Creative

In July 2008, Jeff Brooks warned that no matter how good an idea is, it can hurt you if you do it wrong in his Easier Said Than Done column, "Useful Truths: Apply With Care."

If you're in a real hurry to drive your fundraising program into the ground by driving away your donors, here are some common nonprofit practices that can help you along the way: 1. Write and design to please yourself. 2. Have a braggy, self-centered brand. 3. Educate your donors. 4. Don't tell stories. 5. Don't offer your donors choices. 6. Take a long time to acknowledge gifts. 7. Send your donors generic acknowledgments, not genuine thank-yous. 8. Never report back to donors what their giving accomplished. 9. Let your donor data be sloppy.

In 1984 Robert Cialdini wrote a groundbreaking book, "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion," outlining principles of influence that affect human behaviors. A new infographic visually makes the point that, while technology advances, human triggers remain constant.

Even someone inclined to support your cause may not give unless you push the right buttons. Here are five triggers with a few suggested strategies (I’m sure you can come up with more) to use these principles in your offline and online relationship building with prospective supporters.

To celebrate 30 years of evolving fundraising thinking, here is a new eight-stage cycle that has been tested, adapted and applied for the 21st century and beyond: 1. Stories. 2. Connection. 3. Inspiration. 4. Engagement. 5. Conversation. 6. Belonging. 7. Inspiration. 8. Appreciation.

Storytelling can influence social change. And the time is now. Today, each of us has the opportunity, and the platform, to not only share our stories but also to play a role in creating positive impact by informing the global conversation. Beverly Schwartz, VP of global marketing at Ashoka, author of “Rippling: How Social Entrepreneurs Spread Innovation throughout the World,” shares three (and a half) storytelling tips: 1. Be your own change. 2. Speak from your heart, share your truth. 3. Accessible, relevant and realistic examples allow others to see their own power.

Being relevant in the lives of your nonprofit’s supporters doesn’t usually happen by accident. Use this checklist to determine if you are doing what it takes to be relevant. The more you agree with these statements, the better!

1. We know and understand the people we are communicating with.
2. We regularly and systematically listen to their concerns, ideas, issues, compliments, and complaints.
3. We segment our lists so that people get the information that is most relevant to them.

HubSpot featured how charity: water puts its donors at the center of its success stories in its marketing and fundraising. Here are three important takeaways for you to apply to your work: Show where the money goes, share your progress and illustrate your impact in human terms.

Educate-the-donors fundraisers have a different approach: They use fundraising offers whether they work or not, because the goal is to give donors a "rounded" picture of the work. That means they trot out calls to action that most donors don't understand and don't respond to. Donor-educators believe it's worth the price. Some claim it will pay off over the long term as non-responding donors have aha moments. Others just seem to want to be understood, despite the cost.

In the December 2007 issue, fundraising consultant and all-around smarty-pants Jeff Brooks offered four ways to keep your newsletter out of the birdcage — for a while, at least — in his Easier Said than Done column, "The Better Newsletter."

Here are five pitfalls to avoid if you want to raise more, not less, direct-mail revenue for your organization this year: 1. Mail less. 2. Don't ask. 3. Go for the brain, not the heart. 4. Talk a lot about yourself. 5. Sound real smart.