Got fundraising plans?

If you need help putting a fundraising plan together for this year, I’d love to help!

Join me Thursday, February 4th at 3 pm easter for a free call as I present my “Simple Success” Fundraising Plan.

I’ll tell you

• Why you need a fundraising plan
• 7 questions your plan must answer
• The optimum number of goals you should set
• How to create goals that you can reach
• My proven tool to keep yourself on track each month

Plus, you’ll hear about a virtual planning retreat I’m hosting in February.

Sign up now for this free call! http://getfullyfunded.info/where-is-sandy/free-teleseminars

If you want to hear the call, but can’t be there with us, go ahead and sign up.  I’ll send you a link to the recording.

Register at http://getfullyfunded.info/where-is-sandy/free-teleseminars.

Got a fire in your belly?

This is a guest post written by my friend and colleague Peggy Jarrett, Senior Trainer for the More to Life program.

I awoke the other morning contemplating the ritual of New Year’s resolutions.  It seems to me that often we come up with resolutions for a variety of reasons.   We ‘should’.   It’s what we do at this time of year.  They really are a ‘good idea’ and these are goals that we need to handle anyway, right?  So, I’ll make x, y and z my New Year’s resolutions.  Done!

Except that I don’t think any of the above is what RESOLVE is really all about.  RESOLVE takes passion, commitment, an unshakeable urge, or what I experience as a ‘fire in my belly’.  If the fire isn’t there, forget it.  It’s likely not going to happen.

As professionals in the non-profit sector, a fire in our bellies is essential – not just a good idea – but essential to create results and ensure the health and success of our organizations.  (A strong fire in the belly also does a lot for one’s personal life

We all need help at times to reignite the embers of our fire. Reigniting, remembering, re-visioning, re-creating…these are all the reasons that Sandy and I are bringing Transformative Leadership to a select few executive directors in January – March of this year.  I urge you not to miss it.

Read more about Transformative Leadership at www.getfullyfunded.com/transformative-leadership-training.

Want free training? Check this out.

Continuing education is a good thing.  As fundraisers, we’ve got to keep learning so we can stay up on all the latest trends.

The Wild Apricot Blog has come up with 23 free webinars happening in the month of October.  Run on over there and check them out!  http://bit.ly/4C6eSu

Who wants to read your newsletter?

Maybe no one.  It all depends on the content.

Unfortunately, MOST of the nonprofit newsletters out there are crap.  Sorry, but it’s true.  With tons of text, few or no photos, and loaded with jargon, donors are immediately turned off when they see your newsletter in the mailbox.

If you want your newsletter to get read, here’s what you do:  write what’s interesting to the donor, NOT what’s interesting to you.  That’s right, put your donor hat on and write what the donor wants to read.

Write the stories of people whose lives are being changed by the work your organization does. Donors will read that.

Write about how donors’ gifts have been used in fulfilling your mission. Donors will read that.

Don’t write about the new janitor you just hired or some obscure award your organization won.  Remember that your average supporter knows little about the inner-workings of your organization.  Keep it simple for them.

Want more tips on creating donor-focused newsletters?   Here’s an article I wrote about common mistakes made in nonprofit newsletters. http://ezinearticles.com/?The-8-Most-Common-Mistakes-Made-in-Nonprofit-Newsletters&id=2387768

If you really want the scoop on nonprofit newsletters, read Tom Ahern’s book “The Mercifully Brief Real World Guide to Raising More Money With Newsletters Than You Ever Thought Possible.” Find it in my reading list: http://getfullyfunded.info/resources/bookstore.

What will your attitude help you see?

I believe that our attitudes about our work have a direct impact on the bottom line of our fundraising.  When you view work as a necessary evil or something you ‘have’ to do, it comes through in the quality of your work.  When you work because you love your job and care deeply about your cause, it shines through in every newsletter, fundraising letter, and ask you make.

It’s all in how you view things.  Your positive attitude can help you see things in new and different ways. Here’s an example of how I chose to look at work recently.

This weekend, my Mom decided to pick beans from our garden.  Again.  Seems like we’ve picked beans every other day and frankly, I’m tired of it.  I’m grateful that we have such a wonderful garden, but I had other things planned than bending over bean bushes in the blazing heat on Saturday morning.  But, I knew I needed to help her, so out I went.  When the beans were all picked, she decided we better can them because there were so many.  Sigh.  Okay, so I fetched a couple dozen jars from the basement and we started breaking beans.  A good many of them had bug bites and with my trusty knife, I sliced them off. 

