As "The Godfather" showed, you're most persuasive when you give people what they want most. Here's how this can help with major gift offers.
How-to Guides
Looking for Jeff? You'll find him either on the lake, laughing with good friends, or helping nonprofits develop to their full potential.
Jeff believes that successful fundraising is built on a bedrock of relevant, consistent messaging; sound practices; the nurturing of relationships; and impeccable stewardship. And that organizations that adhere to those standards serve as beacons to others that aspire to them. The Bedrocks & Beacons blog will provide strategic information to help nonprofits be both.
Jeff has more than 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience and is a member of the NonProfit PRO Editorial Advisory Board.
Pamela Barden is an independent fundraising consultant focused on direct response. You can read more of her fundraising columns here.
Duke Haddad, Ed.D., CFRE, is currently associate director of development, director of capital campaigns and director of corporate development for The Salvation Army Indiana Division in Indianapolis. He also serves as president of Duke Haddad and Associates LLC and is a freelance instructor for Nonprofit Web Advisor.
He has been a contributing author to NonProfit PRO since 2008.
He received his doctorate degree from West Virginia University with an emphasis on education administration plus a dissertation on donor characteristics. He received a master’s degree from Marshall University with an emphasis on public administration plus a thesis on annual fund analysis. He secured a bachelor’s degree (cum laude) with an emphasis on marketing/management. He has done post graduate work at the University of Louisville.
Duke has received the Fundraising Executive of the Year Award, from the Association of Fundraising Professionals Indiana Chapter. He also was given the Outstanding West Virginian Award, Kentucky Colonel Award and Sagamore of the Wabash Award from the governors of West Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana, respectively, for his many career contributions in the field of philanthropy. He has maintained a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) designation for three decades.
Jamie Ray-Leonetti, Esq. is a staff attorney with the Philadelphia-based Disability Rights Pennsylvania. She is also a regular contributor to NonProfit PRO, writing the Legal Matters column.
Erica Waasdorp is one of the leading experts on monthly giving. She is the president of A Direct Solution, a company serving nonprofit organizations with fundraising and direct marketing needs, with a focus on monthly giving and appeals. She authored "Monthly Giving: The Sleeping Giant" and "Monthly Giving Made Easy." She regularly blogs and presents on fundraising, appeals and monthly giving — in person and through webinars. She is happy to answer any questions you may have about this great way of improving retention rates for your donors.
Erica has over 30 years of experience in nonprofits and direct response. She helped the nonprofits she works with raise millions of dollars through monthly giving programs. She is also very actively supports organizations with annual fund planning and execution, ranging from copywriting, creative, lists, print and mail execution.
When she’s not working or writing, Erica can be found on the golf course (she’s a straight shooter) or quietly reading a book. And if there’s an event with a live band, she and her husband, Patrick, can be found on the dance floor. She also loves watching British drama on PBS. Erica and Patrick have two step sons and a cat, Mientje.
If you like craft fairs, baseball games, art openings, vocal and guitar, and political conversation, you’ll like to hang out with Claire Axelrad. Claire, J.D., CFRE, will inspire you through her philosophy of philanthropy, not fundraising. After a 30-year development career that earned her the AFP “Outstanding Fundraising Professional of the Year” award, Claire left the trenches to begin her coaching/teaching practice, Clairification. Claire is also a featured expert and chief fundraising coach for Bloomerang, She’ll be your guide, so you can be your donor’s guide on their philanthropic journey. A member of the California State Bar and graduate of Princeton University, Claire currently resides in San Francisco.
Mark founded Cathexis Partners in 2008 to help nonprofit organizations get the most from their existing technology tools, implement new technology to address gaps and find the best overall approach to using technology to support their missions. He previously served as director of IT consulting at a fundraising event production company focused on nonprofits.
Mark also serves on the editorial advisory board for NonProfit PRO, where he contributes monthly to his blog, “Nonprofit Tech Matters.”
If you’re hanging with Richard it won’t be long before you’ll be laughing.
