Author: Hank Lewis, MA, CFRM

April 23:

 

Keeping Your Bucket Full … With Direct Mail
by Jonathan Howard

The national average rate of donor retention (that’s the number of donors who gave in two consecutive 12-month periods) is a horrendous 35 percent.

April 23:

 

Events In Private Homes: Part II
by Hank Lewis

Education, Cultivation & Stewardship – What can/should happen at an event in someone’s home.

April 30:

 

Who Are Your Planned Gift Prospects? – Part I
by John Elbare

Planned giving works best when you target your efforts toward a segment of donors who are most inclined to consider a planned gift. Avoid the common misperception that planned giving is mostly for wealthy donors.

April 30:

 

Events In Private Homes: Part III
by Hank Lewis

Asking attendees to write a check … at an event in someone’s home. Should you or shouldn’t you ?? It all depends!!

May 7:

 

Evaluating The Chief Development Officer – Part One of Three
by Tony Poderis>

Will you to say “Nice job,” or “You are not up to what we expected,” or worse – “Your services are no longer needed here?”

May 7:

 

The New Donor’s Journey
by Jonathan Howard

Direct mail is old-fashioned. And that’s a good thing. What works by mail has been time-tested and documented in countless books and blogs over many decades.

May 14:

 

Preserve Institutional Knowledge to Ensure Better Proposals
by Jayme Sokolow

… although organizations “spend a lot of time and resources developing knowledge and capacity . . . most of it resides in the heads, hands, and hearts of individual managers and functional experts.”

May 14:

 

Evaluating The Chief Development Officer – Part Two of Three
by Tony Poderis>

There are many factors that can impact the success of a development program, and, thereby, affect how the CDO’s performance is perceived.

May 21:

 

The CFC and Non-Profit Sustainability – Part I
by Bill Huddleston

a non-profit’s “financial sustainability and programmatic sustainability cannot be separated.

May 21:

 

Evaluating The Chief Development Officer – Part Three of Three
by Tony Poderis

Not all of a CDO’s responsibilities are directly related to fundraising … another reason why his/her performance should not be evaluated based just on dollars-raised.

May 28:

 

Who Are Your Planned Gift Prospects? – Part II
by John Elbare

The one thing we know for sure about donor behavior is that most planned gifts come from loyal donors. They are already sold on your mission, they believe in your cause, and they probably would like to do more to help….

May 28:

 

The CFC and Non-Profit Sustainability – Part II
by Bill Huddleston

You may be familiar with the concept of the fundraising pyramid, but one problem with much of the fundraising literature is that there’s often a built-in presumption that the pyramid has already been built.

June 4:

 

Successful Proposals Find Common Ground with Funders
by Jayme Sokolow

… selling and fundraising are about finding common ground. Raising money via grant proposals is pretty much always about finding common ground with your funders.

June 4:

 

The CFC and Non-Profit Sustainability – Part III
by Bill Huddleston

Another aspect of the CFC that is often not recognized, because all the results are reported annually, is that many CFC donors are multi-year donors, giving for five, ten and twenty years during their Federal career.

 

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Have you seen
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99 – $4.99)
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If you would just like to offer your thoughts on this posting, and/or you would like to suggest topics you’d like us to address in future postings, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page.

And welcoming the two new members of our writing team, Jon Howard & John Elbare

February 26:

Direct Mail, Direct Response: An Introduction
by Jonathan Howard

Beginning a series of postings … Starting with: Why do major national charities still spend the time and money to solicit charitable contributions by mail ? Will it work for you ??

February 26:

You Can Help Save the Combined Federal Campaign – Part I
by Bill Huddleston

The outcry from the non-profit community resulted in the July Congressional hearing about the impact of the proposed OPM regulations. So, what’s next ??

March 5:

Introduction to Planned Giving – Part I
by John Elbare

Here begins a basic education about planned giving … defining, in easy to understand language, some of the terms; and, over a period of time, helping you get a grasp on how your organization can make planned giving work for you.

March 5:

A Mission (Statement) Impossible
by Tony Poderis

Every nonprofit organization’s Mission Statement needs to cite clearly Its Reason For Being, and must state the positive difference it makes to its stakeholders/beneficiaries … for example….

