Allison Fine

DECEMBER 9, 2021

Automation and AI can free up staff in fundraising, communications, finance, and service delivery efforts.

Finance 363

Finance Nonprofits Communication Fundraising 363

NonProfit PRO

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

Inspiration4 returned from orbit Saturday, raising millions for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the process. Though the campaign goal was met, it will continue raising money through February 2022.

Fundraising 364

Fundraising Fundraising Health 364

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

MARCH 22, 2021

TL;DR: Getting called in and called out comes with the territory of being a thought leader. You need to learn to manage that, regardless of how uncomfortable it is, or find another line of work. . Over the last few weeks, our friend and colleague Tom Ahern made a series of bad decisions that rightly resulted in the cancellation of a AFP webinar he was scheduled to present later this week.

Leadership 357

Leadership Nonprofits Entrepreneurship Values 357

Ann Green

FEBRUARY 18, 2021

The nonprofit annual report is a mixed bag. Organizations do need to share accomplishments and show gratitude to their donors, but many annual reports are done poorly. They’re often too long, boring, and basically a demonstration of the organization patting itself on the back. There’s often very little appreciation for donors. It’s also time consuming to put together, even when we’re not in a pandemic.

Food 308

Food Homelessness Activism Nonprofits 308

Speaker: Duke Heninger, Partner and Fractional CFO at Ampleo & Creator of CFO System

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Duke Heninger, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.

Finance

Selfish Giving

DECEMBER 8, 2021

Last week it was the secret formula for storytelling success according to Marvel Comics. This week it's why you should use pets in your nonprofit marketing.????? I'm not sure why, but a publisher recently sent me a new book called Pet Nation: The Inside Story of How Companion Animals are Transforming Our Homes, Culture, and Economy. It's a fascinating read.

Non-Profits 299

Non-Profits Marketing Marketing Retail 299

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 5, 2021

I was going to wait a bit longer before sharing this news, but after yesterday’s Facebook worldwide blowout, I figured I might as well share now. Over the next several weeks, we are transitioning out of our Facebook Groups and into a private-label solution called Circle. We at Nonprofit Marketing Guide have used Facebook Groups practically since they became available.

Management 347

Management Activism Communication Marketing 347

NonProfit PRO

AUGUST 13, 2021

In the United States, about 1.5 million nonprofits exist. But, then a natural question is how many of them fail? As we know, during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, as many as one-third of nonprofits were at risk of closing their doors. So, what are the top reasons nonprofits fail—aside from a situation like the pandemic? And more importantly, if you're a nonprofit leader and founder, how do you avoid it happening?

Nonprofits 342

Nonprofits 342

NonProfit PRO

NOVEMBER 16, 2021

The supply chain issue in the U.S. and abroad is something that affects all of us. However, it has ramifications for your nonprofit beyond what you may think. Sure, if you’re an organization reliant on providing things to people you serve, it could be an incredible challenge.

Nonprofits 338

Nonprofits 338

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

MAY 6, 2021

Every now and then, a fundraising consultant will write a post essentially saying that all nonprofit communications and marketing should be driven by fundraising goals and staff, with a few limited exceptions, like media relations and general branding. Here’s the latest example of this point of view from Richard Perry and Jeff Schreifels , further amplified here by Jeff Brooks.

Communication 336

Communication Nonprofit governance and management Fundraising Fundraising 336

NonProfit PRO

DECEMBER 21, 2021

What's happened is that we live at a time of immense transparency and authenticity because of the way data is consumed. Donors could hold nonprofits and their leaders accountable if they realize something isn't quite right. Therefore, in this time of easy communications, you want to ensure quality and value marketing and social media.

Marketing 331

Marketing Marketing Values Nonprofits 331

Speaker: Radhika Samant and Todd Wuestenberg

Employee recognition has often been deemed a "feel-good" initiative, tied closely to rewards. While we understand its importance, we tend to associate recognition with intangible outcomes like engagement and sentiment, rather than direct impacts on retention and high performance. In today’s workplace, the true ROI of recognition lies in its ability to regenerate tangible, business-driven results.

Retention

NonProfit PRO

OCTOBER 21, 2021

Did you know 90% of Facebook users live overseas? That's just one reason why nonprofits are increasingly looking for alternatives to Facebook. At some point, I anticipate that there will be increased shifts away from the platform. Here's why.

