When I introduced the Authentic Fundraiser I talked about the need for a less traditional sales approach. In this post I’m going to dig a little deeper into how “professional” fundraising professionals should be? People Read more…
For more than a decade there have been no radical changes to our fundraising strategies and techniques. Recent developments, in and outside our sector, will force us to develop new ways to engage with our Read more…
The theme of this year’s IFC conference is ‘Asking the Right Questions’. As someone who spends most of his time working with UK charities I don’t think there has ever been a better time to Read more…
Another year, another IFC. Another round of presentations ranging from the transformative (none more so than this masterclass, ‘Reinventing the Donor Experience’ by Kevin Schulman and Adrian Sargeant) to the tawdry (tempting but unfair to Read more…
Several years ago I went through a hefty psychometric evaluation for a role I was interviewing for. It was a great experience that left me with a fifty page document all about me and how Read more…
“What the heart knows today the head will understand tomorrow.” – James Stephens, Poet, 1880 – 1950 When I was a kid coming to terms with the insignificance of self, it was the infinity of the big Read more…
Non-profits are no longer guaranteed a free lunch. We have to work harder than ever to raise the funds we need, which — as we have seen in many instances around the world — leaves Read more…
What image do you have of the Middle East? Watch the television or read the news and you are likely to see bombs and bullets, injured children and the shifting sands of multiple war zones. Read more…
On a sunny afternoon in 1998, my progress along a central Brighton street was interrupted in a way that ended up changing the course of my own life, as well as heralding a step change Read more…
There will be hard questions asked about our sector and I wanted to take a crack at one of them: “If it’s true that one size does NOT fit all donors, and we have limited Read more…
Urgent help needed to persuade UK Prime Minister Theresa May to intervene on behalf of British-Australian fundraiser held in Dubai. Please sign our petition. Fundraising for worthy causes should never be a crime. Scott Richards, Read more…
The theme of this year’s IFC is asking the right questions. So here is my question: What is fundraising success? The answer is obvious surely? It’s how much money we raise. Success is based on Read more…
“How many supporters do I need to recruit to test whether email fundraising can work for my organisation?” This is a question that I used to answer numerically. I would explain that the sample group Read more…
It’s a bit of a dance, really, isn’t it? A little pas de deux between donor and nonprofit: You take a step towards me, and I either step forward to meet you, or retreat. For Read more…
Thinking the reasons why people give doesn’t matter Thinking we know why people give Assumption #1 is beyond redemption (you can’t fix stupid!) Thankfully although it still pervades a few of the bigger, Read more…
It’s half time. And I’m not talking about the European Football Championships. We’ve just concluded our second quarter. Again we have 10 gems for you. And Q2 shows us how international our crowdblog is with posts from Read more…
What is success in fundraising? And what is failure? That might seem a ridiculously simple and binary question with a ridiculously simple and binary answer: it’s what works, and what does not. And yet it Read more…
Look at a painting by van Gogh and you see beauty. Look at it another way and you see confusion. Yet another, and you see pain, suffering. That was how it was last month in Read more…
It is 10pm on Saturday evening. For the last six hours I have been celebrating a 50th birthday in our village. I am not sure how I am typing this. Yesterday I went to visit Read more…
We used to run into each other at fundraising conferences and events, but it had been a while since we had met. When I called her and suggested catching up over lunch, I was hoping Read more…
Although, come to think of it, I had one from you before once, and it was bland and unconvincing. All concept and no substance. Very disappointing. But this one almost persuaded me to give. It Read more…
Fundraising needs to change. The way ahead is unchartered. It’s going to need those with courage, and an appetite to try the unknown – fundraisers willing to explore a different approach, feel the fear, and Read more…
On Sunday, Katharine (comms manager) and I represented Save the Children Canada at the Patron’s Lunch. The largest-ever street party on The Mall, The Royal Family made philanthropy and patronage a centrepiece of The Queen’s Read more…
Donors like to be thanked and we like to thank donors. Don’t we? Yes, particularly if it’s cheap and quick. Let me tell you what we did. It was fairly cheap, not so quick, but Read more…
I’m proud to call myself a Fundraiser. It’s who I am, it’s what I do, it’s kind of in my core. But there is a challenge. A donor really, really doesn’t want to be ‘fundraised’. Read more…
