Award Winning Blog - Agitator

AI Prompts to Make Your Fundraising Life Easier and Your Work Better

When I started in this trade 61 years ago, my tools were a legal pad and a portable typewriter. The clickety-clack rhythm of those keys was the soundtrack of early direct mail. Then came dictation—a revolution in time-saving —as Jerry Huntsinger and I toyed all through the 90’s and into the […]

Learn More November 22, 2024

Is Brand Color Black and White?

Name a charity logo that’s red. Now think of a blue one. For me, it’s Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) in the first case and UNICEF in the second. The association is instant. But why? Because logos are like the cover of a book you’re about to judge—it’s branding shorthand, connecting emotions and perceptions […]

Learn More November 20, 2024

When Authenticity Gets Lost in the Mail

I get it. You want engagement. You want donors to feel heard. And someone, somewhere convinced you that a faux-official looking survey with a registration number and a barcode was the way to do it. But here’s the thing: Your donors aren’t idiots. We recently ran a study looking at donor reactions to these “surveys” […]

Learn More November 18, 2024

Storytelling: The OG Virtual Reality Headset

A story well told is like a mental portal. Researchers actually call it narrative transportation. In donor talk, it’s the difference between a “delete” and a donation. The attention and connection of story is old-school VR, but instead of pixels, it’s the pen. Stories have texture, smell, and weight. When your reader can feel the […]

Learn More November 15, 2024

I Just Ate, Try to Sell Me Food

More recent donors are more likely to give than less recent. Is there anything more accepted in fundraising? Comparing the recent donor group to the less recent is a bit like judging who’s hungrier based on who just ate. The just ate group will statistically look like “eaters” more than the haven’t eaten group but […]

Learn More November 13, 2024

Identity Triggers Only Work When They Matter

Teachers were asked by their school district to complete a survey. The experiment was a 2×2 design (one of our faves): The result? A nothingburger. No difference in survey participation between A-D, randomly assigned groups. To quote Paul Harvey, “And now for the rest of the story.” Researchers noticed a difference in survey participation on […]

Learn More November 8, 2024