Winter Wonderland Clairity Click-it: Nonprofit Links, Free Resources
The Clairity Click-it exists to bring you a range of voices from across the nonprofit world so you can resource, learn and digest at your own pace, and come up with new and better ways to do your job of changing the world.
Seth Godin wants to help you too!
How to change the world
All successful cultural change (books, movies, public health), has a super-simple two-step loop:
AWARENESS
TENSION
–>Loop<–It’s easy to focus on awareness. Get the word out. Hype. Promo.
I think that’s a mistake.
Because awareness without tension is useless.
The tension is like pulling back a rubber band.
WHY would someone who becomes aware take action?
Is the action to buy the book? To change one’s diet? To vote?
And then the third step, so important it’s often ignored, is:
Why would the person who became aware and then experienced the tension and release… tell someone else?
So, to recap:
- Tell 10 people.
- Create tension among the 10 so they take action.
- The action causes each of them to tell 10 people.
— Seth Godin
Spread your nonprofit’s word!
Create some tension that causes people to take action.
And use some of the wisdom gleaned in this weeks issue of Clairity Click-it to help you. As always, a big thank you to my sponsor, Bloomerang, for making it possible for me to spend the hours of time hunting, gathering and choosing the resources I believe will be most useful to you. I’ve got a lot of great stuff for you this week, so let’s get right to it!
Thank you for doing your vital work, and making our world a better place,
Claire
P.S. Please consider getting access to all my blog articles, monthly tips, webinars, podcasts, bonuses and other content via enrollment in ‘Clairification School.’ I am deeply appreciative for your support!
P.P.S. Scroll to the bottom for some post-storm photos I snapped.
Clairity Click-it, Your Nonprofit Ticket to…
SPECIAL FEATURE: Events
Spring seems to bring out the “time to party” in us, so here is a collection of resources to help you make the most of your special event!
Click-it: How to Manage Event Registration for Your Next Fundraiser. This article, from Brad Dowhaniuk on the Get Fully Funded blog, explores the ins and outs of selecting event software, creating an event landing page, developing sign-up forms, sending updates and targeted communications, and more.
Click-it: Event Sponsorships: The Secret to Record-Breaking Revenue. I spent decades putting on fundraising events. One of the key things I learned? Most of your profit comes from sponsorships. Learn the ins and outs in this article by Sarah Sebastian on the NonProfitPRO blog.
Click-it: Bright Idea: Unique Nonprofit Sponsorship Tips to Sell Out Your Next Fundraising Event!. This article from Qgiv offers a template, via specific example, for offering creative sponsor benefits.
Click-it: 5 Strategies to Raise More and Stress Less When Planning Your Next Nonprofit Event. Amanda Cole on Nonprofit Pro shares five strategies to raise more and stress less when planning your next event. They’re all good, and I’ll bet you’re not optimizing on at least one of them.
Click-it: Top 10 Charity Auction Item Ideas. Want to get the good stuff? Here’s some super useful brainstorming from the good folks at Double the Donation.
ARTICLES
Annual (Year-Round) Fundraising
Click-it: Monthly Giving Programs Guide: 24 Examples, Names, & Tips. If you’re looking for creative ideas for your monthly giving program, look no further than this article on the Funraise blog. There is a lot of food for thought!
Click-it: Why Your Nonprofit Needs to Invest in Monthly Giving. Read this terrifically comprehensive article from Ann Green. It explains not just the why, but also the what and how. Stop leaving money on the table – and retain a lot more donors!
Annual Reports
Click-it: Top 10 Nonprofit Annual Report Questions [2023 Guide]. Thinking about switching up your format? New to the nonprofit reporting game? Here you’ll find everything you need to know. This article on the Yearly blog distinguishes between annual reports and 990’s, explores different formats, and suggests publication options.
Boards
Click-it: Everything Nonprofits Need to Know about Board Fundraising. Check out this comprehensive article on the DOJIGGY blog. It will be especially helpful if you’re a young nonprofit, just getting started. And it’s a good review for others.
Donor Retention
Click-it: Strengthening Donor Loyalty. A good review, and perhaps some tips you may not have thought of (or just forgot) from Barbara O’Reilly of Windmill Hill Consulting.
Major, Capital and Legacy Gifts
Click-it: Learning About Your Lead Donors: Manipulation, Persuasion or Opportunity? Andrea Kihlstedt, Capital Campaign Toolkit, offers five paths to learn best approaches for your individual major donors. Follow the clues!
Click-it: How to Make an Ask of a Gift in a Will Less Scary. I’ve offered my own articles and webinars on this topic, because people tend to be afraid of bringing up the subject of mortality. But there’s a way to do it that isn’t at all creepy. Learn how in this extraordinarily useful article from Dr. Russell James, posted on the Market Smart blog. Dr. James is the best of the best on this topic!
Mission, Vision and Values
Click-it: How to Tell Prospective Donors What You Do. Check out my article for NonProfitPro about leading from passion when connecting with prospective supporters. Donors are interested in how the values you enact align with their personal values. Consider the dinner party analogy, and proceed accordingly in telling your story.
Online Fundraising and Marketing
Click-it: How To Create A Social Media Challenge For Your Fundraiser. Make sure your event is totally groovy by heeding these social media event promotion tips from Eventgroove.
