You came to the right place. Let’s explore the basics.
Fundraisers should use pride, not apology, when asking for a gift for a charity that is doing good work.
Henry Rosso
Who is this site for?
YOU CAN BE A FUNDRAISER.
YOU can be a fundraiser!
This site is for anyone with a passion for a cause. Perhaps you’ve just started out in the fundraising profession, or maybe you have been working in development but need to learn more about digital marketing, or even, perhaps, you have a passion for a cause and just want to learn how to help raise more money, if so, this site is for you.
We’ve created this site to teach you the art and science of fundraising. Articles and training videos are categorized and rated by level of experience, beginner, intermediate, and advanced. No matter your starting point, you will be able to learn how to be an excellent fundraiser. Discover great courses that will help you become the fundraiser you want to be.
Natural born fundraiser is a myth. You can learn the skill of fundraising and raise millions of dollars for your favorite cause. I want to show you how.
What skills will you learn?
THE ART AND SCIENCE OF FUNDRAISING.
Fundraising is similar to other industries: there are specific skills you will learn to become a great fundraiser.
From understanding the motivations to why people give to writing fundraising copy that converts, as someone new to fundraising, you’ll need to understand the psychology of the donor and how to present your fundraising campaign. You’ll also need technical skills for managing a donor database, analyzing results, and creating tests to optimize performance.
You will learn how direct mail differs from digital, how to perform direct mail donor acquisition programs and how we’ve adapted those acquisition programs online.
As you progress, you’ll learn different types of donors such as general, continuity, mid-level, major, legacy, corporation, foundation and more. Different types of donors will behave and give differently and understanding how they think will help you craft the perfect fundraising campaigns.
Your annual report is an opportunity to showcase the impact your donors have made on the lives of the people you serve. Your nonprofit annual report should be focused on your donors and tell stories of impact. Many organizations tailor the annual report too much towards bragging about accomplishments instead of demonstrating impact. The annual … Read more
One of the areas that many of us need to focus on this next year is: How do we retain more donors? Donor attrition is a major issue for non-profits, as there, quite frankly, aren’t enough resources for us to go out and acquire new donors all the time. Donor attrition is the percentage of … Read more
Becoming a successful nonprofit fundraiser isn’t just about what you need to learn or do, it is also about what you need to give up. For 14 years, I volunteered as a football coach in various levels from 5th and 6th grade through high school junior varsity. Each season, I started the team with the … Read more
In this second part of a two part series on donor psychology, you will learn the reasons why people give. Jeremy has identified 15 different psychological triggers that moves someone to donate to your nonprofit. In this episode, Jeremy explains the second 7 motivations, or donor psychological triggers, that help someone make a decision to give to your nonprofit.
In this second episode of a special series of fundraising education, you will learn donor psychology and the reasons why people give. Jeremy has identified 15 different psychological triggers that moves someone to donate to your nonprofit. In this episode, Jeremy explains the first 8 motivations, or donor psychological triggers, that help someone make a decision to give to your nonprofit. This is a fascinating look at why people give and how you can change your messaging or produce events that create more donors. For major donors, general donors, and monthly donors.
Recently, my 15 year old daughter Emily has shown interest in nonprofit marketing and fundraising. In this special series of Nonprofit Answers episodes, you’ll learn all aspects of the fundraising process. In this episode, you will learn donor motivations and how your nonprofit presents an appeal or campaign to specific types of donors. You’ll start learning the foundations of donor psychology and how to motivate donors to give.
Are you looking for a way to raise more income in the short term and long term? Thank your donors quickly and often. Beyond a thank you note, how do you creatively thank your donors? Showing gratitude to your donors is a key way to build a healthy donor relationship and continue to develop people down … Read more
Story is embedded into who we are. The best stories feature focus on a single character. This character could be a beneficiary, a donor, or any stakeholder. The best fundraising stories communicate how the reader can make an impact. When I first arrived at Food for the Hungry, our direct mail appeals used vivid stories … Read more
When I joined Food for the Hungry, I thought I was going to blow right by expectations in fundraising. I came in with a consulting background and an MBA … I could figure out the secrets to fundraising quickly and knock a home run in our digital fundraising in no time. What I discovered is … Read more
Email may be the best kept fundraising secret for your nonprofit! Not because you aren’t already using it, but because there is so much opportunity to change and test different parts of a fundraising email to see the impact on results. Today, we’re going to discuss some ideas of things you can put into practice right … Read more
Why are we afraid we’re “bothering” donors? We ask questions like “how soon is too soon to ask for a second gift?” or “best practices say I should wait nine months for a second gift, what should I communicate before then?” Can you imagine a meeting at Amazon where executives debate like this, “We should … Read more
Whether you send a thank you video, a note of gratitude, a welcome gift, a thank you email, or other creative way to thank the donor for their donation, you need to communicate in a specific way to have the biggest impact on your donor. Sending your thanks is a key way to continue developing … Read more
