A few weeks ago I was chatting with some non-profit industry peers. They were discussing their organizations’ donor journeys. A lot of similar terms came up through the conversation. Donor funnel. Donor pyramid. Donor staircase. Most of us hear these terms over and over. Many of us use them. No [...]
As we approach the end of 2019, it's the perfect time to create a list of 2020 resolutions to radically improve your fundraising efforts, raise the morale of your team, and improve your knowledge of this marvelous career as professional fundraisers! 2020 will mark the beginning of my 37th year [...]
According to a recent study by Zion Market Research, the global socks market will reach $24.16 billion by 2025. Accounting for the fact that socks aren’t exactly an expensive commodity, that number is enormous. It’s also unsurprising. Everyone needs socks. And not just because they look cool. According to Parkview [...]
Important question, fundraiser. What portion of your job is communications? Answer: more than you probably realize. After all, two very large portions of the development cycle (cultivation and stewardship) involve a lot of communications. The nature and format of these communications can vary depending on whether you work with annual [...]
For all of the content available to us this time of year, all the how-to guides and webinars about #GivingTuesday and year-end giving, none of them generally address the most important planning element to an effective fundraising campaign: A financial goal. Beyond the obvious, a goal aligns resources – people, [...]
I travel all over the country training nonprofit professionals and their boards to fundraise. It’s pretty amazing! I get to meet passionate, dedicated people just like you who are making their part of the world a better place. Unlike most people I meet, I absolutely love fundraising. What’s [...]
In our industry, we spend a lot of time telling. We do a great deal of storyTELLING. Heart-wrenching stories about the community we serve. We TELL about our mission. We TELL about our need for funds -- both why we need funds and how we plan to use them. As [...]
Are successful fundraisers born or made? I heartily take issue with the contention that fundraising is only for a special few of us. Too many people who are virtually fearless in everything else they need to face in their personal and professional lives are terrified at the notion of asking [...]
Welcome to the new year, fundraiser! Look at you all bright eyed and bushy tailed. You are awesome. Stay that way. Look at that clean slate in front of you! Congrats on your sparkling fresh start. And because no fundraiser ever started the year planning to raise LESS money than [...]
With all that it takes to run a successful nonprofit, it could seem easy to have someone already within your organization work to create copy for your website, emails, social media, etc. However, hiring a trained copywriter who has dedicated their time and energy into learning the nuances of language, [...]
You may not care one bit about professional football. Even if you do, you probably aren’t overly concerned about the off-season trades and signings of multi-millionaire players. This blog post isn’t going to convince you otherwise. However, I recently read a detailing of the lengths that the Minnesota Vikings leadership [...]
I would bet that your fundraising program is the same year-after-year and that its performance has flatlined. I also know that you can and want to do better. With 30+ years behind me in transforming fundraising programs, I suggest that you consider infusing imagination into your fundraising program to vastly [...]