Fundraising

 
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    MSN: Fundraising

  • Pelosi Faces Competing Pressures on Health Care - New York Times

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:14 pm
    WASHINGTON — As House Democratic leaders were assembling their health care bill last month, Speaker Nancy Pelosi left Washington on a political fund-raising tour. Accompanying her on the US Airways flight to her first stop, Cleveland on Oct. 2, was ...

  • Don Martin: Mike Duffy jumps the shark - Nationalpost.com

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:14 pm
    While he relishes his star profile on Conservative fundraising tours, he gets all twisted and bitter when it attracts enemy fire. So instead of a rational discussion on the value of the new senators to reforming the process, a tuxedo-sporting Duffy ...

  • Museum fundraiser will feature local talent - Arizona Daily Star

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:14 pm
    Pell, a painter and sculptor who trained at the Rhode Island School of Design before moving to Tucson in 1973, loves the idea of making original art accessible to everyone. A member of the UAMA Partners Board, a fundraising group for the museum, she ...

  • The Funk may be doing a committee shuffle - Kansas City Star

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:00 pm
    Kansas City Council members are confirming that Mayor Mark Funkhouser is out to reshuffle his committee chairs. The goal appears to be to place Terry Riley as chair of the powerful Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Council members ...

  • Foundation seeks alums for EVSC Hall of Fame - Evansville Courier-Press

    6 Nov 2009 | 10:53 pm
    The EVSC Foundation is creating a Hall of Fame to honor alumni of the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. The idea is to let the public know about the work and character of distinguished individuals who have graduated from Evansville schools, said ...
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    Beth's Blog

  • Causes Ditches MySpace: Don't Put All Your Fundraising Relationship Eggs in One Third Party, Proprietary Basket!

    Beth
    6 Nov 2009 | 4:17 pm
     Photo by Billie Hara Late last night (or early this morning),  Amy Sample Ward reported that Causes notified 184,725 users that its MySpace app will be removed from MySpace as of today.  The email encouraged MySpace users of Causes to join the cause on Facebook.   One wonders what the motivation was?   Amy's post spoke about the implications for individuals and communities, raising the question - "In abandoning MySpace, is Causes abandoning nonprofit groups organizing online with poorer users and people of color?"  Justin Mass went as far as to say that the move was "social network…

  • Ways To Use Twitter Lists for Your Nonprofit Work

    Beth
    5 Nov 2009 | 11:53 pm
    Gopher Screen Capture Twitter Lists: A Natural Evolution of Internet List Culture The Internet has a strongly ingrained "list-making" and "collecting" culture. Back in the early 1990's, during my "gopher mistress" days, I could use this Internet protocol to create lists of lists of public files on servers on the Internet.  It made it easy for me to navigate through public files available on the Internet in a linear way.  Even better, I could  browse, collect, and organize files on my own gopher and make it available for others to "gopher surf." Back then, there was a lot less information…

  • Can A Public Nonprofit Dashboard Be Your Organization's Best Friend or Worst Enemy?

    Beth
    5 Nov 2009 | 5:21 pm
    Photo Source: Indianapolis Museum of Art Blog Many of us have a love and hate relationship with nonprofit dashboards.  We know the power of numbers that tell us where we are headed or how well we are doing.   But we also know that numbers don't tell us the whole story - whether we headed in the right overall strategic direction, taking the right road, and how to get back on course if we get lost.   But, for the most part, nonprofit dashboard reports, if they are measuring the right metrics, are useful tools. Dashboards go beyond just reporting financial results as this post from the Blue…

  • WeAreMedia: Nonprofit Program Delivery and Social Media

    Beth
    4 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm
    Photo: Bread for the World The most common application of social media is for fundraising and marketing.  But what about using social media as part of program delivery.   Do we have examples of using nonprofits using social media for: Volunteer or board recruitment strategy Ooutreach or educational program delivery Crowdsourcing ideas for program development Professional development Integrated in other areas How can social media people at different organizations collaborate to form action networks? What are the best emerging examples and early lessons learned? I'm really curious what you…

  • WeAreMedia: Help Us Crowdsource A Hollywood Ending

    Beth
    4 Nov 2009 | 11:20 am
    It's NTEN appreciation month and I can think of no better way than to say thank you to all the NTEN members (and non-members) who have contributed to the WeAreMedia project.   It is time for the community to write the Hollywood ending! I am honored to have facilitated this project with NTEN over the past 18 months on the WeAreMedia: Nonprofit and Social Media Starter Kit.  Then the project first launched, we invited the community to help us build the curriculum on a wiki.  We facilitated over 200 nonprofit techies (editoral advisory group, subject matter experts, and wiki members) who…
 
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    Fundraiser Insight

  • Promoting Lung Cancer Awareness

    2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am
    You might already know that November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. But you might wonder why there are nationwide efforts in support of the fatal disease. Check out these staggering statistics from the National Cancer Institute:Approximately 213,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with lung cancer each year.Over 160,000 Americans die from lung cancer on an annual basis.More people succumb to lung cancer than breast, colon, and prostate cancer combined. This past year, there were 215,020 new cases of lung cancer diagnosed in the United States. As you can see, even though folks are…

  • Kicking Off Football Fundraising Season

    2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am
    As the temperature dips, the smell of team spirit and concessions fills the air for another hopeful football season. As those eager young athletes look forward to a season of high school rivalries and championship dreams, they will also need funds to help them start the season off on the right foot.Sports team fundraising efforts are essential for the survival of any school team, be it the soccer team, basketball team, baseball team, or football team. It’s obvious that your number one fundraising supporters will be the parents and family members of your teammates. But you don’t want to…

  • Quick and Simple Fundraisers

    2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am
    Fundraising is the lifeblood of many smaller charities and nonprofit organizations. Realistically, they need funds to continue offering free and vital services in your community. But their operations are small, typically made up of a few paid employees and mainly volunteers. They may believe their fundraising efforts are limited. Small charity groups help to build the community, keeping it safe and thriving even in times of despair. Take your local animal shelter, food bank, women’s shelter, or drop-in center—many simply can’t take on large fundraising efforts because they don’t have…

  • Delicious Thanksgiving Fundraisers

    2 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am
    Why is Thanksgiving a great time for your next fundraising event?Because Thanksgiving is perhaps one of the busiest and most overplanned holidays of the fall season. As you anticipate a long weekend of feasting, family, and fun, an expected drop in temperature enters the scene. With it come cozy sweaters, mugs of hot apple cider, and any excuse to curl up on the couch with a blankie and heart-warming movie. Let’s face it, as fall approaches, the desire to hibernate can take over. Suddenly, mom and dad are cozying up with a good book rather than zipping around town to buy the turkey,…

  • Four Unique Auction Fundraisers

    1 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am
    Auctions are an excellent fundraising method. They appeal to people's competitive nature, while still making them feel as if they're getting a bargain. When someone feels like they're setting the price they pay for an item, rather than being told how much something costs, they're more apt to want to spend that money. Also, feeling like something they may not otherwise be able to afford is within their reach is a potent motivator. An auction fundraiser doesn't have to be a fancy, formal event with priceless works of art or antique goods. You can hold a great event, and raise money for your…
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    Step by Step Fundraising

  • Top 10 Ways to Screw up Your Year-End Fundraising Campaign

    Gail Perry
    4 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am
    Halloween was this past weekend and we turned deep into the dark side.  Goulies and ghosties walked the streets in my neighborhood. So let’s turn to the dark side of your year-end fundraising campaign – and shine a light on mistakes many organizations make. Here’s my Top 10 list of ways to sabotage your year-end fundraising effort. 1.  Send a letter that’s hard to read, with ponderous sentences, long paragraphs and no white space.  (This fails the “easy to read” test, which is the first hurdle for your reader, who is skimming your prose for the highlights only.) 2.  Send a…

  • Lack of Oversight can Damage Your Nonprofit’s Long-Term Funding & Survival

    Sandra Sims
    2 Nov 2009 | 8:59 am
    Recently Don Griesmann posted a story on his blog that I believe is worth a read.  The organization profiled in the story, Kid Care, began as a labor of love, but ended abruptly after 18 years of service. Its founders were not professionally trained in nonprofit management prior to starting their work.  They simply saw a need and decided to use their gifts to benefit others. They were very trusting and extremely hard-working.  This describes a lot of the people I personally know and have connected with online who are doing charitable work. Learning some lessons from this unfortunate story…

  • The Planning Meeting - Love it or Hate It?

