SharkTank for Fundraising: 5 Teams Who Pitched Bold Ideas to Leadership (and Won)
Nervous to pitch a new idea to leadership? You’re not alone. Here are 5 fundraising teams who saw a problem, dreamed up a solution, made the pitch to leadership, and got the green light. Think of this as “SharkTank for Advancement.” This one’s for The Do-ers. You know – the fundraising folks who are in […]
Can you teach students about philanthropy in just one day? USF shows how.
Imagine if you could educate students about philanthropy – AND capture enough student video content to power a whole year of stewardship? The University of South Florida team figured out how to do just this. Here’s their story. “Alumni engagement starts when a student is admitted.” That’s a quote from Erika Jordan on her episode […]
Nonprofit donor retention: Stealable tips from 3 award-winning teams
Nonprofit donor retention is a hot topic these days. Small but mighty Nonprofit teams are under more pressure than ever to nurture and retain donors, build donor pipeline, and raise support for life-changing missions. But the nonprofit donor landscape is shifting: there are more and more causes calling out for attention. Here are stories of […]
Do this one thing to boost donor retention rates
Our research shows that 62% of first-time donors don’t give again within three years. That’s sad. Here’s one proven way to boost donor retention, courtesy of the Illinois State University Foundation: send personalized ThankView videos! “It’s scalable. It’s repeatable. Our open rates jump above 60%. And then our donor retention numbers grow, too.” Jillian Nelson […]
Acknowledgement Letters Getting You Down? NMSU Shows a Better Way
Old school acknowledgement letters can be slow-moving, cumbersome, and they often end up in the recycling bin. The NMSU Foundation swapped form letters for a monthly video sent via ThankView to all donors. Spoiler alert: Everyone is happier. “Thanking people is not meant to be boring. It’s meant to be happy. It’s meant to be […]
How Fundraisers Can Use AI to Book More Donor Meetings
Fundraisers report that their biggest challenge in prospect engagement is booking the first donor meeting. Here are two ways that any fundraiser can use AI to book more donor meetings. On a recent webinar with Joe Manok, Vice President of University Advancement at Clark University, we took a poll of fundraisers from over 90 institutions […]
AI Tools for Fundraisers: Your Ethical Action Plan
More and more fundraisers want to use AI to generate impact. But many are still trepidatious. Here are some AI tools for fundraisers to power donor engagement while keeping ethics and donor privacy as the top priority. “Does your organization allow you to use a generative AI tool such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini?” Earlier […]
Two ways to double your email open rates
Fundraisers need to reach folks who will help their organization change the world. Email is an important channel to get out their message. But with industry email open rates hovering around 20%, that means a lot of untapped potential – simply because inboxes are slammed. But, there’s hope! Something really cool is happening at a […]
“We’re moving away from one-pagers for fundraisers.” (And you should, too.)
“Like most shops, our frontline fundraisers were foaming at the mouth for one-pagers. We’ve really been trying to move away from one pagers and tell impactful stories, instead.” Austin Ice, Assistant Vice President of Donor Engagement, KU Foundation What MGOs really want from one-pagers It makes sense that Gift Officers are always on the hunt […]
Advice for uncovering new major and planned gifts
Since launching a Donor Experience program with EverTrue, the University of Nebraska team has seen a 190% increase in yearly donor meetings, 40+ new major gift referrals, and a $12MM increase in revenue. On the latest episode of the DXbyET video series, host Tony Munoz chats with Zach Withers, Donor Experience Officer at the University of Nebraska […]
Tips for avoiding fundraiser turnover from the U.S. Naval Academy
Managing a team isn’t for everyone. Some of the best fundraisers, prospect researchers, or data scientists just want to be super-excellent individual contributors. And for the folks who do aspire to lead a team, what needs to shift in order to make room for their own production expectations and their coach-mentor responsibilities? On this episode […]
Hybrid work advice from the University of Texas, El Paso
Our CEO Brent Grinna recently chatted with Jake Logan, Vice President for Institutional Advancement, and Annie Quade, Associate Vice President of Advancement Strategy and Engagement at the University of Texas at El Paso. Catch the full episode here, or listen below! The “Great (Advancement) Resignation” is a non-problem for the advancement team at the […]