March 12:

Using Statistics Accurately/Effectively in Your Grant Proposals
by Jayme Sokolow

Statistics can be used or abused, especially in grant proposals. However, there are steps you can take to use numbers accurately, and in ways that promote understanding.

March 12:

Introduction to Planned Giving – Part II
by John Elbare

Continuation of the introduction to planned giving … defining, in easy to understand language, some of the terms; and, helping you get a grasp on how your organization can make planned giving work for you.

March 19:

You Can Help Save the Combined Federal Campaign – Part II
by Bill Huddleston

A bureaucracy’s first reaction in a controversy is often to deny it. That’s what OPM is doing; they are refusing to acknowledge that they have screwed up … big time.

March 19:

How Do You Deal with Grant Deadlines?
by Jayme Sokolow.

Deadlines are to proposal professionals as water is to fish. They are the lifeblood of our profession. Dealing with them effectively will make a big (positive) difference to your emotional well-being, and to your professional career.

March 26:

Events In Private Homes: Part I
by Hank Lewis

There are four basic purposes for such an activity … and the recognition/realization of the need for (the purpose of) a specific type of event, should be the first issue for consideration.

March 26:

Building Blocks of Direct Mail
by Jonathan Howard

Direct mail success depends on the interplay of three factors….

April 2:

Making Your Nonprofit Conference A Special (Fundraising) Event
by Natalie Lewis

When was the last time you went to a conference, walked into the exhibit hall and were pleasantly surprised that it looked new, different or interesting? Design your exhibit hall so that vendors will want to pay you to participate.

April 2:

Events In Private Homes: Part II
by Hank Lewis

Education, Cultivation & Stewardship – What can/should happen at an event in someone’s home.

April 9:

How Many Development Staffers Do We Need to Attain Our Fundraising Goals?
by Tony Poderis

I’ve often been asked about a formula/guideline for determining the number of development staff needed relative to an organization’s fundraising goals? My reply….

April 9:

Events In Private Homes: Part III
by Hank Lewis

Asking attendees to write a check … at an event in someone’s home. Should you or shouldn’t you ?? It all depends.

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Have you seen
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99 – $4.99)
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(…and, to start off the New Year, we’re offering $1-off coupons on the already-inexpensive Fundraising Series of Ebooks)

January 15:

In the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC), There Are Three Types of “Charities” – Where Do You Fit In?
by Bill Huddleston

National and International applications are due in January of each year, Local applications in late winter/early spring [and] there are various requirements for financial statements based on the size of the nonprofit.

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Have you seen
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99 – $4.99)
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January 15:

Can The Department of Defense Help Make You a Better Grant Writer?
by Jayme Sokolow

There is a writing technique used in the U.S. military that can help you improve your proposal prose. The technique is called Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF….

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Want to learn more about Finding/Getting Federal Government Grants?
Order Jayme’s Book on Federal Grantsmanship before February 14,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code JA55U
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January 22:

Sometimes Even The Best Special Events Caterer Screws Up
by Natalie Lewis

We had an elegant reception event in a beautiful facility … with a glass wall facing the river; with up-lights illuminating and framing that scene … but the caterer, whose offerings were really tasty, didn’t put enough thought into their appearance.

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Want to learn more about Creating a Successful Special Event?
Order Natalie’s Book on Special Events before February 21,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code NL96F
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January 22:

Are You Thinking About Enrolling in the CFC for the 2014 Campaign?
by Bill Huddleston

… you should consider why (federal) workplace giving really works – with a potential donor pool of more than three million potential donors who work for the same employer!!

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The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99 – $4.99)
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January 29:

The Ethics of Percentage-Based Compensation for Grant Writers – Part I
by Lynn deLearie

I was asked if I would accept a percentage of grant income that I raised … [and] My short answer is an unqualified, “No” … and there are good solid reasons for that decision.

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Want to learn more about Creating an Effective Grants Program?
Order Lynn’s Book on Grants and Grantsmanship before February 28,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code NZ95K
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January 29:

Tracking The Progress Of A Fundraising Program – Part I
by Tony Poderis

The Director of Development for a social services agency wrote: “We are being asked to justify the ‘slowness of the process’ in having started a new fundraising process for the organization. Are there any stats or information … on how long it takes to get ‘up and running’?”