    Sandra Sims
    30 Oct 2009 | 8:42 am
    I sent out a special email on Monday to those who are signed up for the Step by Step Fundraising newsletter.  It included some of the tips that I also posted here:  Annual Fund Drive, End-of-year Fundraising Success Strategies. I got an email back from Tony with some great comments that maybe you can relate to. Hi Sandra, Thank you for this special edition and especially for the three step plan “It’s Fundraising Time Again“.  You made a very important point in step 2 and I hope everyone who gets to read the publication will pick it out and always remember to apply it.  A…

  • Annual Fund Drive, End-of-year Fundraising Success Strategies

    Sandra Sims
    26 Oct 2009 | 9:50 am
    I’m kicking off this week with a Resource Roundup with simple success strategies for your year-end fundraising campaign. Many nonprofits see a great increase in donations toward the end of the year.  Don’t miss out on year end donations from your supporters just because you didn’t ASK! Here’s the three step plan to focus your year-end fundraising drive that I published last year: It’s Fundraising Time Again. Gail Perry reminds us that individuals make up around 80% of all contributions to charitable organizations.  So focus on this group (rather than foundations,…

  • Fundraising Training Events, Teleseminars for Fall 2009

    Sandra Sims
    16 Oct 2009 | 1:27 pm
    Continually learning is important for most jobs and fundraising is no exception.  Personally I love going to conferences, seminars and even taking online classes.  (In fact this weekend I’m missing a really great internet conference.) Sometimes seminars just give you general information that might be helpful “someday,” while other times you are looking for something specific that you can put into practice right away.  For your end of year fundraising to be truly successful this year, why not get an edge by taking a class related to what your major fundraising focus is…
 
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    A Small Change

  • How Long to Hold a Lead

    Jason Dick
    4 Nov 2009 | 7:00 am
    I wrote earlier this week about “What’s a Lead” and today I’m going to talk about responding to these leads. When you come back from an event you attended, what do you do with your leads? Does it take months before any of these people ever hear from you again? I’ve found that people have very short-term memory when you first meet them. There are so many nonprofits, so many networking events, and so many people to meet. If you wait too long, people start to forget who you are. I try to send an email within a day of meeting someone new. That way they still remember who I am, and…

  • What’s a Lead

    Jason Dick
    2 Nov 2009 | 7:00 am
    Sometimes the difference between a lead and everyone else is just a frame of mind. People connect, volunteer, and donate to your organization because they agree with and believe in what you are doing. I’m surprised by what it takes for someone at some organizations to become a prospect. Unless you have a specific contrary reason, everyone connected to your organization should be considered a lead. Staff, volunteers, big donors, little donors, board members, and alumni all are leads. It is important that you frame your message in an appropriate way to each of these groups but they are all…

  • Direct Mail Drop and Social Media Rise

    Jason Dick
    28 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am
    Outside of a vibrant major gifts program direct mail is probably the number one way to raise money at most organizations. And direct mail will still be a major way to find donors for a long time to come but not forever. It appears that direct mail is on the decline. I know that I am way more responsive to an email that to any letter that I receive. I think that we are still at the early stages of social media fundraising and we will see direct mail continue to decline and social media & online fundraising continue to grow. There are already organizations that raise hundreds of thousands…

  • Drowning in Agendas

    Jason Dick
    26 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am
    Do you ever feel like you can’t get your day to day work done because you’re spending all your time working on agendas? I hate that feeling. I’ve always viewed agendas as a means to an end not the end itself. Meetings do have their value, as they are a great opportunity to enhance your relationship with those involved. I don’t think we will ever be able to get rid of meetings all together for that reason. But I do think we can be efficient, intentional, and productive with the kind and number of meetings we hold. One great way to manage your time is to make it the responsibility of a…

  • Business Giving vs Individual Giving

    Jason Dick
    21 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am
    There are a lot of new and brilliant creative and philanthropic successes in the world of business giving. Social enterprise is happening all around us doing tremendous good; Cause marketing is making us think differently about the products we purchase and the partnerships we create with businesses. I’ve been excited to see some businesses think creatively about their use of social media in connection with nonprofits. Aflac and Audi just finished Facebook causes campaigns using a matching sponsorship to raise awareness for their business and fundraise for a nonprofit? With the exception of…
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    Online Fundraising Blog

  • This week’s nonprofit fundraising Best Practice in Action

    Beth Pickard
    6 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am
    Today we bring you another installment in our weekly series of nonprofit fundraising Best Practices in Action. Each week, we’ll highlight an organization that has done an incredible job of promoting its online fundraising efforts with FirstGiving and show you how to do the same. This week’s Best Practice is. . . Tell your supporters about fundraising opportunities on your website. Our friends at the Acumen Fund are rallying their supporters together for a year-end campaign to raise $10,000 by December 31. Together, 10 of their supporters have already raised over $4,000! How did…

  • Scavenger hunt adventure race to benefit local nonprofit

    Beth Pickard
    2 Nov 2009 | 9:37 am
    Looking for a creative nonprofit fundraising event idea?  Our friends at Nutfit have partnered with local nonprofit Action for Boston Community Development for an adventure race this month.  It’s one of the most creative ideas we’ve seen, and it’s for a great cause.  We caught up with James Moore of Nutfit to learn more about the event: Why an adventure race? The reason for the name “adventure race” is because it is an adventure!  The definition of an “adventure” is an activity that comprises risky, uncertain or dangerous experiences.  In this…

  • This week’s nonprofit fundraising Best Practice in Action

    Beth Pickard
    30 Oct 2009 | 6:00 am
    Today we bring you another installment in our weekly series of nonprofit fundraising Best Practices in Action. Each week, we’ll highlight an organization that has done an incredible job of promoting its online fundraising efforts with FirstGiving and show you how to do the same. This week’s Best Practice is. . . Create a fundraising opportunity around an existing event. Our friends at Soles4Souls wanted to run a 5K fundraising event to celebrate the organization’s 5-year anniversary. To make it easy for all their supporters around the country to participate, they joined…

  • Nonprofit Spotlight: Garden of Dreams Foundation

    Ashley Morrison
    29 Oct 2009 | 10:54 am
    Each month, we highlight a couple of our nonprofit partners who have unique fundraising events, great success stories, or something else fantastic going on that we’d like to tell you about. Next up in our nonprofit spotlight fundraising series, is Garden of Dreams Foundation (GDF). 37,000  runners will be crossing  the Brooklyn Bridge and running the 26.2 miles of the New York City Marathon this weekend.  Of those 37,000 runners, Garden of Dreams Foundation has 22 runners putting their feet to the payment through all five boroughs in support of GDF.  Garden of Dreams Foundation was…

  • This week’s nonprofit fundraising Best Practice in Action

    Beth Pickard
    23 Oct 2009 | 10:06 am
    Today we bring you another installment in our weekly series of nonprofit fundraising Best Practices in Action. Each week, we’ll highlight an organization that has done an incredible job of promoting its online fundraising efforts with FirstGiving and show you how to do the same. This week’s Best Practice is. . . Encourage supporters who can’t attend the event to sponsor their friends. Our friends at Ridgefield Operation for Animal Rescue (ROAR) sent out an absolutely fantastic piece to recruit supporters for their annual walk, Paws for the Cause: Have a look at the last link…
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    FundraisingIP

  • Online Cancer Fundraising Campaigns

    FundraisingIP.com
    20 Oct 2009 | 10:27 am
    Following are two more examples of how social media is being used very creatively to raise money for a cause: Blame Drew’s Cancer Fundraising Campaign Fall 2009: Twitterer Drew Olanoff, who is currently being treated for Hodgkin Lymphoma, has started a social media fundraising effort for Lance Armstrong’s LiveStrong campaign. How it all started: When Olanoff realized [...] Related posts:“Tweet To Beat” Social Media Fundraising ExperimentIn The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising ServiceSuccessful Online…

  • Hiring A Fundraising Consultant

    FundraisingIP.com
    14 Oct 2009 | 11:09 am
    Fundraising consultants are hired by large and small organizations to help with their campaigns. If you think your organization may benefit from working with a fundraising consultant, there are several things to consider: What Is A Fundraising Consultant? A fundraising consultant is an individual (or company) whom your organization can contract with to run the fundraising campaign [...] Related posts:Fundraising And AffordabiltyCommon Fundraising Mistakes

  • Don’t Forget About These Simple And Low Cost Fundraisers You Can Run With Few Resources And Few Volunteers

    FundraisingIP.com
    10 Oct 2009 | 6:18 am
    The to-do list for running ‘traditional’ fundraisers like candy fundraisers, dances and special events, auctions, raffles and yard sales can be endless: buying and storing products for sale, producing and distributing flyers, making phone calls, keeping track of product inventory and sales, taking kids door to door, collecting money, working ticket booths, cleaning up after [...] Related posts:Don’t Forget About These Popular Ongoing Fundraisers!5 Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraiser IdeasRaising Funds With Free Fundraisers

  • A Halloween Pumpkin Fundraiser

    FundraisingIP.com
    30 Sep 2009 | 11:43 am
    Halloween is a great time for fundraisers, because usually people don’t have family or travel commitments on this holiday. There are different ways to use a Halloween favorite – the pumpkin – to raise funds for your organization: Pumpkin Patch You can purchase pumpkins in bulk from a local farmer and sell them in a location where [...] Related posts:Make Money With a Valentine’s Day FundraiserFundraiser Booths & ShowsPlanning A Dance Fundraiser

  • Fundraiser Booths & Shows

    FundraisingIP.com
    23 Sep 2009 | 12:34 pm
    Fundraising booths are elemental in fundraising; and there are plenty of opportunities to set up a fundraising booth of any kind. Where To Set Up Fundraising Booths Fundraising booths can be set up by themselves in areas of high traffic for a solitary event, or they can be part of a larger event or fundraising carnival. Many [...] Related posts:Let The Games Begin: A Carnival FundraiserMake Money With a Valentine’s Day FundraiserSilent Auction Fundraiser
 
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    Conor's Fundraising Blog

  • The Fun Theory

    conorbyrne
    3 Nov 2009 | 12:57 am
    I thought this was kind of cool, came across it on Twitter (cant remember the person who tweeted it, sorry!). The idea is “dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or something entirely different, the [...]

