Editor's Note: Use Us ... We Like It

With an uncertain economy tightening purse strings, war and terrorism drawing people into themselves, and high-profile scandals undermining the public trust, these are challenging times for nonprofits. But they’re exciting times too, because from challenge comes change ... and growth.

The development challenges that plague nonprofits these days are a powerful impetus for change in the fundraising world. And there’s an increasing need for a catalyst for that change, a clearinghouse of ideas, a place where the professionals go to share and learn.

That’s where FundRaising Success comes in. This new magazine will provide a practical guide for nonprofit organizations. The majority of the editorial space in each issue will be filled with proven strategies that even the most seasoned development staffs will find useful.

Theory is all well and good, and there certainly is no dearth of topics for fundraising professionals to discuss around the water cooler. But it’s the stuff that keeps those pros up at night that FS is all about. What happened when the Heritage Foundation rethought its approach to donor relationships? How do you figure the appropriate amount to request from donors? And what to do about those folks who used to give but stopped?

In addition to concrete, strategy-based articles, we’ll run profiles of your peers and case studies of hugely successful campaigns. We’ll also report on industry news and trends, and on books and technologies that will help you do your job.

The team behind FS is a cohesive amalgam of philanthropy, direct marketing and journalism professionals who know where to find this vital information and how to present it. Our staff is backed by an Editorial Advisory Board that represents decades of experience in fundraising for nonprofits and that will work with us to keep FS focused and on target. As a staff, we’ll be reaching out to the rest of the fundraising community, as well, to find out what you need and want.

I got some insight into those needs when I attended my first official event as editor-in-chief of FundRaising Success. It was just a little thing ... a little thing called the Direct Marketing Association New York Nonprofit Conference in August. I was offered the position on Monday and was collecting my DMA tote bag at the Waldorf-Astoria on Tuesday.

Over the course of those two days, I was immersed in the most minute details, the nuts and bolts of the fundraising milieu. I met, learned with, ate with and laughed with you, the readership of FundRaising Success, the people who fuel the machine that is fundraising for nonprofit organizations.

And it is a machine. Unlike corporate interests that often run on profit and power, the fundraising industry is greased by compassion and a desire to make the world a better, safer, saner place. But it’s a machine, nonetheless, with moving parts that have to be tended to, replaced, integrated and oiled on a regular basis. It’s also an art. And a science. It’s more complex and fascinating than most people on the outside could ever imagine. Even the folks on the inside have a lot to digest in their quest to keep the coffers healthy.

FundRaising Success is looking forward to helping facilitate growth in your organizations. It’s our sincere hope that you’ll join us, guide us, support us and, most importantly, use us in that capacity.