10 Things I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving, Part 2
In a previous article, I shared the first two things I learned during my 30 years of working on sustainer programs. Most of this is not rocket science, but it’s important to keep in mind when you’re looking to grow or retain your sustainers. Here are my next two lessons. 3. Operations Is Your Friend When […]
What I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving
I recently had the pleasure to present a keynote at Sustainers Day, organized by the Direct Marketing Association of Washington. It was a packed house, filled with nonprofits of different sizes and sustainer experiences. I always learned that rather than a how-to session, a keynote was meant to be inspirational in nature. So, I reflected on […]
Add a Monthly Gift Ask to Your Welcome Email Series
At a recent conference, I finally had a chance to meet some of the NextAfter folks in person. We talked about “The Nonprofit Recurring Giving Benchmark” study from NextAfter. It’s now a few years old, but I have a sneaky suspicion that the organization is working on something new and I can’t wait! Its research on digital activities is […]
Are You Ready to Panic Yet?
Change is inevitable, but nobody likes it — me included. What doesn’t change is that every year around this time, fundraisers are starting to get overwhelmed. Some are even starting to panic. Why? Because the holiday giving season is almost here. And every year, the giving months seem to creep up on us sooner than […]
8 Tips to Help Clear Up Confusion Around the Pending Mastercard Regulations
If you’re tired of reading about the new Mastercard regulations, you’re probably not alone. A great thank you to The Nonprofit Alliance that helped get the extension to March 21, 2023 and clarified that nonprofits do not need to send postal receipts if they do not have a donor’s email address. But there was still a ton of […]
Be Cautious When You Transition to a Different Sustainer Processor
There is an important new trend I’m seeing where nonprofits have to or want to transition from one recurring donor processor to another. And I’ve heard horror stories about the number of sustainers a nonprofit can lose if the organization doesn’t do it right. The transition can be from one donor database, or constituent relationship management […]
Recycle, Reuse and Repurpose Creative
Whenever I get a box for a delivery, I look at the size and see if I can reuse it for something else. Can I ship a care package to a nephew who’s deployed? Could I ship something to our kids or grandkids? Well, the same applies to fundraising and direct response. I’ve been doing […]
What’s Love Got to Do With Fundraising?
Turns out love has everything to do with fundraising. Relationship Fundraising 3.0 from the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy proves it. I had the pleasure of meeting Adrian Sargeant, co-director and co-founder of the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy, many years ago, when he was still working in the U.S. He was one of the foremost researchers on customer […]
How to Ask for an Extra Gift From Your Monthly Donors
One of my copywriter friends asked me: “Do you have a recommendation for how much to ask a monthly donor, when sending them a year-end appeal asking them to make a special year-end gift? I’m wondering if the right amount to ask the donor is the amount they give monthly?” As you’re getting ready for […]
New Mastercard Regulations Could Harm Recurring Gifts Unless You Take Action Now
You may or may not yet have heard about this. Some of the communication from Mastercard may have gone to your donor base CRM, your payment processor or your finance department. In June, Mastercard introduced new guidelines with specific rules for all subscription payments, which nonprofit recurring gifts currently fall under in Mastercard’s definitions. These […]
