I opened a piece of mail the other day. It was from an organization we’ve supported – one that does good work, important work. But here’s what jumped out at me right away about this short piece. It was ALL about them. I couldn’t help myself. I grabbed a pen and started circling the references to […]
Stop thinking about money!
I was at a meeting the other day. A local foundation offered training about soliciting major donors. It was a small enough group that we had time to hash out a few hypothetical situations. A good session and well worth the hour or so. As is often the case, a phrase was shared that stuck […]
The Oprah Syndrome
I think of it as The Oprah Syndrome. And if you raise money for a nonprofit, I’m betting you’ve run into it, too. Picture this: you’re at a board meeting. The topic of discussion is a forecast deficit for the year. “What are we to do?”, the finance chair moans. Board members look around, hoping […]
Your killer advantages
The other night, my husband called my cell phone. “Are you home?” he asked, puzzled. “Yes”, I answered, just as confused. Apparently, he’d been trying our home line and getting no answer. I checked, and yes, our line was dead. I tried to call AT&T, our service provider. Their website is full of sales pitches. […]
Dear Fundraiser: Things I wish you wouldn’t do
Dear Fundraiser, Some things you do really bug me. As your colleague, I’m cheering for your success. So in a helpful spirit, I offer you my list below. I wish you wouldn’t: Send me an automated thank you message for an online gift and assume that’s enough Forget to thank me at all Send me […]