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Want to learn more about Fundraising for a New Nonprofit?
Order Hank’s Book on Guidance For The New Nonprofit before February 28,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code KF49P
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February 5:

Tracking The Progress Of A Fundraising Program – Part II
by Tony Poderis

The only way to assess the progress of any fundraising process is when that process (the plan) has every step and component listed on a timeline. What follows is a sample Calendar/Action Plan for the Implementations of one segment of an annual Major Gifts Fundraising effort….

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Want to learn more about Major Gifts Fundraising?
Order Hank’s Book on Major Gifts Planning & Implementation
before March 7, and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code US84B
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February 5:

Cost-per-dollar Raised:
Evaluating The Performance of a New Development Officer
by Hank Lewis

A question was raised about evaluating the performance of a recently hired development officer, and the easily-tossed-around phrase/concept, “Cost-per-Dollar Raised,” was suggested as a way of determining the answer.

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Want to learn more about The Basic Concepts of Fundraising?
Order Hank’s Book on Fundraising Basics before March 7,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code PG33M
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February 12:

We’re All in This (Proposal) Together!
by Jayme Sokolow.

Find ways to connect everybody in your proposal team and you are more likely to produce competitive proposals. It may not be easy, but it is simple.

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Want to learn more about Finding/Getting Federal Government Grants?
Order Jayme’s Book on Federal Grantsmanship before February 14,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code JA55U
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

February 12:

The Ethics of Percentage-Based Compensation for Grant Writers – Part II
by Lynn deLearie

It is very clear that fundraising professional ethics do not allow percentage-based compensation, but WHY not? Why is this so strongly discouraged? You should know the answer to that question.

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Want to learn more about Creating an Effective Grants Program?
Order Lynn’s Book on Grants and Grantsmanship before February 28,
and get $1.00 off the sales price – use coupon code NZ95K
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

…in frequency, not in substance.

Up to now (and except for Summertime) we’ve been publishing twice each week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Starting in January, we’ll be publishing only on Wednesdays; but, each posting will contain two shorter pieces on different subjects (sometimes half of a longer piece).

For over three-and-one-half years, we’ve been writing/posting about Fundraising/Development — The Basics and the more Advanced….

We’ve written on (in alphabetical order) Board & Staff Relations, Capital Campaigns, Certification, Corporate Fundraising, Development Staff, Donor Categories, Donor Recognition, Donor Relations, Effective Grantsmanship – Foundation and Government, Fundraising Accounting Practices, Fundraising Constituencies, Fundraising Consultants, Fundraising Ethics, Fundraising Leadership, Fundraising Planning, Hiring Consultants, Major Gifts, The Mature Non-Profit, The New Nonprofit, Nonprofit Leadership, Planned Giving (including Bequest Programs), Planning Studies, Special Events, Social Media, Workplace Fundraising … and even a couple of book reviews.

We’ve been writing in our areas of expertise, about subjects/issues we deem important, that we think would be of value to our readers.

We’ll keep ’em coming, but we’d like to be sure we’re writing about what you’d like to read about.

Let us know. We look forward to your continuing feedback.

We’re taking a break … be back on Wednesday, January 8 with an Announcement of and Descriptions of the following ten postings.

Happy Holidays
From Hank, Natalie, Lynn, Jayme, Bill and Tony

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Have a comment or a question about starting,
evaluating or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
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Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
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An email raised this question:
My organization is in the process of developing a Fundraising Committee.

Three of our Board members are on this Committee and we are trying to determine other non-Board members who we could invite to join as well.

We have one major gift donor who began to fund us at the recommendation of her [philanthropy] advisor. I would like to talk to this advisor, who I have become acquainted with through email exchanges, about possibly joining our Fundraising Committee or perhaps recommending others who might join.

Are there any conflicts of interest around this that would prohibit my reaching out to this advisor?

