How Do You Manage a Large Sustainer Program?
Last week, NonProfit PRO organized a webinar called “Effectively Managing a Monthly Giving Program that Exceeds the Thousand-Sustainer Mark,” sponsored by CharityEngine. The organization featured was the Wounded Warrior Project, and the focus was on how they acquired sustainers and then managed those sustainers (the back-end). It was exciting to hear from such a big […]
Get Rid of Silos for Your (Monthly) Donor’s Sake!
Hard to believe, but it’s been almost 25 years since I became a fundraiser, working for a large nonprofit, managing its monthly donor program. At the time, the development department consisted of someone responsible for donor appeals, another for acquisition of new donors and someone for major donors. Everybody was responsible to raise a certain […]
Is Your Monthly Donor Tax-Letter Ready?
Now you’re in the middle of evaluating your appeal results, it’s up to you to make sure that the donor feels good about their giving experience—no matter what the amount. I recommend pulling in some extra people, volunteers and board members to make thank-you phone calls. Put some extra effort into sending out the thank-you […]
Frequently Asked Questions About Tax Letters for Monthly Donors
First off, I hope that this is going to be a somewhat quiet week leading up to Christmas or other holidays you may be celebrating. I am very ready for a few quiet days catching up on my reading and my favorite Christmas movies! I’ve heard from several organizations that they are shutting their offices […]
Monthly Giving, Driver of Sustainable Fundraising Par Excellence!
Monthly Giving, Driver of Sustainable Fundraising Par Excellence! Monthly giving is probably one of the least understood methods of sustainable giving in the US, but yet one of the most powerful ones. Once you start, you’ll experience the power, but it’s the starting that’s often the most difficult. Today, I’d like to address the first […]
Organize a Process Review to Improve Your Donor Retention
As a fundraiser and donor relations professional, you work hard every day to make sure your donors feel important. You know like no other that all donors need to feel appreciated, no matter how much they give or how often they donate to your organization. That’s why I’m still amazed at how difficult this seems […]
Don’t Forget to Test Before You Send
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had a great time with my family, the turkey and all the trimmings. On Black Friday, I sat down behind my computer and made donations to some 20 organizations. The same amount for each. Some I already donate to monthly, and some I only give to this […]
What Would St. Nick Say?
St. Nick (or Sinterklaas as we called him) was part of my tradition growing up in Holland. Dec. 5 was when we received our gifts as kids. The night before, we’d put our shoe with some straw and carrots for St. Nick’s white horse in the corner of our living room. And he and his […]
Nothing Is Impossible If You Just Believe
Every year, the military base theater near us (Joint Base Cape Cod) organizes the annual Christmas tree lighting. It’s a fun event, with hot cocoa, peppermint sticks and a short visit of Santa, of course! As a military spouse myself (married to a 32-year Airforce veteran), we love our little theater, and this event […]
It’s Not Too Late: Get Ready for Monthly Donor Month
There’s never a bad time to convert your constituents to give monthly, but there are two months a year that typically fit better in your overall communication plan: January and September. Now’s a good time to look at what you could be doing to make your donors stay longer and become more loyal. If you’ve […]
