Good, bad or ugly (err...otherwise), Executive Directors set the tone for philanthropy in any nonprofit. For many organizations, this is wonderful news. There are some amazingly talented executives who are...
Communicating differently via mail with middle and major donors (Tip #14)
Middle and major donors require a different treatment in the mail than your regular donor base. These donors tend to prefer longer letters. Closed-face envelopes, higher quality paper, First Class...
If you’re in nonprofit work, you’ve heard these before…
Someone just posted this on LinkedIn and I thought it was worth sharing. Happy Friday!
Direct mail as part of an integrated fundraising strategy (Tip #13)
Donors don't behave in silos. They consume media via e-mail, print, TV, radio, mobile, social media and face-to-face. And recent studies suggest that in many cases, they consume multiple media at...
Take major donors out of your mail program at your own risk (Tip #12)
Don't take your major donors out of the direct mail stream. This is one of the worst things you can do for your organization. Typically this happens for one of...
Direct Mail Fundraising Tip of the Week (#11)
One page. Two pages. Eight pages. There is no right or wrong length for direct mail fundraising letters. Don't believe what anyone tells you about this. Those are personal biases...
Do you know what it takes to get major gifts?
Your board might think it takes a cocktail party or gala event to get major donors to give. Sometimes that's true. Others in the organization probably think you spend your...
Direct Mail Fundraising Tip of the Week (#10)
Handwriting increases performance. Ink on paper (especially blue ink) does wonders for improving results. The added personalization and authentic feel handwriting provides can help increase both response rate and average...
How do your prospects rank on the 3 C’s?
All indications are major gift revenue will rebound throughout 2012 (compared to 2010/2011). This is great news! Are you ready to take advantage of this impending increase in major gifts?...
Direct Mail Fundraising Tip of the Week (#9)
Increase your response rates by including mission-relevant involvement devices in your direct mail. These aren't premiums like address labels. Instead, I'm talking about items that require the donor to interact...