‘No sale’ video from Oxfam

by Tom Belford

I’m a sucker for online videos to deliver important messages and sell causes and charities. But this one from Oxfam is a ‘no sale’ as far as I’m concerned.

A creative brief for fundraisers: why it matters, and how it can help you raise more money

by Lisa Sargent

This creative brief comes courtesy of Lisa Sargent, principal at Sargent Communications, LLC in the USA.

In-memoriam donation thank-you letter samples

by Lisa Sargent

These letters are part of Lisa Sargent’s thank-you letter clinic: How to write lively memorial donation thank-you letters.

In lieu of flowers: how to write lively memorial donation thank-you letters

by Lisa Sargent

Are your in-memoriam donation thank-you letters destined for donor oblivion?

This copywriting clinic looks to help you rescue them from a fate worse than, well… death.

The Obama effect

by Jonathon Grapsas

Six lessons from President Obama’s fundraising team to help fuel growth in your organisation.

How to write a better thank-you letter (and why it matters)

by Lisa Sargent

‘Dear Friend,’ the thank-you letter began... and it broke my heart. Don’t they know my name? I wondered. (It was on the cheque I sent them, after all.)

SOFII announces the return of the thank-you letter clinic

by Lisa Sargent

New thank-you letter clinic to champion a renaissance in charity thank-you letters, starting with Lee Saunders – and YOU.

It all started when veteran fundraiser and SOFII user Lee Saunders kindly sent SOFII a packet of charity thank-you letters he’d written for charities in Western Australia.

Copywriting and design strategies for better donor newsletters: a before and after success story

by Lisa Sargent

Fundraising copywriter Lisa Sargent and designer Sandie Collette, of S.Collette Design, discuss how copywriting and design go hand-in-hand to make a Dublin-based charity's newsletter overhaul a success. Discover the strategies that helped make it happen in this case study of a nonprofit newsletter.

To ask or not to ask, that is the question when saying thank you to a donor

by Lisa Sargent & Sean Triner

Find out what Sean Triner, co-founder and director, Pareto Fundraising in Australia and Lisa Sargent, principal at Sargent Communications, LLC in the USA have to say about this.

The power of benchmarking

by Jonathon Grapsas

How looking around at others can help you raise more money for your cause.

Sorry, but you’re just not my type!

by Colin Wheildon

Typestyle and typefaces may seem unlikely fare for readers of SOFII opinion pieces but not so if you want to communicate effectively with your donors. It has been said that communication is the key to building donors’ trust and confidence.

Review by Ken Burnett.

Conversion of a techno-sceptic

by Richard C McPherson

Only a few things in life are worth missing a flight for. I’d like to tell you about two of them. The first is merely amusing but the other, I think, you will find of more value. The first was only the second flight I’d missed, ever. It was going to Oslo, Norway, but I was stuck on London’s Hammersmith roundabout…

Review by Ken Burnett.