A kinder, back-to-basics approach to donor relations amounted to a 30 percent increase in contributions for D.C.’s Heritage Foundation.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

“You think, ‘Dammit, why haven’t we been doing [more of] this?’ “ he says of those realizations that come in a flash and are so sweet in their simplicity that it’s almost shameful they weren’t thought of before.

“It’s common sense,” he says. “If you make a $15 contribution to an organization, how do you want to be treated? First, you want to be thanked. You want to be treated with respect. You want to know where the gift is going and what impact it’ll have.