3 Ways to Turn Facebook Supporters Into Recurring Supporters
Guest post by Nick Black, Founder and CEO of GoodUnited Even as nonprofit supporters flock to Facebook to donate to their friends and family members’ fundraisers, create their own fundraisers, and share their peer-to-peer event participation far and wide, few nonprofits are actually engaging with those supporters on a meaningful level. Looking forward to fundraising […]
MIT’s Epstein Scandal: A Fundraising Parable for Us All
Trust. It’s the bedrock of every relationship, personal and professional. It’s also integral to ethics. And ethics have been on my mind a lot, since the bombshell revelation about the MIT Media Lab. Is it just me? I’ve been trying to get my head around how this could happen. Having spent my in-house fundraising career […]
Is Your Nonprofit Starving or Dream-Brokering?
Why does the nonprofit sector feel like it’s in starvation mode? Giving USA reported new record contributions of $400 billion in 2017. That’s more than the budgets of HHS, HUD, the EPA, and the Departments of Education, State, and Interior combined. We know people want to make a difference and see giving as a way […]
2019 Fundraising Trends – And How to Take Advantage of Them
How was your January, fundraiser friend? I view January as a test run of sorts, before we really embark on a new year and new resolutions. This may feel especially true as we’re still figuring out what happened in 2018. Last year we saw lower year-end fundraising results. We saw a decline in the number […]
Two Secrets to Donor Happiness
Recently I led a training that covered a wide range of fundraising fundamentals. Afterward, I asked participants what they learned. Overwhelmingly – and, honestly, to my surprise – most said they now understood the importance of thanking and reporting back to donors. Why did this catch me by surprise? Often fundraisers just want to learn […]
Why Mr. Rogers Made Me Cry: How To Inspire Donors To Be The Helpers In This World
I recently saw the documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor? about the creation of Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood and the role it played in establishing PBS’ television presence. I recall watching the show as a child, so was intrigued to learn more about this iconic program now, through the eyes of a parent. I was […]
What’s Holding You Back? How To Communicate With Donors So They Are Inspired to Give
What’s holding you back? A simple yet powerful question. It was the question I asked a corporate donor many years ago, which changed the trajectory of their relationship with my organization. I had taken over a portfolio from another colleague, and was briefed on one donor who had pledged a multi-million gift, but hadn’t yet […]
Are You Building Relationships Or Collecting Checks? Why Donors Leave the Organizations They Support
Source: Banksy On December 31st, 2017, I became a statistic. I joined the 60% of donors who become former donors to the charities they had been supporting. I was the textbook definition of a below the radar donor with potential. I had loyally supported a few smaller to mid-size nonprofits at a self-selected mid-level giving […]
Seeing Fundraising Through A Donor’s Eyes
As human beings, we are hard wired for connection. Our brains are literally designed to form bonds and seek families—biological or synthetic. Behavioral psychologists have done lots of research to understand how our brains respond to philanthropy and volunteer. Three different studies* I’ve come across all concluded that there’s a correlation between a person’s charitable […]