  • Twitterboard at 29th IFC

    conorbyrne
    2 Nov 2009 | 5:56 am
    Ah yes…us Fundraisers are really at the cutting edge aren’t we.  At this years International Fundraising Congress Innophoria Lab’s  introduced a Twitter Billboard during the four-day conference. Well done to all invovled especially Alan Bird and Kristina Fitzpatrick for their work in supporting this new, Twitter-orientated social network.  Posted in Social Media Tagged: IFC, Twitterboard [...]

  • Adopt a Word

    conorbyrne
    29 Oct 2009 | 5:42 am
    I came across this on Twitter last week and thought it was just brilliant. The concept is really clever and pretty simple: The English Language is up for sale. I CAN, the children’s communication charity, supported by Collins, is giving you the chance to exclusively own part of the English language at www.adoptaword.com . All proceeds go [...]

  • Make a Wish (irl) Ad

    conorbyrne
    28 Oct 2009 | 5:10 am
    Make a Wish Foundation Ireland have had an ad made for them by Ogilvy and Mather. The agency got (in their own words) world-class Irish & international illustrators, TV production companies, animators, television networks, media owners, printers, ordinary joe-soaps and no less than John Hurt to chip in all their time and services free, gratis [...]

  • Guide to Cause Marketing

    conorbyrne
    27 Oct 2009 | 1:48 am
    Sandra Sims has done a nice piece on Cause Marketing. Its kind of a beginners guide, but she makes some great points that are reminders to us all. Here are some of the highlights, but check out the full article here While these campaigns can be beneficial, a nonprofit-business partnerships should not be entered into lightly.  [...]
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    Fundraising Coach

  • Using Twitter and Facebook in your year-end fundraising letter strategy

    Marc A. Pitman
    3 Nov 2009 | 4:00 am
    Last time, we looked at creating a year-end strategy for fundraising letters. But in today’s world, it’s wise to consider complementing these appeals with tools like Facebook and Twitter. According to FundRaising Success Magazine: Between 35 percent to 42 percent of online giving happens in November and December each year, and the average gift during the final quarter of the year is significantly higher — $84.51, compared to the average of $67.47 for the other three quarters. -Abny Santicola It’s now November, time to get cracking. Since you’ve already designed and…

  • Fundraising is NOT the “f” word

    Marc A. Pitman
    27 Oct 2009 | 1:12 am
    I’ve been amazed at how afraid people can be of asking for money. Some even seem seem afraid of the very word “fundraising.” So I’ve found myself saying “Fundraising is not the ‘f’ word!” So, with the help of CafePress.com, I’ve created some t-shirts, mugs, stickers, tote bags, with that slogan on it. Even some Flip video cameras! Check it out at http://cafepress.com/askwithoutfear. Could be the perfect gift for that fundraiser you love that seems to have everything. (c) Marc A. Pitman, FundraisingCoach.com Learn how you can set up a brand…

  • Start your year-end fundraising letter strategy today!

    Marc A. Pitman
    20 Oct 2009 | 5:22 am
    Have you started your year-end fundraising letter yet? Fiscal people can do funny things to the way we measure time. In our organization, our year-end was September 26 this year. Many schools and colleges work on a July-June calendar. Others end their year in February for a March start. But for our donors, year-end will always be December 31. And statistically, people tend to be the most generous leading up to year end. So now is the time to start crafting your year-end appeal. I’ve been at this a long time, but I’m still surprised at how long the direct mail process takes.

  • Development and Social Media in a nutshell

    Marc A. Pitman
    16 Oct 2009 | 9:43 am
    In the last three weeks, I’ve given five talks about social media and fundraising to various groups of development officers. Today I was asked to sum up one of the sessions. Summing up social media without slides is challenging but here was my attempt: Social media is real Social media is “social”—be prepared to dialogue Social media is about people—completely fill out your profile and prepare to be personable It takes time It won’t replace traditional fundraising but it definitely enhances it You need to get familiar with at least one of the social media sites—I recommend…

  • 3 reasons social media is worth the effort for local nonprofits

    Marc A. Pitman
    6 Oct 2009 | 5:14 am
    This past week, I’ve been privileged to be on a couple panels introducing nonprofit organizations to social media tools like Twitter, Facebook, and Linked in. While I love these tools, I was quick to express that: They don’t replace all the good fundraising practices we’ve learned over the decades. “Social” media is just that, social. These facilitate and require dialogue, not merely broadcasting announcements. These tools take time: both to get familiar with and to keep going. It’s been an intriguing experience. The attendees seem to get really excited…
 
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    Donor Power Blog

  • LAPSED IN TRANSLATION

    DonorPower Blog
    5 Nov 2009 | 7:06 am
    Two things irritate me more than anything as a donor. First, fail to thank me promptly. Second, imply, even in gentle terms, that my continued support is overdue or inactive when in my mind it is not.   As a fundraising professional, like most, I am diligent about ensuring the former. There is no excuse, ever, for a donor not to be thanked promptly and sincerely. But I am struck how quickly the fundraising industry as a whole is guilty of the latter. Perhaps this is because it is common, within the discipline of list segmentation, to label donors who have not given in a prescribed…

  • The Myth of Mad Men, Part 2

    DonorPower Blog
    2 Nov 2009 | 3:29 pm
    Unlike the days of Mad Men, today’s Great DM Agencies employ direct marketing professionals who happen to have an area of expertise. The expertise is a focus, but the larger understanding makes the focus relevant and successful.   Creative solutions begin with knowledge – perhaps it is historical performance data, perhaps research—and seek to implement larger strategies, which have been designed to achieve still larger objectives.   The creative director who doesn’t understand the objective, and hasn’t collaborated on strategy, cannot effectively lead a creative solution…

  • The Myth of Mad Men, Part 1

    DonorPower Blog
    29 Oct 2009 | 10:09 am
    In one first season episode of Mad Men, the delicious AMC series about the early 1960s Madison Avenue ad men at the mythical agency Sterling Cooper, creative director Don Draper pitches a lipstick company executive with a compelling concept for a print advertising series. After the skeptical client is finally persuaded on the merits of the concept, he begrudgingly acknowledges that Draper “may be right about this thing.”   To which Draper responds with a smug chuckle: “Well, we’ll never know, will we? It’s not a science.”   Wow. Those must have been the days. Imagine…

  • Video: non-profits turning to social media during recession

    DonorPower Blog
    27 Oct 2009 | 12:46 pm
    Over the weekend, we came upon this segment from Current TV, discussing how non-profits are using social media in innovative ways to battle the economic downturn. Particularly interesting information on "aggregators." Enjoy!        

  • “DONOR” A Title Earned … Not Given

    DonorPower Blog
    23 Oct 2009 | 11:11 am
    I’m on a crusade to change the way the fundraising industry “labels” people who give to charity – primarily money, but also old cars, used clothing, outdated furniture, canned food, etc.  Regardless of intent or motivation, we call them our “donors.”   We also call people who give blood, tissue, organs or reproductive material donors.  In fact, there is a National Donor Memorial located in Richmond, Virginia that honors people who have donated an organ and/or tissue.      Think about that … a person who is willing to donate blood, a…
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    Blue Sky Collaborative

  • Video: Bike for The Heart Raises $300,000 for For Women's Heart Health

    blueskycollaborative
    29 Oct 2009 | 7:29 am
    Sister to Sister, www.sistertosister.org, recently held a fantastic event called Bike for the Heart. I wrote about what made it awesome here - http://blueskycollaborative.typepad.com/blog/2009/10/charity-bike-ride-raises-over-300k-for-sister-to-sister.html Here's a nice vid from the event. Hopefully, those of you who are trying to organize...

  • The Most Important Factor in Having a Successful Pledge Event

    blueskycollaborative
    28 Oct 2009 | 9:56 am
    Give your fundraisers at least 3 months to raise money. This applies to walk-a-thons, bike-a-thons, marathons and any other type of athon or pledge event. Let's face it. The economy is a little scary and many nonprofits are scrambling to...

