Fundraiser Education

We often hear of “competition” between organizations fighting for the same cause. Some lament the number of “competitors” seeking cures, treatments or programs to remedy the same ailment or condition. This notion, that sharing a vision for the future means competing for resources, must be dispelled. In order to flourish, like-minded organizations must support one…

McKenzie recently took me up on my offer for a brief consult. It was a pleasure to speak with her. She’s the director of development for an organization that has multiple fundraising outreach initiatives....

Calendar or fiscal year, you are only months away from the greatest season to thank donors, cultivate prospective donors and to secure gifts. What are your plans? Are you ready? Is your team ready? How fast are you moving?...

Customer experiences in the commercial industry declined year-over-year. What about with your nonprofit?

For many professionals, if you think of the No. 10, you think of perfection, the ultimate score to attain. If you are a perfectionist like I am, you strive to be the best in your chosen endeavor. I attempt, at times, to motivate my staff to be the best they can be in their own area of focus. If you stop and decide to rate your development program on a 10-scale, grade your program on the following 10 program attributes needed for complete program success...

Rebranding any type of product, service, company or school can be extremely challenging work, but one of the most difficult pieces to rebrand is an annual fund. Fundraising of any type can be very difficult to brand because there are so many working parts to consider as you piece together your graphic masterpiece. Not only do you have to consider your donors, but you also have to consider your alumni, other graphics being used by the university and the image you hope to encapsulate, as well as many other elements...

Daniel Moughon, an insurance salesman from Fort Worth, Texas, said he knew long-shot Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina was special after listening to one of her early Iowa speeches. He's donated to her 10 times since then. Moughon is not giving millions, though. He's not even giving thousands. In fact, he has added just $273…

College is expensive. For a single mother with four sons, three of whom are in college, the costs can be nightmare-inducing. Why not ask friends, family and the community to help out while everyone has a good time partying? San Diego Unified School Board President Marne Foster has discovered how much trouble a parent and…

First there was “Movember,” where men started growing mustaches every November to raise awareness of men’s health issues. Now, the nonprofit Feeding America is launching a new campaign called “Spoontember” to bring attention to the hunger problem by getting people to balance spoons on their noses. For the integrated campaign, created by Feeding America with…

Learn why forward-thinking organizations are shifting focus to outcome measures – and what solution they are using to make it happen.