Winter Wonderland Clairity Click-it: Nonprofit Links, Free Resources
Time to march forward! Yes, into a new month. But also into a novel economy. Things are not going to go backwards, so it’s on us to learn to adapt to new ways of thinking and acting.
Hopefully this newsletter will help! I’ve got lots of resources for you, some thought-provoking and some practical and action-focused. I really don’t want you to wing it when there’s so much expertise and experience from which to borrow. As you know, I’m a voracious reader and lifelong learner. And… if I know it I want you to know it (my “motto.”)
I want to again send a shout-out to my 2021 Clairity Click-it sponsor, Bloomerang, for keeping this newsletter free. They’re making it possible for me to spend time curating and sending this newsletter to you on a biweekly basis. We are aligned in wanted to help you bring greater good, justice and harmony to our communities and world.
What you do matters. A lot.
It is my privilege and pleasure to help you do with as much joy, hope and effectiveness as possible,
P.S. If you want to learn from 30 Nonprofit Experts over 3 full days — March 23–25** — — simply CLICK HERE. The Top Nonprofits Changemakers “Being the Change” Virtual Summit will address critical issues facing nonprofits TODAY in fundraising, marketing and operations, management and strategy. Since I’m speaking, I get to offer members of the Clairification Community – YOU — $50 off the already ridiculously affordable price (works out to under $12/session and you get access for a full year)! Be sure to use CODE Claire50. Oh, and did I mention there will be CFRE credits, prize give-aways and live comedy?
Clairity Click-it, Your Nonprofit Ticket to…
SPECIAL CATEGORY: Tips for Not-So-Normal Times
ARTICLES
Donor Retention
Click-it: Nonprofit Fundraisers are in the Happiness Delivery Business. In this article for the Bloomerang blog I discuss what you should be doing now to keep your donors close.
Management and Strategy
Click-it: Do You Have an Umbrella? It’s Going to Rain. I love Ephraim Gopin’s posts, and this one on the Foundant Technologies blog is no exception. He suggests you forget the pandemic for a second and think: Every 5-7 years the economy goes into a recession. How will you prepare for the next… whatever?
Online Fundraising and Marketing
Click-it: Why Using a Fundraising Thermometer Works. Abby Jarvis of Qgiv has written a comprehensive piece, with examples, to show you why and how to use a thermometer to boost campaign results. One of the reasons it works is it gives donors a concrete job to do, making donors feel accomplished. Plus, it creates a sense of urgency.
Virtual Events
Click-it: How Virtual Events Drive Tangible Results for Nonprofits. Shifting from a long history of live fundraising and donor engagement strategies to virtual events is one of the most challenging shifts for many nonprofits. Yet there’s ample evidence supporters like them, and they’re probably not going away. Learn what you can do to maximize results in this article from the experts at Merkle.
WEBINARS, ROUNDTABLES & ON-DEMAND AUDIO RESOURCES
If you can’t attend live, note many are available via recording – but only if you register!
Virtual Events
Click-it: Hybrid Events: The Next Evolution of Fundraising [Register for free webinar, 3-18-2021]. Nonprofits who switched to virtual events saw clear benefits: enhanced member motivation, increased donor support, meeting fundraising goals and widening reach and accessibility. As we enter into 2021, we continue to see a rise in hybrid events; this interactive session from Nonprofit Pro will discuss what they are, the benefits, and why they will become more prevalent than before.
YOU
Click-it: Scheduling Time to Feel Awe(some) [Listen to on-demand podcast]. When I feel down or stressed, I head on over to the Greater Good website. Let’s face it: we’re not guaranteed to always feel happy and good. Sometimes we have to put some work into it. Chris Duffy, comedian, television writer and creator and host of “How to Be a Better Human,” a podcast from TED, talks with Dacher Keltner about how seeing things differently and feeling awe can help us feel greater agency and even more socially connected
Other Articles: The Beat Goes On
Annual (all the time) Fundraising
Click-it: You’ve Likely Got a Problem with Your Nonprofit Mailing List. You can have the best fundraising appeal in the world, but it’s all for naught if you don’t have the right mailing list. Avoid the fatal trap of making list building and maintenance an ‘administrative’ function that never rises to the top of your priority list. How? Read my article on the Bloomerang blog.
Click-it: How to make sure you learn what you really learn from your test and The easy-math way to know if you can test your fundraising idea. Grab these useful insights on nonprofit fundraising testing from Jeff Brooks at Future Fundraising Now.
Click-it: How Changing your Mindset Will Help You Attract New Donors. This article by Chris Barlow, Beeline, on the Hands-On Fundraising blog delves into the topic of how to acquire more donors by shifting your approach to think of these folks as mission critical; not as wallets or ATMs. How can you help them, vs. the other way around?
Cause and Content Marketing
Click-it: Keebler partners with Make-A-Wish, debuts specially-marked packaging and AR experience. Interested in getting on the cutting edge of Augmented Reality? It’s what the for-profit marketing world is all over these days, and they’re usually many steps ahead of the social benefit sector. Thanks to Joe Waters, Selfish Giving, for leading me to this article describing how Keebler is using QR code stickers on specially marked cookie packages to “transport” people inside a hollow tree where they can hang out with elves and donate to Make-A-Wish. What could you do?
