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Is our donor-focus hurting or helping our nonprofits?

Donor-focus - hurting or helping nonprofits?

Or, why that word might not mean what you think it means.   Vu Le of Nonprofit AF recently wrote a long, very thoughtful piece about donor-centrism. He hoped it would generate conversation – and I hope so, too. Vu is an amazing dynamo who is making change happen, not just in his organization, but […]

Filed Under: Blog, Fundraising Tagged With: donor love, donor-centered fundraising, donor-focused 10 Comments

Why you might be focused on the wrong thing

Fundraisers: Are you focused on the right things?

It’s not about you. I was thrilled to see an article in the New York Times about giving. And even more excited when it featured Tom Ahern, Jen Love and Jennifer Shang. The article’s title – Asking for Money? Compliment the Donor, Not Your Organization – lays it right out there. My mailbox, though, tells […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: donor-focused, fundraising appeal Leave a Comment

Are you trying to make me cry?

Is this really the reaction you want?

It keeps happening. And it makes me sad. And a little cranky. Newsletters or other pieces, intended for donors. That have forgotten they’re intended for donors. So I apologize if I’m repeating myself. (Then again, we know how effective repetition is, right?) But I  see it, over and over again. Local organizations, national, international – […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: Branding, donor newsletters, donor-focused 3 Comments

How to write a thank you letter when you feel stuck

Crumpled paper

  September’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival gave you links to great articles on thanking your donors. Here’s my quick how-to. First, a confession: I used to write rote, boring, perfunctory thank you letters. And I didn’t much like writing them. What do you say? Plus, with an appeal, you feel like you have a goal. Thanks […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: donor-focused, gratitude, thank you letters 1 Comment

Why you don’t want to be a tool

Drill or hole? Which are you selling?

Who do you read to make you think? One blog I like to check in on is Trevor O’Donnell’s Marketing the Arts to Death. As the title says, it’s about arts marketing. But to me, it’s broader. Trevor shows how mistaken arts marketing often is. Because its focus is internal. Because it’s what insiders think […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: arts marketing, donor-focused 4 Comments

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