Winter Wonderland Clairity Click-it: Nonprofit Links, Free Resources
This week’s Clairity Click-it Gifts — wrapped up in my blog. Open them!
Today I’ve got another eclectic Clairity Click-it mix of tips for you from both fundraising and marketing blogs. Plus I’ve got some real food for thought that goes to the heart of your fundraising and marketing strategy. Take a read, and see if you don’t find a nugget or two that makes you sit up and take notice. Oh, and did I mention there are more gifts at the end?
Civil Society
Click-It: CIA Torture Report Offers Sobering Lessons for Nonprofits, In this Nonprofit Quarterly article by Rick Cohen we’re reminded of the importance of adhering to the underlying values that support the good work of our sector. Sadly, in their zeal to drive donor dollars, sometimes nonprofits fudge the truth. Or they eschew transparency or neglect to report bad news. Take-aways from the article and report include: (1) “nonprofits should be open to the need for oversight of their own operations” and (2) “ There should be no room for lying to the public or, in the case of nonprofits, to stakeholders, else the architecture of civil society is damaged.”
Click-It: Is the American Red Cross Hurting Your Fundraising Efforts? In this post Michael Rosen highlights the problem of telling half truths. It erodes donor trust. And sadly, erosion of trust in one charity (especially a large and established one) leads to mistrust in all charities. Researchers Adrian Sargeant and Philip Lee have found that public trust level affects both propensity for giving and the amount given. One bad apple can spoil the nonprofit barrel. What alarms me particularly is that too often organizations mislead the public about their overhead expenses. This sets a false standard, inhibiting the ability of many nonprofits to grow and thrive. What Do You Say When Your Donor Asks “How Much Do You Spend on Overhead?”.
Boost Blog Traffic
Click-It: 5 Writing Tricks You Can Swipe From the Professional Journalist’s Playbook. Jon Morrow did not write this specifically for nonprofit bloggers, but it certainly applies. Journalists think about getting noticed. That’s why they concentrate so much on the art of headlines. But that’s not all. You too can gain attention by learning to think like a journalist. Can you get a scoop? Spot a trend? Get exclusive content through interviews? Support your writing with research? Follow up on existing, popular posts?
Click-It: 3 Blogger Outreach Trends That You Can Implement. You’ll get more traffic if you identify blogger influencers who might share your nonprofit’s posts. Think about who might care about what you do. When I worked at the San Francisco Food Bank we identified food bloggers and mommy bloggers as potential advocates for us. The former cared a lot about food and the latter cared a lot about assuring nutrition for kids. Once you’ve identified your best potential promoters you can follow the steps suggested in this post by Kristen Matthews on the Maximize Social Business blog.
Click-It: 7 email basics that engage and get donations. A useful reminder checklist from the folks at Donor Drive as you put the finishing touches on your year-end email appeals. Here’s to your success!
MORE FREE HOLIDAY GIFTS!!!
To continue to fulfill on my promise to go shopping and offer you one or more gifts every week from now until the end of the year, here are some presents wrapped up in my blog.
Open-It: Pamela Grow is offering her annual 12 Days of Christmas Nonprofit Giveaway. Sign up and you’ll get 12+ amazing free gifts from nonprofits experts – including my own “Anatomy of a Nonprofit Thank You Letter Checklist + Samples.”
Open-It: The Fundraising Summit will be offering 40+ different webinars, and IT’S ALL FREE if you register now! Over a five day period early next month you’ll get access to instruction and inspiration from the world’s best speakers. I’m especially pleased to be offering my free “Anatomy of a Successful Fundraising Offer” webinar. It’s one among many gems; truly, this is a gift that keeps on giving, and giving, and giving! Sessions are free, but only for 24 hours. So check out your favorites, register today and get these sessions on your calendar!
If you check off everything on the lists included in this guide, you’ll raise more money.
Only 19 days left until the end of the year.
It’s not to late to get your Year-End Fundraising To-Do’s and Checklists to make sure you’re not missing a beat. Remember, this is the time of year when many nonprofits will raise up[ to 40% of their annual campaign goal. So why not maximize your chances? Plus you’ll get some tips to give you a head start on getting your next gift from this year’s donors. Grab it here! All Clairification products are guaranteed, or your money back.
Image courtesy of Freedigitalphotos.net
