Plymouth, Mass.

Unique selling proposition … benefit-oriented messaging … brand management — sounds like a bunch of advertising execs talking strategy, doesn’t it? Could be. Or it just as easily could be a bunch of development professionals.

April 25, 2006 By Erica Waasdorp Monthly giving typically occurs in one of the following ways: 1) Through the donor's bank account (Electronic Funds Transfer or EFT) automatically and long-term. The donor needs to take action to cancel it. 2) Through the donor's credit card account. This is automatic, but renewal when the credit card expires is advisable. This is the ideal moment to upgrade and usually garners higher average gifts. 3) Through regular statements sent to the donor. This is the least advisable, and most responsive. Often a starting point for conversion to type 1 or 2 above.

Life as a PBS station is a tough gig. Providing much-needed programming related to news, history, the arts and education made possible by hard-won donor support, public broadcasting easily can be taken for granted amid the mass of television channels available today.

As the nature and characteristics of various donor-base paradigms evolve, the Internet will be the response medium of choice for a fast-growing number of donors and prospects. Setting up a successful e-mail fundraising program requires patience and investment. Meanwhile, aggressive direct mail probably will remain the core technique, certainly among those whose initial or ongoing gifts have been achieved via this medium. Rather than a replacement, e-fundraising is another tool in the arsenal of cultivation and fundraising programs -- one that will fit both a specific niche as well as a complementary role. Following are some tips for creating, sustaining