Award Winning Blog - Agitator

What To Do About Fundraising’s Dark Side

Thanks to those who have commented on Roger’s posts this week (here and here) on outrageous fundraising practices. But frankly, we wish we were getting even more concerned and constructive response. Like these thoughtful comments from Jennifer Phillips, chief strategy officer at Avalon Consulting Group … Fundraising’s Dark Side And What To Do About It […]

Learn More June 14, 2013

Video Lifts Email Response

The other day I saw this item claiming that “marketers using video in email have increased their click-through and conversion rates, and are generating forty percent higher monthly revenue than those that do not use video.” 40% higher revenue. Sounded like the usual vendor study designed to generate business leads. It was actually simply a […]

Learn More June 13, 2013

How Do They Get Away With It?

#1 on the list of America’s “50 Worst Charities” according to a collaborative report from The Center for Investigative Reporting and The Tampa Bay Times is the Kids Wish Network. The Times/CIR investigation reveals that over the past 10 years this knock-off of the highly respected Make-A-Wish-Foundation, has “channeled nearly $110 million donated for sick […]

Learn More June 12, 2013

Read This! Then Shower!

The Center for Investigative Reporting has just released a series of reports including The 50 Worst Charities and The Failure of Regulation that should both sicken your soul and make your blood boil. A year-long study by a team of investigative reporters from the Center, The Tampa Bay Times and CNN not only names names, […]

Learn More June 11, 2013

Charities … Don’t Evaluate Your Work

This two-part series by Caroline Fiennes — Most Charities Shouldn’t Evaluate Their Work — in the Stanford Social Innovation Review left me scratching my head. The tantalizing headline drew me in. Then I tried to absorb the basic message of her formula: Impact = Idea x Implementation At best, charities are capable of what Fiennes […]

Learn More June 10, 2013

Update On The Wall

Last week we announced — You Knew This Day Would Come! — that The Agitator would disappear behind a paywall on July 1. Since hardly any US fundraisers will be working that Independence Day week, probably only our non-U.S. readers will notice. Maybe we’ll push The Wall launch to July 8 to level the playing […]

Learn More June 8, 2013