He always finds something funny in everything. But when the conversation is about people, their money and giving, you’ll find a deeply caring counselor who helps donors fulfill their passions and interests. Richard believes that successful major-gift fundraising is not fundamentally about securing revenue for good causes. Instead it is about helping donors express who they are through their giving. The Connections blog will provide practical information on how to do this successfully. Richard has more than 30 years of nonprofit leadership and fundraising experience, and is founding partner of the Veritus Group.
Jeff Schreifels is the principal owner of Veritus Group — an agency that partners with nonprofits to create, build and manage mid-level fundraising, major gifts and planned giving programs. In his 32-plus year career, Jeff has worked with hundreds of nonprofits, helping to raise more than $400 million in revenue.
Wayne Elsey is the founder and CEO of Elsey Enterprises. Among his various independent brands, he is also the founder and CEO of Funds2Orgs, a social enterprise that helps nonprofits, schools, churches, civic groups, individuals and others raise funds, while helping to support micro-enterprise (small business) opportunities in developing nations and the environment.
You can learn more about Wayne and obtain free resources, including his books on his blog, Not Your Father’s Charity.
Leeann Alameda has more than 20 years of experience in directing and implementing best practices in marketing, branding, communications and advertising in both the private and nonprofit sectors. She is the founder and principal consultant of Alameda Marketing Solutions, which provides marketing strategy and branding services for nonprofits, foundations and mission-driven businesses.
Kristy Morris is a creative professional in corporate and nonprofit social media advertising and brand strategy. As the chief marketing officer at Funds2Orgs and Elsey Enterprises, she works with a suite of global fundraising brands and manages national campaigns for her clients. She hosts a monthly webinar with Funds2Orgs, teaching nonprofits how to make an impact with their social media strategy. Kristy is a passionate individual that loves nothing more than to help others make an impact in their market and the world.
Kristy also contributes monthly to her NonProfit PRO blog, “Marketing IRL.”
With nearly three decades of experience in the philanthropic sector, Alicia M. Lifrak is a Certified Fund-Raising Executive with demonstrated success in leadership, strategic planning, operations, budget management, board leadership, membership, program, marketing and all forms of fundraising. She is driven by a focus on developing and implementing strategic solutions that yield the best possible results in pursuit of mission achievement.
She currently serves as executive vice president for the Gabriel Group, an OSG company, leading the nonprofit division in offering full-service fundraising, marketing and strategy consultation to clients. Prior to joining Gabriel Group, Alicia spent 25 years leading teams to achieve exceptional results in nonprofit and higher education.
After moving around the U.S. for most of her life, Alicia now lives in Illinois with her four kids, a cat and a dog. She travels frequently, for work and for fun, is an avid reader and loves to see live music.
Katrina VanHuss has helped national nonprofits raise funds and friends since 1989 when she founded Turnkey. Her client’s successes and her dedication to research have made her a sought-after speaker, presenting at national conferences for Blackbaud, Peer to Peer Professional Forum, Nonprofit PRO, The Need Help Foundation and her clients’ national meetings. The firm’s work is underpinned by the study and application of behavioral economics and social psychology. Turnkey provides project engagements, coaching, counsel and staffing to nonprofits seeking to improve revenue or create new revenue. Her work extends into organizational alignment efforts and executive coaching.
Katrina regularly shares her wit and business experiences on her and Otis Fulton's NonProfit PRO blog “Peeling the Onion.” She and Otis are also co-authors of the books, "Dollar Dash: The Behavioral Economics of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising" and "Social Fundraising: Mining the New Peer-to-Peer Landscape." When not writing or researching, Katrina likes to make things — furniture from reclaimed wood, new gardens, food with no recipe. Katrina’s favorite Saturday is spent cleaning out the garage, mowing the grass, making something new, all while listening to loud music by now-deceased black women, throwing in a few sets on the weight bench off and on, then collapsing on the couch with her husband Otis to gang-watch new Netflix series whilst drinking sauvignon blanc.