Nonprofits 331

Nonprofits Ethics 331

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

APRIL 15, 2021

I use this quote from Thomas L. Friedman in my training all the time: “In the world of ideas, to name something is to own it. If you can name an issue, you can own the issue.” Here are some of the ideas and issues you should be naming and owning in your nonprofit as a communications director. The Marketing and Communications Planning Documents.

Communication 330

Communication Nonprofits Collaborations Management 330

NonProfit PRO

SEPTEMBER 7, 2021

It’s amazing to me the wild stories nonprofit leaders and fundraisers make up in their heads about why donors are not giving. It’s like you’re trying to develop excuses not to go out and fundraise — and you’re a fundraiser!

Fundraising 328

Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits Retention 328

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

AUGUST 23, 2021

All my people-pleasers gather around and let me tell you about a magical trick that will grant you more time in your schedule, reduce burnout and clear your mind. It’s saying “No” Unfortunately, all magic comes with price and the price you might pay when you turn someone down is feeling guilty. But maybe you don’t have to decide between being over-committed or feeling bad about letting someone down.

Psychology 328

Psychology Health Values Marketing 328

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Management

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

Millions of people have quit their jobs across all job categories with many more considering it. While many will argue it’s all about pay, according to Gallup research , the highest quit rate is among those that are “not engaged” and “actively disengaged” workers. Engaged employees act differently, going above and beyond to surpass expectations, and that gives their organizations a competitive advantage.

Associations 325

Associations Nonprofits Management Activism 325

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JUNE 10, 2021

You may have seen the latest batch of announcements from Apple about the privacy changes they are making to their software, including this one: In the Mail app, Mail Privacy Protection stops senders from using invisible pixels to collect information about the user. The new feature helps users prevent senders from knowing when they open an email, and masks their IP address so it can’t be linked to other online activity or used to determine their location.

Marketing 325

Marketing Marketing Activism Nonprofits 325

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 7, 2021

When I’ve trained nonprofits on social media over the years, I told them they had to have at least a minimal presence on Facebook. It was always the elephant in the room that you couldn’t ignore. I’m not saying that anymore. While Facebook is still indispensable for many nonprofits, including those that have found ways to successfully fundraise there through peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns or newsy or value-laden advocacy campaigns, it’s just not universally true anym

Nonprofits 323

Nonprofits Universities Values Management 323

NonProfit PRO

JUNE 15, 2021

Technology and artificial intelligence are most certainly making our lives easier and improving efficiencies. But, the power is beyond anything humans have ever seen, and we're heading to a point where technology will soon entirely exceed our capacity and performance on just about everything. Therefore, it's a balancing act.

Ethics 323

Ethics Technology Nonprofits 323

Speaker: Joe Sharpe and James Carlson

Payroll optimization can be one of the most time-consuming and complex factors of small business management. Yet, organizations that crack the code on streamlining employee compensation often discover innovative avenues for growth. With the right strategies in place, outsourcing and streamlining payroll processes can result in substantial time and resource savings.

Foundations

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 10, 2021

Do we sound like a broken record yakking on and on about email marketing? Yes! Do we care? No! We are fired up right now about making sure nonprofits are following email marketing best practices. We’ve pretty much dedicated the entire month of February to email marketing training. So until we see these stats change, we will continue to metaphorically scream at the top of our lungs about the Nonprofit Email Apocalypse.

Marketing 324

Marketing Marketing Communication Nonprofits 324

NonProfit PRO

JULY 23, 2021

Every person who works for a nonprofit or is associated with an organization internally is an ambassador of that organization by virtue of association. As an employee of The Salvation Army, I wear, with pride, a shirt with the logo of The Salvation Army. Volunteers also wear clothing that signifies an association with the organization.

Associations 321

Associations Nonprofits Marketing Marketing 321

NonProfit PRO

JULY 21, 2021

If your organization is a university or hospital foundation with millions in the bank, then hiring a company to do all video-related communications for you might make sense. For everyone else, the important thing is to share your organization’s mission story in a compelling way – and "compelling" doesn’t necessarily mean professionally produced. Use your iPhone or Zoom or whatever tool you are comfortable with to do the recording.

