If an organization wants to align around fundraising, it has to build internal habits that support the work — not just the solicitation, but the entire fundraising ecosystem. The first habit is understanding that fundraising is more than asking for money. It’s cultivation, stewardship, storytelling, and connection. It’s everything we do to help someone feel meaningfully tied to the mission and invited to support it. When everyone in the organization understands that, fundra

When an organization is navigating change, donors deserve clarity about what’s happening, why it’s happening, how it affects the work, and what comes next. The instinct many nonprofits have is to reassure donors that everything is fine even when it isn’t. That instinct comes from fear: If donors know things are challenging, they’ll stop giving. But donors are perceptive. They can sense when something isn’t being said. And nothing erodes trust faster than overly polished,

When we talk about “lapsed donors,” the first question we should ask is: Does the donor think they’re lapsed? Most of the systems nonprofits use — LYBUNT, SYBUNT, annual giving cycles — make sense to us. They help us organize strategy, segment lists, and track progress. But donors rarely think of their giving in those terms. Many see themselves simply as supporters of the mission, not as people who are expected to give every 12 months on the dot. So when someone doesn’t g

In fundraising, we talk a lot about capacity — a donor’s ability to make a gift. Wealth screenings, past gift amounts, and financial indicators all help us estimate what someone could give. It’s useful, but it’s only half the picture. The other half (often the more important half) is behavior. Behavior tells us what a donor actually does: How often they give How long they’ve been giving Whether they volunteer Whether they attend events Whether they consistently show up

Donor segmentation doesn’t require a massive CRM or a mountain of data. There’s a misconception that segmentation is only possible if you have sophisticated systems, advanced analytics, and deep technical expertise. And yes—those things absolutely help. But small shops can start segmenting right now with the data they already have. Because segmentation isn’t about perfection. It’s about paying closer attention. Start with the basics you already collect: When someone gave. How

If you want to prioritize fundraising, you have to actually prioritize fundraising. One of the first things I look at when working with organizations is the actual workload placed on their fundraisers. Because if one person is responsible for annual giving, major gifts, grants, special events, newsletters, social media, and whatever else pops up… it becomes nearly impossible to build a strong fundraising program. At some point, you have to take a very honest look at the w

Fundraising is a team sport and members of your programs team play a vital role in building relationships with donors. But this doesn't mean your friends on the programs side of the shop are expected to raise funds. In fact, they might feel intimidated at the prospect of talking with donors or unsure how they can help. So, consider this a quick guide for your non-fundraising friends. If you are invited to meet with a donor, bring your expertise with you. Bring your joy,

Meetings with current, past, or potential donors are the heartbeat of major giving, donor retention, and meaningful relationship-building. Actively meeting with supporters moves your fundraising strategy from passive to active. But we but we don’t always define what a meeting actually is. And like many things in our sector, the definition can get a little fuzzy. Here’s how I define a true donor meeting: A donor meeting must be substantive. The format doesn’t matter (in

Leadership lessons can be found in unlikely places. For example, Star Trek. I love an episode of Star Trek when a character brings a wild idea to the rest of the crew. Something untested, unknown, and possibly unsuccessful. The crew embraces this new idea in a flurry of activity and technobabble. They take a chance because they trust each other and assume that their colleagues are committed to the mission. This, of course, reminds me of nonprofit teamwork. Flash back

When I was a full-time fundraiser, I would read industry reports like Giving USA with some degree of apprehension. Reading about national fundraising trends made me wonder if my plans needed to change. After all, once the report was released, there was a flurry of headlines and findings: 😟 Number of donors is declining. 😟Mega donors are on the rise. 😟Giving is flat (or dropping). So I would read the reports and the analysis of the reports and try to determine what (if

There are a lot of tools and approaches that make you a more successful fundraiser. But the big one? It’s mentorship. A fundraising mentor is someone to challenge you, support you, and connect you to the bigger world of nonprofits. I know that my career, and my passion for working in nonprofits, owes a huge debt of gratitude to my first mentor, Frank Hall. Frank did more than teach me about fundraising. He showed me what it meant to be a full-time fundraiser and taught me les

I've been thinking about nonprofit myths lately. Those stories we tell each other in the industry that seem true, that drive decisions, and that sometimes cause some harm. Here's one that I used to really believe. The ultimate goal of every nonprofit (I was told) was to go out of business because the mission has been accomplished. That story was a story of selflessness. The minute we aren't needed, we'll close up shop and go do something else with our time. Now, this

Fundraising is driven by stories. Stories from donors, volunteers, clients, board members, and community members. Stories of impact, of generosity, of triumph. But while there's no shortage of advice about how to get stories, we don't spend enough time talking about what do with the stories after we get them. For a lot of my career, I was convinced that stories were fleeting and fragile, and that the audience for my stories only wanted to hear new stories, every time.

I had a great time at the NAWA annual fundraising conference in Tacoma. As is my way, I did not take any pictures, so you'll have to trust me on this one. I learned a lot at the conference -- about board structures, staff engagement, and the connection between values and systems. But the thing that stuck with me was a comment from my friend Jesse. They said: "If one more person tells me to diversify my fundraising stream, I'm going to jump into the Sound." Now, I don't

A wise man once said "I love it when a plan comes together." And while this particular wise man was talking about a very specific type of plan (one unique to 1980s action shows*), I like to take this enthusiasm and apply it to fundraising plans. A fundraising plan is more than a list of donors (that's a prospect list, and that's another post). A fundraising plan gives your organization customized action steps to get to what you are trying to create. "Hold on, Chris," yo

One of the reasons I love nonprofits is because they are asking the big questions. What if everyone had a decent place to live? How can we help queer youth thrive, not just survive? How can we bring the arts into every classroom in our community? When so many institutions are encouraging us to stay small, scared, and quiet, asking questions like these is an act of optimism and bravery. For many organizations, these questions were present at the very beginning of their s

Last week, I heard about a nonprofit hiring their first full-time fundraiser. They wanted someone to build a program, start donor outreach, and focus on individual giving. They also wanted $1 million in their first year (from $0 the prior year). Oh, and the fundraiser would also be responsible for entering gifts in the CRM and managing that system. This organization was having some trouble finding someone to fill this role (as you might imagine). This headache-inducin

An effective fundraising system is not just about your donors or your revenue. It's about employee retention. Recently, the Social Impact Staff Retention Report was released. It's not a lot of good news. According to the report ... 70% of the nonprofit workers surveyed are looking for or considering a new job, or will be, this year. Thirty five percent plan to stay in the nonprofit sector. And 22% are rarely or never fulfilled in their work. I'm no statistician, but

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

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,