  • Habitat For Humanity Build-a-thon Raises $100,000

    blueskycollaborative
    22 Oct 2009 | 7:59 am
    Habitat for Humanity Chapters in East King County and Seattle/South King County collaborated on a Build-a-thon that raised nearly $100,000 to build homes in 8 different location in King County, WA Habitat’s goal was to raise $100,000 – enough to...

  • SBAWP Launches Viral Fundraising Campaign

    blueskycollaborative
    21 Oct 2009 | 9:17 am
    The Spina Bifida Association of Western Pennsylvania (SBAWP) recently launched "Light up a Life," a viral fundraising campaign. Participants in the campaign raise money online in order to meet their own fundraising goal. "Light Up A Life" can be found...

  • The Sad Story of Fundable.com

    blueskycollaborative
    19 Oct 2009 | 1:07 pm
    Once touted as the next big thing, Fundable has crashed and burned on so many levels. Fundable is a service that gives individuals and orgs the ability to collect online pledges. Setup is free. Sounds good right? Oh, did i...
 
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    CharityFocus.org

  • A Few Generous Days in New England

    Nipun Mehta
    2 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am
    "We're 14 chefs.  I like this idea of doing small acts of kindness.  Do you think we can do something?" a young man asked me, after a talk.  "Why don't you cook up a full-out meal, and anonymously start gifting each other's parents and family members?"  He liked the idea and is soon to implement it. Service is ultimately about planting trees under whose shade you don't expect to sit.  And the motivation for doing such acts is predicated on the awareness of receiving that shade for seeds planted by our forefathers.    That whole cycle…

  • Gift Economy: Joy of Giving, Abundance and Bonds of Love

    Mark Jacobs
    29 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am
    After I published my synopsis of the gift economy, I received a superb essay from my good friend, Manoj Pavithran, with a very different approach to the subject. Manoj is that rare and spectacular combination of deeply thoughtful and utterly brilliant; and his careful analysis is constructed with the considerable philosophical rigor one might expect from him. It represents a significant contribution to the growing, evolving appreciation of the gift economy. Manoj is not simply a theorist of the gift economy; he is a practitioner. He lives in Auroville, a community founded, in part, on both…

  • Two Marines on a Contagious Love Experiment

    Nipun Mehta
    21 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am
    Josh Stieber was in middle school when 9/11 was on the news; he vowed to enlist in the army after graduating high school, and sure enough, by 2007, he was deployed to BaghDad.    What he saw transformed him: I had grown up hearing ideas like “love your enemies”, “return evil with good”, and “judge not lest you be judged”. But I treated these sayings that the central figure of my religion taught as if they were just nice sounding lines, but not practical. But slowly, my excuses started to fade away. I learned that the military trains people to…

  • Dr. Ariyaratne's Talk at Stanford

    Somik Raha
    18 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am
    On Thursday, Oct 15, 2009, we had a deeply inspiring talk given by a man who has spent six decades in active service and meditation. The talk was featured prominently by the Stanford Daily. Dr. Ariyaratne started off by sharing the secret of meditation - that of becoming a scientist of the mind. By observing what goes on in the mind, we can go toward developing equanimity. He warned us against reacting - it is always better to respond after contemplation from a space of silence than to react from a space of anxiety and confusion. He shared the incredible story of Swami Vivekananda and…

  • Zen? Simple, simple, so simple.

    Nipun Mehta
    12 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am
    As Huston Smith was leaving Myoshinji sodo (The Monastery of the Temple of the Marvelous Mind) in Japan after undergoing zazen training, Goto Roshi said: "You will be flying home tomorrow. Don't overlook how many people will help you to get home - ticketing agents, pilots, cabin attendants, those who prepare your meals." He bowed and placed his palms together, demonstrating gassho, the gesture of gratitude. Straightening up, he pointed to the beam that supported the corner of the house. Another gassho. He glanced up at the ceiling that kept the house dry and executed yet another…
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    Fundraising Breakthroughs

  • Building Charismatic Organizations

    27 Oct 2009 | 8:24 am
    Last night, I finished reading Shirley Sagawa's book on building magnetic nonprofits. Lots of underlining and sticky notes! Here is one paragraph that sung out to me as particularly perfect in two projects ChangeMatters is working on now (a major gifts, including storytelling, workshop and an arts organization turnaround). How compelling, how inviting, how engaging are we?“If you have done your job right, the gravitational pull of your organization—its people, purpose, plan, and proof—has convinced your audience that they want to help. It’s at this point that you much challenge…

  • Grammar Girl to the Rescue!

    21 Oct 2009 | 7:11 pm
    Are you trying to persuade or convince a funder to give you a grant? In her latest podcast, Grammar Girl has the answer. (Note: I'm late to the iPod era and have been searching for fun and educational podcasts to follow, although you can simply listen to her episodes on your computer.)Sometimes in the rush to meet proposal deadlines, grammar and style checks can go out the window. However, it is this very polish that can help set your submission apart from the others. At stake is clarity. Make it easy for the funder to understand your concepts and program design. You also never know if…

  • The Department of Education's Investing in Innovation Fund

    7 Oct 2009 | 6:05 am
    Hey, all you schools and education nonprofits, The New York Times reported yesterday about the DOE's upcoming grants for innovation. See excerpts below:The federal Department of Education sketched out a new nationwide competition on Tuesday under which some 2,700 school districts and nonprofit groups are expected to compete for pieces of a $650 million innovation fund.Federal officials said the Investing in Innovation Fund would be distributed in three categories. Small development grants of up to $5 million will support new, unproven ideas that seem worth exploring, they said. Validation…

  • Explaining Social Media

    29 Sep 2009 | 10:44 am
    Thanks to the folks at Digital Wagon Train for highlighting this presentation on social media. Let me know if you present it at your next board meeting.What the F**K is Social Media: One Year LaterView more documents from Marta Kagan.

  • Principles for Nonprofit Boards

    4 Sep 2009 | 6:58 am
    Over the last few weeks, I've been working with the board of a nonprofit arts center to develop a fresh committee structure. Best texts for this have been David LaPiana's article for Board Cafe, "Why Boards Should Only Have Three Committees;" Jonathan D. Schick's book, "The Nonprofit Secret," (particularly the six principles of successful board/CEO partnerships). Key principles and guidelines for nonprofit boards: 1.The board creates committees to help accomplish our own job, not the Executive Director’s job. 2.We focus on governance, not management. In general, this means that the board…
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    Too Busy to Fundraise

  • Here We Go Again

    4 Nov 2009 | 7:01 am
    Edward and Marcia Dawson have made incomes commensurate with those of Wall Street bankers. They are, however, not bankers but the founders of Social Vocation Services, a nonprofit social-service organization in California. Personally, I don’t care how much money Mr. and Mrs. Dawson have made. But they seem to have done it in not such an ethical manner. That will give a certain group of people the ability to say, “Aha! Those nonprofits—they are just not trustworthy.” And that I do care about.Nonprofits, it seems to me, get tarred with two sides of the same brush. First we are told we…

  • Finding the Right Who

    27 Oct 2009 | 2:22 pm
    Maybe it’s the season. Or perhaps it is the economy. Whatever, a number of my friends, acquaintances and clients are in the market for development staff. ”Can you recommend someone?” is the way the email generally goes. Well, yeah, but first I have to know what you are actually looking for. More to the point, you have to have what you are looking for. And no, it’s not just “someone to raise money.” I’ve been reading Who by Geoff Smart and Randy Street, a book just about this topic. Like too many books of its kind, Who is a great magazine article masquerading as a book. That…

  • Control Freaks Anonymous

    21 Oct 2009 | 11:29 am
    There always seems to be one at every organization. Typically, it’s a manager, often the CEO. At a nonprofit, it frequently is a Board Member. Heck, once I had a secretary who fit the profile perfectly.I am, perhaps not so obviously, talking about the person who has to control everything that goes anywhere near them. These are the people who are so busy working, they frequently don’t get anything done. And they certainly don’t allow anyone around them to accomplish their work.If this is you, stop. Take a deep breath. Look around. There are competent people there who could be doing a…

  • Thank You, Thank You

    12 Oct 2009 | 3:26 pm
    I recently facilitated a workshop where 35 discrete organizations were represented. During a discussion on retaining donors, I asked “How many of you send a thank you letter to every single donor?”You may not be surprised, but I was when only two hands went up. I shouldn’t have been. I hear often enough from donors who complain about not being thanked for their generosity. And while I believe them when they say they don’t receive thank you letters, I also want to believe that these letters are going out, it’s just that it’s not enough or not timely enough for donors. Or, perhaps,…

  • Defining the Problem

    2 Oct 2009 | 8:24 am
    My friend Ruth is a prodigious seminar taker. A few years ago she took one that taught how to solve a problem by first defining the problem. I think that is a seminar most nonprofits should take.To me it has always seemed obvious that you cannot solve a problem if you are unclear about what problem you are trying to solve. Most of my clients would define their problem as a lack of money (or, as nonprofits love to whine, “not enough resources”). But perhaps it would be more accurate to say that is the cause or, more likely, the result of the problem and not the problem itself.Defining the…
 
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    Nolo's Fundraising Tips

  • Fundraisers' Must-See: The Simpsons, November 15

    29 Oct 2009 | 1:57 pm
    It was only a matter of time before Marge posed nude for a charity calendar, right? Don't miss it, November 15th. The episode is called "The Devil Wears Nada." 