The response:
To avoid conflicts of interest, you should not consider asking the philanthropic advisor to be a member of the committee. S/he can’t advise you and, at the same time, advise her/his clients to give to you if s/he is on your committee.

Also, ethically, the advisor can’t give you information about his/her clients without their permission to do so. If s/he would be willing to talk to those clients on your behalf (without being on your committee) that would be acceptable … as long as it was clear that the advisor was not, in any way, being compensated by you.

The best recommendation that s/he could give his/her clients would be that some other client became a donor and was very pleased with how they were treated, how their support has made a difference, and how the donor’s needs have been satisfied.

One question: Do you have a job description for the “Development Committee”?

I say, “development,” because the main/major function of the committee should be to establish/identify, maintain, and enhance relationships that will result in gifts. It’s not a fundraising committee, it’s a “relationship” committee.

In that context, you should not look to recruit people to the committee just because they have the financial ability to give significantly. The basic criterion for committee selection should be the extent to which an individual can help you do the identifying, creating, maintaining and enhancing of relationships.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and cheap ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

For over three-and-one-half years, we’ve been writing/posting about Fundraising/Development — The Basics and the more Advanced.

We’ve written on (in alphabetical order) Board & Staff Relations, Capital Campaigns, Certification, Corporate Fundraising, Development Staff, Donor Categories, Donor Recognition, Donor Relations, Effective Grantsmanship – Foundation and Government, Fundraising Accounting Practices, Fundraising Constituencies, Fundraising Consultants, Fundraising Ethics, Fundraising Leadership, Fundraising Planning, Hiring Consultants, Major Gifts, The Mature Non-Profit, The New Nonprofit, Nonprofit Leadership, Planned Giving (including Bequest Programs), Planning Studies, Special Events, Social Media, Workplace Fundraising and even a couple of book reviews.

We’ll keep ’em coming, but we’d like to write about what you’d like to read about.

What do you say ??

Let us know.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting,
evaluating or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and cheap ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂

A participant on a listserve raised the question: “What skills or personal qualities make one competent to ‘make the ask’ when meeting with a) an individual and b) a corporate representative?”

Because I have some very strong feelings/opinions about the issue, and didn’t want to be angered/frustrated/annoyed by that discussion, I didn’t read the rest of the posting or any of the responses.

Not having read the referenced exchange, I can write what I will without concern that I might be stealing someone else’s thoughts/words.

So, to answer the question, I’ll start with a question.

Could a stranger walk into your home/business and ask you for a “significant” gift to a nonprofit organization … and get it ??

Chances are, if you admitted that stranger into your home/business, that all you’d give (if anything) would be “go-away” money – an amount you could spare, just to get that person to go away.

On the other hand, if that person was not a stranger, but someone with whom you had a relationship, chances are that the check you write would be bigger than the “go-away” amount.

But, if the gift that’s being sought is considered (by you, the solicitor and the NPO) to be significant/major, it’s not likely to be solicited by someone who has just “showed up” at your door.

Before you can ASK for the major gift, there would have had to be created in the mind of the potential donor a reason, a motivation, why s/he would want to make that gift.

The idea is ludicrous that someone could just read an article or a book and become an effective solicitor. Asking for a significant gift has little-or-nothing to do with scripts, formulas, handouts or training.

I always ask my classes who they think would be the best person to ask me for a major gift … to get me to want to make a major gift. Then, after getting knee jerk answers (like a board member or the executive director), I ask who would know me well enough to know my hot buttons, my interests, my commitments and my ability to give.

Eventually, someone suggests that it might be my wife. Of course!

Now, obviously, my wife is not associated with every nonprofit that wants me to make a gift, but there are many other people who know me well enough to participate in my evaluation, cultivation and Ask. Certainly the people who know me can have a lot greater impact on my giving than could a stranger.

I can’t understand how people could think that reading a book on How To Make The Ask will make them more effective than someone who knows and/or is close to the prospect.

In case you’ve forgotten, Development is about relationships. If the book on how to ask doesn’t emphasize that building a relationship comes first, then the rest of the book can’t be worth very much.

So, back to the original question: “What skills or personal qualities make one competent to ‘make the ask’ when meeting with a) an individual and b) a corporate representative?”

