SOFII’s August must-reads

Written by
Pamela Grow
& Craig Linton
Added
August 04, 2014

Top tips

How do you talk to donors about fundraising costs? Our friends at The Agitator on how to talk to donors about fundraising costs and ethics.

Another terrific explanation from Seattle fundraiser Peter Drury on overhead ratios.

Joanne Fritz implores please treat me like a major donor.

Heather Mansfield with some killer fresh ideas for your nonprofit's thank you landing page. Don't miss it.

Over at Bloomerang, Simone Joyaux shares 54 essential questions about fund development. Use them to stimulate discussion and thinking amongst your team.

Do you use the phone enough in your fundraising? 101 Fundraising share ten reasons to pick up the phone and give your donors a call.

Angela Cluff from the Management Centre shares a seven-step plan to develop a fundraising strategy from scratch.

News

A top street fundraiser shares some of his secrets at Fundraiser magazine. It’s great to read James’ everyday experiences and hope we can read more from fundraisers out there meeting and talking to donors directly.

The first assignment for students in my nonprofit storytelling course was to watch Dr Paul Zak’s video on empathy, neurochemistry and the dramatic arc. If you missed it, here’s Angie Moore with what do oxytocin and cortisol have to do with fundraising?

Does your organisation have an email welcome series for new online donors and/or subscribers? What’s an email welcome series worth? From Powerthruconsulting.

Fundraising Detective hosted the July nonprofit blog carnival. The theme was welcoming donors and securing the second gift. There are some great links that will help improve your relationship fundraising.

Opinion

Do you know your organisation’s true potential? Or are you just using ‘easy excuses’?

The Agitator gives us the goods.

Pamela Grow shares a moving story about a family friend and urges you to have a plan for your in-memoriam gifts.

Our friends at Veritus remind us that you can’t thank your donors fast enough.

Are the leading voices in fundraising men? Do men comprise the majority of fundraising agencies? Margaux Smith blogging at 101Fundraising asks ‘where my girls at?*’

And look for WomenRuleFundraising.com to launch this fall, where smart women fundraisers will be sharing their strategies, successes...and maybe even doing a bit of ‘agitating’ themselves.

There are so many takeaways in this piece from our friends at The Agitator on Greenpeace’s recent video denouncing Lego for teaming up with Shell Oil (what was the thinking behind that?). When you sign up, you’ll see some of the best examples of brilliantly donor-focused web copywriting ever.

Adrian Salmon from Leeds University shares how he analyses his results and uses the insight to develop a ‘power index’ for fundraising channels.

Fundraising’s brilliant past

The centenary of the start of the First World War inspired Tony Charalambides from Listen to write two great posts on fundraising in Great War on 101 Fundraising.

About the author: Pamela Grow

Pamela Grow is the publisher of The Grow Report, the author of Simple Development Systems, and the founder of Basics & More™ fundraising fundamentals online training. Created to provide time-pressed nonprofit professionals with fundraising training that works with their busy schedules, Basics & More™ has delivered instruction to thousands of nonprofit organizations, raising hundreds of millions in the process. 

Pam has been helping small non-profits raise dramatically more money for over 16 years, and was named one of the 50 Most Influential Fundraisers by Civil Society magazine, and one of the 40 Most Effective Fundraising Consultants by The Michael Chatman Giving Show. Her blog, PamelaGrow.com was named one of the 25 Must-Read Nonprofit IT Blogs 2016.

About the author: Craig Linton

Craig Linton has over 15 years’ of fundraising experience across a number of disciplines and sectors. He currently works at Amnesty International where he advises colleagues across Europe on their individual giving fundraising and helps them prepare investment proposals. He also spends a day a week on outside consultancy and research projects. His specialisms are relationship fundraising and providing a great donor experience. He is a member of the Institute of Fundraising Convention board, on Rogare’s advisory panel, a contributing editor to SOFII.org and a trustee of Thames Hospice.

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Is your donor a Spiderman, Batman or a Wonder Woman?

Superheroes have a unique backstory that makes them who they are and shapes their narrative. But in fundraising, your donor has an ‘origin story’ too. Marina Jones believes that making an effort to learn more about your donor’s story can give you an insight into why they choose to give – and help you build supporter loyalty.

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Will you join these kind fundraisers at the heart of SOFII?

Who are the SOFII One Hundred? They are fantastic fundraisers from around the world – and you can find them at the heart of SOFII. Read on to discover more about this group of caring people and learn why they have chosen to help fundraisers today, tomorrow and forever.

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New year, new changes in digital fundraising – five tips to help you prepare

Changes in online marketing and data privacy have made it harder than ever to find new donors. And as we embark on a new year in fundraising, more shifts are on the horizon. So what can fundraisers like you do to make sure you’re prepared to communicate with and nurture your donors in an ever-evolving digital landscape?

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Legacy brochures from 90 years ago – what’s the same and what’s different to today?

This is a rare ‘legacy edition’ from our ever-growing fundraising history project. Marina Jones has uncovered some gems in The Salvation Army archive, two legacy brochures from the 1930s. In this article she looks at what’s stayed the same (Marina found ten things!), as well as what’s changed, when it comes to talking to donors about making a gift in their will.

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When fundraising collapsed – are we ready for a new era of responsible fundraising?

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