. . . on this platform! I started The Annual Fund Lab nearly three years ago as a platform to look at issues in fundraising and sort out my own thoughts about the profession. The journey started with a question - "What's the Big Deal about Fundraising, anyway?" Three years later and some 60 or … Continue reading This Is My Last Blog Post . . .
Fundraising
But We Raised a Ton of Money!
Oh, there's some ranting happening over on #FundraisingTwitter . . . and with good reason: Year-End Fundraising Solicitations. Email inboxes flooded with year-end appeals on December 30 and 31st. Our friend, Ephraim Gopin, at 1832 Communications posted a list of subject lines he'd seen in just one day. (side note: if you haven't signed up … Continue reading But We Raised a Ton of Money!
Why Can’t You Just Say Thanks?
We've made an entire industry out of those terrible gifts we used to get at the holidays. Ugly Christmas sweaters are now a staple of contemporary holiday parties and we joke about how wonderful it is to actually get socks as a present. But, boy was a it disappointing as a kid. You still had … Continue reading Why Can’t You Just Say Thanks?
#GivingTuesday
"GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world on December 1, 2020, and every day. It was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past seven years, this idea has grown into a … Continue reading #GivingTuesday
Five Fundamental Questions of Fundraising
1. Is your Fundraising transactional or transformative? 2. Is your Fundraising driven by the mission or the budget? 3. Is your Fundraising an integrated core value of the organization or is it the bank account that pays the bills? 4. Is your Fundraising 'developing' the organization or is it raising funds? 5. Is your Fundraising … Continue reading Five Fundamental Questions of Fundraising
Continuity of Care
Donors last longer than staff. How do you create value and keep donors engaged during the endless revolving door of staff changes?
Disrupt Your Innovation
Disrupt. Innovate. Think bigger, think differently! All valuable advice. In fact, innovation is often listed as one of the most important focal points for any company. It encourages growth, creates value for employees and customers and brings much-needed advancements to the field. Arguably, any of the greatest achievements in history have occurred because someone, somewhere … Continue reading Disrupt Your Innovation
The Things That Came Before
Sometimes, to make truly lasting, important, substantive change we have to honor what came before. We weren't there for the little decisions, the tough choices, the concessions that had to be made that led to the status being quo. We might've missed the thousand-and-one paper cuts, putting a band-aid on this one and that one … Continue reading The Things That Came Before
Does Giving Need Saving?
Probably. If you read any recent reports or statistics, yeah, we've got a lot of work to do. Fundraising Effectiveness Project, GivingUSA, literal thousands of case studies, webinars, trainings, conferences . . . . we're investing a lot of time, money and energy in saving giving. This article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy . . . … Continue reading Does Giving Need Saving?
On “The Annual Fund”
I'm honored to have been invited to speak at the AFP Silicon Valley chapter. The topic? My favorite: The Annual Fund Isn't Annual. I'm equally as honored that there were so many responses to a random Twitter question I posted: I mean, goodness, Simone Joyaux even blogged about it! The over-arching, most common themes and … Continue reading On “The Annual Fund”
Annual Fund Lab 