Major Gifts

How to Completely Change Nonprofit Fundraising, Marketing – Part 2
May 18, 2016 at 9:00 am

In part one of this article, we looked at how nonprofit marketing, fundraising and sales are synonymous. Sadly, they too often have been siloed—resulting in inconsistent messaging, confused donors and money left on the table. Let’s get practical. It’s been crystal clear since the explosion of media and messaging post digital revolution that if you still are thinking outbound marketing, you’re a dinosaur...

How to Rally the Program People
May 16, 2016 at 11:20 am

I was so impressed with the way my colleague Sharon Kerr, who works for The Salvation Army in California, organized and rallied her program people that I had to pass it on to you to copy and use, with her permission...

5 Ways We Can Do Philanthropy Better
May 12, 2016 at 11:20 am

One of the biggest fallacies of philanthropy is the expectation that money will solve everything and that more money equals greater results. Trillions of dollars are spent globally on social and environmental issues, and very few problems have been solved. Why is that? We’ve been focused on the wrong things. Our assumptions, traditions and self-interest…

You Are Not Ordinary—20 Attributes That Make You Great!
May 9, 2016 at 11:20 am

What is happening out there? I’m seeing too many major gift officers (MGOs) who play small, do enough just to get by, and seem to want to drift through their careers just long enough so they can retire and head to Florida. How did this happen? I just want to take these good people (and,…

Are Conservative Donors Bullying This Public University?
May 3, 2016 at 10:04 am

George Mason University’s president has responded to concerns raised by faculty, students and others that the public university has become overly dependent on private donations—questions prompted by one recent gift from a foundation with conservative ties and another that asked that the university’s law school be renamed to honor late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin…

Who You Are Affects Your Donors
May 2, 2016 at 9:00 am

Who are you? Have you been asked that question? My wife asked me that several weeks ago when I was having a meltdown on a particular subject that was especially frustrating to me. She did not recognize me in my reaction. I was not aligning to my stated beliefs and values. I was someone else...

Why Britain's Rich Are Getting Richer, Giving Less to Charity
April 27, 2016 at 12:01 pm

The annual Sunday Times Rich List is a reminder that, for a select number of our fellow citizens, money seems to fall like confetti. The chance to compare the wealth of billionaires with plain old multimillionaires doesn’t come along that often. It is a strangely compelling reading. My eye, however, is quickly drawn to the…

Nike Co-Founder Plans to Give Most of His $25B Fortune to Charity
April 26, 2016 at 9:42 am

Nike co-founder Phil Knight is worth an estimated $25 billion, and plans to give most of it away to charity, he told CBS in an interview that aired Sunday. "By the time, you know, the lives of my children and their kids run out, I will have given most of it to charity," Knight said…

Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy Changes Name After Receiving Large Donation
April 26, 2016 at 9:34 am

The Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy at Plymouth University has changed its name after receiving a $1 million donation to expand its work. The center has become the Hartsook Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy after receiving the donation from the U.S.-based fundraising consultancy Hartsook. The center said in a statement that it planned to use the funds…

Are You Really a Major-Gift Officer?
April 25, 2016 at 11:39 am

I’m angry. Recently, a major gift officer (MGO) reached out to us at Veritus desperate to understand her problem. "I feel like I’m doing everything wrong," she said. "I read your blog posts about major gifts and that feels right to me, but my boss is saying I have to ask people for money who I’ve never even met or know and, in many cases, have never given before....