Hands up if you've made it to the end of December feeling totally burned out an exhausted?That's right, my hand is up, too. Year-end fundraising can really take it out of us. We've got a million plates spinning, plus the added stress of the holiday season and our personal lives. It all adds up and can really take its toll on us. But it doesn't have to. There are ways to self-manage, have good boundaries and take better care of ourselves so that burn out doesn't become our new ... continue reading...
How to Prepare Donors to Give during Year-End Fundraising
It’s never too early (or too late for that matter) to prepare for year-end fundraising. The fact is, the non-profit sector sees a huge bump in giving during the holiday season. It is one of the best times of the year for fundraising because many people are already primed to give. Your non-profit likely have donors who give multiple times a year, but there’s probably a segment that makes a one-time gift in December every year. Regardless of the frequency of your donors’ giving, staying in touch ... continue reading...
My Best Advice for Year-End Fundraising Success
Recently I taught a free webinar with Network for Good about gaining momentum in a year-end fundraising campaign. And if you’ve ever been on a webinar with me, then you know I enjoy checking in with attendees and asking them lots of questions. At the beginning of this particular webinar, I asked everyone how they are feeling about their year-end campaign on a scale of 1 to 5. 5 is feeling great and ready to rock, and 1 is feeling under-prepared and stressed out. The vast majority of the 900+ ... continue reading...
5 Elements of a Donor Communications Plan to Build Loyalty
When I talk with clients about fundraising growth strategies, donor retention and donor relations tend to be at the top of the strategy list. After all, it costs more money to acquire new donors than to retain current donors. And one of the areas that can give non-profits the biggest bang for their buck is donor communications. Creating a stellar and consistent donor communications plan can foster community and loyal donor relationshipsIt is important to me that my clients build a community of ... continue reading...
20+ Examples of Non-Profit Storytelling that Raise Money
As a consultant specializing in Non-Profit Storytelling, fundraising, and communications, author of The Storytelling Non-Profit: A practical guide to telling stories that raise money and awareness, and the creator of immersive online training programs for non-profit professionals, I have lots of examples of non-profit storytelling to share with you.I have analyzed and written many non-profit storytelling case studies, conducted interviews with non-profit organizations and gathered lots of ... continue reading...
How to Run a Successful Fundraising Campaign
Any nonprofit organization dreams of having successful fundraising campaigns. Of course, managing a fundraising campaign can have a lot of parts and pieces. It can be a challenge to figure out how to manage them all while dealing with other day-to-day fundraising tasks.So, what is the key behind a successful fundraising campaign? A lot of planning and exceptional project management.Whether the fundraising campaign has a $5,000 or a $5 million goal, or if it’s a seasonal campaign, what really ... continue reading...
10 Tips for Writing a Better Donor Thank You Letter
As a non-profit organization, a thank you letter is one of the first touch points a donor receives after making a gift to your organization. Much like a first impression, the words in that letter matter. This thank you letter can be the gateway to building a long lasting relationship between the donor and your cause. Learning how to write a donor thank you letter is a skill all fundraising professionals need. Are you curious about how to write an impactful thank you letter to your donor? In this ... continue reading...
Nonprofit Storytelling – Using the Right Story Structure
Believe it or not, there's a right way to tell a fundraising story. And by fundraising story, I mean a story that you're using to raise money for your non-profit. A fundraising story needs the right story structure to connect with the audience, demonstrate need, and invite the audience to get involved by making a donation. In today's video, I'm sharing story structure that I teach my clients and students inside The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class. Why Non-Profits Need a Story ... continue reading...
How to Prepare for Year-End Fundraising
Year-end fundraising season is upon us! I started having conversations with clients about year-end campaigns a couple of weeks ago. With over a decade of direct response fundraising experience under my belt, this time of year I’m always reminded that time is our friend in fundraising. No matter what size year-end fundraising campaign you’re running, you benefit from starting the planning process early. As Benjamin Franklin once said, “For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned.” This ... continue reading...
4 Qualities Every Donor Stewardship Story Must Have
There are a lot of uses for stories in fundraising programs. We can use stories as a part of fundraising asks, donor communications, and donor stewardship. Using stories in donor stewardship is great for a number of reasons. As we know from the book “Donor Centered Fundraising” from Penelope Burk, donors want to know how their gift was used and what impact that gift had. As I like to say Impact + Accountability = Great Stewardship! Why would a story-based stewardship work? Because a story ... continue reading...