Katrina grew up on a Virginia beef cattle and tobacco farm with her three brothers. She is accordingly skilled in hand to hand combat and witty repartee — skills gained at the expense of her brothers. Katrina’s claim to fame is having made it to the “American Gladiator” Richmond competition as a finalist in her late 20s, progressing in the competition until a strangely large blonde woman knocked her off a pedestal with an oversized pain-inducing Q-tip. Katrina’s mantra for life is “Be nice. Do good. Embrace embarrassment.” Clearly she’s got No. 3 down.
Luke Dringoli first worked in the private sector with brands like Unilever, Dodge, Lexus, USA Network and STARZ where he used technology to forge connections and build digital communities. Now, as senior marketing technology director at Media Cause, Luke works with nonprofits and organizations, such as United Nations Development Programme, Stand Up to Cancer and Center for American Progress, to use technology — the right mix of platforms, integrations, and tracking solutions — to achieve more impact. There are few things he enjoys more than helping his clients realize that technology can give them back time in their day — instead of taking away from it.
Peter Panepento is co-founder and managing partner of Turn Two Communications, a full-service PR and communications agency that specializes in supporting nonprofits and foundations.
Paul D’Alessandro, J.D., CFRE, is a vice president at Innovest Portfolio Solutions. He is also the founder of High Impact Nonprofit Advisors (HNA), and D’Alessandro Inc. (DAI), which is a fundraising and strategic management consulting company. With more than 30 years of experience in the philanthropic sector, he’s the author of “The Future of Fundraising: How Philanthropy’s Future is Here with Donors Dictating the Terms.”
He has worked with hundreds of nonprofits to raise more than $1 billion dollars for his clients in the U.S. and abroad. In addition, as a nonprofit and business expert — who is also a practicing attorney — Paul has worked with high-level global philanthropists, vetting and negotiating their strategic gifts to charitable causes. Paul understands that today’s environment requires innovation and fresh thinking, which is why he launched HNA to train and coach leaders who want to make a difference in the world.
Dennis C. Miller, the founder and chairman of DCM Associates Inc., is a nationally recognized expert in nonprofit leadership executive search, and board and leadership performance coaching with more than 35 years of experience working with nonprofit board leadership and chief executives across the country.
Dennis is an expert in board governance, leadership development, philanthropy and succession planning. He is the author of five books, including "A Guide to Recruiting Your Next CEO: The Executive Search Handbook for Nonprofit Boards."
Eric Ryan has dedicated 25 years of his professional life to service. He is the co-founder of Mission Met, a company devoted to making strategic planning easier and more effective for nonprofit and organizational leaders around the world. Although he has focused on serving small nonprofits, Eric has also consulted with numerous corporations and government entities.
In addition to his consulting work, he has started one nonprofit, been an executive director, and served on several boards as both treasurer and board chair. He led the creation of nonprofit strategic planning software, Causey, and is the author of "Mission Met: Proven Strategic Planning Guidance to Help You Build a Financially Secure and Impactful Nonprofit."
Romaine Seguin is the CEO of Good360, which helps Fortune 500 companies and other organizations resolve the business challenge of responsibly distributing excess goods for maximum impact.
James Herlihy has spent more than 16 years in the nonprofit digital space, founding and developing digital teams at nonprofits (including Amnesty International and ActionAid) and agencies in Australia and Europe. He has held roles from senior management to consultant, digital production and marketing, and has been active in strategy and product development. He has run digital campaigns on every continent, with standout projects including Soi Dog’s “I Didn’t Know” campaign, which acquired more than 110,000 donors, millions of dollars in revenue and achieved significant real-world change for animal welfare in South-East Asia.
James is a thought-leader in the digital nonprofit space, regularly publishing articles in international fundraising media and presenting at conferences and in webinars. He is also active in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space, working part-time as a core contributor to web3 startup, Amasa.
Parvathy Sree is the vice president of AmTrust Nonprofit Underwriting, managing growth and profitability for nonprofits’ products. She has more than 18 years of expertise in underwriting, marketing, talent management, product development, risk management and strategic planning.
