Key Points From the Conference

One of the points the panelists kept returning to was the need for nonprofits to change the way they regard — and treat — donors.

Charlie Cadigan, managing director of Frontline Data Group, mentioned that a speaker in a session on donor acquisition he attended pointed out that acquisition is an investment and that it is therefore important for development staffers to have a constant awareness of what it means to a donor — on a spiritual and emotional level — when she makes a donation. He said making a donation is an important “part of self-definition for donors.” He suggested that all nonprofits might benefit from instituting employee donation programs and be as interactive with donors as possible.