Until I picked up this bean:

I instantly yelled “Hey!  Mickey Mouse!”  We started laughing and had to save that bean to show the rest of the family later (doesn’t take much to entertain us!).  We spent the afternoon together and shared a good many laughs.

The point is this:  I didn’t see just another bean with 3 bug bites.  I saw something fun.  Instead of grumbling about having to mess with beans and punt my plans for the day, I was open to what life would bring.  And it brought me a wonderful day spent with my Mom, plus a dozen+ jars of home-grown green beans to eat this winter.

Being willing to be flexible at work is a very valuable trait.  And that willingness stems from a positive attitude about your work. 

What can you do to help yourself be more positive about your work so that you can see something new? 

You never know what you might find!

Believe in Abundance

Yesterday I led a great teleseminar to help fundraisers deal with the economy and its impact on our work.  One of the points I emphasized was to believe in abundance.

Believe in abundance.  What does that mean?

It means that you buy into the belief that there is enough money out there for every nonprofit to be fully funded.  When you believe that, it changes your attitude and your approach.  You no longer operate from a viewpoint of scarcity and competition, but from a place of plenty and collaboration.  It changes the way you think about donors – you are no longer desperate for their money, but view them as true partners in your mission. Believe me, donors can smell when you’re desperate and it turns them off!

Believe in abundance and you’ll find yourself feeling hopeful instead of hopeless.  You’ll find fundraising to be much easier and more fun.  And you’ll find that you CAN raise the money your organization needs to fulfill its mission.

Want to share how believing in abundance has changed your attitude or had an impact on your fundraising?  Click on the comment link and share with us!

Write, write, write – Surf the Wave of Web 2.0

This is a guest post from my fellow fundraiser Barbara Talisman, President of Talisman Associates, Inc., in Chicago.

If you want your message to get noticed, be sticky, passed along or retweeted, you have to write about it.

AND just writing it isn’t enough, you have to find the forums to share what you have written.

AND each of those forums requires a different format.

Here are some quick and easy ways to get your message noticed. Your message(s) should:

1. Be urgent, interesting and engaging

2. Include a call to action

3. Ask others to help you push your message

So where to get noticed?

You have your own website. Be sure to start there and make sure all your messages are current and consistent. Sometimes it is easier to update your Facebook page and forget about your website. Ideally, pushing everyone to your website is the way to go. But it doesn’t always work that way. So you need to have different communication streams. Does your organization have:

· Facebook page, causes, groups

· Twitter – multiple accounts for different parts of your organization including your Executive Director

· MySpace – page

· Blogs – same as Twitter, different people within your organization should have their own blogs.

All of this should be linked to your website or your website to them.

Set a reminder for yourself. You and staff need to write good content often to get noticed. It is a little busy out there. Plan on blogging variations of your message 2-3 times a week. Twitter at least 5-7 times a day and update your Facebook page, group or cause page at least once a week. The good news is you can use http://Ping.fm to post on update to all your social networking sites.

So now you are writing – you need readers! Well you have a built in audience of donors, friends, volunteer, staff and all their friends, colleagues and acquaintances! Ask them to join you as:

· Friends on Facebook and MySpace

· Followers on Twitter

· Readers and commentary on your blogs

Some of these your folks are using Web 2.0, some not. You can be sure those who are have no intention of stopping. And don’t be fooled, while the under 26 crowd tends to be the majority using Web 2.0, there is a growing number of folk over 45 using it as well.

Get on the surfboard, start paddling and ride the wave.

Are your donors feeling the love?

I had a lesson in love this weekend from my kitty, Gingeroo.  Ginger is a mighty huntress and she catches lots of critters on our farm and brings them to me, sometimes live and sometimes not.  This last time, it was a little snake.  (Ewww!!!) 

I was on my way to get in the car to go to a meeting when Ginger came prancing across the yard from a culvert (one of her favorite hunting grounds) with the poor snake dangling from her mouth.  She dropped it on the sidewalk in front of me and rubbed on my legs.  She was obviously so proud!  (I petted her and yelled for my hubby to bring a bucket so we could relocate her trophy to the woods behind the barn.)

In fundraising, it’s important to love on your donors.  When was the last time you let your best supporters know how much you appreciate them and what they mean to you?  Thanking your donors is one of the most important things you can do as a Fundraiser.  It’s a critical part of stewardship of their gift plus it helps you build and maintain a relationship with them.

