Books: ‘Fundraising for Dummies'

Gulf Coast residents dealing with the oil that's spilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Haiti's homeless earthquake survivors seeking shelter for the hurricane season. Actors starting a nonprofit theater company. Whether fundraisers plan to solve 
environmental or humanitarian disasters, or otherwise improve the quality of life, the authors of the third edition of "Fundraising for Dummies" think they can help them accomplish their goals.

Katherine Murray and John Mutz delve into how fundraisers can, for instance, explore the world of social media to cut costs while increasing donations. Here, the authors tell FundRaising Success what nonprofits can do to survive and thrive past 2010.

FS: How does this book add
ress challenges fundraisers are seeing in this economy?

Katherine Murray and John Mutz: Almost one half of the original [book] was rewritten with the tough economy in mind. We wanted to talk about not only fundraising in tight times, but a bigger and even more important topic — how to fundraise when the boat is pitching and swaying. We all know the economy is inching back toward stability, but we've been living through some tough lessons — most notably, "How do we do what we do when the bottom falls out of our fundraising?" We include lots of ideas of ways you can assess next steps, make tough calls, help support your board and trim the fat in your budget. We also help fundraisers think ahead — not just to the days when there will be plenty, but to the days in both the near and distant future as we continually reassess our needs and our goals.

The third edition also includes a full chapter on social media and much more on using the Web to do research, make contacts, and share what used to go by print and mail. (This can be a huge money saver, by the way, and rescue a few trees in the process.) We also talk about reworking strategic plans with new priorities, using PR to replace paid advertising, continuing smart planned-giving programs, rekindling of your passion around the cause, connecting with your donors in authentic ways and keeping your chin up — because this is truly a noble profession where lots of good work gets done.