The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 30, 2006
When I teach fundraising workshops, I always ask how many of my students can remember their organization's mission statements. Typically, only a couple come even close. Rare is the student who knows their mission word for word. This is not usually the individual's fault. Generally speaking, most mission statements are over-written statements of principle that have very little to do with the actual work of your nonprofit.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 26, 2006
I'm sure my readers are all fully aware of the difficulty of raising money from individuals, but consider this: "Giving to charity has become more challenging for donors in recent years." Or, at least, so says Cristine Cronin ( Seeing the Big Picture on Charities - Yahoo! News ). Cronin writes about how well-publicized problems at such well known organizations as the American Red Cross, the United Way, and the Nature Conservancy have hurt the sector as a whole.
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The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 25, 2006
Liz Heath, executive director of The Nonprofit Center in Tacoma, Washington, has an article in the Tacoma News Tribune advising nonprofits to let future board members in on whole truth. This seems like it should be such obvious advice, but it is unfortunately necessary. Many times we're anxious to recruit new talent to our boards, so we soft-pedal the requirements and expectations.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 23, 2006
Jonathan Peizer has a new posting on his "Philantherapy Blog" addressing the systemic flaw in traditional nonprofit capacity support. In part, JP writes (the bold is my emphasis): "There is a distinct difference in the way capacity is supported in the for-profit and non-profit sectors. Nonprofit capacity support is often dictated by an external donor base and not internal organizational need as it is in most other sectors.
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The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 22, 2006
A new study by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans finds that most Americans find donating money to a charity to be easier than volunteering, and would rather write a check than help you out with physical tasks. Still, in 2005 more than half of Americans did some volunteer work (57%), including 75% of people with household incomes of $75,000. This is good news for your fundraising efforts.
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The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 18, 2006
Are you fully utilizing your volunteers skills? Are you putting volunteers in positions where they can use their professional skills most effectively, or are you having asking lawyers to sweep up? According to the 2006 Deloitte / Points of Light Volunteer IMPACT Study , you're probably missing the boat. The study found that the "vast majority of non-profit organizations are not capitalizing on the valuable professional skills of their volunteers.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 17, 2006
If you've been taking your time filling out your IRS tax-exempt application paperwork, here's some motivation to complete them before July; the IRS filing fees are going up ! For most organizations, this will mean a 50% increase in fees, from $500 to $750, and for small organizations (receipts under $10,000) it will be a 100% increase, from $150 to $300.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 15, 2006
Tom Ahern has a new book called Raising More Money with Newsletters Than You Ever Thought Possible , with an excerpt posted on GuideStar.com on the seven donor newsletter flaws that are killing you. This short piece contains some good information and things to remember when putting your newsletters together. One of the most important, in my estimation, is Flaw #5: "The newsletter is not set up for rapid skimming and browsing.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 12, 2006
Yes, twenty dollars. This is not joke. What could you do to bring in money to your nonprofit if all you had to spend on your fundraiser was $20? That is basically the question that Reverend Michael Eden, of the Church of St. Peter & St. Mary in Stowmarket, England , asked his congregation. Eden took a £900 donation (just under $1,800) and distributed it in £10 notes to ninety of his parishioners with the request that they do something with it to increase the donation within six month
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The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 11, 2006
Here are some great statistics I just came across on the web: Why people give money 60% will give when asked by someone they know well 40-50% will give to a fundraiser when asked by a colleague at work 10-20% will give to a cause they learn about from news media (print, radio, TV, telethons) Fewer than 10% will give when solicited by a stranger at the door, on the phone, in print ads, or from letters - Gilmore Research for Washington Gives I found that on the web site of Good News/Good Deeds: Ci
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 9, 2006
The Nonprofit FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) from idealist.org is another great resource with answers to just about any question you may have about nonprofit management, development, regulations, or technology. From the main page, select one of the dozens of topic headings, from Boards of Directors to Telemarketing. From the topic page you'll find anywhere from one or two, to over sixty sub-topics or questions.
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 8, 2006
A friend recently asked my opinion of a new online foundation research site called "DonorData.com." They offer a free 20-day trial membership, so I signed up for the test drive. As a baseline for comparison, I used the Foundation Center's "Foundation Directory Online." I decided to do the same search on each service. Here are my results: DonorData (trial subscription) - $!
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 5, 2006
Tags: community foundations , nonprofits , silicon valley , peninsula , merger The San Jose Mercury News reports that the Community Foundation Silicon Valley (CFSV) and the Peninsula Community Foundation (PCF) appear to be headed for a merger. This would create one of the largest community foundations in the nation, and is being promoted as way of bringing additional resources to "struggling nonprofits.
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The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 4, 2006
Here's a great resource that I've had in my bookmarks for years. It's the Free Management Library assembled by Carter McNamara of Authenticity Consulting. The library contains links to articles on over 675 topics, neatly divided into 75 categories. Much of the management information is applicable to both for-profit and nonprofit organizations and for those areas where each sector requires a different approach (such as Finances or Fundraising) they've included separate topic headings for nonprofi
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 2, 2006
From previous posts you already know that I am a big believer in the power of the Internet (web and email) for low-cost, high-return nonprofit communications. Unfortunately, current pending legislation in Congress could threaten your easy access to web users looking for information about your organization's mission. Visit SaveTheInternet.com for more detailed information , but the potential changes would give the large media companies the ability to limit what their customers see to those conten
The Nonprofit Consultant
MAY 1, 2006
An new poll from Harris Interactive shows that while 92% of household have donated to charity in the last year, nearly a third (32%) feel that the sector has "pretty seriously gotten off in the wrong direction" ( Full story with survey results ). The most painful statistic is that only one in ten respondents strongly agree that "charitable organizations are honest and ethical in their use of donated funds.
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