Ten tips to spur the creative grant proposal-writing process

by Pamela Grow

Pamela says: ‘Your final step should be a gracious letter to the foundation, thanking them for their time and their thorough review of your proposal. You’d be surprised at how few organisations take the time to thank the foundation.’

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.

Do it yourself fundraising

by Marc Pitman

Start-up nonprofits often ask me, ‘How do we raise money?’. The panic of making budget seems to make raising money impossible without knowing someone rich and famous like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet.

Creating a supportive workplace for fundraisers

by Norma Cameron

You’ve heard of the donor bill of rights; hopefully you have one pinned above your desk. Now, if you click here you’ll find a bill with a difference just for you: a bill of rights for fundraisers. If you’d like to add anything, please let us know.

Lessons from young charities - part 2

by James Read

You can read principles three, four and five here

Lessons from young charities - part 1

by James Read

In this article, creative director and copy chief of marketing and fundraising agency Grizzard, James Read, looks at some of the newest and relatively small charities that have succeeded in raising enviable amounts of awareness and money. He shares the five principles he believes characterise today’s most innovative nonprofits and how you can apply them to your organisation.

Tom Ahern’s nine-step communications self-audit

by Tom Ahern

Why pay thousands to have an expert tell you what you’re doing wrong? Audit your donor communications yourself, using these criteria.

Ten things you should remember when writing to trusts and foundations

by Jo Habib

As with all fundraising, you really need to think about what you are doing from the foundations’ – the donors’ – perspectives. If you were them, what would you want? How would you want to be approached? What would you want to know?

Finding the perfect fundraising database in an imperfect world

by Robert Weiner

Searching for a donor database for your organisation can be a daunting task. It can be difficult to know where to start, what functions and features you're really going to need, and where to look for affordable options.

If you think education is expensive, try fundraising for it

by Lyndi Smith

How to lose £9,000 without even asking

by Anthony Clay

Why timing is everything. And when it pays to ask for more.

Five acquisition tests: you choose the winner

by Willis Turner

Sometimes when we test packages we’re actually testing theories.