If you like craft fairs, baseball games, art openings, vocal and guitar, and political conversation, you’ll like to hang out with Claire Axelrad. Claire, J.D., CFRE, will inspire you through her philosophy of philanthropy, not fundraising. After a 30-year development career that earned her the AFP “Outstanding Fundraising Professional of the Year” award, Claire left the trenches to begin her coaching/teaching practice, Clairification. Claire is also a featured expert and chief fundraising coach for Bloomerang, She’ll be your guide, so you can be your donor’s guide on their philanthropic journey. A member of the California State Bar and graduate of Princeton University, Claire currently resides in San Francisco.
Megan Landau is a media director at Media Cause, a nonprofit marketing and fundraising agency. She worked in the for-profit world prior to joining Media Cause, managing media budgets and campaigns for clients, including Ford, InnovAge, Denver International Airport, and Hack Reactor.
Megan loves being able to bring her media experience to the nonprofit world through her work at Media Cause. She thrives when she’s able to use her creative, big-picture-oriented ENFP brain alongside nitty gritty performance data.
Murad Bushnaq is the founder and CEO of Morweb. Since its inception in 2014, Murad has acted as creative director and chief technologist to help nonprofits spread their vision online through engaging design, intuitive software and strategic communication.
Taylor Gray has been a trustee and treasurer of the Countess Moira Charitable Foundation since its inception and is a member of the board of directors of Exponent Philanthropy, a national, member-led community of lean funders.
His interest in promoting practical and scalable approaches to qualitative and quantitative impact measurement in the philanthropic space is an outgrowth of his long career in the financial services industry. He volunteers his time and expertise to grantees of the foundation and to other entities as well.
Amanda L. Cole is the editor-in-chief of NonProfit PRO. She was formerly editor-in-chief of special projects for NonProfit PRO's sister publication, Promo Marketing. Contact her at acole@napco.com.
Felida Villarreal currently serves as the president and CEO of Valley Initiative for Development and Advancement (VIDA), committed to higher education attainment and expanding accessibility to equitable education opportunities. She is also responsible for implementing and maintaining regional alliances for resource development and public funding in the educational nonprofit sector, ensuring fiscal integrity and compliance with all public and private grant funded requirements.
Prior to this role, Felida also served as VIDA’s deputy executive director and director of finance. In addition, she has nearly a decade of accounting and financial management experience in the private and public sector.
Felida is a Certified Public Accountant and an active licensee of the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy. She holds a master’s degree in accountancy from the University of Texas – Rio Grande Valley and a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a major in accounting from the University of Texas – Pan American.
She actively volunteers her time to promote community involvement, currently serving as a board director for local organization, City of Mercedes Chamber of Commerce as well as a member of the Fast Company executive board. She also currently serves in the Hidalgo County’s Prosperity Taskforce, an initiative to address the ongoing challenges of poverty and promote economic mobility through education.
Jessica Ayre is a content marketing specialist at Text Request, a business messaging solution.
Kalie VanDewater is associate content and online editor at NAPCO Media.
Karen Kendrick is the senior director of learning at Veritus Group. She has a master’s degree in education and counseling and more than 28 years’ experience in nonprofit fundraising — both in the education market and for social service agencies.
Karen has served as program director and executive director of a nonprofit, giving her both programmatic and administrative experience. She has created strong comprehensive fundraising programs from the ground up and served as a director of development and major gift officer.
Rebecca Britt is a nonprofit interventionist with a master's degree in program evaluation, who has internationally scaled her own programs Stable Moments and For Purpose Live, helping nonprofits get clear and focused so they can make a big impact.
I made the impact roadmap framework to help build strategic plans that help your organization address challenges. Here's how to make yours.
Attract the right guests, engage them, and keep the buzz going long after your event.
Here's what needs to be in place to grow your relationship with a donor and how to handle various situations that may come up.
It’s clear that text messaging is an increasingly important and efficient channel for nonprofits to build connections with supporters, donors, and volunteers. Texting software for NPOs that’s best-in-class allows you to personalize messages, automate features, and report on valuable metrics. Download this Buyer’s Guide to learn how to evaluate and choose the solution that’s the best fit for your organization.
In order to achieve their missions, nonprofits must get funding. One of the ways an organization can do this is through a giving day. Here, nonprofit professionals explore the pros and cons of giving days, as well as provide tips on how to best utilize a giving day.