I Have Some Good News … and Some Bad News About Fundraising

But more often, it takes time to build a culture of giving among your constituents. Perhaps they have been supporting your Fourth of July parade float for years or sending in annual gifts to help you provide a Thanksgiving meal to families in need. Now you ask for $25 for your ongoing work. You're going to have to build a case, and that takes time for some.

Hopefully many of your non-responders are like browsers; they were willing to take a look and their interest has been raised. They may not donate today, but with additional prompting, some will. Proven fundraising tactics work — but don't expect them to work instantaneously.

There are 1.4 million nonprofits in the United States alone, and many of them are proof that fundraising works. But it takes effort and a willingness to stick with it. This old dog has seen a lot of "miracle workers" come and go, always promising magic — but the only magic is how quickly they completely disappear.

Do you have what it takes for the long haul? That's a mark of a true fundraising professional.