Whatever you fundraise for, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to get away from events. They are a wonderful, personal way to raise awareness of your cause, bring together possible donors, and thanking those who have donated. On the flip side, they’re a lot of work to get right, and sometimes you can be left … Continue reading ‘Dos and Data – how your database can help you make your events even better
Saying ‘aloe’ to your new community – tricks for a trouble-free transition
Every year educational charities turn students into alumni and add a new cohort of students. Many charities also have regular schedules of welcoming new supporters and managing changing relationships en mass. In this exclusive, original post on Propper Fundraising, Adriana Williams presents an essential guide to managing this data process. Trigger warning: this post is … Continue reading Saying ‘aloe’ to your new community – tricks for a trouble-free transition
How to find your community as an adult — and why it matters
Charities rely on communities to help support their causes and, as social creatures, humans need interpersonal contact to survive. These connections range from your inner circle of family and close friends to the outer rungs of your social network — other pet parents at the dog park, for example — and it’s important to have … Continue reading How to find your community as an adult — and why it matters
The why and how of fundraising
In another thoughtful post by Mary Cahalane, she asks "Would you prefer to read a grant proposal or a novel?" When you’re fundraising, it’s really important to understand the difference between the "why" and "how". Many fundraisers are rightly proud of their organization’s work. And they’re especially proud of what sets their organization apart from … Continue reading The why and how of fundraising
How Jargon Destroys Nonprofit Fundraising & Marketing
Why would you ever use jargon if you wanted to truly communicate with someone? Just check out the definition: “language used by a particular group of people, especially in their work, and which most other people do not understand” — Cambridge dictionary. When you talk to people in words they don’t understand, really, what’s the … Continue reading How Jargon Destroys Nonprofit Fundraising & Marketing
15 Expert Tips for Giving a Powerful Business Presentation
A powerful business presentation is much more than just a bunch of nice-looking slides. Whether you’re presenting to venture capitalists, senior management or potential donors, you need to make a great first impression and stand out from the dozens of other speakers they’ll encounter. For some people, presenting in front of even a handful of … Continue reading 15 Expert Tips for Giving a Powerful Business Presentation
How to Build Resilience
Resilience is the ability to withstand, recover, return, and thrive in the face of adversity or a traumatic event. Resilience is an ongoing process that develops over time. Furthermore, our perceptions, culture, family, experiences, and training all influence our resilience. While we all have our strategies for dealing with life’s challenges, the use of positive … Continue reading How to Build Resilience
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Development Content: Five ways to reframe your donor stories
Higher education and nonprofit communications teams tend to turn their noses up at donor profiles. Their reaction isn’t unfounded; college alumni magazine readership surveys, for one, consistently show that donor profiles and gift announcements rank last in interest among types of content in these publications. After working for more than a decade on both sides … Continue reading How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Development Content: Five ways to reframe your donor stories
The big question your donors want you to answer: WHY
Why should I give you money? Why should I care about your work? Why will this matter to someone? Too often, we focus on HOW. We love to talk about how we do the work. All the cool ways we accomplish great things. A new process. A unique way of tackling a problem. All of … Continue reading The big question your donors want you to answer: WHY
Why the things you hate make good appeals
That informal language is undignified... A fundraising appeal is not a business letter. Say it again. Keep saying it until you believe it. An appeal should read like a letter from a dear friend. Or better yet, like a phone call from that friend, transcribed. So yes, there will be contractions, because people use contractions … Continue reading Why the things you hate make good appeals
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