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Abusive, Arrogant, Arrested, and Awful Board Members

By Michael Baker posted 03-25-2024
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In more than 20 years of consulting with over 100 nonprofit organizations, I’ve seen my share of conflicts, chaffing personalities, and troublemakers serving as board members. Destructive behaviors are a choice, just like when we teach our children to make good decisions and good consequences will follow, make a poor decision, and negative consequences generally follow. A board member’s sole purpose is to ensure the nonprofit’s success. For most individuals, they follow and lead to put the organization on a successful pathway. For a select few, their behaviors negatively impact the organizations they’re supposed to be helping! Leadership of an organization ...
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Doing it for You: The Personal Importance of the CFRE Certification

By John Greenhoe posted 02-07-2024
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There are many well investigated and delineated reasons for earning the CFRE certification. Certainly, career advancement, building donor trust, and elevating the fundraising profession are among the most oft-mentioned points. All are important. What inspired me to become a CFRE more than 20 years ago was far more personal, and a reason I rarely hear mentioned. Quite simply, I did it for ME. Although much has changed over the years, in some circles, many individuals still shudder at the thought of a career in fundraising. As we all know, it is a most noble profession, but it is also often grossly understood. Unfortunately, there are ...
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Successfully Training Your Fundraising Team on AI: 3 Best Practices

By Joshua LaBorde posted 01-23-2024
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When leveraged correctly by nonprofits, AI tools can elevate fundraising success. Just take a look at this image to see how AI can help with nonprofit fundraising: However, a tool is only ever as effective as its wielder. That’s why it’s imperative to train your nonprofit’s team members on properly using AI tools. If this is the first time you’re in charge of a team or implementing a large operational change for your nonprofit, we’ll guide you through three best practices for training your fundraising team on AI. 1. Establish a Responsible-use AI Policy Poor fundraising AI usage can lead ...
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Fundraising Through Friction: 7 Tips From a Consultant to Manage Difficult Clients

By Amie Bossi posted 01-16-2024
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As a fundraising consultant, I can say most clients are a joy to work with. However, the occasional "challenging" one is inevitable. These interactions, though stressful, can be navigated with grace and tact, ultimately strengthening my professional skills and client relationships. While every client is different and requires a unique approach, I find these general guidelines to be effective: 1. Identify the True Source of Conflict Before diving into solutions, understand the source of the difficulty. Is the client expressing/displaying: Misaligned expectations: Constant calls, unrealistic deadlines, ...
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How to Tell Ethical and Impactful Stories for Your Nonprofit

By Ryan Felix posted 01-09-2024
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Most of us enjoy a good story. Whether we’re watching the latest hit movie, reading a favorite novel, or listening to a friend talk about their recent vacation, stories hold our attention and engage our emotions. Besides its usefulness for entertainment and personal connection, storytelling can also make your fundraising appeals more inspirational. However, it’s easy to get caught up in showing how your nonprofit made a difference in your community and forget to consider the ethical implications that come with telling stories about real people. Because effective nonprofit storytelling involves balancing ethics with impact, this guide ...
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Why Do Businesses Offer Matching Gifts? An Inside Look

By Adam Weinger posted 01-02-2024
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Corporate giving is a powerful force in the fundraising world. More and more companies realize their duty to give back through philanthropy, and matching gifts are one of the easiest ways to accomplish that. This type of corporate giving empowers employees to direct their company’s philanthropic spending toward causes they care about. When an employee donates to a nonprofit, the company promises to match that donation, effectively doubling the contribution. While it seems like nonprofits primarily benefit from matching gifts, the positives are actually mutual. As a fundraising professional, it’s vital to know why ...
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How CFRE Certification Supports Professionalism in Fundraising

By Eva Aldrich posted 12-11-2023
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We readily accept the notion that medicine and law are professions. As members of the public we even have a general idea of how membership in these professions works: doctors, lawyers, and accountants get the required education, pass a licensing exam, and agree to ethical conduct as outlined in their profession’s code of ethics. If they don’t achieve and maintain these standards, they either cannot initially join the profession or, if currently practicing, their ability to practice is revoked. This clear set of standards is partly why established professions generally enjoy an enhanced level of trust and respect. Mind the Knowledge ...
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How to Talk About Your CFRE Designation With Prospective Employers

