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Tools to Make Your Nonprofit More Efficient (part 1)
Nonprofits have inefficient processes like any other operation, but typically less time to get to the bottom of them. The majority of a nonprofit’s focus is on their mission, and their resources are better used towards the end goal rather than resolving internal issues. The groundwork to make an effective nonprofit is somewhat straightforward, but making it more efficient requires some minor tweaking. Luckily there are a variety of free [...]
Why Should Nonprofits Invest in a Modern Marketing Engine?
Why should nonprofits invest in a modern marketing engine? Jamey Heinze, Chief Marketing Officer at CDS Global, recently spoke at the 2014 Bridge to Integrated Marketing & Fundraising Conference on the topic of how nonprofits can utilize certain marketing techniques more effectively than for-profits can. The full discussion can be found in a brand new white paper: “The Nonprofit vs. For-Profit Marketing Approach: Ten Techniques Your Organization Should Consider.” In [...]
Social Media Tips: How to be Political Without Being Too Political
Here comes the 2016 presidential election. Arguably one of the most divided, emotional, angry, and intense elections of modern times, not a day goes by without a crazy sound bite, a scandal, a retraction, or a questionable campaign ad. Every day on my newsfeed, I see something else that’s cringe-worthy. Lots of “unfriend” and “unfollow” actions that keep me wondering how I’d missed these signs before. Politics can bring [...]
Shape Reputation by Managing Perception
When you were in high school, reputation was everything. How your classmates perceived you, i.e. your way of dressing, what you did for fun, determined whether you had a cool reputation or not. When starting a nonprofit, the way to be cool with the staff, the donors, the board of directors, and the general public involves carefully crafting their perceptions of your organization. Much of this perception building happens as [...]
4 Tips for Managing Your Nonprofit Board
Congratulations, you are now the new executive director of a non-profit organization. One of the most challenging things you will have to do is to effectively “manage up” and work well with your board of directors. As an executive director, it is critically important to set the right tone from the outset and strike a balance that will allow you to do your work and productively collaborate with your board [...]
9 Key Fundraising Performance Indicators Every Nonprofit Should Be Tracking
When it comes to determining how efficiently your nonprofit raises money, there’s nothing quite as helpful as a large pool of accurate, relevant fundraising performance indicators that can objectively show you exactly how well you’re doing. But sometimes, it can be tough to figure out exactly what measures your organization needs to identify where your fundraising performance may be lacking. That said, most nonprofit organizations will always be able to make [...]
Year-End Fundraising Season: Top Tips to Prepare Your Nonprofit
Planning your year-end fundraising strategy is an important process that requires time. So, even if the end of the year is months away, it’s worth it to get started now. After all, your nonprofit will likely be too busy making resolutions for the new year to build an effective strategy amid this vital fundraising period. That’s why preparing months in advance helps your nonprofit capitalize on year-end giving. Donations tend [...]
Four Trends to Watch in Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
The State of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising 2016 Report from DonorDrive has new stats that bring four key trends to light, all of which can dramatically increase your fundraising. DIY is on the rise At the nonprofit conferences everyone is talking about Do It Yourself fundraising. If you're not familiar with it, DIY gives your supporters the opportunity create their own campaigns (based on things like life events, memorials or running in [...]
Donor Retention: 3 Modern Strategies to Maintain Growth
CP_TopNonprofits_X Strategies to Retain the Modern Donor_Feature.jpg Perhaps the most frustrating part of running a nonprofit organization is seeing short term growth in your donor pool disappear from one fundraising campaign to the next. If you want your nonprofit to be successful in the longrun, retaining your donors is a must. Historically, donor retention has been a difficult endeavor. Without the right tools to manage your donor pool, it’s impossible [...]
How Nonprofits Take Advantage of Matching Gifts
One of the largest sources of untapped funding for nonprofit organizations comes from corporate philanthropic programs. These include matching gift programs, in which corporations match employee donations, usually dollar for dollar, to eligible nonprofit organizations. About 65% of Fortune 500 companies offer a program like this, as well as countless other corporations, so the chances that a donor works for a company with a matching gift program is relatively high. [...]
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