Giving is Good
It’s quite common for advancement professionals and volunteers to want the “silver bullet language” around asking for gifts. Surely there must be phrases, individual words, and conversation transitions which, when deftly strung together, will unlock the giving motivations in humans. There must be a process, a formula, a blueprint that makes the asking easier and…
It works to make us feel better in the moment. It works to help us not examine our own possibilities, problems, or opportunities. It works to deflect responsibility. But it only works for so long. In time, “us vs. them” thinking crashes under its own weight of fear, insecurities, doubt, self-absorption, non-factual biases, and too…
If your aim is to enhance the visibility of your institution, engage more advocates for your cause, and raise more money by making your work more orderly, organized, and programmed, you will have limited success. If your aim is to increase the number of donors who give at the $1,000+ level, have more people attend…
Too many institutions start the draft of their “Case For Support” by focusing on the “support” part of that phrase. These are typical questions asked first: Project: What do we need money for? Priority: Is this project/initiative/building our most important priority? Details: How will we specifically spend the money? And while these are, ultimately important questions…
Perhaps the most concerning giving trend in the U.S. is the continuing decrease in the total number of donors making charitable gifts each year. Regardless of the variables and reasons researchers point to in explaining this decades-long trend, I remain convinced that people are not growing less interested in doing good. I remain convinced that…
Ask most any educational, healthcare, or social nonprofit executive about the goals they have for their Board or Advisory Council and you will hear phrases like, “deeper engagement,” “philanthropic leadership,” and, “meaningful volunteer experience.” What we say, however, often stands in stark relief when compared to how we actually behave. And, in the case of…
If year-over-year gift income has increased, advancement leaders will regularly make the case (to their bosses, to their Boards, etc.) that good work is happening. Fundraising totals are an easy-to-understand metric, they make comparisons easy, and they highlight what many people believe advancement programs should be doing. But assessing any enterprise – especially an advancement…
It’s easy to complain that our institution doesn’t have the support from the types of wealthy donors that other institutions enjoy. Far more difficult to engage, invite, and steward the donors who currently support our mission. It’s easy to identify the shortcomings of the individual who held our position before we arrived. Far more difficult…
If you are seeking more meaning, satisfaction, and joy from your work as an advancement professional, addressing these 3 questions will be helpful: 1. Do I believe people to be more generous or more stingy? This question, which focuses on your deeply-held beliefs around the basic social DNA of people, will fundamentally shape the enjoyment…
“It didn’t work, so we aren’t planning to do it again.” I’ve heard this statement from advancement professionals after phonathons, direct mail solicitations, donor surveys, and even, social media-focused giving days. But, when probing just a bit further, there are almost always two separate misunderstandings that are driving this statement. First, there usually is low…