By Stacia Swanson posted 11-28-2023
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One of the many benefits to earning and recertifying your CFRE designation is that it sends an important signal to prospective employers: I am a proven skilled professional who takes this work seriously. The truth is, most of us find our way into fundraising through a variety of channels. I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone who said their childhood dream was to be a fundraiser! Or even to be a nonprofit executive, for that matter! In fact, I often hear the opposite: “I could never do what you do.” I could spend hours telling anyone who will listen that fundraising isn’t about asking people for money—it’s about relationship-building. ...
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Adapting to the Digital Age: 3 Online Engagement Strategies

By Kimberly Richardson posted 11-20-2023
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Is your nonprofit doing everything it can to leverage technology to connect and engage donors? Social media offers a personal, immediate way to communicate with supporters, allowing nonprofits to build more intimate donor relationships. Additionally, tools like Artificial intelligence (AI) are being used by nonprofits (and across other industries) for anything from generating content ideas to building predictive models for prospect research. Because the marketing and fundraising technology landscape is constantly evolving, nonprofit fundraising professionals must stay on top of new developments and adapt their strategies alongside ...
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Engaging Asian Giving: A Guide to Philanthropy and Community Involvement

By Judy Zhu posted 10-26-2023
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As an individual who embarked on a transformative journey from China to Canada, I've been fortunate to witness and partake in the tapestry of cultural experiences, values, and traditions that distinguish both of these vibrant societies. It's in this delightful tug-of-war between my Chinese roots and my Canadian dreams that I've come to appreciate the unique ways we all think about community, charity, and helping others. It is against the backdrop of this unique perspective that I invite you to explore the dynamic and inspiring realm of "Engaging Asian Giving." In Asia and Canada, giving and philanthropy occupy unique places. The fusion ...
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5 Common Capital Campaign Myths & How to Educate Your Board

By Andrea Kihlstedt posted 10-16-2023
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While capital campaigns allow organizations to raise funds for significant projects that grow their capacity and impact, many board members have misconceptions about what they are and how to run them. This is understandable—they’re much larger projects than anything else most nonprofits attempt to tackle, rooted in major gift fundraising , and only come around roughly once a decade. Your board will play a pivotal role in your campaign’s success, so they should all be operating from a shared understanding of campaign best practices. Educating your board members will help ensure they don’t fall prey to the most common campaign myths. ...
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Charting Your Career Path: 5 Strategies for Fundraisers

By Jennifer Loftus posted 10-11-2023
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As a fundraiser, you source and secure funding that will ensure your nonprofit has a bright future. But what about your future? What does your personal career path look like? What can you do to take your career to new heights ? In this article, we’ll walk through five strategies to chart your career path. As you set clear goals for where you want to be and what you want to achieve as a fundraiser, you’ll not only discover personal fulfillment in your work, but be equipped to make a greater difference at your nonprofit. Let’s dive in. 1. Set Clear Goals To map out the journey you want to take throughout the course of your fundraising ...
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Crash Course for First-Time Managers: 12 Suggestions

By Bridget Murphy posted 09-05-2023
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A manager—good, bad, or well-intentioned but inexperienced—can make or break an employee’s overall experience and success in a role. For nonprofits, management is especially important. People are often drawn to this work for idealistic or community-minded reasons. They might feel personally invested far more than employees in other organization types. Nonprofit budgets are often tight. Relationships with donors, sponsors and governments are complex. Funding is a continuous challenge. It’s a lot to juggle and can create a hectic environment where the employee experience falls by the wayside. Nonprofit employee turnover ...
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5 Interview Secrets to Impactful Nonprofit Hiring

