Fundraiser Education

They say when life gives you history, you make history-ade. Or something. That's what Gabe Fulmerhouser did, anyway. In need of a summer hobby, the enterprising 8-year-old from Jackson, Mich., decided he'd dispense history lessons at a roadside stand for 25 cents a pop, with all proceeds going to charity, naturally. He's raised $140.25 so far, and rather than buying a World of Warcraft subscription and some Mountain Dew, like most kids would, he plans to donate it...

It is midway through 2016. In a few short months we will enter the holiday season. Most of us are either halfway through a fiscal year or just beginning a new one. In either case, it is time to take professional stock of where you are and where you are going. Last week, we discussed steps for a midyear personal checkup. This time, let's talk about the 10 steps for a professional nonprofit fundraising checkup...

Social media is one of the powerful tools that fundraisers have sitting in their back pockets. At no cost to the nonprofit or to the participant, powerful fundraising messages can be communicated to the participant’s personal network. This includes many potential supporters that the fundraiser may not have been comfortable contacting directly. Additionally, this is an effective method for increasing the visibility of both the nonprofit and the participant’s upcoming event...

If your job title falls under the category of “one-person development department,” it’s very likely that, sometimes, you feel like a chicken running around with its head cut off. Ah, the pressure. How on earth is a smart development director to do it all? Brace yourself for the big news, folks: You shouldn’t want to focus on all of that stuff, because you don’t have to focus on all of that stuff. Just look at Trader Joe's...

Good customer service is not always something we talk about in the nonprofit sector. As a sector, we often veil the concept in euphemisms, like “donor-centric fundraising” or “quality case-management.” Industry slang aside, the concepts of good customer service are the foundation of any good organization...

When you meet someone and they ask what your nonprofit does, what do you say? If you’re like most people, it sounds something like this: “We’re a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing rescue services to at-risk populations in blah, blah, jargon, jargon, acronym, acronym, blah, blah.” Boring. Your listener tuned out about two seconds in. Being able…

We’ll dig deeper into when innovation makes sense. When does it really have value? I’ll be suggesting three additional questions for you to consider prior to adopting a new idea. And I’ll offer you a whole new set of tools to help you arrive at answers...

I’m going to rant for a minute here. Over the last six months, I’ve explored more than five dozen nonprofit development operations, and, in many ways, I’ve been disappointed at what I’ve seen. That’s not to say that these programs are failures or that the people in these organizations aren’t doing good and meaningful work.…

As a nonprofit professional, you’ve likely seen and heard your fair share of nonprofit gossip and fundraising myths. It can be difficult to tell myth from reality, especially when so many nonprofit best practices are just bad pieces of advice that get spun into the truth. But have no fear! We’re about to shatter some…

The post-digital revolution has indeed made change inevitable. "Business as usual" is no longer even possible. That’s a given, and charities must adapt. Much has to do with the fact that our would-be supporters today are all part of "Generation C"—they are connected and networked in ways that were previously (and not so long ago) unimaginable...