Award Winning Blog - Agitator

The Importance Of Understanding Failure

An Agitator reader emailed me asking: “Why do you think most fundraisers are so resistant to innovation and change?” A good question. An important question. I attempted to answer that question three years ago when I first received it. I believe the answer bears repeating today. My first response was to bat out a kneejerk and facile response […]

Learn More December 14, 2016

Are e-News Subscribers Worth The Effort?

Following the U.S. elections, I received tons of emails from groups urging me to subscribe to their action updates, bulletins, latest news, etc. I did. But in doing so I vowed I would track the follow-up of the various organizations to see how well they did in persuading me to do more than simply sign up. […]

Learn More December 13, 2016

The Magic Of A Great Thank You

In his post Addition by Subtraction in Non Profit Marketing (or how Coke’s brand would work as a non-profit), Nick Ellinger of DonorVoice effectively points out that Coke’s success isn’t attributable to adding ‘new things’. Coke is successful because it took out what is generic. So what is generic for your nonprofit? One great candidate […]

Learn More December 12, 2016

A 10 To 1 Match I Like!

The other day, writing about the ‘sameness’ of so many #GivingTuesday appeals, Roger lamented the ubiquity of matching gifts. And rightly so. It seems America (at least) is awash with mysterious donors who are valiantly committed to matching the small gifts of the easily impressed. Every nonprofit seems to have a few of these Mystery […]

Learn More December 9, 2016

Addition by subtraction in nonprofit marketing (or how Coke’s brand would work as a non-profit)

Don’t worry – as a direct marketer, I too shutter a bit at “brand.” It’s often used as code for “that’s going to be too effective, so the brand guidelines forbid it” or “here’s the new logo; have fun getting people to open their envelopes for the next year or two.” But organizational brands are […]

Learn More December 8, 2016

Far Bigger Than A Big Mac

Last week the mainstream media marked the death of Michael ‘Jim’ Delligatti, who invented McDonald’s two-tiered burger at his Uniontown, Pennsylvania franchise. He was 98. Back then, in the mid-1960s, Delligatti’s Big Mac sold for US$0.49 cents and left a lasting, if questionably nutritious, mark on consumer habits in the U.S. and around the globe. […]

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