Fundraiser Education

There are a lot of fundraisers out there who are in their comfort zone. They don't like change; they might be afraid of change. If you are doing everything right, the need for change is obviously less urgent. However, most of us are not doing everything right. So there is a big chance you can improve your fundraising. And the only one stopping you is … well, eh … YOU!

The more of the following symptoms you recognize, the more you might be in very serious trouble …

It's the beginning of the week, the weather is rubbish, I missed my train and forgot my swimming stuff for my lunchtime swim. Oh and I am back from annual leave. I am, therefore, in a very grumpy mood and thought instead of writing deep and meaningful blogs about fundraising we could do a lighthearted look at all that is wrong with it.

Mission envy — most nonprofits have at least a minor case of it. Thinking that another organization in your community has it "made." Knowing that the reasons it is so successful are because it has the perfect board members, the easy-to-sell mission, the broad base of community support, the beautiful building(s), the smart and outgoing executive director, a strong development staff. In short — that organization clearly has it all!

Much of fundraising is an art, not a science. Knowing when a prospect is ripe for an ask or how to craft a case for support that really tugs on the heartstrings takes experience and practice. There are, however, several immutable, undeniable laws of great fundraising that are so very essential to the process that they can’t be overstated. Simply put, if you want to be a thriving nonprofit with rapidly growing fundraising revenue, the following rules are incontestable.

Ted Hart speaks with Andrea Kihlstedt, co-founder of Asking Matters and author of "Asking Styles: Harness Your Personal Fundraising Power," about fundraising power on his Nonprofit Coach radio show.

What are the basic things any organization can do to build a successful matching-gift program? The first step is to create an internal organizational awareness and commitment to matching gifts. The next most important step is to educate donors about matching gifts and implement an easy way for donors to verify if their gifts are match-eligible. A lot of people don’t know what a matching gift is and have no time to research if their employers offer a matching-gift program. 

Here are some words of wisdom culled from the June 2006 issue of FundRaising Success.

The 8-S Model is designed to provide nonprofit leaders a complete engagement platform to build avid supporters, strong public support, and most importantly of all, sustainable and scalable funding engines. These drivers are universal, and each component reinforces and builds on each of the others.

he first three months are crucial in a new job. You are under intense scrutiny to perform, especiall

This very healthy school of philanthropy has been born to serve future generations. I cannot wait to see how it grows and prospers!