What Are You Doing to Change?
“If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.” I don’t know who came up with that quote. I… Read More
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Smartideas
Helping you qualify, cultivate and prioritize major donors and legacy supporters so you can have fun closing more gifts more efficiently.
Nov
30
2018
Nov
28
2018
The top qualification and prioritization data points you should consider before you reach out to your supporters to build a caseload
Recently we surveyed a few hundred fundraisers to find out what they felt were the most (and least) important data points for qualifying and prioritizing… Read More
Nov
26
2018
3 simple steps to break your transactional, spray-and-pray fundraising addiction
Nonprofits tend to get addicted to transactions. Of course addictions are hard to break. But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be broken at all. Too… Read More
Nov
19
2018
A bunch of reasons why January is NOT necessarily the best time to ‘hit your donor’s mailbox’
Recently I saw a question posted on a discussion board that was inspired by a blog (NOT mine) titled: WHY YOU NEED TO HIT YOUR… Read More
Nov
14
2018
4 simple concepts that can help you raise sophisticated transformational gifts
I like this blog post written by Greg Ring over at The Giving Crowd. In it, he outlines his Four C’s of Successful Fundraising. Although,… Read More
Nov
09
2018
How to stop over-thinking and start engaging
Confucius said, “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” Engagement fundraising is so darn simple too! You don’t need to over-think… Read More
Nov
07
2018
How Your Restaurant Waiter Can Teach You About Fundraising
The theory of reciprocity is powerful. And nowhere is it displayed more dramatically than in restaurants every day. Think about it. Your waiter is basically… Read More
Nov
05
2018
16 Simple Things Your Best Donors Want
Here’s my list of essential major donor needs that you must aim to fulfill: 1. Your best donors want you to do the important work… Read More
Nov
02
2018
How to think about major gifts
Ditto! That’s all I can say when I read Veritus Group’s blog articles. Ditto! These guys (Richard Perry and Jeff Schreifels) totally ‘get’ it! For… Read More
Oct
31
2018
Here’s What Supporters “Buy” When They Donate to Charity
I think buying and donating are the same. Here’s why. When I give money to a charity, I am buying: A chance to be moved by… Read More
Oct
29
2018
How I leave voicemail messages that get returned
Generally here’s how I leave messages that get returned: APPRECIATION: I say ‘thank you’ (and I get sort of ’emotional and gracious’ in my tone……. Read More
Oct
26
2018
The Definitive Menu of Engagement Fundraising Marketing Channels
We know that it’s not always easy to determine where you should be focusing your efforts (and your dollars). So we developed this nifty little… Read More
Oct
24
2018
Now you can hear me on the ‘Freakshow’!
My pal Brady Josephson (self-proclaimed charity nerd) had me on his relatively new podcast titled: The Generosity Freakshow. I encourage you to take a listen…. Read More
Oct
22
2018
Are you ready for the 24/7 donor?
Accenture – the world’s largest consulting firm – says that we’re in the era of the “nonstop consumer”. According to their website, “A customer’s path… Read More
Oct
19
2018
Free Download: Engagement Fundraising – Introduction and Chapter 1!
Today’s your chance to read the introduction and chapter 1 of Engagement Fundraising for free! We are offering a free PDF of the book up… Read More
Oct
17
2018
Are you avoiding your donors?
Too often I’ve seen some ‘fundraisers’ do whatever they can to avoid actually talking to donors. “I can’t call ’em yet. I’m waiting for the… Read More
Oct
15
2018
Is your job really to raise money?
Og Mandino, author of The Greatest Salesman in the World wrote: “The only certain means of success is to render more and better service than… Read More
Oct
12
2018
Why you need to think of yourself as a facilitator
Supporters give to satisfy a need. Supporters give because they trust your organization to satisfy that need. Supporters give because they see you, your colleagues,… Read More
Oct
10
2018
Top 10 Reasons Why Gift Officers Won’t Make Outbound Calls to Donors
The reasons why fundraisers won’t make outbound calls to donors are because they are: FEARFUL: They fear rejection. CONFUSED: They don’t know what to say…. Read More
Oct
05
2018
My Simplest Explanation of How Engagement Fundraising Works
Engagement fundraising (a phrase I coined many years ago) is powerful. I’ve been talking about this for about 10 years (ever since I revamped my marketing… Read More
Oct
01
2018
The 8 core components of engagement fundraising and why you desperately need them
Most fundraising is based on what I call “single shot” strategies. For instance, it’s an event, gala or golf outing. Or, perhaps it’s a mailing,… Read More
Sep
27
2018
Engagement Fundraising in 7 simple bullet-points
Focus- Focus your marketing (especially your expensive marketing like face-to-face meetings) on people who have a lot of money Generate leads- Generate highly-qualified leads among… Read More
Get the book!
Feeling like your job is getting harder because donor expectations have changed and competition for the charitable dollar is growing?
Finding that the old orthodoxies and conventions espoused by so-called experts in online echo-chambers and at conferences don’t work anymore?
Want to help more people make impact by facilitating their acts of philanthropy but feel like too many obstacles keep getting in your way?
Then this book is for you.
Engagement Fundraising was developed from the perspective of a donor who discovered firsthand that the impersonal, spray-and-pray approaches of his beloved charity were not only offensive but also wasteful and ineffective. So he took action. And now, you can too.
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