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Association Event Planning: 6 Steps to Meaningful Events
Hosting memorable events is essential for creating an excellent, enriching experience for your association’s members. Events, from a large conference to a fun auction fundraiser, give your members the opportunity to network, build a community, celebrate one another’s achievements, and develop their professional skills. Planning a successful in-person, virtual, or hybrid event doesn’t just happen overnight. Your association will need the right event management tools, engaging activities, knowledgeable staff, and [...]
5 Nonprofit Auction Item Ideas That Appeal to Younger Donors
Younger generations of supporters are essential to your nonprofit’s future. Millennials (born between 1981-1996) and Generation Z (born between 1997-2012) are major audiences for nonprofits looking for dedicated donors and volunteers, as they tend to be socially conscious and want to create positive change by supporting causes that align with their values. To make a strong impression on these supporter segments, consider how you can appeal specifically to younger generations through your [...]
Capture Donors’ Attention: 4 Direct Mail Fundraising Tips
Direct mail fundraising is an impactful tool that your nonprofit can use to connect with donors of all ages. While there is a misconception that direct mail isn’t as effective as fast-paced digital marketing, this form of fundraising can uniquely motivate donors to take action and help you reach your nonprofit’s goals. Specifically, direct mail adds a personal touch because it provides donors with a tangible message—something that can feel more [...]
Share Your Mission: Empowering Your Nonprofit’s Storytellers
What draws people to your nonprofit, inspires action, and rallies support? The stories you tell. Storytelling is how humans connect, build relationships, learn, and share. Storytelling is how people know who you are. It’s part of branding, but even more, it’s part of developing strong connections with supporters and your community. Nonprofit storytelling is a crucial part of both fundraising and marketing your organization, but it extends beyond the development or marketing [...]
3 Summer Fundraising Ideas for Your School Organization
While classes are out for summer vacation, many school organizations are still working hard to prepare for the upcoming school year. For example, the PTA might be meeting to plan fun events for students that motivate them to get involved in the community, while the marching band practices for the approaching competitive season. Because these organizations are still meeting, rehearsing, and preparing over the summer, they need to secure the [...]
Understanding Nonprofit Membership Models: Quick Guide
Looking to structure the way you collect dues and give your members their perks and benefits? Then it’s time to start looking into the best options for nonprofit membership models! Choosing the right membership model is key to delivering all the perks of your membership program. Plus, it helps you bring in a steady stream of revenue for your organization. In order to figure out which model is best for [...]
How to Retain Your Nonprofit’s Major Donors: 4 Expert Tips
Improving your donor retention rate is likely at the top of your nonprofit’s priority list. Your organization should seek to retain donors at all levels, but it’s especially essential to create a major donor retention plan. These donors typically make up only around 20% of a nonprofit’s donor base, but they contribute a staggering 80% of funding (this is known as the Pareto principle or the 80/20 rule). According to [...]
4 Surefire Strategies for Effective Major Donor Fundraising
There are many ways your nonprofit can raise money for its cause, from launching peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns and hosting events to asking local businesses to sponsor your work. But one of the greatest sources of nonprofit revenue is major gifts, which are the largest individual contributions your organization receives. In fact, nonprofits typically find that 80% of their revenue comes from just 20% of their donors—their major donors! Of course, what constitutes a [...]
501(c)(3) Checklist: Preparing for Nonprofit Status
If you’re looking into starting a nonprofit, you’re likely passionate about a particular cause. You have a plan to solve an issue or help a group of people and you want to take action to make a difference. You know that your first step is creating a nonprofit and you start by establishing a brand, building a website, and getting the word out. Filing IRS documents might be the last [...]
Working with a Nonprofit Tech Consultant: 4 Things to Know
Nonprofit consultants can provide valuable insight for their clients, such as assisting with a new marketing campaign, working to improve stewardship efforts, or helping an organization get ready for a capital campaign. There is a wide range of nonprofit consultants, and while many of them focus on the same aspect of nonprofit management, they will likely differ in their services, process, and specialties. For example, technical nonprofit consulting firms may [...]
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