The necessary skills are: the ability to build and maintain substantial relationships; the ability to read/understand people so that you’ll know when it’s time to Ask; and, the understanding that Asking means asking for a specific dollar amount. The personal quality most needed is the willingness to Ask.

When and where to do the Ask, and deciding what the Ask amount will be, come directly from the depth of the relationship between the solicitor and the prospect.

Without the relationship, without the knowledge and understanding, all you’re going to get is go-away money. Is that what you want??

I refer you to this blog’s series of postings on Major Gifts ….

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and cheap !! ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank@Major-Capital-Giving.com
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

Unlike all of the other planned giving mechanisms, a bequest program doesn’t require major technical expertise and specific financial instruments. It’s easy, it’s fast, it can pay off substantially, and the dollars from bequests comprise close to 90% of all planned gifts.

Many non-profit organizations refuse to get into planned giving because of the perception that it’s all about technical wording and/or complicated financial instruments. That’s a misperception.

Most planned gifts mechanisms do require some degree of technical expertise, possible registration/approval by States, and a legal contract between the donor and the non-profit organization, BUT NOT BEQUESTS!!

Bequests are simple, and should be a standard item in every organization’s development tool box. Simply worded, a bequest is a gift left to you in someone’s will.

Your job is to get those who might namAnother Approach to Getting Bequestse you in their wills to want to do that.

What do you have to do?

1. Reach out to folks and get them involved with you and what you do.
2. Involvement means working on committees, being asked for advice, helping to provide service
3. Be creative, think of how to get people so excited about being part of who you are and what you do that they’d want to help continue that work, even after they’re gone.
4. Let them know how easy it is to leave you a bequest.
5. Let them know of the recognition they’ll get — the appreciation they’ll be shown — while they’re still here.
6. Create a named “society” just to honor those who name you in their wills.

Recent figures show over $16 billion in bequests given to non-profit organizations in just one year. Do you want some of that !?

The most effective way of launching/expanding a bequest program is to have a number of trained volunteers cultivating and educating your potential legators. And, the most effective program for involving volunteers with those potential donors doesn’t even involve an Ask. That’s right, no one will have to ask the prospect to make a bequest.

I’d be happy to send to you a description of a program to involve volunteers in the bequest generation process – just write to me at AskHank@Major-Capital-Giving.com.

Consider, those who (first) name you in their wills are more likely to make major and planned gifts to you while they’re still with us. And, many Board Members find it easier to ask someone to name an organization in their will than they do to ask someone to write a check.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and cheap ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

My response to an email from an Executive Director….

You indicated that it is your “goal to eventually turn over all operations to [your VP] and assume a position as Board Chair … [so] that [you] might be able to continue to form the basic direction of the intended purpose of the organization.”

Non-profit organizations go through distinct stages of “life,” much as we do. The first, which I refer to a the Childhood of an organization, is the period beginning with the (usually small) group of volunteers who have the “vision,” and where those volunteers do it all. They give of their hearts and their time, and often sacrifice to make it happen.

In the final stage of an organization, which I call Maturity, the mission is clear and ingrained, Board Members are selected for their expertise in various areas that allow them to formulate/evaluate adherence to policies, oversee corporate finances, engage in strategic planning, and help to provide/obtain much of the funding for operations.

The stage in between those two, the period of growth and painful change, I refer to as Adolescence. Part of what makes this period painful is that the 501(c)(3), in order to qualify to keep its IRS status — and probably its State non-profit status, must have a functional Board of Trustees.

By law, it is the Trustees who are responsible for the proper operation of an NPO and for oversight of its mission, policies and finances. That raises the question of who gets to be Board Chair.

Most State laws require a vote by Board Members (or members of the corporation — if you have such) to select officers. Most States also require term limits for Board Members, and for officers.

I often note that the phrase, “Founder’s Syndrome,” is used in the context of describing what’s wrong with an organization. That “syndrome” is characterized by the founder acting to dominate/control the activities/mission of an organization.

The law, however, gives that authority to the Board-as-a-whole — a Board that can change the organization’s mission with a (majority) vote. And a founder who “bullies” Board Members or doesn’t allow them to give all they can, creates an environment that weakens the NPO and doesn’t allow it to meet its potential.

