by Jason Dick on March 10, 2010
This would have gone well with my Event Invitation Mistakes post a few weeks ago but I didn’t make this mistake until recently. We have had a number of formal prospecting sessions and I have informally added a number of casually mentioned names. Recently I sent out invitations to our prospect list. At my next volunteer committee meeting one of the members asked me if I let each board member know when I invited their connections.
In the back of my mind, I had thought once a name had been mentioned I had the freedom to prospect and invite them as much as I wanted. That is not the perspective of the donor or volunteer. These prospects are often close friends and colleagues and it should be standard practice to let our volunteers know when their connections might be receiving an invitation.
Because I made the mistake of not letting our volunteers know, I missed out on a number of opportunities for cultivation. By letting the volunteer know it provides an opportunity for them to connect with the prospect. Your volunteer can encourage them to attend the event in a more personal way, which would improve the likelihood of their attendance. If you are cultivating the prospect for a gift, letting your volunteer know provides another opportunity for your volunteer strengthen the prospects relationship with the nonprofit.
by Jason Dick on March 8, 2010
I am participating today in an annual tradition called the Nonprofit Blog Exchange, an event where nonprofit and philanthropy bloggers write about another blog. This year I am writing about Marc Pitman’s The Fundraising Coach.
Marc is a reputable expert and thought leader in the fundraising community. From his blog you can receive his regular weekly posts, connect to his podcast, or get his book with tips and tools for success. He writes about everything from SEO to Generating Leads. He recently started a section called Question Marc where nonprofit readers can ask him about fundraising and philanthropy.
I love his slogan, “Fundraising is an Extreme Sport.” It says to me that fundraising is not all rubber chicken lunches and coffee meetings. As an “Extreme Sport” there are all kinds of politics and posturing but also all kinds of victories for the underdog and triumphs of human spirit. In all of my interactions with Marc, he is enthusiastic and energetic and this comes through in his posts as well. The Fundraising Coach is a great blog, easy to read with insightful tips.
by Jason Dick on March 3, 2010
Through eBay’s Giving Works platform shoppers contributed nearly $1.5 million dollars to Haiti. Eight US nonprofits have received more than $1 million. eBay is at the forefront of the e-philanthropy movement and I’m excited to bring you an interview with Robert Chatwani.- Jason
What is your role at eBay and how does that impact the philanthropic sector?
As eBay’s head of Global Citizenship, my focus is on harnessing the reach and scale of our core businesses – eBay and PayPal – to create a positive impact. This goes beyond philanthropy. We think about citizenship and sustainability in terms of People, Planet, and Communities, the latter being the part that directly affects the philanthropic sector. We do this by fostering entrepreneurship for global sellers, keeping goods out of landfills through the sale of pre-owned products, and raising funds for nonprofits through sales on eBay.
What does it mean to be the largest online engine for fundraising?
The eBay charity program was built to capitalize on the philanthropic instincts of eBay’s 89 million member community. We’re tapping into this amazing resource by providing a flexible platform for giving – an out-of-the box, commerce-focused solution for online fundraising. The program has provided nonprofit organizations around the world creative and highly flexible ways to raise funds at a time when charitable giving is declining. Based on their individual needs, nonprofits can adapt the eBay Giving Works platform to work for their unique business models.
Where do you see the future of online philanthropy? How do you see and hope to see eBay shaping that future?
In terms of giving – we see two large macro trends taking place. The first is that online giving is growing fast, at a rate that’s 7 times faster than offline giving. Given that contributions through eBay Giving Works have risen while the economy has declined, we see this as a sign that online giving is where philanthropy is headed more and more. The other trend we see is that many more consumers are thinking about social and environmental values when making decisions about what to buy. These consumers have new mindset, and they’re more practical and socially conscious than ever before. eBay empowers them to vote their conscience with their clicks.
Do you think the internet and social media has made philanthropy more accessible to the everyday person?
We have seen time and again that the everyday person appreciates flexibility and adaptability in their giving habits, especially in a recession. The eBay community has shown that even small actions, when brought to scale, can have a big impact. It’s what enables many in our community, both shoppers and sellers, to do good in whatever way is most comfortable for them. We’ve been very impressed with peoples’ generosity, particularly in a recession.
How can online giving be mobilized to respond quickly to disasters like the Haiti earthquake?
We have seen an incredible outpouring of support for Haiti relief efforts coming from the eBay community. More than 425,000 donors and sellers have raised nearly $1.5 million in support. This includes sellers who have decided to designate a portion of their final sale price to charities supporting the relief efforts, and everyday shoppers, who have given at checkout or through PayPal. Celebrities have also participated by selling items on eBay to support charity.
by Jason Dick on March 1, 2010
Let me take a second to share with you, my reader, about a couple of different ways we can work together. I want this blog to be interactive and useful for you, and I encourage you to email me with ideas and input on new posts or other content at any time.
- Free Advertising for my Nonprofit Readers: If you check out the bottom of my left-hand sidebar you’ll see a link to a number of my readers’ websites. If you want to participate send me a 200 by 100 pixel jpeg and a url.
- Link Exchange: If you have a nonprofit or philanthropy blog I’d love to talk about including you in my blogroll. Link exchanges are a great way to increase your ranking on Google and other search engines.
- Online Awards: I want to be your go-to source for upcoming online awards that can benefit your nonprofit. If you hear about an award that I have not posted about please let me know so I can share it everyone.
- Featured Fundraiser: Every month (or so) I highlight different fundraisers from a broad range of career levels and backgrounds. I operate entirely on referral, so keep your ears open for someone you think I should feature.
- Online Fundraising Campaigns: In an effort to create best practices and industry standards for online giving, I’m collecting stories about what does and does not work in online fundraising. If you have participated in a successful campaign or know of anyone who has, please share your observations.
The Nonprofit Carnival
Every month a different blogger will post a link to a number of blog posts about nonprofits and giving. This March 31 I will be hosting the The Nonprofit Carnival. If you run a blog for or about nonprofits or fundraising, submit you post at blogcarnival.com or at nonprofitcarnival@gmail.com and I will try my best to include it in this month’s post. Closing date for submissions is March 28.
by Jason Dick on February 24, 2010
In a recent post, Who Talks to Your Donors, I mentioned two different styles of fundraising. One style involves board members soliciting donors, and another style involves staff cultivating and soliciting donors.
Does your organization primarily use Board Member or Staff to ask for donations? And, how do you think it should be done?
I see advantages to both sides. Can Board Members really know an organization like a staff member can? Is it sustainable to have staff solicit gifts when the average staff member stays at the organization less time than the donor?
