Fundraiser Education

Hey fundraisers, have you ever had an idea for a direct mail piece, an email subject line, a special event, a premium/freemium or anything else that was so crazy there's no way it should work—only it did? If so, we want to hear from you!...

Success in P2P requires more than simply hosting a cool event and telling participants to go fundraise. It’s an art, as or more nuanced than traditional fundraising methods and perhaps even less understood. So, we’ve called in some help. Here, straight from the experts—the people on the front lines of P2P—are 12 ideas to take your peer-to-peer fundraising to the next level...

It is important to be metrics-driven in fundraising. Yes, fundraising is relationship-based, but it is vital that metrics, including the number of visits and the number of asks, be included in goals and performance reviews. This is not just for accountability—it is a very useful tool of focus for the fundraising professional...

You probably remember the photo of the body of a little Syrian boy, washed up on a Turkish beach in September 2015. It's a hard photo to look at; he looks like he's sleeping, in that sprawling, completely relaxed way that toddlers sleep. But he's not asleep. This photo galvanized (sort of) humanitarian response to…

We all want to expand the work we are doing so we can make progress on our missions. But we need strategies, budgets and programs to make fundraising succeed. Simply saying “because I say so” isn’t enough. What can you do if you are facing unrealistic expectations?...

Last blog, we discussed keeping score and how people want to be on a winning team in part four of this fundraising and football series. This week, in the final installment, we’re covering three more things fundraisers can learn from the game. 9. You must keep focused. There is a lot of noise in the…

Would you like to be a better writer? Would you like to be a more effective public speaker? Would you like to engage donors in conversations that are more meaningful? I have some good news for you. Being a more successful communicator is easier than you think. Here is just one simple thing you can…

I can’t believe 2017 is already here! Are you ready for it? Is your fundraising ready for it? How will you be increasing fundraising revenue and strengthening donor relationships this year? Learn what smart fundraisers will be doing—and download a free 2017 fundraising and marketing calendar!...

We are behind in our Christmas fundraising efforts. From a seasoned fundraiser perspective, nothing weighs more heavily during the holidays than the stress of that simple fact. It is now my job to create the plan of attack for the next nine months to achieve the fiscal year fundraising goal, which will not be easy. When others in need depend upon your success, you constantly strive to seek solutions...

In part one of this two-part series, we talked about six friends you absolutely must make if you want to increase your fundraising results this year—and sustain and grow them over time. Today, we look at six more...