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All about donor newsletters

Many years ago, I began reading about something new to me. Tom Ahern tipped me off to donor newsletters. Though I’d been in fundraising for nearly ten years by then – focused on individual donors and annual giving – I tended to think of newsletters as something very large organizations sent. (And those were often […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: donor newsletters Leave a Comment

Is philanthropy “women’s work”?

And what does women’s work mean? A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about the struggles of balancing work and life – especially for those of us in the nonprofit world. Many of you read it, shared it, commented, or sent me email messages. I’m so grateful to everyone. Because stress is a very real problem. And […]

Filed Under: Blog, Caring for yourself, Nonprofits Tagged With: leadership, Stress, women in nonprofits 16 Comments

How to Segment New Donors for Effective Communications

Winning a new donor is always an exciting feat. Your mission has inspired yet another individual to support your cause, and that’s something to celebrate. However, once you pull in new donors, it’s time to start strategizing how to keep them around. Too few nonprofits focus on donor retention, and the numbers show it. In […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donors, Planning Tagged With: donor communications, donor relationships, donor retention 1 Comment

How do you handle the most emotional gift?

Memorial gifts – the most emotional gift? It’s not a gift you look forward to making – or inspiring. It represents someone’s loss and sadness – though also their hope. As a fundraiser, a memorial gift is one of the most emotional gifts you will likely receive. For me, the question is personal. When I […]

Filed Under: Blog, Memorial gifts Tagged With: emotional fundraising, honorary gifts, memorial gifts 14 Comments

Beginner? How to write appeals that work

It’s been a long time, but I remember when I first began writing appeals. This was before we had access to the internet and a huge amount of information at our fingertips. I was smart enough to subscribe to Jerry Huntsinger’s newsletter, though. (On paper, mailed to me!) As I mentioned recently, I took my […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: appeal writing, donor communications Leave a Comment

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