Fundraiser Education

Superman is boring. Or, he was at first. Think about it. Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall building in a single bound. X-ray vision. Invulnerable. He should never lose any conflict with anyone. Yawn. Who could sustain interest in a hero who automatically wins every time? That's…

Sue Miller thought she had found her niche, selling homes for Lennar Corp., the development company her husband Leonard co-founded. This was 1982, and Miller answered the phone at her Star Island home in Miami Beach, Fla. On the other end, a representative from the charity United Way. Miller had already been a volunteer, but…

Many of you are immersed in your year-end appeals, but if you think you can rest easy once the letters have gone out, think again. Your work has just begun. In fact, what comes next is even more important, especially if you want to to keep your donors for a long time. I write a…

If you get to know me for more than five minutes, you will learn that I relate fundraising and development to sports. There are so many parallels to each entity. So, whenever I hear Wayne Gretzky's famous quote, "You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take,” I immediately think of fundraising solicitations...

Earlier this month, many of us experienced what felt like a miracle—the Chicago Cubs won the World Series. Even if you are not a baseball fan, or if you supported the Cleveland Indians (the Cubs’ very worthy opponent), there are some great takeaways for fundraisers from the season that ended a 108-year stretch of losing...

Whenever I start working with a new client I’ll mystery shop them. Sometimes it’s just an email asking a quick question. About 50 percent of charities don’t reply. That’s a little scary. And it becomes really scary if you happen to agree with what I’m saying: Every call is a fundraising call and every email…

The other day, I was thinking about what the perfect resource-development job is like. In this complex society and profession, there are many moving parts in play. In my mind, however, I thought, "Wouldn’t our jobs be easier if we created our own organizational vision of the perfect nonprofit organization?" Here's what my dream organization would look like...

While knowing facts and statistics is interesting, actually doing something with that knowledge can be revolutionary—or at least a start to improving our fundraising efforts. As you consider the final eight weeks of 2016, here are some facts that can give you a boost as you make your final efforts to meet your goals for the year...

To successfully retain donors, nonprofits need to invest time into cultivating and maintaining long-lasting relationships from the first donation onward. With a concrete donor-stewardship plan in place, donors will feel more valued and invested in your nonprofit. While you may understand the importance of donor stewardship, it’s not always clear how to take the best…

We go to bizarre lengths in our endless pursuit of “free." Dear fundraiser, I implore you: Rather than thinking first of economies, let your first thought always be to embrace grace and gratitude at every step of the donor cultivation process. Make gratitude a daily habit and integrate it into your life, fundraising and beyond...