Click-it: Video Making for Nonprofits. This useful article on the Flipcause blog takes you step by step through the process of making a compelling video. There’s an inspiring example, plus suggestions of free resources and some low-cost hacks if you can’t hire a pricey videographer.
Donor Retention
Click-it: Amplify Your Outreach: Easily Create Video. Been thinking about creating thank you videos but haven’t done so because you weren’t sure where to begin? The folks at thankview show you how to collect the content you need by decentralizing your efforts.
Click-it: How Easy or Hard Should Monthly Gift Cancellations Be? Monthly giving guru Erica Waasdorp writes on the Nonprofit Pro blog about her own experience trying to cancel some monthly donations. If you want a chance of ever renewing these folks again, she concludes you make it easy. But also try to gently encourage folks to stick with you.
Mission and Vision
Click-it: Do You Have These 4 Fundraising Pre-Conditions in Place? In this article for the Bloomerang blog I ask and answer the question: “Why might someone decide to give their hard-earned money to your cause?” “Because we do good work” is insufficient. I go through a four-step process to come to a full-throated, satisfying answer whenever I work with a nonprofit, and you should do the same.
Online Fundraising and Marketing
Click-it: Social Media Engagement for Nonprofits: 5 Key Steps. It doesn’t matter if you have thousands of Facebook followers if none of them will ever donate, volunteer, or spread the word. The folks at FlipCause outline steps to get strategic with your social media messaging.
Click-it: How to Create Emails that Drive Action + Tips from an Email Expert. With everyone and their dog using digital strategies today, you must do something extra to get noticed. Here are some FAQs and concrete tips from the marketing experts at Stelter.
Psychology of Giving
Click-it: Donor Autonomy on Steroids. Check out this thought-provoking article from the Agitator-DonorVoice. It will challenge your assumptions.
Strategy and Management
Click-it: Boosting your visibility and funding by listening to the people you serve. Have you created systematic feedback loops to listen and respond to your constituents? Per this article on Candid, you should! Increasingly funders are looking at these practices when determining their philanthropy. And it’s been shown to improve outcomes and promote equity.
Writing
Click-it: Write Like You Talk: 12 Tips for Conversational Content. The best way to engage readers is to build a conversation. This doesn’t come to everyone naturally, but you can cultivate the talent. Check out this article from the Content Marketing Institute for some truly useful strategies.
Other Learning Opportunities
WEBINARS & ON-DEMAND AUDIO RESOURCES
If you can’t attend live, note that many are available via recording – but only if you register!
Acquisition
Click-it: Nonprofit Lead Generation Q&A Session [Register for free, interactive session, 3-18-2021]]. Join Firespring’s director of strategic marketing to learn what other nonprofits are doing to develop new leads; then turn them into lifetime volunteers and donors.
Major and Legacy Gifts
Click-it: Managing a Successful Major Gift Program [Register for free webinar, 3-11-2021]. Nobody understands the business of major gifts fundraising better than the team at the Veritus Group. They’ve worked with hundreds of nonprofits – all shapes and sizes – and they’re offering up some of their learned wisdom for free. Even if you take away just one golden nugget, you’re bound to be on your way to raising more money in the year(s) to come. Don’t miss it!
DOWNLOADABLE GUIDES, WHITE PAPERS & OTHER RESOURCES
Acquisition
Click-it: The Donor Flow Optimizer for Nonprofit Websites [Download free e-Guide]. The folks at Wired Impact have developed a tool to help you evaluate your own website to determine how optimized it is to convert visitors to donors. This is a way to identify where, and why, you may be losing potential donors.
Major and Legacy Giving
Click-it: How to Use Permission-Based Asking with Donors [Download free white paper]. When you’re ready to ask for a major gift, you want the conversation to go well. No arm twisting. No guilt. Just joy all around. That’s where the experts at Veritus come in! This paper will help you understand how to explore your donor’s interests and align yourself to them, then move the conversation forward toward a next step that feels right to everyone involved.
Website
Click-it: Donation Page Friction Self-Assessment. Did you know the average nonprofit donation page has an 87% failure rate? OMG. Let’s fix that! The folks at NextAfter and FundraiseUp have joined forces to offer this free tool to analyze your donation page and ensure you eliminate as much friction as is possible. It walks you through questions about your page, gives you a personalized page performance friction score, and offers a personalized report with practical, data-driven, and proven techniques to reduce the specific points of friction on your page. Woohoo!
Did You Miss My Newest Articles?
Take control of your fundraising by nurturing your supporters. It’s not just about the money.
Here are links to the most recent articles on the Clairification blog. I think you’ll find these either thought-provoking, practical or both. Hope so!
- Treat Nonprofit Board and Donors Like Family. Or Else.
- Improve Major Donor Fundraising to Grab a Larger Piece of Philanthropy Pie
- How to Overcome the Money Taboo and Succeed with Fundraising
- Bring Top Value to Your Donor Survey
- Strategic Nonprofit Board Recruitment
- Legacy Gifts Don’t Usually Fall From the Sky
Please support my extraordinary sponsors (see below). The Clairity Click-it content is free, and Clairification School is affordable because of their generosity.
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’s tips are posted! If you’re not yet an enrolled student, you can get in on the fun here!