  • Donor Motivations: New Study Out

    27 Oct 2009 | 4:40 pm
    I'm getting weary of studies that tell us what we already know: donor giving is down, foundations have less money than ever, and so forth.But now, there's a recent study that helps nonprofits actually do something about their need to raise funds: It's from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, and apparently for the first time, has correlated motivations for giving to income and education levels. It found, to quote their press release, that:Among lower-income donors (income less than $50,000), the phrases that resonated as a motivation for giving were helping to meet basic needs…

  • Could Cash Donations Carry Swine Flu?

    16 Oct 2009 | 2:49 pm
    Sorry, couldn't resist the alarmist title. Or reading this article on MSN.com about whether paper money can carry flu germs. Turns out, it can. Of course, I'd never suggest that you turn away cash donations. Instead, how about suggesting to donors that now's the time to get rid of all that germ-infested money!

  • Will Volunteerism in TV Plots Promote It in Real Life?

    15 Oct 2009 | 12:49 pm
    According to the article by Gary Strauss, "TV: It's prime time for volunteerism," in the Tuesday, October 13, 2009 issue of USA TODAY, there's a movement afoot: to promote, not only through public service announcements, but by actual examples in scripts of prime-time TV plots, the great things about volunteering for a cause.Yes, you read that right. It's part of a project called "I Participate," and if you keep your eyes open and your tube plugged in, you might notice, for example, crime solvers on Ghost Whisperer donating blood; doctors on Private Practice treating the homeless; 12-year-old…

  • When Fundraising Is Too Successful: Pink Ribbon Overload

    5 Oct 2009 | 4:32 pm
    A fascinating article in the Boston Globe discusses how the combination of fundraising and cause-related marketing embodied in the pink ribbon (which indicates that a portion of a product's proceeds will go to breast cancer charities) is a victim of its own success. Yes, the pink ribbon raises money for cancer research and education. But it also boosts corporate profits, creates an increasingly visible to reminder to women suffering from a disease they'd like to forget about once in a while, and for some, is just too much pink! There's no easy lesson to be drawn here -- and many charities…
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    UK Fundraising

  • City Business Library - London

    FinbarCullen
    6 Nov 2009 | 3:19 am
    The November 2009 newsletter from the City Business Library is now available from the Library website www.cityoflondon.gov.uk. read more »

  • list of community amateur sports clubs

    FinbarCullen
    5 Nov 2009 | 5:39 am
    Third Sector magazine recently reported that a new list of community amateur sports clubs registered with HM Revenue & Customs has been published on the HMRC website. read more »

  • Raise funds with Twitter by promoting Amazon items

    howardlake
    4 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm
    Here's a practical way to raise funds using Twitter. read more »

  • "Don't give to hospital charities?"

    simongeorge
    4 Nov 2009 | 3:17 am
    The recent spat between the Charity Commission and the Department of Health over who owns the assets of some hospital charities highlights the peculiar no man’s land in which state controlled charities live, as well as seriously undermining their case for support. read more »

  • Can the art of storytelling help charity communications?

    kevin baughen
    3 Nov 2009 | 9:16 am
    We all love a good story whether in the form of a humorous anecdote, a play, a novel or a loved one's reminiscing. But have you ever thought about what makes these stories compelling? Do we carry these attributes through to our fundraising and campaigning messages? read more »
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    Who Really gives a Toss?

  • Get Packing

    2 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm
    This week marks the end of a very special campaign in North London - Operation Winter Survival. A campaign that has seen thousands of people donate warm clothes, toiletries and children's toys to communities across Eastern Europe.We went to help out. That's Mark folding a lovely pair of trousers. The day was great fun. People laughed, mainly at me. I got the bag of big (actually they were huge) bras – oh the joy.All day, volunteers arrived at an enormous warehouse stacked to the ceiling with donated goods. Each bag carefully opened, sorted and neatly packed ready for dispatch.It was earlier…

  • I'm sure you've seen it but...

    27 Oct 2009 | 7:25 am

  • Didn't we have a blog?

    13 Oct 2009 | 9:46 am
    I think James was hinting at something when he shouted this across the office this morning. But we have been a tad busy recently – doing planning and a mountain of creative for one mighty big campaign.Yesterday saw the launch of Action for Children's appeal to get the nation to take action for the 1.5 million children who wake up every day to experience neglect.Over the past few months we've met the staff on the front line who work with these kids and heard stories that tear your heart out – like Katie who was spat on at school because she didn't get a bath at home and 5 year old Ellie…

  • We Are One

    21 Sep 2009 | 8:49 am
    It was a year ago to the day that we sat in Tim's back bedroom and registered our company. Some highlights since then...The whole Brisbane adventure with Pareto. So near and yet so far. Getting our first teeny tiny office – thanks Justin and Steve.Hiring Louise and Rebecca. Salary bill looking scary. Working with Richard Young again.Winning the VSO account (more on this later).Registering for VAT but forgetting to add it to invoices – sorry Andrea.Hiring Emma, our Finance Director. No more VAT cock-ups.Winning WWF's Earth Hour (we danced all the way back to the station).Getting our…

  • The Cheese and Onion Will Change Your Life

    11 Sep 2009 | 3:58 am
    'Read widely' is one of the most often-repeated hints for people who want to 'be more creative' and advance their careers.Now I read a lot – no worries there. But the 'widely' bit trips me up. I tend to assume that 'widely' means psychology, business and politics instead of novels. But actually that means I read a lot of stuff that falls pretty much in my personal goldfish bowl.Fortunately, when I'm not reading I watch some telly. And at the moment I'm hooked on House – so hooked in fact that I decided that I wanted to read something about clinical medicine. This in turn brought back to…
 
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    Professional Fundraising Blogs

  • Don't forget to celebrate trustees

    3 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm
    How to create a diverse trustee world is the million dollar question. Countless surveys, studies and working groups are looking at finding the key to attracting a broad range of stewards for a charity outside the typical trustee who is often white, over 45 and usually retired.  

  • Let the good times roll

    3 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm
    The recession is over in the US. Done. Dusted. Glad that’s over. Phew. Even beleaguered old Blighty could emerge from the confines of recession by the end of the year, according to some economic soothsayers. Hooray. Let the charity sector delight in the new world order!

  • Keeping it fresh

    29 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm
    When was the last time you took stock of every touchpoint you had with your supporters? I saw a  really good blog recently about the fact that fundraising has not really changed over the past 120 years. It's true and while I am an advocate of doing things that work, I ften see lots of stuff that is downright dull. Crusty and old.

  • Brutes in suits and hidden angels

    26 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm
    Sleeping rough is extreme. There you are, lying on a hard pavement or in a shop doorway with, at best, a thin blanket protecting you from the cold and a piece of cardboard insulating you from the rising damp. You know it will disintegrate into a soggy porridge as soon as it begins to rain. Your isolation is profound. Yet frequently, if you are sleeping rough in central London, thousands of people will be swirling around you as they go about their business, walking on by.    

  • Oops! Watch this trend....

