There comes a time in every fundraiser's life when you are looking at a list of calls to make.   Maybe it's a list of new donors. Or prospective donors.   Maybe it's a list of volunteers who need to be invited to the event.   Or a list of lapsed donors you want to re-connect with.   And, often at the same time, that same fundraiser gets the idea that it's a great time to take one more look at that CRM report.   Or to double-check to make sure the update email has the right li

Y One of the problems with board fundraising is how we talk about board fundraising .   "The board isn't fundraising."   "My board doesn’t want to fundraise."   "Board members aren't interested in fundraising."   I've used all of those phrases and it wasn’t until late in my career that I realized the problem.   "The Board."   Fundraisers fall into the habit of treating the board like a collective. Like a single unit that we can communicate with, work with, and inspire using a

You've heard the stories: event plans driven not by strategy, but by a board member's preference. Committee meetings devoted to in-depth discussions about table linens. New event concepts introduced the night before showtime.   But you've probably also heard the stories of meaningful, thoughtful events with clear follow up.   And those stories often happen because board members are working with staff to put on an effective fundraiser.   Here are three roles board members can

Some corporate donors stay with your organization for the long haul.   Others may change their philanthropic focus and drift away from your mission.   And then there are the corporate supporters that make the news for decisions and announcements that, suddenly in some cases, run counter to your organization's values.   There's two ways to look at this potential problem.   The first (and the more common in the nonprofit space) is to react. This forces you to make some tough de

From event sponsorships to in-kind donations, Your fundraising program needs corporate giving.   Of course, it's not as simple as sending a solicitation letter to every business within a few square miles of your office.   Corporate giving - like every channel for sustainable giving - requires some strategy and thought.   So, how can you make your corporate giving program stand out?   Start with volunteers.   Corporate giving and volunteering are like two peas in a pod. Some c

Still thinking about your New Year's resolutions? Well, step away from that language learning app, put down the fad diet, and let me give you three resolutions that are perfect for any nonprofit leader!   #1 Focus on generosity, not systems If 2025 taught us anything, it was that the underpinning systems of philanthropy can be slowed down, stopped, or mangled by bad actors. Generosity, however, is harder to stop. If we mistake one for the other, we run the risk of assuming th

Here's a little re-gifting to wrap up 2025   Try This First is an occasional video series that I created to give nonprofit leaders some practical advice on fundraising topics. Often, we hesitate to get started on a new project or strategy because we think it needs to be perfect (or at least needs to be a major success right out of the gate).   Getting started with something new can be scary - so I sat down with some of the fundraising superstars I know to talk about taking th

Hand-crafted social media content the week of December 15?   A week that, for many people, is kind of a slow motion loss of momentum contrasted with a growing sense of urgency (for year-end giving, family obligations, etc.)?   It's a time of the year where we often feel pulled between a desire to celebrate the present and to prepare for the prospects of a new year.   Heck, even my local hardware store has consolidated most of the holiday lights and decorations into a small se

Lots has been written about individual giving - I'm certainly spent a lot of time writing and thinking and talking about it. It's the key to a sustainable and strong fundraising program - and it's often the type of fundraising that nonprofits shy away from.   I'll save my thoughts on the importance of a cultivation plan and a stewardship strategy for another post. This time, it's all about notetaking.   You might call them action items, or activity reports, or meeting notes,

While my kiddo is on a study abroad trip in Dublin, I take their car out for a drive every few weeks. Nothing major, just to make sure everything is working as it should (or at least as well as a 15 year old Mazda should work).   Last week, I started the car to be greeted by the ominous clicking noise that suggests a problem has arisen. As with my experience with cars suggests, this could be a problem that ranges from the inconvenient to the expensive.   I took a look at the

s we teeter on the precipice of Thanksgiving, holidays, and a new year, I wanted to share some thoughts about last week's National Philanthropy Day celebration. Thanks to all of you for reading - and for all the good work you for your organizations and missions.   Last week, I attended the National Philanthropy Day celebration hosted by my local AFP Chapter (the Association of Fundraising Professionals - South Sound Chapter).   While this was only my second NPD event in Washi

I once had an editor who hated the word "Success."   If I turned in any stories with that word, it would come back with an emphatic red line through the word. He hated the word because it was unclear and vague.   After all, he would remind me, what does success really mean? Are we talking about income? Efficiency? Awards? Retention?   It didn't take me long to get the message - and since then I've had a bit of a resistance to words like success.   Because vague words lead to

I've been a leadership coach for more than three years now. I've also been a coaching client for about half that time.   The benefits of coaching are clear to me -- but maybe you're on the fence. Nonprofits aren't generally known for their willingness to invest in professional development / skill building, so coaching isn't as common as it should be.   So, because I love a three-part list, here's three benefits to working with a leadership coach:   Accountability Successful f

For me, year-end giving season was always an anxious time. There's that creeping feeling that your year-end giving strategies aren't enough - or that you should be doing something more. There's so much out there about year-end giving (advice, webinars, workshops, tips, tricks, etc.) that it's easy to feel overwhelmed.   But like all fundraising, starting is the hardest part. If you're not sure how to get a year-end giving strategy up and running, here are four things you can

Fundraisers, as a rule, love to complicate things.   We put barriers between the donor and their giving. (Why ask directly when we can have 15 live auction items and 25 silent auction items?).   We use jargon and industry terms to define and limit acts of generosity. (Your donors don’t consider themselves to be LYBUNT or SYBUNT or annual or major.)   We ask easy questions instead of helpful ones. ("Did it work?" is a different question than "Does this serve our mission and go

It’s a chicken and the egg thing.   Do donors give at year end because of tax reasons / holiday reasons?   Or do they give because we ask...

I wanted to start this message off with some inspirational quotes about the importance of a plan - but most of the quotes I found were...

You've done the board training, now what?   After all, it's easy to get excited about fundraising during a board training session. You're...

Speed is often the enemy of effective fundraising.   It's frustrating, right? Because we need the money today (if not yesterday). And...

It’s easy to get confused about donor cultivation. When it works, it seems simple, even magical. You meet with a prospective donor, start...