The very nature of a 501(c)(3) organization is that it meets the needs of its community as determined by a Board that represents that community.

A large percentage of the horror stories told in the non-profit community involve a “founder;” but, there are also those founders (not all are evil) who are comfortable playing the limited role allowed by law. Either as Executive Director/CEO or as a Board Member serving a limited term.

Like a child, NPOs also have to be allowed to grow — to change their nature — to mature. If someone (like a founder) with the vision can adapt to a changing world, the community benefits from that person’s wisdom and from an evolving NPO serving its needs.

You’ve helped to create something of great benefit to your community…. But the hardest concept to accept is that a NPO is not the property of one individual, but of the community.

And, again, “Who gets to be Board Chair?” — the person elected to that position by the other board members !!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, to the point, and cheap ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

…and I’m taking this opportunity to thank a few people and emphasize the fundraising rules upon which all of the blog postings are based.

Giving Thanks
First, I have to thank Carter McNamara, owner of this website and creator of the Free Management Library, for inviting me to “invent” the Fundraising Blog, and to keep it going for well over three years … with no end in sight ☺

I also have to thank the other “regular” writers whose experience and expertise have really made this venue a valuable resource for the nonprofit community:
• Andrew Grant, an early contributor on the subject of Grants & Grantsmanship;
• Natalie Lewis, for her writing on Special Events;
• Rick Christ, for his look into Fundraising and Social Media’
• Lynn deLearie, for her ongoing, in-depth look at Grants & Grantsmanship;
• Jayme Sokolow, for clarifying the mystical world of Federal Grantsmanship;
• Bill Huddleston, for sharing his expertise on the Combined Federal Campaign;
• Christine Manor, for her insights on the Accounting “Rules” for fundraising;
• Tony Martignetti, for beginning our education into Planned Giving; and,
• Tony Poderis, for sharing the insights gained over his 40 years in Fundraising.

I also want to thank, for their Guest Postings: Carter McNamara, Gail Meltzer, Ken Ristine, Mari Lane Gewecke and Andrea Kihlstedt. And, I invite you to think about submitting a guest post – to Guest Posting.

Fundraising Basics
• Grants & Grantsmanship are not matters of sending as many requests for funding as you can generate to foundations, corporations and government entities. This is about researching, assembling a team, working to create the appropriate grant request for each potential funder, establishing relationships with funders, and demonstrating to funders that you’ve used their support as you’d agreed and that it has made the desired impact/result.

• Special Events are not “fundraisers” that get thrown together when you need money. These activities are planned, staffed, implemented and followed-up as any development activity should be. You need a committee that can bring attendees, give at levels that set the example, and get others to give. You need the ingredient(s) that will make people want to attend/participate.

• Social Media are marketing venues. Giving via social media is productive only if you can get vast numbers of people to give the “smaller” gifts. Social media are best used to get people to want to know more about you, to want to volunteer, to want to support you, and to thank them for doing all that.

• Planned Giving scares a lot of people because they think it’s all about insurance, trusts, complicated documentation and state registration. In fact, 90% of planned giving involves none of that, and it’s easy.

• The Combined Federal Campaign raises billions, and too few nonprofits take advantage of that opportunity. The CFC could have federal employees doing face-to-face solicitation on your behalf.

• At the “Base” of it All, Whether it’s about a Major Gifts Program, A Capital Campaign, the Annual Fund, or any/all of the above subject areas, fundraising is about getting the (potential) donor to want to give to you. And the key to making that happen is understanding that the donor gives to satisfy his/her needs, not yours. When you’re getting ready to ask people to support you, ask yourself, “Why would they want to give to you?” The answer probably has less to do with your organization and its mission than you might think.

All 299 of the other posts to this blog are available to you via the links at the right of the on-line page. All postings are accessible by clicking on the category in that list.

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Many of the blog postings have been compiled, by subject, in
The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
They’re easy to read, and cheap ($1.99-$3.99) 🙂
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Have a comment or a question about this blog, this posting or about starting, evaluating or expanding your fundraising program? Ask Hank