    25 Oct 2009 | 5:00 pm
    Bullying only happens in the playground.  Right?  Wrong.  It seems that the current economic climate is surfacing some not-so-great behaviours and bullying is one of these. Is this a result of a feeling of inadequacy and an inability to cope in the face of mounting pressures?   
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    WordPress Tag: Fundraising

  • Moving beyond self-centered tweeting

    benjkraker
    6 Nov 2009 | 7:00 pm
    Here’s a hilarious video from Current TV that portrays the stereotypical view of Twitter. Far too many of us lose sight of the impact Twitter can have. Limited to 140 characters, most Twitter users write about their current activities or thoughts in a given moment. “Sitting at my desk!” “Home sick from work.” “In class. OMG my professor is hot.” Status updates such as these can be a great tool to keep loved ones in the loop regarding our life, but honestly, who really cares that you’re sitting at your desk or watching the Prices is Right because…

  • Africa

    chelsy pillsbury
    6 Nov 2009 | 6:48 pm
    So here’s a pretty hefty update on my hectic, yet, somehow awesome life:  I applied to go to Tanzania in May!  This is probably one of the best opportunities that has ever come my way, not that I’m downgrading all of the other ones I’ve had, but this one is just so special.  If I get accepted a group of about twelve of us will raise as much money as we can, pack our bags, and start changing the world together.  Probably one of the most heart-warming feelings in the world is knowing that I could potentially make someone’s life so much more hopeful than it previously…

  • Say Hello on Saturday

    P. David Stockhausen
    6 Nov 2009 | 1:51 pm
    Join us for ARTasting 2009! Saturday, November 7th, 9pm – 2am Amyitis will be participating in this event with giveaways worth up to $200.  Come check out our display and raise money for a good cause.  Details below: “ARTDEEZINE IS HOSTING ITS FOURTH ANNUAL ARTASTING PARTY AND 2010 CALENDAR RELEASE PARTY ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2009 AT 111 MINNA GALLERY IN SAN FRANCISCO.12 SAN FRANCISCO NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE BEEN FEATURED IN A 2010 CALENDAR CREATED BY LOCAL ARTISTS. THE ART FEATURED IN THE CALENDAR WILL BE SHOWCASED AT THE EVENT AND THE CALENDAR WILL BE FOR SALE FOR THE FIRST TIME AT THE…

  • Honor Epilepsy Awareness Month with YOUR Contribution

    Phylis Feiner Johnson
    6 Nov 2009 | 1:33 pm
    Ironically, I heard on the news that the Juvenile Diabetes Philadelphia branch was moving to new qua

  • Senate approves $400 million for legal services, removes restrictions

    Joe
    6 Nov 2009 | 11:15 am
    Last night, the Senate, by a vote of 71-28, passed the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) bill (HR 2847), which provides $400 million for the Legal Services Corp. and removal of federal restrictions on state, local and private funds held by LSC grantees (including Maryland Legal Aid), excepting abortion-related and prisoner representation cases. The Senate funding level of $400 million is $40 million less than that provided by the House of Representatives in its bill passed earlier in the summer (and $10 million more than current funding).  The House bill did not remove…
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    Featured Blog Posts - Social Actions

  • How to Improve Targeted Microinsurance Donating

    Karl Miller
    There are several issues and areas to improve to make targeted microinsurance donations a regular way of helping the poor. Among these: Responsibility: some feel that the subsidization of insurance by donors can erode personal responsibility and create a sense of expectation among policyholders that donors will automatically bail them out if they miss a payment. Donations should be applied at random by the insurance company so that there is no sense of automatic help. A targeted insurance donation should be viewed as a “random act of kindness” such as paying for the person behind you at a…

  • Social Actions and Open Data Standards: A conversation is building

    Christine Egger
    Watching several conversations unfold related to open data, and open data standards, for the philanthropic sector. I caught up with most of them just last night, and had a hard time falling asleep. It's fantastic to feel the momentum shift from either-or questions about whether an organization should be transparent or not, to the kind of nuanced Q&A engaged in here. Of course, I'm excited, especially, for the potential to more broadly encourage data standards for the nonprofit sector (see Marnie Webb's post especially). Looking forward to linking that topic more explicitly into Social…

  • Vote for Charity CHAMPS, boost microphilanthropy!

    Sylvia Ng
    Today is day 3 of Round 2 of the Aviva Community Fund up in Canada. The slogan of the competition is "Supporting what's important to you". Charity CHAMPS is promoting microphilanthropy amongst youth, the most important, but least engaged demographic in philanthropy. That's important to us! Also unlike a lot of the other ideas competing for votes, ours has a fundamental online and micro-action foundation which we think there needs to be more of. Philanthropy needs to benefit from the huge changes in technology like every other industry! If any of these things are important to you (and we hope…

  • The Phone Test

    Elliot Harmon
    This post originally appeared on the TechSoup Blog. Here's an idea from our friend Laura at Idealware: what if you measured any communications method by whether it would have more or less impact than spending the same amount of time calling donors on the phone? …You could spend that time simply calling donors and constituents at random, to thank them, or to ask them a quick set of questions (how did they like the services they used? what do you do well? not so well?). If you've never done this, it can be pretty magical. Often people are amazed that you've called, happy to talk, and have…

  • Social Entrepreneur API: ThinkSocial Award Nomination -- vote today!

    Christine Egger
    The Social Entrepreneur API has been selected as a finalist for a ThinkSocial "Outstanding Collaboration" Award! With this award, ThinkSocial will recognize three outstanding examples of innovation -- featuring an individual, an initiative, and a collaboration between institutions -- which together represent powerful models for how social media can be used to address global problems. Public votes and comments will play an important role in selecting award winners: 1. Please click here to cast your vote by midnight tonight (Monday, November 2nd) 2. Then, spread the word by blogging or tweeting…
 
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    Get Fully Funded Blog

  • The value of continuous learning

    Sandy
    6 Nov 2009 | 7:53 am
    I’m reading Napoleon Hill’s book “Think and Grow Rich”.  It’s a wonderful book that my Dad gave me years ago.  I wasn’t ready for its amazing lessons back then, but they’re resonating with me today. I read something that really struck me this morning and I wanted to share with you.  It’s about the concept of being a lifelong learner, which I totally believe in. The person who stops studying merely because they have finished school is forever hopelessly doomed to mediocrity, no matter their calling.  The way of success is the way of…

  • Is a picture really worth a thousand words?

    Sandy
    3 Nov 2009 | 12:07 pm
    Is a picture really worth a thousand words?  Only if it’s a good picture! Bad pictures are used way too often by nonprofit folks who are trying to tell a story in a visual format.  I sat in on a webinar today led by Kivi LeRoux Miller and Claire Meyerhoff that focused on getting and using great photos.  Here are a few points I want to share with you. Great photos tell a story.  To tell a story, you need some detail and some interesting action in the photo.  A picture of a group of volunteers lined up against the wall conveys nearly nothing.  But a photo of the same group bagging…

  • Monday Morning Motivation

    Sandy
    2 Nov 2009 | 7:10 am
    Since it’s the middle of Fundraising Season and I know everyone is busy, I’ll keep this short. Nonprofit work is all about changing people’s lives.  When we do a good job of fundraising, we enable our nonprofit to do its work.  It’s quite simple.  Do your job and you change someone’s life. Now, go ask someone for a gift!

  • Top 10 Things Donors Want from Your Nonprofit’s Website

    Sandy
    28 Oct 2009 | 6:32 am
    Thanks to my buddy Gail Perry for today’s post. (www.gailperry.com Did you know that most donors check out your web site before they make a gift? – whether they are giving on line or through the mail. A Kellogg Foundation study found that potentially up to 50% of your donors are going to want to check you out before they give, whether they give online or not. Here are questions you should ask about your site to see if it is hurting or helping your fudnraising campagin. First, “your web site is now your front door,” advises Ted Hart in the09 Year-End Strategies Telesummit.I…

  • My favorite fundraising tips

    Sandy
    27 Oct 2009 | 6:30 pm
    I love tips!  They’re short, quick, and to-the-point.  Here are some of my favorite fundraising tips. 1. Let donors choose when they hear from you.  I call this “Donor Choice.”  You have to have the infrastructure in place to make sure you can do this, but it’s worth it.  On a survey or a reply card, let donors tell you that they only want to get an appeal during the holidays or just twice a year or whatever choices you want to give them. You’ll find that you have happier donors, lower fundraising costs, and higher response rates. 2. Add hand-written notes…
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    Jewish Donor Blog

  • New York Jewish Federation raises $43m.

    Yoav Kaufman and David Rubin
    4 Nov 2009 | 6:13 am
    By JAMIE ROMM JerusalemPost.com11.3.09 "The UJA-Federation of New York raised $43 million at its annual campaign kickoff last week, funding that will go toward Jewish families in need throughout the... This is The Jewish Donor Blog, a blog by Negev Direct, about direct mail, fundraising stratagies, experience, putting the donor first and more.

  • A Walk in the Woods can Make you a Better...

    Yoav Kaufman and David Rubin
    29 Oct 2009 | 8:14 am
    What would inspire someone to be a better fundraiser/CEO/Salesperson, etc.? How about a walk in the woods? If you need to re-charge the old battery and get the creative & inspirational juices... This is The Jewish Donor Blog, a blog by Negev Direct, about direct mail, fundraising stratagies, experience, putting the donor first and more.

  • Congratulations to.... us!

    Yoav Kaufman and David Rubin
    27 Oct 2009 | 8:42 am
    A hearty congrats and a big mazal tov to the Jewish Donor blog and all its contributors for reaching the 300 post mark!With well over 10,000 page views and 15,000 clicks, the Jewish Donor Blog has... This is The Jewish Donor Blog, a blog by Negev Direct, about direct mail, fundraising stratagies, experience, putting the donor first and more.

