Capital Campaigns

Have you hit anyone up this week? Have you twisted arms? Have you called in the big guns to help you lean on your best targets? Do those words make you cringe? I sure hope so. Because if they don’t, then you’ve got some serious work to do to reshape the way you think about fundraising...

The National Park Foundation is commemorating the National Park Service’s 100th anniversary with its $350 million Centennial Campaign for America’s National Parks...

Have you ever thrown spaghetti at the wall? Either literally or figuratively? This week, try doing something just a bit outrageous just to remind yourself that you can and to know what it feels like...

The day after Thanksgiving, the holidays hit full-force. And it’s not just the radio stations blasting “Here Comes Santa Claus” every half hour—it’s the shopping frenzies of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Thankfully, (no pun intended) for the past four years, we’ve had a day to shift the focus away from materialism and back to the true spirit of the holidays: Giving Tuesday...

If you are planning a capital campaign, you should develop your skills at managing conference calls. The success of capital campaigns will depend on your ability to recruit and manage great volunteers. And these days, pulling volunteers together for meetings is harder than ever...

Giving Tuesday has revolutionized giving days. A movement that started in 2012 by 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation, Giving Tuesday aims to “celebrate and encourage giving during a commercially focused season,” Jessie Salpeter, senior digital account executive for Chapman Cubine and Hussey, said during the DMA Nonprofit Federation Conference...

A stalled campaign is NOT the time to sit back and wait until the money comes in. Unless you take a bold and clear initiative, your organization is likely to be left with a failed campaign, a big debt and a black eye in your community...

Michael Govan is spearheading the Los Angeles County Museums of Art's massive $600 million capital campaign. This campaign has been recurring subject at Inside Philanthropy, replete with dramatic headlines ("Fundraising on a Tightrope") and questions surrounding the wisdom of such ambitious projects. Each project, of course, is unique. Risk is relative. On paper, the Crystal Bridges…

Whatever you do, don’t assume that your board members know what they are doing. Chance are high that they don’t. Your capital campaign gives you a wonderful opportunity to train them. The stakes are high, and you can develop a small training program just for them. Consider this three-part approach...

Are you worried that your capital campaign is going to fall short of its goal? Here are two stories about campaigns that had goal problems, along with some troubleshooting tips...