Blackbaud

The combination of holiday spirit and the last chance to snag a tax write-off means donors of all levels open their wallets. This year, experts say, people plan to open them a little wider.

Rick Dunham, a Dallas-based authority on charitable giving, names the performance of the stock market as the most important indicator of how much individuals and companies give each year. Slight economic recovery in 2010 should translate to dollar signs for nonprofits.

As charities are faced with an increased demand in services with just a slight recovery in giving in 2010, Blackbaud Inc. has a renewed focus on its corporate value "service to others makes the world a better place.” Just this year, the company participated in countless philanthropic initiatives; from donating over 4,469 toys during the holidays, and launching the Nonprofit Leadership Circle, to receiving the Green Business Pioneer Award.

This week's insider news includes new agency partnerships for The Salvation Army and Amnesty International USA; and a program to support multichannel giving by U.K. organizations.

Nonprofit organizations of all sizes have a valuable opportunity to strengthen their messaging with the just-launched Nonprofit Tagline Database.

Blackbaud announced that Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation selected Blackbaud Friends Asking Friends® as the online and offline event management solution for its newest fundraising event, Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer. The Foundation, which supports Canada’s leading cancer research institution, Princess Margaret Hospital, is using Friends Asking Friends combined with an innovative social media campaign to expand its supporter base and raise money for cancer research.

This week's insider news includes a new acquisition, corporate citizenship initiatives and announcement of industry accolades.

Fundraisers are noticing slight increases in donations, but not enough to keep pace with higher demand for charitable services in today's economic environment.

U.S. nonprofit organizations are seeing a slight increase in donations — a sign they hope is the beginning of economic recovery — but the turnaround hasn’t been strong enough to keep up with higher demand for charitable services, a national report released Monday said. About a third of America’s charities reported an increase in donations during the first nine months of 2010, and they said they expect more good news in the fourth quarter, according to data collected by a coalition called the Nonprofit Research Collaborative.

Blackbaud has furthered its dedication to the local and nonprofit communities with its new focus on corporate citizenship. Blackbaud will continue to deliver on its corporate value "service to others makes the world a better place” with a team dedicated to the growth of its corporate citizenship commitment.

According to the recently released 2010 Global State of the Nonprofit Industry survey by Blackbaud, four global fundraising trends emerged from the data. Here are those four trends shared in the press release.