I love fundraising book recommendations and, as you probably know by now, I love reading (and writing) fundraising books.
So here is a review of the book “Green Green,” published by Civil Sector Press, written by Canadian David Love, who has been raising funds for more than 51 years. Incredible! Congratulations!
If you’ve been fundraising for a while, you may have come across David’s name or perhaps his daughter Jen Love of Agents of Good, an agency in Canada. While “Green Green” looks like it is a tiny book, its 141 pages are packed full of wisdoms, examples, figures, projections and case studies. Some are downloadable as well.
It took me about two hours to read it all. In an easy-to-read manner, David gives away so many of his secrets in this book — some learned the easy way, some the hard way.
If you can’t come away with at least a few new things to test for your organization, I don’t know where you will. And you don’t even have to be an environmental organization. You don’t have to raise funds for nature, but if you do, an absolutely must read.
Ah yes, I can hear you say it: “But most of these examples come from Canada, they will probably not work here in the U.S.”
Let me put your mind at ease, donors are very similar, no matter where they are. They’re people. They’re individuals. They are motivated by the same things, no matter where they are.
Yes, organizational structures, sizes, colors, fundraising channels or payment methods may be a bit more or a bit less prevalent in other countries, but the ideas, experiences, fundraising motivators and storytelling David describes are truly universal.
If nothing else, fundraising for nature has historically been very difficult, so if you understand the basic principles and fundraising approaches described in this book, you should be able to raise funds for virtually every mission.
I like how David clearly describes the journey leading from what we call annual fund donors to monthly giving, major gifts and those legacy gifts. After all, it’s all about engaging your donors and upgrading them to higher levels in ways that work for those donors.
After you read this book, “Green Green,” I can guarantee you that you’ll come away with at least a few practical ideas you can implement in your organization right away. Congratulations David on raising funds for nature for 51-plus years and congrats on a wonderful book. What a gift to fundraisers everywhere.
Originally posted by NonProfit PRO on August 23, 2021.