Here are a few articles I’ve written lately that might help you think about ways to thank and recognize your donors.

http://ezinearticles.com/?5-Creative-(And-Low-Cost)-Ways-to-Thank-and-Recognize-Your-Donors&id=1917464

http://ezinearticles.com/?Deepen-Donor-Relationships-With-a-Power-Packed-Thank-You-Letter&id=1917448

http://ezinearticles.com/?3-Donor-Relations-Tips-to-Freshen-Up-Your-Fundraising-Efforts&id=2176943

http://ezinearticles.com/?5-Ways-to-Thank-Your-Donors-With-an-Attitude-of-Gratitude&id=2183726

You don’t have to catch a snake for your donors, but how about a phone call or a hand-written note?  Warmly and sincerely thank them and you’ll be more likely to keep those through these tough times and beyond.

Fundraising in the Blogosphere

On March 31, I presented my first session at the AFP Conference in New Orleans.  I shared what I know about fundraising with blogs to a hundred or so new friends.  Here are some highlights from the presentation:

Nonprofits can use a blog to communicate, educate and separate (people from their money).

There are 3 simple steps to starting a blog:  1. Choose a platform (Typepad or WordPress).  2. Create a plan for promoting your blog. 3. Make a commitment to keep it going.

Don’t get overwhelmed at the thought of writing 3 or 4 blog posts each week.  Keep your blog posts short (250 words) and make them interesting to your donors.  Get help with writing if you need it (volunteer, intern, guest blogger, or virtual assistant).

Repurpose information for your blog.  Use stories from old newsletters.  Use information from email blasts.  Summarize press releases.

Read other nonprofit blogs.  Check out www.nonprofitblogexchange.blogpsot.com to find your favorites.

The best person to write the blog is the person who is most excited about it.

Want more?  Download the PDF of my presntation.

Got a question about fundraising with a blog?  Click on the comment link and post it so I can help.

Tips for Fundraising with Social Media

I did a teleseminar today for my Get Fully Funded Club members on using social media for fundraising.  Here are a few of the tips I shared:

• Share information that the donor is interested in, not what you are interested in.
• Make it EASY for people to donate.
• Don’t throw your print newsletter into a PDF format and call it an electronic newsletter.  It ain’t the same thing!
• Don’t get overwhelmed with all the options out there (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.).  Pick one and focus on it until you get comfortable with it, then move on to the next.

What would you add to my list?  I’d love to know!  Post a comment and share, would ya?

Need help with fundraising? Join the club!

Over the years, I’ve coached dozens of small nonprofit organizations in fundraising and Board development.  I’ve seen so many struggle with the exact same issues that I thought there has to be a better way to help them.

So I’ve created a Coaching Club just for people working in small nonprofits.  It’s called the Get Fully Funded Support Club and it’s based around the key principles of a new program of fundraising I’ve created called Get Fully Funded. 

The Get Fully Funded program addresses the most common issues faced by small nonprofits and doesn’t contain anything new or earth-shattering. It’s just a solid method of fundraising laid out in a step-by-step format that’s easy to implement. 

The Get Fully Funded Support Club provides members with the chance to learn these tried and true fundraising techniques in a cost-effective and support environment.  Features of the club include an online, members-only discussion board, 2 educational 1-hour phone calls each month, 1 hour of group Q&A with me each month, plus recommended resources, articles, tips, and more.

The cost to join starts at $28 per month.  I think it’s a lot of value for someone who is struggling with fundraising!

Want to learn more?  Click here.  Got questions?  Click on the comment link and post them.

How to Teach Your Board about Fundraising in 15 minute segments

Someone asked today how to teach Board members about Fundraising and Development in short bursts.  Since this is something I do a lot of, I had tons of ideas right off the top of my head.  I easily made a list and decided to share it here as well.

If you have the opportunity to teach your Board about Fundraising in short bursts (maybe at each Board meeting), here are some things you can do:

• Have them pair up and share why they said “Yes” to being on the Board.  This helps them tap into their passion for the organization.
• Have them tell each other a story about how the organization is changing lives in the community.
• Have them share their thoughts about fundraising – what they are scared of and what they feel comfortable with.  This helps begin to overcome fear of fundraising.
• Create a crossword puzzle with the words in the puzzle being answers and the clues being about basic facts of your organization.  For example, 1 across might be the number of kids served each year (answer – Fifty).
• Create a game of Jeopardy around organizational facts.
• Have them brainstorm about people in their sphere of influence who they can talk to about your organization or send an appeal letter to.

