Award Winning Blog - Agitator

I Told You It Would Never End!

Exactly two weeks ago I ‘boasted’ of my invitation to have dinner with Hillary Clinton … all I had to do was provide some further info about myself. Naturally it was a draw … a ‘come on’. I warned readers that — despite the fact that I’ve never responded to a Hillary email, the Clinton […]

Learn More September 17, 2015

Listening To The Data vs Data Denial

Many if not most Agitator readers are in the direct marketing side of fundraising. And therefore they should be swimming in valuable data with which to make smart decisions about ongoing and future fundraising investments and tactics. But, I wonder … is that really what happens? In some cases, too much data could get in […]

Learn More September 16, 2015

Are We Getting Any Better?

In a recent column, the editor of Direct Marketing News, Ginger Conlon, delivered an inspiring pitch on behalf of direct marketing. She spoke of direct marketers being able to ‘out market’ the competition by “using data to gain a unique understanding of customers that will allow marketers to drive evangelism, purchasing, and loyalty—to predict their […]

Learn More September 15, 2015

Striking Back

I love it when a nonprofit vigorously stands up for its friends and strikes back at its opponents. Not much room for wimpish go-along-to-get-along behavior in The Agitator’s world. And so it was with delight that I read the news release from The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) noting that attacks by its nemesis […]

Learn More September 14, 2015

Are You Working on CX?

The Agitator and colleagues like Ken Burnett have been writing heaps about customer/donor experience, hoping to establish that how nonprofits engage with their donors is as important to their fundraising success as it is to corporations engaging customers effectively for business success. See here, including the footnote, for the sordid history. I don’t know if we’re succeeding in making […]

Learn More September 11, 2015

When Donors Speak Do You Listen?

More importantly, the question should be, ‘when donors talk do you listen — and do you respond? My guess is that very few organizations take the time and care required to respond to the comments, insights, complaints and suggestions of donors and other constituents. Our sector isn’t alone of course. Failure to respond to customer […]

Learn More September 10, 2015