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Crafting Fundraising Letters that Resonate: Use Language that Inspires Action by Donors.

A couple of weeks ago I ranted about the “3 Most Boring Words in Fundraising.” My most boring words award went to “underserved, programs and services.” I railed against lazy fundraisers who use lame words and then expect donors to…

Dump the Cliches: Words and Phrases Fundraisers Love to Hate!

Annual Giving, Asking for Donations, Marketing & Communications, Year-End Fundraising Campaign

Wow, I hit a nerve last week when I talked about my Least Favorite fundraising words. For the record, my own personal award for most disliked word goes to "underserved." I think that word is a very lame effort to describe the wonderful people…

How to Transform Your Board in One Bold Step

Board Development, Nonprofit Leadership

Everybody wishes they had a more powerful, more connected, more engaged board. Right? Here is the story of my favorite organization, Lillian’s List, and how we transformed our board with a Dream Team group of new board members. Here's…

5 Tips for a Happier & More Effective Board

Board Development, Board Members & Fundraising, Motivating Board Members

1. Lighten up. Don't make the experience of your board members something that is dreary and dragging. Help them enjoy their experience. A happier & more effective board is more committed and productive. You may know my number one fundraising…

Top 20 Charity Auction Tips for Greater Profit

Events

Implement these 20 Charity Auction Tips, and you'll be setting up an event that's a huge money-maker. Why are auctions important? Auctions are a key source of profit at galas or fundraising events. So let's learn how to maximize their…

How to Have a Vastly More Profitable Auction

Events

How’s your fundraising auction doing? Is it painful or fun? Is it profitable auction or only so-so? Auctions can bring in tons of money. Especially if you try out some of the new technology that's coming along for auctions. Some of these…

Avoid 5 Key Mistakes That Will Undermine Your Next Auction

Events

How's your auction doing? Bet it could do better, for sure! When it comes to auctions: you gotta love ‘em and work with them because they are here to stay. And they can raise good, important, unrestricted money – IF you are smart…

8 Tips for Getting High Dollar Sponsorships for your Big Event

Events

May is Party Month here at Fired-Up Fundraising and today Aimee Dunsmore, Development Director of the Utah Arts Festival, is sharing her secrets to getting HIGH DOLLAR sponsorships. In the month of May we are going to drill down…

Don’t Be a Fundraising Dinosaur: 5 Big Ideas to Adopt Right Now

Asking for Donations, Board Development, Fundraising Strategy

Here are more provocative nuggets from the recent AFP International Conference in Vancouver. I just couldn't resist sharing these "status-quo" challenges! Here's my challenge: Take this list to your next board meeting. Ask your board members:…

How A Donor Communications Program Keeps Donors Giving and Giving

Donor Cultivation, Donor-Centered Fundraising

Are you over-soliciting and under-communicating? The problem is - we solicit our donors often, probably way too often. But what happens with our donors in between solicitations? It’s called “communications,” says my friend Kivi Leroux…

How to Throw a Party Everyone Wants to Attend

Donor Cultivation, Events

One of my favorite holiday traditions is a really big family party. I mean a big one. Last night I had about 150 people at my house, (can you imagine!) and it was a blast. Somehow over the years, this party has become an institution. My friends…

Here’s A Real, Live “Donor-Centered” Appeal Letter

Asking for Donations, Donor-Centered Fundraising, Year-End Fundraising Campaign

You're probably working hard to create a donor-centered appeal letter for the fall fundraising season. But what does "donor-centered" really mean? What does it look like in action? We all know how it is supposed to work: We're supposed to…

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Our Best Practices.

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Fundraising Blog Topics

Crafting Fundraising Letters that Resonate: Use Language that Inspires Action by Donors.

Dump the Cliches: Words and Phrases Fundraisers Love to Hate!

How to Transform Your Board in One Bold Step

5 Tips for a Happier & More Effective Board

Top 20 Charity Auction Tips for Greater Profit

How to Have a Vastly More Profitable Auction

Avoid 5 Key Mistakes That Will Undermine Your Next Auction

8 Tips for Getting High Dollar Sponsorships for your Big Event

Don’t Be a Fundraising Dinosaur: 5 Big Ideas to Adopt Right Now

How A Donor Communications Program Keeps Donors Giving and Giving

How to Throw a Party Everyone Wants to Attend

Here’s A Real, Live “Donor-Centered” Appeal Letter

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