Nonprofit marketing and fundraising have undergone a larger change in the past eight years than the previous 50. It began around the time of the Great Recession of 2008. This caused retrenching and a bit of dislocation, causing many businesses – nonprofit and otherwise – to get a bit stuck (See Warning: Have You Caught…
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Last week I gave you my top priorities for nonprofit success in 2017: “Seven is Heaven.” I suggested you focus on each of these with written plans in the year ahead, and that you persist in improving your mastery in each area.
If you embrace these priorities, I’ve little doubt you’ll see greater success in generating the contributions your nonprofit needs to fulfill your mission this year — and in the years to come.
Last week, in Part 1, we covered the first four priority areas. Today we focus on the final three areas.
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Last year if you followed me, I gave you 5 priorities for success in 2016. I called them “Dive the Five.” This year, I’ve expanded my thinking a bit. ‘SEVEN IS HEAVEN.’ Create Compelling Annual Giving Offers Master Integrated On Social Fundraising Master Major & Legacy Giving Master Donor Retention Master Donor-Centered Content Marketing Embrace…
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Lemonade Standitis is a bit like Zika virus.
Silent, but deadly.
It infects you, but you may not realize it.
The symptoms can be easily misdiagnosed, only showing up later down the line in a different form.
By then, it’s too late.
If you’ve got it, you’re no doubt leaving money on the table, working harder than you need to, and putting the long-term sustainability of your nonprofit business at risk.
Want to avoid this dreaded sustainability killer?
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We’re in the midst of a generational shift: Millennials have recently surpassed Boomers as the largest generation in America, and have surpassed Generation X as the largest part of the American workforce.
As these changes happen, nonprofits should take a look at their marketing channels and make sure they are using the right methods to reach each generation.
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In A dollar more (vs. a dollar less) Seth Godin provocatively suggests you consider a race to the top.
This made me immediately think of the nonprofit overhead conundrum. Too many nonprofits feel stuck with trying to justify the amount of money they spend on staff and infrastructure in a race to lure more donors to their cause.
The common wisdom (really nonsense) is that “a dollar less” is good. That the less you spend, the more effective you are. “Lean and mean” is supposed to be a good thing.
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Two good posts recently at re: charity (Brady Josephson) and Future Fundraising Now (Jeff Brooks) about what charities should do today to prepare for tomorrow. Both embrace a quote from Jeff Bezos:
I very frequently get the question: ‘What’s going to change in the next 10 years?’ I almost never get the question: ‘What’s not going to change in the next 10 years?’ And I submit to you that that second question is actually the more important of the two — because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time.
Sounds good.
But think about this a bit more.
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Two good posts recently at re: charity (Brady Josephson) and Future Fundraising Now (Jeff Brooks) about what charities should do today to prepare for tomorrow. Both embrace a quote from Jeff Bezos:
I very frequently get the question: ‘What’s going to change in the next 10 years?’ I almost never get the question: ‘What’s not going to change in the next 10 years?’ And I submit to you that that second question is actually the more important of the two — because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time.
Sounds good.
But think about this a bit more.
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Your year-long “Dive the Five” virtual course begins!
Listen.
Hear the knocking?
I most surely do!
If you pay attention, you’ll see the year ahead is bursting with opportunities for your nonprofit to succeed — more than you’ve ever succeeded before.
What do you need to do to grab these opportunities?
It’s as simple as
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Avoid becoming irrelevant in the digital age. It’s revolutionized fundraising and nonprofit marketing.
There are so many different ways to communicate today that it can be dizzying!
Ground yourself by remembering that though technology has changed, people have not. We have the same drives… needs… yearnings as prehistoric tribes. We long for connection and meaning. We want to find where we “fit.”
Philanthropy provides that “fit opportunity” in spades (or, more aptly, in hearts). You’ve got the goods; you just need to tinker with your delivery system.
Here’s how to embrace the change.
“Content marketing” is buzz-worthy because without it, you’ve got nothing. You’re just a box with nothing inside. Kids like to play with boxes; most folks — when they grow up — are looking for something of value inside the box.
That’s your content. What you’re all about. The gift you offer the world and your donors.
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