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The world has been buzzing all year about the “Arab spring,” “Occupy” movements, and the “European debt crisis.” Similarly, people in philanthropy have their own lingo to describe their preoccupations of the past year, particularly as the government’s financial challenges and growing competition for scarce donations put ever more attention on nonprofits that produce results [...]
Today a growing number of non-profits are integrating a data-driven approach into everything from long-term strategic planning to daily operations. Data-mining, more specifically predictive modeling, has emerged as a crucial tool allowing many organizations to gain deeper insights into their constituents and greater efficiencies within their operations. At DonorCast we like to explain the goals of [...]
At my first development conference over 20 years ago, a wise gentleman shared the phrase “Don’t confuse action with progress”. For years that phrase was on my desk in some manner and served as a directional beacon for various work efforts. With this in mind I have seen over and over again the need for [...]
This Points of Practice presents best-in-class thinking about how to leverage your organization’s advancement services, including ways to sharpen your focus, anticipate what’s next, and align services to advancement goals and opportunities.
In this issue of Bentz Whaley Flessner’s Points of Practice, author Thomas W. Grabau discusses how to track the right major gift metrics for the best donor results.
Bentz Whaley Flessner’s Fall 2009 Client Advisory discusses why it is important to campaign now, the impact of the economy, and keys to fundraising success. Author M. Bruce Dreon introduces a new four-step campaign model that fits the economic and philanthropic reality of the times.
On Wednesday the Federal Reserve released the minutes from their August 11 and 12 meeting. The Fed viewpoint was that the economic recovery steps had strengthened their confidence that the downturn in economic activity was ending. This end of the recession is also the dominant viewpoint in the survey of leading economists by the Wall Street Journal.
Too many development shops are focused on where the economy is now. Last fall Bentz Whaley Flessner looked at where the economy was going to be and advised clients that budgets and gift levels would be difficult in the quarters ahead. We shared our insight in client advisories, spoke at conferences around the continent, and developed new campaign and annual giving strategies to help clients handle the toughest economy in a generation.
Tips and techniques for effective cold calling of donors and prospects.
The U.S economys downturn is affecting fundraising results. In times like these, perceived cost centers are sometimes slashed through staffing and budget cuts. Increasingly sophisticated nonprofits are finding, however, that such cuts to cost centers can be counterproductive. This is particularly true of advancement and development services. Smaller staff using fewer resources will yield inferior results. These inferior outcomes can negatively affect donor relationships, retention, and acquisition. If your organization needs to consider some belt-tightening due to sluggish giving, consider these advancement services solutions in lieu of budget cuts. Improvements in these areas will maximize your return on investment and help you generate fundraising momentum.
