Reflections on 10 Years

FundRaising Success published its first issue in November 2003, which makes this our 10-year anniversary year. To celebrate, we’ll be taking a look back at past issues throughout the year.

To start, here are some words of wisdom culled from stories that appeared in our January/February 2004 issue.

From Terri Shoemaker, then manager of direct marketing at America’s Second Harvest, which is now Feeding America (cover story, “Feeding the Need”):

• “The biggest thing to look out for is being too involved to see the forest for the trees. When you are in doubt about something (from the detail level to an overall program perspective), ask for an outside opinion.”
• “Be sure to test everything and anything.”
• “Don’t be afraid to make wise investments in your program. Be a tireless advocate for your expense budget. Investments do pay off, and data bears that out.”
• “Listen to your donors. The $5 donor has as much of an opinion about how they are treated as a $5,000 donor.”
• “The truth lies in the data 90 percent of the time. The rest of the time, it’s pure instinct that will see you through.”

From Andy Wilder, then senior director of analytics at Epsilon (feature, “A Closer Look at Models”):

• “Some passionate supporters of RFA will dismiss the mounting case studies supporting the use of predictive models, arguing that RFA delivers adequate results with minimal investment. However, we’re living in a time when adequate results are not keeping pace with escalating costs and attrition rates. Fortunately, small improvements in response or average gift can have a profound impact on a fundraising program. And the cost of building, maintaining and implementing predictive models turns out to be comparable to — if not less than — the cost of traditional RFA.”

From Jerry Huntsinger, ageless direct-marketing curmudgeon and guru (feature, “Be Persistent, Not Pushy”):