Award Winning Blog - Agitator

The Unicorn We Need To Retire

I’ve been meaning to tell you something for a long time, and it’s time I finally say it out loud. It’s time to retire Renewal-as-We-Know-It—and the two donor behaviors that should replace the way most folks do renewals. It’s a confession of sorts—one part memory, one part reckoning, and a larger part responsibility. You see, […]

Learn More November 19, 2025

DONOR PRIVACY ALERT: AN OLD BATTLE, A NEW FLASHPOINT, AND A TASK YOU CAN’T PUT OFF

There are moments in this work when we don’t have the luxury of putting a thing aside, even for an afternoon. This is one of those moments. If you skim this post quickly, fine — but don’t delay acting on it. Not this time. Not with what’s at stake. An important federal case — Buckeye […]

Learn More November 17, 2025

Save One or Save Many? Depends on How You Ask

It’s rarely as simple as do X to get Y. “X” in fundraising is almost always a bundle of things, the donor’s Identity and Personality, the moral framing of the issue, the context, etc. Every element interacts so do X, get Y is akin to a 3rd grade math applied to a calculus problem. A […]

Learn More November 14, 2025

Why Brand Still Isn’t What You Think It Is

I’d wager most people in direct response think of their acquisition as brand building. There’s a certain logic to it, sure but it’s mostly wrong for two reasons. 1) The algorithm. Direct response is bought to minimize cost per acquisition. That’s true whether you’re buying through Meta, Google, or a data co-op. The algorithm hunts […]

Learn More November 12, 2025

From Michelangelo to Match Offers: A Short History of Decline and How to Fix It

Over the last twenty years, marketing effectiveness has fallen sharply. Campaigns, ads, and fundraising appeals are moving fewer people to act, even as budgets and frequency continue to rise. The pattern is unmistakable. It’s not just that everything looks and sounds the same; it’s that much of what’s being repeated is simply bad. Almost nine […]

Learn More November 7, 2025

Ask Less, Commit More

One. That’s the modal number of gifts per year from your one-off donors. File averages hover around 1.6. If you get a donor to give twice, you’re a hero. The prevailing method for earning that cape has been volume, early and often. Consider a close encounters moment. If an alien were told to get humans to […]

Learn More November 5, 2025