Psychology of Giving
Click-it: People Want To Belong To Your Nonprofit’s Community. An under-appreciated part of the philanthropic value exchange is the relational one. What are you doing to help folks feel they really belong to your community? Check out my article on the Bloomerang blog for some strategic ideas.
Storytelling
Click-it: Do you REALLY know what your donors are doing? Ever think about getting an assessment as to the giving potential hidden in your database? I think it’s really cool the Veritus Group offers this service for FREE.
Strategy and Management
Click-it: Nonprofits may need to spend about one-third of their budget on overhead to thrive – contradicting a rule of thumb for donors. This article on The Conversation (written by university scholars and researchers) turns everything most donors believe (and maybe you too?) on its head. It’s supported by data analysis derived from 22,328 U.S. arts and cultural nonprofits, adding to a growing body of evidence that spending too little on overhead deprives nonprofits of the competitive salaries, staff training, equipment and other resources they need for long-term success.
Writing
Click-it: You should try “Full Goldilocks” fundraising writing. Wants some brilliant help with your next fundraising appeal? Look no further than this article from expert copywriter Julie Cooper of Fundraising Writing.
WEBINARS, PODCASTS, COURSES & ON-DEMAND AUDIO RESOURCES
If you can’t attend live, or are interested in sessions happening at overlapping times, note many are available via recording – but ONLY if you REGISTER!
Major and Legacy Giving
Click-it: Kind of a Big Deal: Major Gifts Best Practices in 2023 [Register for free panel, 3-30-2023]. For this panel, NXUnite brings together experts in the field to help you identify prospects and prepare for making the big ask.
Online and Social Fundraising and Marketing
Click-it: Social Fundraising: Mining the New Peer-to-Peer Landscape [Register for free participatory webinar, 3-29-2023]. Want to meet some social fundraising peers and have some fun? Join Turnkey founders, and guest Randi Corey, for this freewheeling discussion of Chapter 2 of their new social fundraising book.
Click-it: How To Use Online Marketing Strategies To Increase Donations in 2023 [Register for free webinar, 3-30-2023]. Join Bloomerang and guest digital marketing strategist Adora Drake to attract ideal online audiences and convert these folks to active donors/volunteers.
Click-it: Social Media 101 for Nonprofits [Register for free webinar, 4-4-2023]. Join Firespring for this session covering the basics of using social media for your nonprofit, complete handy tips for the “big 3:” Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Plus get powerful no-cost or low-cost tools to manage your social media presence.
Trends
Click-it: The future of AI in philanthropy: how nonprofits are leveraging the power of technology in fundraising [Register for free webinar, 3-28-2023]. Join FreeWill for this special session on the rise of AI and its impact on nonprofit fundraising. Get tips for incorporating this revolutionary technology into your work.
Click-it: How AI Will Impact Your Nonprofit [Register for free webinar, 3-30-2023]. Join James Martin at Rally Corp to explore the proliferation of AI tools and AI-generated content, and how you might take advantage to make your life easier.
DOWNLOADABLE GUIDES, WHITE PAPERS & OTHER RESOURCES
Donor Retention
Click-it: Transform Your Fundraising from a Merry-Go-Round to a Journey [Download free eBook]. Find out the three critical upward donor paths and discover how to create an upward journey for every donor. From the good folks at Moceanic.
Grants
Click-it: 10 Best Tips from 10 Grant Writing Experts [Download free eGuide]. If you don’t know about Instrumentl, check them out. This free resource is a great place to start, with lessons from experts.
Did You Miss My Newest Articles?
Here are links to the most recent articles on the Clairification blog. You can see I really don’t want you to squander the good feelings you’re triggering during this season of giving! The goal is not simply to squeeze money out of people. It’s to give donors a squeeze and a hug for being caring and generous. This will make them feel good, which will move them to continue sticking with you.
- Are You Treating Your Donors Like Gumballs?
- 4 Legacy Giving Program Building Blocks
- It’s Fundraising Malpractice Not to Build Future Reserves
- Why Do People Make Philanthropic Legacy Gifts?
- Don’t Leave a Voicemail if…
- Top Strategies for Making Friends with Nonprofit Donors
Finally… if you have a question, any question… Check out my free fundraising advice column on the Bloomerang blog! Ask your question here. And bookmark the Ask an Expert page for any time you have a question! Here’s one: Can I Apply Simultaneously for a Corporate Grant and Sponsorship?
REMINDER for Clairification School students: Don’t forget to log in to your “My Clairification/Subscriber Dashboard/Monthly Tips” to grab your exclusive, timely tips for each month. MARCH tips are live! If you’re not yet an enrolled student, and don’t have access to ALL my blog articles, webinars, podcasts and much more, you can get in on the fun here!
And now, just for fun, and because I enjoyed snapping these pics on my mini-vacation last week to celebrate my birthday.
Self-entwining Cypress
Fallen branch
Tree attack. Oh, dear.
Fallen branch greets the sea.
The magical Robinson Jeffers Tor House
Time for a little fairy dust from a magical fairy village tucked alongside the path. May all your wishes come true!
Please support my extraordinary sponsors (see below). The Clairity Click-it content is free, and Clairification School is affordable because of their generosity.
Photos: From my ocean-side walk, post- “atmospheric river” storm, in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
