Strategic Planning

The nonprofit industry is becoming more diversified and complex and as donor behaviors continue to evolve, it is imperative that direct-response fundraisers adopt new methods and/or solutions for quantifying the impact of their marketing investments. The days are gone when fundraisers could measure a campaign’s effectiveness or performance in a single media/channel view...

Often, when the topic of sustainability arises, the focus is on money. But after several decades working in the nonprofit sector, I’ve become convinced sustainability is about so much more than money. I have developed 20 key strategies any organization can use to build long-term sustainability...

To be the best professional you can be, always strive to improve your memory and acquire new learning concepts. I have found that letter association helps me create lists around concepts. Whatever letter you use, letter association should help you in your quest to cluster concepts...

When you’re evaluating of the effectiveness of a fundraising program, you often have to look no farther than the internal language being used by the staff and volunteers who execute that program. Professional jargon is an unfortunate occurrence in just about any profession...

When your major gift officers end their meetings with major donors or prospects, what do you think is the first thing they do? You probably guessed right. Your team member grabs his or her mobile device to check emails and social media. We live in a world that is all about on-demand information...

If your organization is looking to rebrand itself, you’re going to need to establish a brand strategy, which comprises of positioning and personality. Trompeter and Guida define positioning as “the single idea you hope to own in the minds of your target audiences...

Summer is a perfect time to catch up on good books. Not only salacious romance novels and suspenseful mysteries, but also reading that can advance your skills, career and overall perspective. Looking for a management page-turner? A book about a nonprofit pioneer that you just can’t put down?...

There’s no substitute for the basics, as boring and tedious as they may be. This is true with anything in life, and major gifts development is no exception. The basics are boring, but they’re fundamental to your success...

Most people, businesses and charities that have achieved great success emphasize the why over the what and the how. Of course, the what and the how are a lot easier than the why, but if you properly understand and express your why, people who feel similarly will buy from you or donate to you willingly, regularly and for a very long time...

How does modern design impact your donation page? As modern Web design relies more and more on user experience, it’s brought new design elements to donation pages and landing pages. We like to think that having a beautiful donation page or landing page means we’ll get more donations...