Mass marketing, relationships and trust
One-to-many marketing/fundraising relationships are the same as personal relationships. Trust is essential. But, if you send spammy emails and direct mailers…
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12 Principles of Donor Love From David Love
Today, I’ll be treating you to a guest post written by a true fundraising legend— David Love. David (also known…
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Top 5 reasons why it might be time to kill donor visit quotas!
Quotas… YUCK! Many major and planned giving professionals are required to secure and carry out a certain number of face-to-face…
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How asking for advice helps fundraisers: (1) qualify donors for their portfolios AND (2) build deeper relationships
Your donors want a partner, not a solicitor. Partners ask for advice before asking for money. Partners looking for advice…
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Why your job is really about developing heroes, not dollars
People want to see themselves as good, just, righteous, and so on. In other words, they want to be heroic.…
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Think your donors are stupid?
High-capacity donors aren’t altruistic. They want something from you just as much as you want something from them. At a…
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Why your job is to get donors to talk to themselves
Your job is not to come up with words and images that will persuade or convince people to give. No!…
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Does fundraising training focus too much on the ask?
Often, I find that major gift (and legacy gift) fundraising education, training, and advice places too much emphasis on ‘the…
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7 reasons why wealth screening your donor list might be an incredibly foolish activity
Before you send me angry responses to this headline, know these two things first: What I’ve written is NOT coming…
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11 best practices for your legacy society communications
When it comes to legacy gifts, most fundraisers spend too much time focused on uncovering hidden gifts or closing more of…
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Donors give when THEY want to give, not when YOU want them to give
It ain’t about you. Unsuccessful fundraisers want donors to give on their timeline, not the donor’s. They think they can make the donor…
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Cold calling major donors to arrange appointments doesn’t work – but this method does
No one likes getting cold calls and you probably don’t like making them. That’s why, these days, you need to insert a crucial step…
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You’ve got leads (identified major donor prospects) but are they ‘outreach-ready’?
People and vendors in our sector talk a lot about identifying donors, but getting them ready to meet with you is…
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Where are you spending your marketing dollars?
If your organization has 10,000 active donors, it’s very likely they’ll be categorized as follows: A small number will generate…
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Should you target market financial advisors in order to get more legacy gifts?
It depends. I find myself saying, “It depends” quite a lot these days. But, seriously, the decision to target market…
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Donor retention and donor qualification go together like peas in a pod
Some things just work best when coupled together. Peanut butter and jelly. Toothpaste and a toothbrush. Cookies and milk. Soap and…
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When it comes to "moves management," are you concerned too?
First, what are we really talking about when we say moves management? Wikipedia says, “moves are the actions an organization takes to…
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Does Ask, Ask, and Ask Again Really Work?
Doing the same thing wrong over and over doesn’t improve results. I noticed a comment on a LinkedIn post recently…
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3 simple ways fundraisers can improve their LinkedIn profiles to land more meetings and raise more money
Most fundraiser’s LinkedIn profiles are screwed up! They look like resumes, not invitations. After all, are you trying to raise…
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4 forces primarily responsible for making people charitable
According to the author of a book titled WHO REALLY CARES, Arthur C. Brooks, there are 4 forces in American life…
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Why Your Giving Tuesday Efforts Will Succeed Or Fail
Our sector is, once again, awaiting the results of Giving Tuesday without much thought about what value WE are giving…
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5 Best Practices For Writing Emails to Major and Legacy Donor Prospects
1. Be truthful, no tricks! Ever! You cannot build relationships upon lies. Not even white lies. 2. Be relevant. To…
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Is donor qualification more important than donor identification?
Identification. If you are a major or legacy gift fundraiser, you’re probably responsible for a group of donors on your…
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Why major and legacy donors think your fundraising communications stink!
First, it is not all your fault. Well then, can we blame it on leadership? Leadership should share the burden…
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