplishments on your 990 form. We’re available at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST - email us at any time with support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Independent Audits for Financial Statements on Form 990

Within IRS Form 990, there is Part XII for financial statements and reporting. In this section, exempt organizations need to indicate whether their financial statements were compiled, reviewed, or audited by an independent accountant. And if so, whether the process was complete on a separate or consolidated basis, or both.

Independent Audits
An audit from an independent accountant is a thorough survey of a tax-exempt organization’s financial records, accounting practices, business transactions, internal controls, and accounts. The auditor or accountant cannot be a member or a regular employee of the organization but hired through a service contract.

Important: The auditor must also receive certification from either the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), or similar groups for accounting professions.

While conducting the independent audit, the accountant determines whether your organization’s financial statements follow “generally accepted accounting principles” (GAAP). These are established principles from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) - and if your exempt group doesn't follow these guidelines, the audit will report it.

Costs and Alternatives
The location and size of your tax-exempt group determine the expense of your independent audit. Fees are typically more than $20,000 for large organizations in metro areas and can even cost small nonprofits up towards $10,000.

Accountants can also provide a financial statement review or compilation instead of a routine audit. But if a third party, usually a donor, requires an examination, then a review or compilation may not suffice. Because most exempt organizations conduct audits every few years, it’s not entirely uncommon for a third party to accept just a review of financial statements.

Reporting to the IRS
As mentioned earlier, you simply need to indicate on your 990 form whether your organization had its statements reviewed, compiled, or audited during the tax year. With ExpressTaxExempt.com, it’s as easy as selecting either “Yes” or “No.” If yes, then choose the basis of the auditing process.

Our U.S. - based customer service team is available to answer any technical questions you have about e-filing with our cloud-based service - contact us at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST, or send an email at your earliest convenience with support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Start the New Year With a New Brand

A new year means new beginnings - and what better way to embrace the “new” than with a complete reboot of your nonprofit or charity?

Updating your organization’s brand can help with efficient communication, engage with a particular audience, or even keep your mission relevant with modern times.

When deciding to rebrand, you need to have a straightforward goal, and a plan to achieve it. Here are a few tips from the Internet about how to successfully change your organization's image:

Choose the Right Time to Rebrand
Though the start of the new year seems like an appropriate time for most, it isn’t necessarily right for all. Decide if your organization requires a change in needs or goals because a different branding will affect how your group operates.

Consider if your organization needs a mission update, if there’s a change in donor retention rates, or need a new opportunity to stand out. If so, then the lengthy process of rebranding may greatly benefit your charitable efforts.

Build a Brand Manual
A helpful device to have when rebranding is a brand manual or guide because you can create distinctive guidelines for your organization’s message and design. The voice of your nonprofit or charity should be consistent from print to digital, or even in-person.

Your brand manual can include communication techniques for social media and inform your team members about the organization’s new approach and vision. Be sure to establish a precise way of communicating which will give your audiences a better view of your tax-exempt group's purpose.

Change and Mix Things Up
Rebranding is the perfect time for your organization to stand out above the rest. Consider remodeling your nonprofit’s logo or creating a catchy slogan. The key is clearly expressing your group’s mission and values to your audience - refer to your brand manual about what you’re trying to convey to people.

Establish Fundamental Messages
Your organization’s essential messages work in multiple ways - they express the facts and goals of your strategy and vision, but it also displays your group’s legacy and personality. You should also be aware of what your audience values when creating key messages. Be able to strike a balance - your message is about the organization and work it accomplishes, but that information should also be relatable to your audiences.

Keep At It
Once you complete your rebranding, the changes must remain consistent, so everyone is familiar with the new look. Speak with your members throughout the entire process and consider their opinions. Have them all become knowledgeable of the new communication techniques - the more they know, the better they represent the organization.

Keep your audience up to date so when you finally implement the changes they aren’t confused with a different organization. Promote your new brand via websites and social media along with those essential messages which give your audience a better view of your goals and values.

Rebranding an exempt organization is a drawn out process that requires a considerable amount of time and effort. Even so, you still can’t neglect other responsibilities like filing your annual return with the IRS. ExpressTaxExempt.com offers cloud-based solutions for tax-exempt groups to electronically file 990 forms to the IRS quicker and easier than paper filing.

Contact our U.S. - based customer support for more information about how simple it is to complete and transmit Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N (e-Postcard) - call us at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST or submit a request through support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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