During my recent webinar on new and improved nonprofit annual reports (recording available to All-Access Pass Holders), I said that I would love to see a nonprofit do its annual report as an oversized postcard (think that big size popular with political candidates). This format has lots of advantages: The small space forces you to…
During the Writing to Raise More Money webinar last week (recording available to All-Access Pass holders), I talked about four ways to improve your fundraising copy: 1. Cue an Emotional Response 2. Make the Request Feel Personal 3. Convey Urgency 4. Ask Clearly At the end of the webinar, I asked participants which of the…
Over the last month or two I’ve received lots of questions from communications and development directors about third-party fundraising applications like Jumo and Crowdrise. The same question came up this morning at the Nonprofit Marketing in 2011 workshop I did this morning for the Georgia Center for Nonprofits. I’m personally taking a wait and see…
Here are five common questions I get about nonprofit annual reports, along with my answers. If you are still trying to figure out how to produce your 2010 nonprofit annual report, join us tomorrow’s webinar (2/8/11 at 1:00 pm Eastern, 10:00 am Pacific), where I’ll explain how to create a “New and Improved Nonprofit Annual…
Tomorrow (Thursday, 2/3/11) I’m presenting a webinar I call “Writing Thank You Notes That Inspire Future Gifts.” I firmly believe that the thank-you note after the first gift is the first step in getting the second gift. The standard, boring, impersonal form letter or email receipt doesn’t cut it. During the webinar, I’ll share lots…
If we agree that we should develop messaging that resonates with our donors, what should we do when that messaging might be offensive to others? Take the case of donors who make substantial gifts to charities rather than leaving assets to their “good for nothing” adult children. I presented a “Storytelling for Fundraisers” workshop in…
Putting aside for a moment whether we should call them “target audiences” or not, it’s always good to remember that, as a nonprofit communicator or fundraiser, you are very rarely the kind of person that you are trying to communicate with. Even if you match the demographics, the fact that you are employed by your…
If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you’ll remember the “thank you” note experiment I did in 2008 and 2009. More recently, Marta Lindsey’s experiment on keeping all of the nonprofit direct mail she received for a year was also a big hit. So, I started thinking, what if a bunch of us picked…
Here’s a little holiday surprise for you, courtesy of my friend, movie buff, and fundraiser extraordinaire, Rob Blizard. I suspect many of us will be watching some old movies on the holiday break, and Rob gives you his take on a few of them with fundraising at the core of their plots. Given the active…
I’ve just re-released my popular e-book on how to write a nonprofit annual report. If you are struggling with how to produce one, this guide will answer your questions. This new edition covers the five essentials of a good annual report, as well as what I consider to be the best “new and improved” formats.…
Network for Good just released a new online giving study that provides all kinds of good ideas for increasing the amount of money you can raise online. It’s not about coming up with gimmicks; it’s about creating connections and building relationships with your donors. Here’s one of the central lessons from this study of over…
When Marta Lindsey, the communications and development director at TransForm, told me about her experiment to see what she could learn about fundraising from all the charity solicitations that arrived in her mailbox over one year, I immediately asked if she would share the story with you. Here’s Marta’s account of what she learned. A…
