Fundraiser Education

Wall Street investors famously coined the phrase, “It’s all about the Benjamins,” referring to the hundred dollar bill that bears Benjamin Franklin’s likeness. As it turns out, Franklin can give us a few tips about how to maximize fundraising dollars...

PayPal created its Charitable Giving Fund as a convenient way to donate to your favorite charities. Seems like a simple enough transaction, right? Unfortunately, Friends for Health and Terry Kass recently slammed PayPal with a class action lawsuit for allegedly redirecting charitable funds to other nonprofit organizations without notifying the donor (or the organization that the donation was originally intended for)...

When your focus is on a donor’s potential capacity rather than their passion, you’re making assumptions. When your focus is on their job title or the neighborhood they live in rather than their commitment, you’re making assumptions. When your focus is on the color of their skin or their age or gender, you’re making assumptions...

I suppose all of us are trying to make deep gladness happen in our lives in some way or another. I know I am. I have discovered there is direct correlation between my happiness and serving others. It goes up when I am giving myself away. It goes down when I am focused on me. It’s counterintuitive, I know. But it’s true...

Fundraising is a high-stake, high-anxiety field. Both staff members and board members face constant anxiety and fear of failure. And the anxiety ramps up during capital campaigns when the goals and consequences of failure are even higher.

Trends change every year, bringing new opportunities that are tied to new challenges. Many of them impact donor and volunteer perceptions. Based on my time working in the nonprofit environment, I'm noting specific trends in anticipation for the remainder of 2017. Here are some of the challenges I foresee and some thoughts on how to…

In our digitally dependent era, there are various ways to donate funds online. A donor can make a donation through their smartphone faster than we can count to 10. Technological innovation is at its peak right now, and we think it’s going to continue to grow and grow—rapidly, too. Included in the countless forms of online payments are bitcoins. What are do you think? Is bitcoin the currency of the future?...

When is a donor-cultivation event more about building your organization’s profile than it is about fundraising? How can you be sure that your “friendraiser” is actually moving you towards the achievement of your fundraising goals? Events can be great fun, excellent for networking and for catching up with people in the community, but sometimes I…

Peer-to-Peer fundraising is a great way to engage your donors and get them to participate in some healthy, happy, fun physical activity. We are currently surrounded by a world promoting fitness and wellness. Just look around: From fitness tracker watches (FitBit, Apple Watch) to food tracking apps (MyFitnessPal, My Macros+) to the numerous amount of “#fitspos” out there popping up like dandelions—all of these things keep you motivated to stay healthy and find any excuse to engage in physical activity, right?...

Are those of us who earn our income as fundraisers professionals? Oddly, that’s something I never really considered. I’ve always considered myself a professional and strived to act accordingly. But seeing how the occasional few in the name of fundraising act dishonorably or even illegally to increase contributions and/or their income does certainly point to at least some who view fundraising as simply a way to earn a living...