Award-Winning Blog


The Digital Consumer

I just re-discovered (if you saw my computer ‘desktop’ you’d understand) two excellent reports — one from Nielsen on The Digital Consumer, and the other from comScore called US Digital Future in Focus 2014. These are the most exhaustive examinations I’ve seen of the digital usage habits of today’s consumer, as measured in each case by […]

Learn More

Pushing The Right Buttons

I guess there’s two ways of thinking about branding (actually three, taking into account the view of our esteemed colleague, Jeff Brooks, at Future Fundraising Now). One view is that ‘branding’ is simply shorthand for the emotional relationship a consumer or donor develops with the provider of a product or service or experience. The notion […]

Learn More

How You Should Really Be Thinking About Acquisition Costs

Editor’s Note: The e-Book version of Retention Fundraising: the new art and science of keeping your donors for life is now available. You can click here to order either the e-Book or print versions. Part 5 of the book is titled “Do The Math” and the chapters in this section deal with key metrics, ranging […]

Learn More

Re-engaging Lapsed Customers/Donors

Everybody in marketing — whether they’re selling cars, cell phones or causes/charities — has the same problem … keeping their current customers engaged. In the commercial world, marketers use all sorts of personal and individual behavior (or inactivity) data to trigger relevant customer contacts aimed at repeat sales or ‘softer’ relationship building. Here’s a ‘tip […]

Learn More

Trick Or Treat?

October 31st brings two things to mind. First of course, it’s Halloween and ‘Trick or treat?’ time. Naturally, the (usually) little costumed person blurting that question is always dumbfounded when a mischievous door-answerer responds ‘trick’. ‘Just hand over the goodies’ is all the poor kid has in mind. Is it too big a stretch to […]

Learn More

Heading For A Brick Wall

No fundraiser concerned with the future should take solace in the fact that your programs may be solid or even thriving today. Not in this world of change where venerable and seemingly invulnerable mega-enterprises like Coca Cola and McDonalds are posting declining profits … where broadcasters and newspapers are massively losing audience share and advertising […]

Learn More