Fundraiser Education

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” When you were in first grade, I bet you didn’t say, “I want to be a fundraiser!” Me? I wanted to be Matlock. For so many of us, a fundraising career is something we fell into, or, perhaps, is a “second act” after our first career…

I’m celebrating my 15-year anniversary as a fundraiser! In a blog post five years ago, I wrote about the best strategic ingredients for a successful fundraising program. Let’s try that again and see if I want to change my perspective now I’ve grown older. Fundraisers are gold. Quality fundraising staff makes all the difference. Without…

If everyone is so focused on donor retention, why do people have trouble with the concept of “donor relations” and “donor experience”?...

A sparrow landed on Bernie Sanders’ podium in Portland, Oregon and the Internet went bonkers. Within hours, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter were flooded with trending topics about #BirdieSanders. You Can’t Predict What Will Go Viral If I told you that a sparrow literally would perch herself on Bernie’s podium and light up the Internet, you’d…

Social media may be good at raising awareness, but—contrary to the success of the Ice Bucket Challenge—it may not be so great at getting people to donate to an organization. This was one of the significant findings of a new study published in Sociological Science. The research found that while social media campaigns may attract…

What’s the No. 1 predictor of fundraising success? According the Individual Donor Benchmark Report, it all comes down to creating a plan. In short, it’s not the fundraising plan itself, but the act of planning. Simply taking time to reflect and put goals in writing is the leading indicator of how much you’ll bring in…

Every fundraising ask for a gift consists of humans playing various parts to achieve a common purpose. The ultimate purpose of fundraising is to secure large gifts if possible. It is not easy and rather complex. After obtaining a large gift, it always is wise to dissect the ask and seek ways to improve strategy and performance. The next ask always is around the corner...

Fundraisers have a heavy burden, especially when there’s a long list of rules to follow in our fundraising communication to please all the internal pundits. It’s easy to lose focus on the experts in donor loyalty—the donors themselves. So what are the building blocks for donor loyalty?...

"Just ask Oprah!" the board member gleefully proclaimed—like it was that easy. Behind her smile, the development director was fuming. She wanted to say, "Sure! When can you set up the meeting?" Almost every organization I train is frustrated with its board. In every webinar, classroom training or custom training I lead, I get an…

There’s a new way of thinking coming along that is shaping the future of fundraising. It’s a move away from the narrow idea of simple “fundraising” that focuses on “money.” It’s a move toward a much broader, more holistic notion of “philanthropy.” It’s a special land. It’s where fundraising is valued and considered an important part of…