Award Winning Blog - Agitator

Say “Thank You”

Fundraiser Ken Burnett says that any fundraiser who doesn’t say “Thank you” to donors is — he doesn’t mince words — a fool. In a recent blog post, Ken is responding to a donor who suggests otherwise. Says Ken: “…as a profession we are truly crap at saying thank you and welcome properly and at […]

Learn More September 1, 2010

Marketing Mania

I follow the articles of Kendall Allen, a marketing and digital media consultant who writes occasionally in Online Spin. In her latest article, she comments on some issues that drive commercial marketers nuts, and probably a lot of nonprofit marketers and fundraisers as well. She says: “…there are at least four areas that may drive […]

Learn More August 31, 2010

Seniors And Online Social Nets

Here’s the latest from Pew Internet Research on Seniors use of online social nets. As of May 2010, 47% of American internet users age 50-64 use social nets like Facebook, LinkedIn or MySpace, and 26% of those age 65+ do so. These age groups are much slower to try Twitter or other services to update […]

Learn More August 30, 2010

Who Made Your Best Ad?

Or came up with the best fundraising message? Or the phrase or image that cut right through the rest of the plain vanilla? If your nonprofit is in the habit of actually listening to your donors (or the beneficiaries of your organization), chances are one of them did … or could, if given the opportunity. […]

Learn More August 27, 2010

Run The Agitator Gauntlet – 1

Awhile back, I proffered an email appeal by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) as an example of a well-executed appeal, and invited readers to critique it themselves. The robust discussion that ensued inspired us to try this as a regular feature. So we invited readers to offer up their own fundraising appeals to run through the […]

Learn More August 26, 2010

Instant Trust

I recently received an invitation to an online seminar with this title … Top 4 Secrets to Building Instant Trust Online Now somehow this just doesn’t work for me. Isn’t “instant” trust impossible? Are we dealing with the ultimate oxymoron here? Then compounding my suspicion, I’m promised “secrets” to build trust … another disconnect. Finally, […]

Learn More August 25, 2010