Over time, this will help ‘bring them along’ and increase their comfort level with fundrasing in general.

 

Have you tried anything like this with your Board?  Click on the comment button and share what you did and what results you got.  Inquiring minds want to know!

Three great ideas to help you get the word out

Here’s a bit of info to help you get the word out about your organization from my fellow blogger Jason Dick from A Small Change.

 

Getting the message about your nonprofit out is one of the most important things you can do for your organization.  Here are a few things you can do to enhance what your nonprofit is doing.

Getting Started- Approach a local chamber of commerce and ask if you can present to them about your nonprofit.  Get to know the businesses in your community by co-hosting a networking event with the chamber at your building.  If you are a faith-based organization (or even if you’re not) talk to the pastor at a couple of local churches and ask if you can present to their congregation.

Growing the Relationship- Use the relationships you’ve built and keep track of them.  Ask new donors to come for a tour or a special event you are having.  Your volunteers are one of the best groups to advocate for your mission.  Ask your volunteers & board members to invite their friends to connect to your organization.

The Technological Advantage- There are countless ways to spread the message about your good work using the Internet.  Don’t try and do everything just do one or two things well.  Start a Facebook page or use the Causes application.  Go to Razoo.org and start a fundraising page.  Start a blog, this is a great way to regularly communicate and interact with those that want to remain close to your organization.

There are a lot of great causes.  Don’t be afraid to get creative be a little competitive. 

What stops fundraising success? Enter the contest and find out!

Contest this week!!

What keeps you from being successful in fundraising?

Lots of things can get in our way of reaching our goals and I want to know what stops you from raising the dollars you need.

• Don’t have enough donors? 
• Don’t have a plan? 
• Poor execution of plan? 
• Just get scared? 
• Something else?

Post a comment here and share with me what keeps you from being successful in fundraising.  I’ll be choosing the best answers and sending the winners a copy of my book Fundraising Buffet.

Be sure to post your comment this week.  Contest ends on Friday.

Fundraisers: Get Your Head in the Game!

I spoke to the Association of Fundraising Professionals in Hickory, NC last week about fundraising in tough times.  The thing that is most important, I told them, is to get your head in the game.

If you buy into the “doom and gloom” thinking that is so pervasive right now, your fundraising results will shrink.  Lots of people are scared right now.  And many are tightening up whether they really need to or not.  Don’t get scared too.  You’ve got to stay positive and focused on the mission of your organization.

Take this short test to see if you have your head in the game.  Answer each statement true or false if you have thought it in your head or if it has come out of your mouth.

1. Fundraising this year is going to be hard.

2. People aren’t going to give as much as last year.

3. We probably won’t reach our fundraising goals this year.

4. We should probably lower our fundraising goals this year.

5. Things are bad everywhere.

6. All nonprofits are struggling.

7. It’s just the economy and there’s nothing we can do about it.

 

Eye opening? It was for many who heard my presentation last week.  Hopefully you answered false to each statement.  Otherwise you may be suffering from some “stinkin’ thinkin’” that can ruin your focus and attitude.

Here’s the thing: we don’t know what people will or won’t do with their giving this year (unless you have a crystal ball that I don’t know about).  Our job is to continue to tell the stories of our work and give people opportunities to give.  Don’t stop.  Don’t let up.  Don’t get desperate.  Just keep moving forward.

Thanks to my new friends in Hickory for inviting me to speak to their AFP chapter!

3 Secrets to Newsletter Success

This is a reprint of a post I wrote last year.  The information is timely and still applicable.

How well does your newsletter perform for you?  If it’s not so hot, then maybe you need to make a few changes.  Here are 3 secrets to a successful newsletter.

The first secret to a successful newsletter is to be clear about the result you want.  What is your newsletter’s purpose?  Is it educational?  Is it supposed to be a fundraising tool?  Both?  This will help guide you in selecting content.

The second secret to a successful newsletter is to make it donor-focused.  Write the kinds of things that a donor wants to read, not what you want to include.  Donors want to read stories about clients and how they’ve been helped.  Donors aren’t usually interested in articles about new staff members, new Board members or lengthy “letters from the President.”

The third secret to a successful newsletter is to use good design.  Use lots of white space and keep it skimmable.  Donors read your newsletter like they read the newspaper.  They skim.  They read the headlines and if it looks interesting, they’ll read the article.  They look at photos and read the pull quotes.

