Award Winning Blog - Agitator

Looking To Silas Marner

I’m older than most of the trees outside the window at the desk where I’m writing this. But, for some reason the memory of my 9th grade English teacher, Ed Longenecker, keeps coming back and back these last two days. Especially his readings from George Eliot’s Silas Marner. “Silas Marner, child of scorn, grew old […]

Learn More October 3, 2014

Rockin’ Into The Future

In 1969, even with my hair in a mega-fro and wearing an embroidered and beaded denim work shirt (or maybe because of that) I was hired as the fundraiser to raise the seed money and help launch a new U.S. citizens’ movement called ‘Common Cause’. My professional colleagues thought I was nuts. Asking $15 a […]

Learn More October 2, 2014

Ring! Ring! Telemarketing Mysteries And Case Studies

If there ever there were a medium where nonprofits consistently get it wrong it’s telemarketing. In my experience no medium, short of a personal visit, is as powerful. IF … used correctly, which unfortunately is seldom the case. CEOs and boards generally hate telemarketing. Adding to the dilemma is the fact that few fundraisers understand […]

Learn More October 1, 2014

Doing Versus Wishing

Wearing your fundraiser hat, what are you wishing for today? A 7-figure bequest? An executive director or CEO who values fundraising and likes to do it. A 2% response to your current acquisition mailing? A client who gets it? Any new client? A big fat 3-year foundation grant? A new development director? A record-high retention […]

Learn More September 30, 2014

Video Fundraising: Meet Chuna

Online video viewing steadily grows, with consumers increasing grouchy and disinterested when marketers don’t provide video support for their marketing messages. Do you think those expectations are any different with fundraising messages? I sure don’t. And I’ll provide some evidence in a moment. First, here’s a report on video viewing that measures mobile video viewing […]

Learn More September 29, 2014

The Idiocy Of ‘Testing’

One of the great barriers to growth is the idiocy of ‘testing’. Not because testing is bad, but because most fundraisers and their consultants don’t have the slightest idea what real testing is all about. When in doubt, “Let’s test it”. Consequently countless thousands/millions are spent and the result is vapid stargazing, at best. And […]

Learn More September 26, 2014