  • Google co-founder Brin gives $1 million to HIAS

    Yoav Kaufman and David Rubin
    26 Oct 2009 | 12:52 pm
    From: JPost.com and the JTA Google co-founder Sergey Brin has given a $1 million gift to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society.Google co-founder Sergey Brin Photo: AP [file] HIAS was one of the groups... This is The Jewish Donor Blog, a blog by Negev Direct, about direct mail, fundraising stratagies, experience, putting the donor first and more.

  • Top 10 Halachot of Jewish Charity Events

    Yoav Kaufman and David Rubin
    25 Oct 2009 | 8:01 am
    From: The Weekly Bang By: bangitout.com Top Ten Rules to Jewish Young Leadership Charity Events:10. You have no idea what the charity actually does, so long as it has something to do with Israel,... This is The Jewish Donor Blog, a blog by Negev Direct, about direct mail, fundraising stratagies, experience, putting the donor first and more.
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    Pamela's Grantwriting Blog

  • Fundraising Fun? You Betcha!

    Pamela Grow
    29 Oct 2009 | 8:21 am
    Nonprofit blogger and Twitterer, Marc Pitman, recently twitted that “many see fundraising as an evil, a necessary evil but evil nonetheless.” I couldn’t agree more and, frankly, I just don’t get it! Fundraising is challenging, it’s people-centered, it’s constantly learning and evolving, it’s creative – fundraising is FUN! So why is it that so many nonprofit organizations, who have that unbridled passion for their mission, look with fear – or even disdain -upon the very work that funds their mission? Is part of the problem that…

  • October 19, 2009 – Simple Tip of the Day

    Pamela Grow
    19 Oct 2009 | 3:59 pm
    Recently one of my client’s board members celebrated her birthday in style – in lieu of gifts, she requested that donations be made to her favorite charity. We publicly thanked her – on Twitter, Facebook and in our quarterly newsletter. If you’ve received a unique gift from one of your donors, make it a point to advertise it … you’ll stimulate other donors’ creative thought processes! Social Bookmarking

  • Nonprofits and Employee Attrition

    Pamela Grow
    14 Oct 2009 | 4:23 am
    This unedited ad recently appeared, seeking a “Development Associate” for a local nonprofit organization. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: 1) Development Office assistance • manage donor/gift records including processing gifts and reconciling with business office, receipting gifts and producing acknowledgments to donors • organize mail appeals several times a year including supervising volunteer crews if needed • provide database information for telephone solicitation as needed • prepare and distribute a variety of development reports as needed • maintain accurate and complete donor…

  • It’s just emotion that’s taken me over … Tied up in sorrow, lost in my soul

    Pamela Grow
    9 Oct 2009 | 4:17 pm
    (With apologies to the Bee Gees …) For six years I worked for a regional private family foundation. It was an amazing learning experience on so many levels, including teaching me how donors respond. In a recent post on Kivi’s Nonprofit Marketing Blog, Kivi notes that people’s hearts tend to overrule their heads. She raises a number of good points, backed by sound research. Yet still, nonprofit organizations have a strong propensity for the dry, didactic prose that sets no ones heart aflame. Whenever I’ve had an annual campaign to write, I’ve always put myself in the shoes of a…

  • 6 Tips for Collecting Great Nonprofit Stories

    Pamela Grow
    6 Oct 2009 | 1:43 pm
    If you’ve been in this field for any length of time, you’ve heard all about how important it is to capture your organization’s story. Most nonprofit marketing bloggers, however, tend to focus solely on one aspect of your organization’s story when, in fact, having an entire cadre of stories – from your founder, your clients, your board members, your staff, community members – will make all of your development writing – from your annual appeal to your newsletter to your grant proposals to your web copy – literally flow with passion. I call them “story swipe…
 
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    Big Thinking on Small Grants

  • A Refreshing Insight about Grant Size

    Janis Foster Richardson
    6 Nov 2009 | 3:10 pm
    Yes, I know that I'm writing a lot about money.  But isn't it our thinking about money that mucks up the works when we're doing something noble and important such as investing in the future of our communities?  Not money itself, but our thinking about money.  And by "our" I mean both grantmakers and grant seekers. I heard from neighborhood grantmaking team this week at the Battle Creek Community Foundation with a refreshing insight that I want to share.  What they shared made me flash back to a set of comments that I heard almost every meeting from one of the members of…

  • Grassroots Grantmaking & Community Organizing: Are You Seeing What I'm Seeing?

    Janis Foster Richardson
    2 Nov 2009 | 11:36 am
    I noticed something last week in northeast Ohio that I've been seeing across the grassroots grantmaking network - something that I'm hoping is really a trend and not something that I've conjured up from years of wishing it was so. What I'm spotting is more synergy between the resident-centered work that some place-based funders are doing and practice of community organizing.  And I'm being deliberate when I say the practice of community orgnaizing.  What is exciting is that I'm seeing more direct, practical connections between funders who are engaged in grassroots grantmaking and…

  • The On the Ground Ohio Experience

    Janis Foster Richardson
    28 Oct 2009 | 7:52 pm
    Here's a short animoto video with photos from our recent "On the Ground with Grassroots Grantmakers" in Ohio's Mahoning Valley.  Check it out and watch for info about dates and places for two more in 2010. There's music with this, so check your volume if you're at the office!

  • The Two Faces of Money

    Janis Foster Richardson
    27 Oct 2009 | 7:37 pm
    I just returned from a week on the road with three days in the Youngstown-Warren, Ohio area, "on the ground" with my peers from the grassroots grantmaking community. I'm full of new enthusiasm for the work of I'm privileged to do with Grassroots Grantmakers. I'm also deeply appreciative of the people and organizations that make up our network - the cream of the crop of the place-based funding world.  That's obviously my opinion, but an opinion that I'll comfortably share whenever and wherever I have the opportunity. I'll have some pictures to share shortly from last…

  • The Apples & Apples of Due Diligence

    Janis Foster Richardson
    17 Oct 2009 | 2:47 pm
    I've been thinking about a number of conversations I've had with funders recently who are intrigued by the idea of grassroots grantmaking but are a bit nervous.  And the source of their jitters?  Due diligence. I'll take a guess at what you're thinking.  The due diligence associated with making a grant to an unknown, unproven group (such as a group of neighbors who are getting together with a good idea) takes more time than the due diligence that goes with funding a proven, non-profit performer that you've made grants to previously.  So perhaps these funders are…
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    The Chronicle of Philanthropy - Prospecting

  • Balancing the Need for Flexible Support With Donors' Desire to Measure Results

    Caroline Preston
    6 Nov 2009 | 2:41 pm
    Donors increasingly want to see the results of their giving. That desire has contributed to the success of Kiva, the Web site that matches lenders in the United States with small business owners in poor countries. And it has posed challenges for groups like Doctors Without Borders, the international medical charity, which typically does not raise money for specific programs or emergencies. Doctors Without Borders emphasizes the importance of unrestricted support because the group doesn’t want to end up with more than it needs for one disaster and not enough for another, says Jennifer…

  • CNN Calls Fund Raising One of the Most Stressful Jobs

    Ian Wilhelm
    6 Nov 2009 | 7:41 am
    With today’s news that the unemployment rate has breached 10 percent, most Americans, including nonprofit workers, are probably thankful they have a job. But CNN is calling one charity position — fund raiser — one of the worst jobs in the country. On a list of 15 jobs that pay poorly and are stressful, fund raiser is No. 7, not too far from parole officer and high-school teacher. “No matter the cause, asking people to part with their money is not easy. And it doesn’t just happen at cocktail parties,” says the cable news channel on its Web site. Using a…

  • Economy Depresses Capital and Endowment Giving Most, Survey Finds

    Holly Hall
    6 Nov 2009 | 7:39 am
    The sour economy has put more of a damper on capital and endowment gifts than those for operating expenses, according to a new survey. In the survey of 43 institutions that have completed fiscal 2009, pledges in fiscal 2009 declined by an average of 33 percent compared with fiscal 2008. Cash gifts to pay for buildings and other capital projects to organizations in the survey — mostly private schools and colleges and universities — dropped by an average of 26 percent compared with fiscal 2008. Endowment gifts in 2009 had the next steepest drop, 19 percent on average. Meanwhile,…

  • Charity Receives Unusable World Series Apparel

    Ian Wilhelm
    5 Nov 2009 | 9:07 am
    It seems some needy Indonesians will be wearing Philadelphia Phillies T-shirts in the months ahead. After each World Series, Major League Baseball is left with merchandise that is unusable because it touts the losing team as world champions. (Like other sports organizations, the league produces apparel before the outcome of the championship games.) To make sure the hats and other items don’t go to waste, Major League Baseball donates them to World Vision, an international antipoverty group in Federal Way, Wash. On its Web site, World Vision says the discarded Phillies apparel will go to…

  • Crafting Winning Appeals: Presenting Examples of Impact

    Peter Panepento
    3 Nov 2009 | 9:18 am
    The Chronicle gives fund raisers the chance to have their peers critique drafts of their appeal letters to donors. Today we offer a letter from Santa Fe International Folk Art Market, in Santa Fe, N.M. It was submitted by Laura Sullivan, the organization’s development director. Ms. Sullivan said the letter will be printed on 8.5-inch by 14-inch paper with a tear-off reply form at the bottom and will be sent with a self-addressed return envelope. The mailing will also include a fund-raising brochure. The organization plans to send the letter to donors who have given to the organization…
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    Fundraising recession watch

  • The end of Fundraising Recession Watch...

