Browsing the archives for the Fundraising category
Gad Saad, in The Consuming Instinct, has penned an interesting and deep read around the notion of biologically-driven choices. He discusses how our biology drives our consumption behaviors in ways far more important than culture or socialization alone can account. I thought about our work as advancement professionals when Gad covered the “variety effect” and [...]
Time to make the call on the prospective donors. You know which call it is – it’s the ask. This is big. In fact, it’s the biggest ask you’ve ever made of a prospect. You’ve set up the meeting and a member of your Board will be with you. You’ve created a call script. You’ve [...]
Have you stumbled upon Klout.com yet? It’s a quantitative value analysis of your online influence. Every facebook “like,” every tweet, every published blog, every status update, and photo comment adds to your value as an online influencer. A higher score means you have more influence with others in the virtual realm. Recently, I read an [...]
In our world today, there are many who chase after acknowledgment without a proficiency in any art form. Their goal is not to develop a craft, aptitude, or skill. They simply want to be famous. And, because a proficiency in an art is absent, others wonder aloud as to how these folk achieve any level [...]
So our good friends at The National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia have released the findings from their latest national survey of marital happiness. They surveyed 1,400 married couples and found that the level of generosity – or the amount of give and take that goes on in the relationship – is a [...]
There is a story of an art collector who had amassed a sizeable and valuable collection of art masterpieces – paintings, sculptures, and other art pieces. He had grown up without the privilege of formal education beyond high school and had worked to establish and build a successful business. By the time he was 55 [...]
We’ve all heard of stage fright – that fear that grips a performer when the lights come on and the audience is watching intently. A favorite method of alleviating stage fright is to take the focus off of yourself as the performer. Instead, acting coaches will encourage the performer to focus on the audience. ”Imagine [...]
Over the last decade, the concept of “donor-centered” fundraising has gained traction for institutions of all sizes. Books have been written on the topic and a Google search of the phrase turned up 364,000 results! The idea – that all institutional activities and behaviors should be concentrated and focused in ways that best serve donors [...]
Recently, frogloop posted a story about the rise of the she-conomy. A story that should remind us that donors are not a monolithic category of people. Homogeneous groups, based on important variables, as well as all individuals, approach philanthropy differently. Our role as advancement leaders is to build the knowledge and capacity of our institutions [...]
