In October, I rolled out a fundraising appeal for our new Training, Facilitation, and Consulting Certificate Program with Marlboro College. We had launched the week before and – after a decade of dreaming and a solid year of planning – I was SO EXCITED to see it all come together. I wrote a fundraising pitch, sharing my excitement. … [Read more...]
Year-End Fundraising: Give People What They Want
President Harry Truman once famously said, “The secret of raising children is to find out what they want to do and then encourage them to do it. “ I think that’s great advice – and so did my kids! Note to self (and to you, too): Apply the same advice in your outreach to donors. Year-end fundraising: Beyond the tried-and-true As … [Read more...]
Fundraising Therapy, Part 1 – Getting Over the Fear of Fundraising
Are you afraid of fundraising? How about your board – when it’s time to raise money, do they run away? As a fundraising trainer and consultant, this is my biggest challenge: many people are frightened of fundraising. If you ignore or avoid this “fear factor” – especially during your year-end fundraising push – you’ll miss … [Read more...]
Board Fundraisers — What’s on the Menu?
Have you ever spent time with a three-year-old child? As a parent, grandparent, sibling, babysitter, teacher…whatever your role. If the answer is “yes,” then you undoubtedly learned the following strategy. It’s not useful to ask a young child, “What socks do you want to wear?” Instead, you offer a specific, limited set of … [Read more...]
The Big Shift in Fundraising
Like many fundraisers, I always anticipate the annual release of Giving USA, which offers a thorough overview of trends in U.S. philanthropy. I’ve also been reading Ruth McCambridge of the Nonprofit Quarterly, whose cogent analysis of the Giving USA data is really helpful – and inspired this post. Thanks, Ruth! As you plan your fall … [Read more...]
Who is Your Board Fundraising Spark Plug?
Imagine the following scene. The lonely staff fundraiser – let’s call this person Executive Director or Development Director – sits alone in a very small room, thinking about a very large fundraising goal. “Hello, board!” the fundraiser cries out. “Are you there?” A long pause. Nobody answers. “We need to raise a lot of money. … [Read more...]
Want a grant? Pick up the phone
Here at Train Your Board, we tend to focus on donor fundraising because: Most philanthropic dollars are given by individual donors, not foundations There are fewer opportunities for your board members to help with grants However, grants are part of a diversified fundraising strategy, and the skills you learn – research, asking … [Read more...]
Your Board Can Be Your “Thank You Crew”
On March 2, I received thank you letters for two charitable donations I contributed back in December. Yes, it took them two months to acknowledge my gift. Seriously? One letter arrived from a grassroots group that’s perpetually underfunded and understaffed, so I’m tempted to let it slide…almost, but not quite. The other letter … [Read more...]
The Gift of Time: What Can You Expect From Your Board?
In building a board, many people fixate on the potential for big gifts. Perhaps you’re familiar with the “wealthy board” fantasy? However, a board member’s most important contribution is the gift of time. With our families, jobs, social obligations, etc., personal time is a shrinking resource, which makes it ever more precious. Do you … [Read more...]
Three Ways to Hire a Fundraiser
Do your plans for the New Year include hiring a development director? Perhaps your board is saying, “If we’re going to be better fundraisers, we need better professional training and support from the staff.” I have this conversation often, because so many nonprofits are looking for skilled development people and want recruitment … [Read more...]
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