I received a question this week about all of that state-by-state fundraising solicitation disclosure language and how that should be included within a fundraising direct mail package. This language is hideous, naturally, from a communications perspective. It’s our equivalent of those pages of fine print that no one reads on the back of our credit…
Yesterday I shared some “get ready to write” traditions. Today let’s take a look at where you find your writing ideas and story inspirations. Coming up with what to write about can be a frustrating process, but that gets a whole lot easier if you can spot the patterns in how you get your best…
Last week I talked about knowing the kind of writer you are and how that will help you write faster. I shared my good and bad writing habits as well as those of the attendees of my recent webinar, How to Write Faster. During that webinar we also discussed writing “traditions” that you do before…
Much of successful nonprofit communications today involves taking chances, trying something new, and tweaking and updating approaches that aren’t working quite so well anymore. I’ve found that as I coach nonprofit communicators, we talk almost as much about human nature and managing up the chain of command as we do about specific communication strategies and…
Happy Friday! I spoke this morning on communications planning in South Carolina at the SCANPO conference and am now back home in North Carolina, and ready for some Mixed Links. Nancy Schwartz helps explain the distinction between nonprofit marketing and organizational goals and why it’s important to know the difference. If your nonprofit is on…
An important part of being a more productive or faster writer is really understanding yourself and how you work. After writing a daily blog for a few years now, two full-length books, and tons of additional email and website copy, I’ve learned a lot about how I work. For example . . . I need…
I received an email from Lindsay B. Groff, executive director of Barth Syndrome Foundation after she attended my Writing Thank You Notes That Inspire Future Gifts webinar. Lindsay wanted to share the before and after with me, and then agreed to share her example with you too! Take a look below. Before: After: You should notice…
Last week, Claire Meyerhoff warned us of the dangers of assuming in our nonprofit communications. She promised to be back with tips on fighting writer’s block with the help of Dave Marcus. Here you go! ~Kivi In the movie The Shining, Jack Nicholson’s character suffers from the worst case of writer’s block ever recorded and his wife,…
This is what the cover of my new book, Content Marketing for Nonprofits: A Communications Map for Engaging Your Community, Becoming a Favorite Cause, and Raising More Money, will look like. It won’t be out until sometime in August, but Amazon will start taking pre-orders a few weeks before it is released. If you’d like us…
Happy Friday! It’s a West Coast edition of Mixed Links. Been in Silverdale and Seattle, Washington this week, and Santa Cruz, California today, working with some great clients on their content marketing strategies. This week Blackbaud released npEXPERTS: Online Marketing Insights for Nonprofits, an e-book that contains tips and advice from experts on nonprofit marketing,…
So you found the perfect image of the perfect family that perfectly represents your cause. No words are necessary as this picture says it all, right? Wrong! Words are absolutely necessary if you are including that image in an email (or even on your website) or your supporters could be seeing a big fat blank…
Charity: Water has done it again – they’ve sent another incredibly effective progress report email. (See past examples I loved here and here.) Here’s what I love about this . . . It reminds me that I gave money and they say where that money is going, plainly and simply. It gives me perspective on…
