Budget for Sep 1 - Dec 31, 2009
Owing to the downturn in the economy, Trinity Communications substantially reorganized its operations in July and August of 2009.1 As a result, the corporation cleared its books at the end of August and developed the following budget for the remainder of the year.
For convenience, figures are rounded.
Budget for September 1 - December 31, 2009
| Expense Item | Amount |
| Staff - news and commentary:2 | $46,000 |
| Staff - all other resources: | $12,000 |
| Customer service: | $18,000 |
| Ad Management: | $2,500 |
| Bookkeeping: | $2,500 |
| 2009 4th quarter redesign:3 | $25,000 |
| Credit card transaction fees: | $6,000 |
| Rent & utilities: | $6,000 |
| Equipment & supplies: | $1,000 |
| Postage & miscellaneous: | $1,000 |
| TOTAL EXPENSE:4 | $120,000 |
| Income Source | Amount |
| Advertising: | $6,000 |
| Amazon Sales: | $300 |
| OneCause Contributions: | $1,700 |
| Catholic Credit Card Contributions: | $6,000 |
| Annual Pledges: | $20,000 |
| Monthly Pledges: | $14,000 |
| Single Donations: | $72,000 |
| TOTAL INCOME: | $120,000 |
Uncertainties
Our OneCause and Catholic credit card programs are brand new, so we have no accurate estimate as to the income they may produce. Annual and monthly pledges are known in the main, though the budgeted income reflects the hope of gaining more of these pledges before the end of the year. The bulk of our income comes through single donations. The single donations figure in the budget is what we need to make ends meet by December 31st.
Notes
- Long-time supporters may recall that Trinity Communications used to be subsidized by a for-profit corporation called Trinity Consulting. Such subsidies are no longer possible. The reorganization reflects this change. Therefore, the new budget must stand on its own.
- The budget for the remainder of 2009 does not include provision for a salary for the founder and president, Jeff Mirus. Dr. Mirus is now devoting full time to the non-profit Catholic work of Trinity Communications. It will be necessary to make some provision for this change beginning with the 2010 budget.
- Approximately 20% of the above budget—or $25,000—is devoted to the one-time redesign of CatholicCulture.org demanded by the reorganization of the operations of Trinity Communications. These design changes will be implemented in early October.
- Users familiar with the budgets of other major Catholic internet apostolates, as made known through their fund-raising campaigns, will notice that the Trinity Communications budget is remarkably small in proportion to the services provided.