Blackbaud

Blackbaud released findings from its Next Generation of American Giving study that explores charitable-giving trends and engagement behaviors and attitudes across four different generations — matures (68+), boomers (49-67), Gen X (33-48) and Gen Y (18-32). Baby boomers are emerging as the dominant force in charitable giving, responsible for 43 percent of all dollars donated. The study also revealed that multichannel engagement is the new normal, but the ideal mix varies from generation to generation.

The Blackbaud Index reported that overall charitable giving grew 2.2 percent and online giving grew 14 percent for the first half of 2013 as compared to the first half of 2012. In addition, overall charitable giving increased 3.6 percent and online giving increased 13.9 percent for the three months ending June 2013 as compared to the same period in 2012.

As reported in the recently released Charitable Giving Report, overall giving grew approximately 2 percent for the full year 2012 and online giving grew by about 11 percent in 2012 compared to 2011.

Recent tweets from folks you should be following.

The Blackbaud Index reported that overall charitable giving increased 1.1 percent and online giving increased 15.2 percent for the three months ending May 2013 as compared to the same period in 2012. As reported in the recently released Charitable Giving Report, overall giving grew approximately 2 percent for the full year 2012 and online giving grew by about 11 percent in 2012 compared to 2011.

Like it or not, June 30 is right around the corner. If this marks the end of your fiscal year, this week can be pretty stressful. What’s the best way to alleviate that stress? Activate some simple strategies to finish the year on a strong note. Here’s a simple checklist to make sure you don’t leave money on the table.

First, create a list of donors from the past three years that haven’t given this year. Next, make sure all potential prospects have been solicited. Finally, make calls to individuals with unpaid pledges.

How does your organization compare to its peers in the online fundraising space? Is your organization doing everything it should be doing online? Are your fundraising programs performing as they should be?  Download Blackbaud's 2013 Online Marketing Benchmark Study for Nonprofits today and find out!

It’s very easy to become paralyzed by the variety of opinions about how to optimize donation forms for the purpose of improving online giving and donor acquisition. There’s no magic answer to the ideal calibration of layout, copy, images, fields, offer and headline that drives the highest possible levels of donor acquisition. Here are three things you can do today, without reworking your entire online strategy, to have an impact in acquiring new donors.

The 8-S Model is designed to provide nonprofit leaders a complete engagement platform to build avid supporters, strong public support, and most importantly of all, sustainable and scalable funding engines. These drivers are universal, and each component reinforces and builds on each of the others.

Rather than changing careers, I've found a few things that have helped me survive — and yes, even thrive. Check them out, or set this aside for a day when you need it.

In the wake of this week's deadly tornado in Oklahoma, we're rerunning this May 2010 Q&A with Blackbaud's Steve MacLaughlin, who talks about fundraising lessons learned from the earthquake that devastated Haiti in January of that year.