Universities 321

Universities Fundraising Fundraising Foundations 321

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JULY 13, 2021

Someone recently told me that while they appreciate all the diverse professional development topics that we and others offer on nonprofit communications and marketing, the fact that there is so much of it and so many things to learn also contributes to her sense of imposter syndrome. I get it! There really is so much variation in this work, and things are changing constantly.

Construction 321

Construction Marketing Marketing Communication 321

Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio, Director of Corporate Brand

Is your organization ready to build a recurring giving program that not only sustains but also propels your mission forward? 🚀 In this new webinar with industry visionary Tim Sarrantonio, we’ll guide you through the critical steps to establishing and scaling a successful recurring giving program. Whether you’re starting fresh or enhancing an existing program, this session will provide the strategies you need to deepen donor relationships and secure long-term support!

Nonprofits

NonProfit PRO

JUNE 22, 2021

Direct mail fundraisers, this blog post is dedicated to you. The tendency to think about the offline and online channels as separate sandboxes is inadvisable for many reasons, but today we’d like to focus on a direct-mail-centric reason — one that is costing you revenue.

Fundraising 319

Fundraising Fundraising 319

NonProfit PRO

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Giving Tuesday is the global day of giving that results in significant revenue raised. But, it is just one day. How can you better leverage your nonprofit's success after Giving Tuesday?

Nonprofits 317

Nonprofits Fundraising Fundraising 317

NonProfit PRO

AUGUST 26, 2021

Let's review some of the best social media tools you should consider for your nonprofit to help you focus on your donors and prospects, and alleviate much of the stress in making sure you're doing well on social media.

Communication 317

Communication Nonprofits 317

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JULY 26, 2021

Last week I shared An Exercise to Reduce Burnout (and More): Start a List of Every Single Thing You Do at Work. The goal of that exercise was to see ALL of your tasks in one place so you could prevent burnout, manage expectations, combat imposter syndrome, and realize your worth. This week, I have a similar exercise for you, but this is more for times when your brain is completely overwhelmed with the things you need to do (or cluttered with things you just think you should do).

Management 317

Management Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 317

Speaker: Radhika Samant and Adri Glover

The world of work has fundamentally changed. The series of waves that the pandemic began have rippled through the Great Resignation, quiet quitting, the Great Regret, and other eloquent phrases that boil down to the same thing: people aren’t engaged at work or enabled to perform at their best. The truth is that engagement and enablement is more important than ever, but how we do it is the critical differentiator for many organizations.

Activism

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JUNE 24, 2021

“But is this really my responsibility?” That’s the response I sometimes get when I’m encouraging a nonprofit communications director to step up and start an often-hard conversation within their organizations. Of course, it’s usually not their job, technically. But the problem is that when executive directors and other senior staff don’t provide that kind of leadership, there’s a gap.

Leadership 318

Leadership Collaborations Management Nonprofits 318

NonProfit PRO

JULY 15, 2021

Technology and more people-centric (i.e., donors and supporters) ways of giving continue to expand, which is essential for nonprofit leaders to understand. For example, people could open a donor-advised fund (DAF) for very little money and give with the ease of tech platforms. Also, leading organizations, such as St. Jude, are reaching out to new audiences, like gamers, because they know they have to meet people where they are, to support a good cause.

Technology 317

Technology Nonprofits Management Marketing 317

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JULY 20, 2021

What are all of the things that nonprofit communications teams need to think about and potentially act on to be successful? Of course, it’s a really, really long list of potential items. To put some structure around it, so that you can start to understand your choices and then make them, we’ve identified ten keys to nonprofit communications success.

Communication 317

Communication Public and Nonprofit Management Nonprofits Management 317

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

MARCH 25, 2021

Looking to fill your editorial calendar next month? We have ideas for newsletter articles, blog posts, social media updates, and more. These ideas come from our Monthly Nonprofit Writing Prompts email newsletter*. If you would like these ideas sent to your inbox a month in advance, sign up for our Monthly Nonprofit Writing Prompts. I send this email newsletter the first week of every month with prompts for the following month.

Children 318

Children Environmental Law Culture 318

Speaker: Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader

In today’s competitive market, pricing is more than just a number — it’s the cornerstone of profitability. The right pricing strategy ensures that you capture the true value of your offering, paving the way for sustainable growth and long-term success. Join Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader, in this exclusive session where he will explore how a well-crafted pricing approach balances customer perception with business objectives, creating a powerful tool for securing both competitive advantage a

Finance