If you want your newsletter to raise money, then you need to include an Ask somewhere.  The most common and usually most effective thing to do is to include a reply envelope inside its pages.

Grab a copy of your last newsletter and see how it compares.  Use these 3 secrets on your next issue and see how you can improve your results.

Ready to Get Fully Funded?

When I started my coaching business, I knew I wanted to do something big.  And the biggest thing I could think of was to help small nonprofit organizations raise all the money they needed to fulfill their missions.

For the past ten years, I’ve been learning everything I can about best practices in fundraising while working in the field.   I’ve been fortunate to experience some tremendous success in raising money for my causes, including homelessness, hunger, and needy children.

As a coach, I’ve learned that most small nonprofits struggle with the same issues when it comes to fundraising.  To help, I’ve developed a simple system that you can follow to raise money.  I call it Get Fully Funded.

In the current economic storm, I’m hopeful that the Get Fully Funded system will take some of the worry off you by giving you a step-by-step format to tell your organization’s story, cultivate your donors, and raise money.

In a few days, I’ll be launching a brand-new coaching club designed to give you the support you need to Get Fully Funded.  If you’d like to be among the first to hear about my new club and the Get Fully Funded system, sign up for the VIP preview list.

Come join me and be among the first to take advantage of this new system for fundraising success!

Let Michael Phelps help your nonprofit organization

What does Michael Phelps have to do with your nonprofit organization?  Not much at first glance. But there’s a good lesson you can learn from his recent publicity.

In case you missed it, Michael got in some trouble over a picture of him at a party, having perhaps too good of a time.  Whether he’s guilty or not, lots of people have formed opinions and it has certainly tarnished his image and credibility.

I’ve preached for years that a nonprofit has its reputation and not much else.  When you depend on donors from the community to support your good work, it only takes a little negative publicity to slow down the donations.  Who can afford that in today’s economy?

So take a lesson from Michael: keep your nose clean!  Make sure everything your organization does is above board and beyond reproach.  Be transparent: be willing to share any information with the public.  After all, you should have nothing to hide and lots of your organization’s information is public record anyway.

When you’re making a decision you aren’t sure about, use what I call the ‘Front Page Test.’  If the results of your decision were on the front page of the paper tomorrow, how would people react?  What would your donors think?  What would your Mother think? 

I remember a story several years ago about a food bank that had a rodent problem.  Word got out and the media picked it up.  It was not good for their reputation in the community!  They had to do a good bit of work to do to rebuild trust.  Seems like we hear stories regularly (unfortunately) of incidents at day care centers, and the way the media tends to focus on news like this there’s a good chance it will get picked up.

So, what would be the worst thing that could happen at your organization?  Is there something that can be put in place to prevent it from happening?  Have you thought through how to handle communications with the public in times of crisis?  It’s really worth the time and effort to think through these questions.

Post a comment and let me know what you think.

Fundraising Ideas for Tough Times

Fundraising can be difficult in the best of times.  But now, with a recession, it can be even more difficult.  Before you panic, here are a few things to remember.

First, DO NOT give into fear.  Lots of people are afraid right now.  If you get scared and back off from your fundraising activities, then you can forget it.  You must stay positive and stay focused.  Yes, unemployment is high, but 90% of the population is still employed.  The sky is not falling.  It’s going to be okay.

Go back to the basics of fundraising.  Craft a simple, clear message about the work your organization is doing, then share it!  Tell your stories.  Tell your donors how your nonprofit is changing people’s lives with their help.

Give donors the chance to give.  Don’t assume that they won’t give as much or as often as in previous years.  Keep giving them the chance to give through direct mail, newsletters, online, and personal requests.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals has a Survival Kit for Fundraising in a Bad Economy.  There are lots of articles with fundraising ideas for tough times.

And I’d like to ask you a question.  What’s your toughest fundraising challenge so far this year?  What have you bumped into already that’s harder or different than usual?  Click on the ‘comment’ link below and let me know what’s happening in your world.

Themes for direct mail appeals and newsletters

Do you ever get stuck trying to come up with a theme for a mailing?

I’ve been there and it’s no fun.  I still get stuck every now and again trying to help clients with themes.

To help you out, I’ve put together a calendar of holidays and possible seasonal themes that you can pick from.  Get a free copy at www.getfullyfunded.com/resources.html.

If you find it helpful, come back and drop me a note.

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