By David A. Mersky A beloved member of the community died after a long illness. Her husband and her friends wanted to honor her memory with a fund that would sponsor professional development programs. They turned to the organization on whose board the… [Read more…]
This is another strange January. Just as we thought we were out of the worst of the pandemic we are living with more cases of Coronavirus in our lives. We are all impacted by the surge whether it is in our immediate family… [Read more…]
What you cannot control: Board and leadership decisions Your donors’ income or asset changes Other people’s fears Unavoidable organizational changes General economic instability Deadlines The Pandemic Child-care/school situations Shifts in funding priorities What can you control? How you spend each day If you… [Read more…]
Do you think your annual fundraising goals are: In last week’s blog, I explained what it means if your fundraising goals are “Way too high,” “Way too low,” or “N/A.” This week, I focus on the more moderate answers to one of my… [Read more…]
Do you think your annual fundraising goals are: Way too low, Somewhat too low Just about right Somewhat too high Way too high N/A This is one of the questions we ask when we conduct an Organization and Development Assessment Survey which we… [Read more…]
2019 is coming to a close, so let’s talk 2020. A new year, along with a new decade, is cause for new goals for your nonprofit. Nonprofits should not have to struggle for funding nor beg board members to show up. And, if… [Read more…]
Nonprofits, and nonprofit consultants, have learned to value the annual release of the 2018 Giving USA Report. It has 470 pages of interesting facts and figures. And if you know what to do with them, and how to benchmark yourself against them (more… [Read more…]
Listen to any conference speaker, self-help guru or tech entrepreneur and you are sure to hear about their failures. Of course, they are speaking because they turned their failures into lessons that helped them succeed. Can you imagine going to a funder and… [Read more…]
The college admission scandal that has hit the news this week is both surprising and, seemingly, inevitable. There has always been an advantage for many people who have the means to do what is now being called, “socially acceptable” gaming of the college… [Read more…]
It’s a few weeks into the new year and, hopefully, you have set your new fundraising goals for the year. And, if you intend to achieve those goals, we also hope that you have a fundraising plan with a stewardship calendar) in place.… [Read more…]