By Joshua Meyer posted 08-21-2023
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Hiring the right nonprofit employee can positively impact your organization for years to come. Unfortunately, the opposite is true when you hire the wrong person. But how can you know for sure that you’re making the right hiring decisions? Of course, you can never eliminate all uncertainty from the hiring process. However, the key to increasing the likelihood of bringing on the best new fundraising professionals lies in your interview process. Let’s review five impactful tips for holding better nonprofit interviews that lead to successful hiring. These tips help you look beyond just the CVs or resumes to assess candidates on multiple levels ...
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A Fundraiser’s Guide to Omnichannel Marketing: 3 Tips

By Kristin Priest posted 08-01-2023
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As a nonprofit fundraiser, you’re likely always looking for ways to sharpen and hone your craft. Improving your marketing strategies is a smart place to focus. With a robust marketing strategy, you can reach more new donors, strengthen relationships with existing supporters, and drive deeper involvement with your organization. An omnichannel approach allows you to establish multiple touchpoints with donors so you can build stronger brand awareness and recognition. In this guide, we’ll cover three key tips to implement an omnichannel strategy that will elevate your career as a fundraiser: Center data in your strategy. ...
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How the 4 Letters in “FORD” Can Help You Master Any Donor Conversation

By Andrew Polter posted 07-18-2023
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Fundraising often requires you to talk to strangers. Whether it’s mingling in the crowd at a gala or spending one-on-one time working with prospects, the reality is that to be successful in this profession, you’re going to need to connect continuously with new individuals who have the interest and potential to support your organization’s mission. For many, spending time talking with strangers sounds like a nightmare. How could you possibly talk with someone you just met? What would you even have to discuss? Fortunately, I’m here to propose a solution in the form of one simple, yet powerful, acronym, that will answer these questions plus begin to ...
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Professional Credentialing vs. Professional Honours: Understanding the Distinction

By Stephen Mally posted 07-13-2023
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In the professional realm, recognition and accolades play a significant role in acknowledging individuals' expertise and achievements. Two common forms of recognition are professional credentialing (such as Certified Fundraising Executive - CFRE) and professional honours (such as the Fellow of Fundraising Institute Australia - FFIA). While they both highlight accomplishments and skills, there are distinct differences between the two. In this blog post, we will explore and compare professional credentialing and professional honours to provide a clearer understanding of their respective meanings and implications. Professional Credentialing Professional ...
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Honing Storytelling Skills as a Fundraising Professional

By Dennis Meyer posted 07-11-2023
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Cultivating new skills is important for professional development in any career, but it’s especially valuable in the nonprofit sector where roles often overlap. Due to the pandemic and current state of the economy , many fundraising professionals now have to take on new responsibilities to meet nonprofits’ increased need for support. Soliciting this support requires fundraisers to get creative to genuinely connect with supporters. Spending time cultivating your storytelling skills can help you improve your asks, strengthen donor relationships, and jump start your professional growth. Let’s discuss how to hone your storytelling ...
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How to Leverage AI Effectively as a Fundraising Professional

By Joshua LaBorde posted 06-26-2023
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The AI takeover has begun. From generative AI tools and chatbots like ChatGPT to predictive models that help organizations anticipate donor behavior, AI tools are ready to provide support in multiple ways. As a fundraising professional, are you prepared to seize this opportunity? Taking on new challenges and learning new ways to improve fundraising efficiency will elevate your performance and the fundraising profession as a whole. This guide will help you learn how AI skills can further your professional development and your nonprofit’s fundraising success. Let’s dive into three ways fundraising professionals can prepare themselves to leverage AI effectively ...
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Not Offering PD? Your Staff Will Leave You for an Organization That Does

By Maegan Dyson posted 04-21-2023
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Great fundraisers are hard to find, and the real challenge is keeping them. Employers need to show staff they believe they are worth investing in. Budgets are always the bad guy, right? Does someone deserve a raise? Absolutely. Can your organization afford it, or are they willing to? Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. We can’t let this problem continue to force the loss of high-performing fundraisers to other professions. We must get creative about retention strategies. If an employee is exceptional, you want to keep them. As nonprofit leaders, we should be attentive to fundraisers’ needs if we want to improve retention. It’s about finding ...
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