Matthew Sherrington

Are you answering the right questions if you don’t want to bore people?

by Matthew Sherrington

Where do most nonprofits tend to start when it comes to telling their story? They start with themselves: ‘Who We Are’, or on their website ‘About Us’. And then they move on to ‘What We Do’, a description of the activities or themes they work on. More about ‘me’. But people generally aren’t interested in you. They are interested in the cause or issue they are passionate about. They are interested in the difference they can make. So it’s not about you.

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EveryChild Gift Aid: ‘mop-up’ campaign

by Matthew Sherrington

For any UK charity, reclaiming tax on donations going back the last four years could be a huge windfall. This case study shows you how it’s done... because after sending out this successful direct mail piece, EveryChild’s average Gift Aid claim was £165 per response.

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Greenpeace USA newsletter: the origami whale

by Matthew Sherrington

If you want to engage your donors give them something interesting and fun to do. This is an example of transforming the humble newsletter, with new energy and purpose, to deliver a real involving experience to supporters.

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It won't work here!

by Matthew Sherrington

Matthew Sherrington is depressed and losing patience with fundraisers who won't try a different idea.

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Mo-tivations. Why (oh why) am I doing it? And why would you support me?

by Matthew Sherrington

‘You’ll be cool. A dad of teenage daughters will do anything to hear himself described like that. Anything,’ says Matthew Sherrington who listened, faced his fears and grew a ‘mo’ for prostate cancer. But what were the other six motivations that he thinks make people do something for a charity that they know little about? Find out here.

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Oxfam pledged gifts

by Matthew Sherrington

Now here’s a challenge for you. How would you raise money if you didn’t have all the innovations we have today? No direct mail, no telephone, no face to face… Click here to discover how Oxfam, back in the 1960s, collected 300,000 regular pledged gifts without such aids.

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Save the Children: knit one save one

by Matthew Sherrington

Knit a tiny hat and you could save a newborn baby’s life. This beautiful campaign from Save the Children UK shows what can happen when you make it crystal clear to people the difference they can make.

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Why asking and thanking is all wrong

by Matthew Sherrington

Do you think Matthew Sherrington is just being controversial when he says that asking and thanking are wrong? Or does he have a point?

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About the author

Matthew Sherrington has over 20 years’ experience of charity marketing and leadership internationally, with organisations such as Oxfam and Greenpeace USA. He now runs his own consultancy, Inspiring Action. His guiding principle is engaging and inspiring people to action and has a particular interest in supporter engagement. Matthew bridges fundraising, communications, brand, campaigning, organisational development and offers strategic consultancy and coaching.