    15 Oct 2009 | 2:34 pm
    Well, not quite. But I am not getting enough new stuff from other sources, and have lots of other blogs / newsletters and things to keep up to date so will only occasionally add things here. It will remain as a resource, a lot of useful articles and links here worth searching through.Any new information will go up on my blog. Please subscribe to its feeds!In the mean time, check out this recession busting story here all about Starlight and how they reacted to the crisis in Australia - including a pack they put out telling people how they had been affected. They raised over 100% more than last…

  • Recession increasing demand on two-thirds of Australian charities

    24 Aug 2009 | 8:34 am
    According to their recent survey, Aussie charity research agency Givewell tells us that "almost two-thirds of charities have experienced a material increase in the demand for their services for the 2009 financial year, with a near 5% increase in demand for the important services the charity sector provides."Of the Humanitarian charities, and astonishing 100% said they had an increased demand, but only 63% blame the recession. Ninety-one per cent of welfare organsations said they had an increased demand and 78% blamed the recession. Of community support organisations, 76% said they had…

  • UK Trusts show commitment - or do they?

    20 Aug 2009 | 8:20 pm
    Two apparently contradictory stories in the current Charity Times Enewsalert:"Falls in grant-making and asset value for top charitiesNew analysis of the impact of the recession on charity fundraising shows 41 percent of the top 300 charitable trusts saw a fall in the value of their grant-making in 2008..."Says one intro but another report in the same Enewsalert says..."Charitable trusts show commitment to supporting charities, reveals reportCharitable trusts and foundations realise now is not the time to turn off the tap of support for Britain’s charities, according to new research…

  • Australian Tax Time Appeal Analysis

    16 Aug 2009 | 8:05 pm
    For most Australian charities who mail DM appeals, our winter appeals (May-June) are often the most important, often more so than Christmas. These are known as 'tax appeals' because the end of the tax year is 30 June.Fiona Paterson, data expert and senior consultant at Pareto Fundraising analysed a load of charities actual results - and it makes for good reading.Has the recession hit Australian individual giving yet?Check out the article here.Sean

  • Donor attitudes to giving in the credit crunch

    10 Aug 2009 | 6:39 pm
    Jonathan Waddingham, Charity Champion* at JustGiving sent me some research on donor attitudes in the UK, so an update. Data is from April. Charities have raised over AUD$1bn through JustGiving so you'd hope he has good transactional data too... (I much prefer transactional data to opinion, but that's just my opinion).Bottom line:Slightly more people say they have been affected financially by the recent economic downturn (now 58%, 52% in Jan/Feb)Slightly more say they are thinking harder about how much to give - now 57%, up from 47% in Jan/Feb.The majority - 61% - are not reconsidering their…
 
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    Will Marlow

  • Dragons Live Here: Three Things That Will Kill Your Online Fundraising

    Will Marlow
    5 Nov 2009 | 11:14 am
    Here are three Worst Practices to avoid in your online fundraising campaign 1.  Do NOT put someone in charge of online fundraising who does not understand traditional fundraising. Here’s the reality of online fundraising: it’s like any other type of fundraising – the only difference being that it takes place through online channels.  It is FAR easier to teach someone who understands fundraising how to use Facebook than it is to teach someone who understands Facebook how to do fundraising. 2.  If your online fundraising strategy can be summarized as the hope of converting a…

  • The Only Three Things You Need to Know About Cloud Computing

    Will Marlow
    29 Oct 2009 | 12:31 pm
    If you understand a few simple things about the phenomena known as “cloud computing,” you’ll understand one of the most revolutionary forces that is shaping the landscape of technology. The simple summary of cloud computing is this: software that is completely accessible over the Internet. What does that mean? It means that your computer could break, but your software would keep going.  You could spill coffee on your hard drive, but your data will survive.  This is because the data lives on the cloud, which is a metaphor for the Internet.  This also means that when you travel, you…

  • The Second Step to Getting Your Organization Quoted in the News

    Will Marlow
    23 Oct 2009 | 11:47 am
    (This is the second of two posts on getting your organization quoted in news stories.  Click here or the first post in this series.) The second step (click here to re-read the first step) to getting your organization quoted in the news is pretty easy.   All you need to do is: (a) read the newspaper and (b) keep a record of the names of reporters who write stories that you wish you were quoted in.  If you’re disciplined about clipping only relevant news stories and saving the names and contact information for the right reporters, you’ll quickly have a powerful list of…

  • The Secret to Getting Your Organization Quoted in the Media

    Will Marlow
    5 Oct 2009 | 7:39 am
    (This is the first of two posts on getting your organization quoted in news stories.  Click here for the second post in this series.) Measure everything you can.  That way when reporters are writing stories about trends in your industry, they won’t need to settle for the abstract general statistics that are usually the impetus for their story in the first place. Most schools and charities don’t track nearly as many facts about their fundraising as they could.  According to a recent study of 550 major schools, two thirds don’t even track the total number of online gifts they…

  • Analytics: As Good As Money?

    Will Marlow
    23 Sep 2009 | 2:09 pm
    Once you have the basics of a modern online fundraising strategy in place, the basics being (1) a website, (2) an E-Newsletter, and (3) a social media plan, you are ALMOST done. It is often overlooked, but without adding ANY cost to your operation, you can put in place an analytic program that measures everything that happens on your website, your donation page, your E-Newsletter, as well as in the social media stratosphere. Not only can you measure the obvious stuff, such as where your traffic is coming from (Twitter? Facebook? Some crazy guy’s blog?), but you can also analyze exactly what…
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    Kiva Loans

  • Alona Apigo : Philippines

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:40 pm
    $0 of $100 raised. Started raising funds on Nov 6, 2009 Alona is a hog raiser in the village of Sto. Niño, San Agustin. She would like to renovate her pigs' pen and buy additional feed supply for her pigs. However, the income she is earning is not enough, so she wants to borrow a loan form Kiva lenders amounting to Php4,000. With that amount she knows that the renovation of her pigs' pen and the purchase of additional feed for her animals will become reality. Alona is married to Wilmer, who is a farmer. They are blessed with six children: Wilson-21 years old, Wojay-19 years old, Wilmer…

  • Babacar Dieng : Senegal

    6 Nov 2009 | 1:30 pm
    $500 of $800 raised. Started raising funds on Nov 6, 2009 Babacar Dieng is a former member of the branch office of Baye Laye.  He just repaid his fourth loan.  He is well-known for dedication and dynamism in his work.  He is married and has four children, aged 8 months to 8 years.  He also has four people to support.  Before becoming a merchant, he was a furniture-maker working in ebony for fifteen years.  It's a trade he chose out of love.  Next he tried running a telecentre.  For two years, he has been specializing in selling food items. Commerce being work that brings in a lot for…

  • Loung Ly Ang : Cambodia

    6 Nov 2009 | 12:30 pm
    $300 of $1,100 raised. Started raising funds on Nov 6, 2009 Mrs. Loung Ly Ang, age 27, and her husband, Kong Loung, 34 (he appears in the photo), live in their own small house with their two children in Kampong Chhnang Province. To earn a living, this couple sells cooking ingredients that they buy in bulk from the market at reasonable prices. Some of their clients are their nearby neighbors who buy their produce on credit for a few days. To satisfy their client needs, Long Ly Ang has applied for a loan to use as capital to buy a larger quantity of grocery items.

  • By Sopha : Cambodia

    6 Nov 2009 | 11:20 am
    $400 of $1,200 raised. Started raising funds on Nov 6, 2009 By Sopha is married and lives with one young child. She works as a farmer in the Kampong Cham province, typically making $2 each day. She is supported by her husband, who works and sells land. Her husband needs to replace the old wheels, so the family would like a loan of $1,200 to purchase the wheels.

  • Issa Kubwimana : Rwanda

    6 Nov 2009 | 7:10 am
    $500 of $900 raised. Started raising funds on Nov 6, 2009 Issa Kubwimana is 41 years old and is married with four children aged 3 through 14. He and his family live in the Musanze district in the Northern Province of Rwanda. Issa has been an entrepreneur for five years in selling beans,rice,maize,sorghum in his local community. He employs 3 people in his business and his shop is open early every day, starting from 5 in the morning to 6 in the evening. Issa is requesting his first loan from Vision Finance Company in order to have sufficient capital to purchase more foodstuff for his shop which…
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