I made the mistake in a discussion with a volunteer committee of saying that we did not have a coordinated strategy, and I will not make that mistake again. The result of my misstep was that everyone wanted to define a different approach. The intention of the meeting was to brainstorm ideas and mobilize the [...] Related posts:

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3. Business Before Pleasure
4. Drowning in Agendas
5. Campaign Strategy: Capital Campaign Interview

Every development professional I know spends a lot of time thinking about how they can get their current donors more engaged with their fundraising efforts. We ask questions like, “How can I get our donors to get involved on an event committee?” And, “How can we get Mr. Smith to introduce us to his colleagues [...] Related posts:

1. All Donors as Major Donors
2. More on All Donors as Major Donors
3. Organizing Your Donors
4. Cultivating Supporters
5. Prospecting New and Existing Donors

So, you’ve decided to go ahead and create a fundraising website for your group? Once you’ve selected a domain and a host and set up your site (see Create A Website), you’re ready to add content. At the very least your fundraising site should have the following: - A blog A blog will allow you [...]

My father does a lot of work in Latin America, specifically in Nicaragua. He has said a number of times that the poor of Nicaragua don’t need a handout, they need the motivation to do something themselves. We are all very much that way; if we can do something the easy way we will. If [...] No related posts.

A little boy is in Sunday school at church and his teacher asks him a question, “What lives in a tree, eats nuts, and has a bushy tail?” The little boy thinks for a moment and says, “I know the answer is Jesus, but it sounds like a squirrel.” Who Jesus is and the message [...] Related posts:

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5. Taking Ownership on Your Projects

A cell phone fundraiser is an easy way to raise money. You are just getting people to donate their old cell phones, something they have no more use for anyway. But even though you are making money by collecting phones that people no longer use, you still have to know how to get the most [...] Related posts:

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While working on a proposal for a significant merit-based endowment, a co-worker made an insightful comment. He said donors who set up endowments picture themselves as the individual receiving it. We can’t quite make this a rule of thumb, but it does give us a glimpse into the mind of the donor. If you’re creating [...] Related posts:

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Just ask Kate Atwood, who got some incredible visibility around her birthday fundraising efforts when she appeared on the Today Show: Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Here’s how to create a great fundraising campaign for your birthday or another event: 1. Make your FirstGiving page. Select a nonprofit and customize your [...]

This month’s Featured Fundraiser is Sandy Clark. Feel free to leave a comment with questions or let me know if you’d like more information about her organization. If you know of a fundraising professional that I should feature here, I’d love to hear your nomination just send me an email. – Jason What kind of [...] Related posts:

1. Featured Fundraiser: Tom McLagan
2. Featured Fundraiser: James Tobias
3. Featured Fundraiser: Sarah Kaiser
4. Solicitation Stories: Featured Fundraiser Tom McLagan
5. Featured Fundraiser: Dan Smith

Writing a donation request letter for youth arts and sports programs is a tricky endeavor. Schools often ask for money so your potential donors have probably seen letters just like yours many times before. So how do you get them to sit up, take notice, and donate? You have to make your letter different. Use [...] Related posts:

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