Claire Axelrad

This is the biggest fundraising time of the year. Don’t sleep through it!

Twice in the past month I’ve been asked for a major gift. Pretty much out of the blue. Without much preparation, relationship-building or making of an inspiring case for support. It was clear to me what the charity would get out of it: my money. It was not so clear what I would get out of it. Should I not care?...

While you were sleeping, something transformative happened. People began to behave differently. To get their information differently. To communicate with their friends differently. To purchase things differently. We live in a digitally revolutionized, highly connected, hugely networked zeitgeist...

Claire Axelrad, JD, CFRE, principal of Clairification, ties enduring moral tales to effective major gift fundraising strategies. There’s a lot of common sense here, and these stories provide important reminders...

One of my pet peeves as a donor is making a contribution (via a peer-to-peer request or tribute gift in honor or memory) in support of a friend; then receiving nothing but a form receipt...

A recent opinion piece by Frank Bruni in The New York Times, "How to Get the Most Out of College," really resonated with me. And not just because I have a stepdaughter—just packed off to her brand new dorm room, filled with a mixture of trepidation and exhilaration...

Probably not as much as you might think. But… a little bit. This article covers how major donor prospects are fundamentally the same as other prospects. After all, first and foremost, they’re people. And people want to feel good...

Claire Axelrad writes on Clairification about how the most donor-centric thing you can do is ask people for a philanthropic gift. Of course, not all the time. And not without being diligent about matching what you ask for to who you ask and what they care about. And not without tempering your “ask” approaches with “gift” approaches; you do have to do a fair amount of wooing...

Claire Axelrad writes on Clairification about the four criteria that influence donor decision-making, and they're not based on your needs. If you’re relying on prospective donors to deliberate on the merits of your appeal based on the need you convey, you’re on the wrong track...

Just when you thought you already had too much to worry about with figuring out how to maximize social media and make your communications all mobile responsive, now there’s one more thing...

There are three things I’ve found donors love when it comes to making donations: 1. to leverage their money; 2. to be part of a winning strategy; and 3. to be in control of how their money is used…

Many nonprofits are stuck. They’re tethered to their early decisions—often made by others who came before them. But times change. Organizations evolve. Or they don’t...

If you want to be sustainable over the long haul, you must incorporate this dual-pronged goal into your values and planning. The values part is critical, because if you don’t have goodwill internally (in how you treat your colleagues) you’re unlikely to have goodwill externally (in how others perceive you)...

Storytelling has been "hot" for some time now and for good reason. Our human brains are wired for storytelling. We’re automatically open and receptive. So, you’d be foolish not to use this to your advantage when it comes to your nonprofit marketing and fundraising—especially if your goal is to raise money. Storytelling is not difficult once you get the knack of it...

Today, we’re going to look at a great tool for building those important relationships with top prospects over time. And we all know that is what will result in the big gift. You know how important it is to put a plan in place to build relationships, right? It’s super de-duper important if you want to secure major gifts. I’m talking about “moves management...