Creative

The Future of Donor Acquisition Is Digital
April 25, 2017 at 10:53 am

Monthly giving is seeing double-digit increases in year-over-year growth, and for good reason. Nonprofits depend on a continuously scalable base of donors and revenue to fund their important missions and services. Among the many options in an organization’s fundraising portfolio, monthly giving offers a more reliable, steady income stream that is resilient to economic ups and downs...

Grammy Museum Merges With Grammy Foundation on Music Preservation Efforts
April 24, 2017 at 9:26 am

Since its launch in 2008, the 30,000-square foot Grammy Museum in downtown Los Angeles has provided not only an entertaining look at the enduring legacy of music (one of Michael Jackson's sequined gloves is prominently on display), but also serves as an educational tool, teaching thousands of schoolkids each year about the history and social…

Throwing Spaghetti for Capital Campaign Success
April 24, 2017 at 9:18 am

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...

When Should You Give Up on a Lapsed Monthly Donor?
April 24, 2017 at 9:06 am

A year or so ago, I joined 20 organizations with a monthly gift. And (sneaky me), I gave them a card that was going to expire a month later. I then tracked what organizations did in terms of “thank you” letters and actions to try to get me back...

15 Key Steps to Set Up a Charity
April 20, 2017 at 3:29 pm

Nonprofit charitable organizations are intended to operate for the public good. When a nonprofit charitable organization is qualified as tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), donors can generally deduct their contributions to the charity on their tax returns. Donors are thus more likely to support charitable organizations that have an…

5 Trends Facing Nonprofits Now
April 20, 2017 at 3:24 pm

Evaluating—or re-evaluating—recruiting strategy, community outreach and ways to improve volunteer programs should include a thorough understanding of current trends and changes impacting the nonprofit sector. In conducting our latest research into the state of volunteerism and volunteer screening in America, we asked for feedback from more than 700 nonprofit professionals...

#GivingTuesday Donations on the Rise
April 19, 2017 at 2:53 pm

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...

Wisdom from My Mom to Supercharge Your Fundraising
April 19, 2017 at 2:40 pm

My mother was known for having impeccable manners. At her memorial service, it seemed as if every other person who shared a memory talked about her manners. They did so not in a nitpicking way, but in a loving way. It seemed she always knew just the right thing to do to show her appreciation...

Random Fundraising Resources and Thoughts
April 19, 2017 at 2:30 pm

Learn from others. Measure what matters. Start out right. Live out thankfulness. This old dog knows that it takes more than these four things to be a successful and fulfilled fundraiser, but this isn’t a bad place to begin for anyone new to the profession or looking to hit the reset button on his or her career in the nonprofit sector...