How we’re planning to grow our publication, and how you can help.
This is our newsletter-first column, Microtones. It runs on the site on Fridays, but you can get it in your inbox on Thursdays by signing up for our email newsletter.
Hello there! I am excited to introduce myself. My name is Micaela, and I am Tone Madison‘s new Fundraising and Finance Director. I join the team here after a brief stint in technology and years in the nonprofit sector, working on issues ranging from domestic violence to civil liberties, migration, and technology.
Over the years, my background has taught me a lot of useful lessons. One thing I’ve learned is that having someone committed to preserving the financial health of non-profits is a crucial pillar. I’m pleased to be in this brand-new position with Tone to support our independent publication’s growth.
Having read Tone Madison for several years and even contributed research for its journalism, I’ve also seen how a caring audience can help a small media outlet beat the odds. Direct donations from readers are our single biggest source of income, and we’re proud to say that we put most of our money right into paying staff and freelance journalists here in our community. Your support, trust, and enthusiasm are the core of this whole thing.
A new role brings new opportunities. Fundraising not only helps us sustain our publication, but it also supports our staff, pays our talented writers, and allows us the freedom to expand our footprint in the community. I believe we can do this in several ways by being creative and open to new ideas outside of traditional fundraising:
- Expand sponsorship opportunities by providing advertising space for local businesses, new and old, in the Madison area. If you work at a really interesting place, or are a business owner, I’d love to chat with you about ways we can connect.
- Remember those amazing shirts we rolled out in 2021? (You can still get one of those, by the way) We can come up with more designs and items, including T-shirts, buttons, stickers, print issues, and more. The possibilities are endless.
- An annual Tone Madison-presented festival featuring local artists and musicians. This one is a bit bold, but I think this would be a really great way to continue highlighting talented local artists.
- DJ nights that feature different music to allow folks to hang out, listen to music, maybe dance a little, and support Tone at the same time.
- Expand office hours so we can all have the opportunity to meet our supporters face-to-face.
Do you have a clever idea for fundraising for Tone Madison that you’ve been eager to share? I would love to hear from you—reach out at [email protected]. I’m happy to meet with our readers and supporters to share more ways we can work together to continue to build Tone to its fullest potential and remain independent and true to our mission.
