Have you ever been blown away by an off-the-wall question from a donor or board member? You know, the one that makes you wonder if they even know what your organization does? I hear this often. On the flip-side, one of my favorite things about my business is that I [...]
What’s in a nonprofit brand? Everything. Think about the most popular and well-known charities. What comes to mind? I’ll bet you’re able to envision who they are, why they do what they do, and what they do in an instant. For example, Charity: water. The ASPCA. The ACLU. Red Cross. [...]
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 [...]
If your experience is anything like mine, then your direct mail appeal is probably a large source of income for your nonprofit. Or maybe you wish it was a larger source of income than it currently is. Here are four practical steps that you can take to improve your direct [...]
When fundraisers get together to talk about donor-centric fundraising strategy they tend to focus a lot on giving gratitude and engaging in cultivation. Rightfully so. However, if that’s all you do, you’re missing something HUGELY important. There’s something more donor-centric than wooing. Asking! In fact, I run a fundraising training [...]
Right now, year-end fundraising season probably seems far away. Far away enough that you’ve got other tasks to prioritize. You’ll get around to planning your year-end campaign in the Fall when it’s a higher priority. But here’s the thing – if you want to have a successful campaign – year-end [...]
What’s on your integrated development (marketing + fundraising) plan for the coming year? Major individual gift fundraising? Annual fundraising direct mail? Recurring gift fundraising and/or memberships? E-appeals? Telemarketing? Foundation grant research, writing and reporting? Government grant research, writing and reporting? Business sponsorships? Legacy/planned giving fundraising? Capital/endowment campaign? Special events? A [...]
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 [...]
A nonprofit faces a financial crisis. The sky seems to be falling. The temptation is to put those money woes at the top of the list as to why you and your volunteers are fundraising. The urgency provides the case for supporting the annual campaign, right? In the long run, [...]
The Quick Answer In 1995, Robert Metcalfe, the inventor of Ethernet, predicted that the Internet would collapse within a year. He was dead wrong. Today, approximately 3.8 billion people around the world have an e-mail address and 2.3 billion have a social media profile. In the wake of Hurricane Maria, [...]
I’ve created for you a little “Declaration of Fundraising Independence” to help you become a fruitful philanthropy facilitator from this day forward. This Declaration incorporates what I consider to be four essential fundraising truths -- pre-conditions which must be met before you’ll be able to successfully exercise your fundraising strategies. [...]
Do you have a background in finance? Me neither. What’s funny is that I wasn’t a person who loved data and numbers until I entered the nonprofit world. Much to my surprise I now live, eat, and breath numbers every day. I’m a disciplined person by nature, and I suppose [...]