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How To Strengthen Solicitation Skills
I think of solicitation meetings as a series of questions. First, I ask myself if I am ready for the meeting. Then I ask the person if I can ask them for a gift. Then I ask. Read my 3-part solicitation process below. 1. Do I feel I have a
How To Strengthen Solicitation Skills
I think of solicitation meetings as a series of questions. First, I ask myself if I am ready for the meeting. Then I ask the person if I can ask them for a gift. Then I ask. Read my 3-part solicitation process below. 1. Do I feel I have a
Launching a Monthly Giving Program
Recurring gifts, especially monthly donations, have grown in popularity in recent years. A 2022 report showed that while total online giving grew three percent last year, monthly giving increased by
Fundraising in a Challenging Environment
There is no doubt that 2023 will bring economic uncertainty. With big tech layoffs, inflation, and a volatile stock market, the conditions are ripe for a downturn. Uncertain economic times
Back to Fundraising Basics: Common Terms
Fundraising comes with quite a bit of jargon. For those who are new or just building their development shops, terms are not always clear and confusion abounds. Even for seasoned
Setting Yourself up for Success in the New Year
January is a month of fundraising extremes. After December 31, you may spend days or weeks dealing with processing gifts and closing the books. The sheer administrative burden can be
Little Bean Group’s Holiday Gift Guide
How we spend our hard-earned resources is an expression of our values. I focus on this point even more during the holiday season, when I tend to spend more on
Creative Donor Retention Tactics
Donor retention is critical to our missions. This is true from a financial perspective—it is cheaper to retain donors than acquire new ones—but also from the standpoint of our organizational
Year-End Crunch Time
Year end usually arrives with a mix of excitement and dread for fundraisers. If all goes well and the gifts come in, the pace can be relentless, and there’s a
Challenging “norms” in fundraising
A recent conversation with a colleague prompted me to think about “norms” in fundraising. We hold assumptions about who succeeds in the profession, the ways we expect donors to behave,
Giving Tuesday: Managing Expectations to Ensure Success
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the first Giving Tuesday in 2012. What started as an effort by one organization to boost charitable giving during the holiday season has