Nonprofit management - Agitator

Fundraising analytics / data

The Fundraising Power of Now

A lot of what I’ve learned about the importance of timing in fundraising I learned from selling funeral flowers. Let me explain. My father was a florist– a business that heavily depends on emotion-driven buying impulses — funerals, weddings, Mother’s Day, birthdays and anniversaries – with most transactions completed over the telephone and by credit […]

Learn More July 27, 2015

Wallowing In Fundraising Delusions

Awhile back, Jeff Brooks cited a number of ‘fundraising delusions’ he read about on Social Velocity. The Social Velocity article opened as follows: “Fundraising is, for the most part, a fundamentally misunderstood activity. There are a lot of misconceptions, among nonprofit leaders, board members — even donors — about effective ways to bring money in […]

Learn More July 23, 2015

Board Meeting Emergency Swipe File #2: Investment

On Friday in the post Our Donors Are Dying I mentioned the ‘Agitator Board Meeting Emergency Swipe File’. Handy responses to those eternal and frequent questions about fundraising posed by boards. In response Tom Gaffny requested a copy. So, Tom Belford and I’ve decided to reach into our vault and turn my off-the-cuff (imaginary) label into a reality. Here’s […]

Learn More July 20, 2015

The High Price Of Failure To Listen

“Roger, please don’t talk to me when I’m not listening.” That was the standard response from a client who expressed surprise each time something blew up and I reminded him that we had discussed the very issue months before. “Don’t talk to me when I’m not listening.” Those words came flooding back as I wrote […]

Learn More July 15, 2015

Are You Flirting With A Corporate Partner?

Partnering with companies and corporations is another arrow in the well-armed fundraising quiver … be it a local business in your home town or a global corporate behemoth. Of course it’s a two-way street … even the most benevolent of businesses is looking for a tangible return on its ‘investment’. That’s why businesses refer to […]

Learn More June 22, 2015

To Improve Fundraising Results, What Needs To Change?

If you’re not getting the returns you expected and your nonprofit desperately needs on your fundraising efforts, what one thing needs to change? The answer is so simple, it’s staring you in the face. One thing. One word. Any guesses? Before I give my answer, consider this report from Crain’s New York Business — It’s a […]

Learn More June 11, 2015

“Stop It. Fix It.”

A week from today The Giving Institute will release the 2015 Edition of Giving USA, the annual compendium of charitable giving trends and estimates. Remember, the data reported in Giving USA lags by one year. Thus the data in the ‘2014 Edition’ is that for 2013. And the data for the ‘2015 Edition’ will be for 2014. […]

Learn More June 8, 2015

Profoundly Simple: A Plan For Every Donor

This past week, fundraising creative maven Jeff Brooks, who The Agitator greatly admires, has been rubbing it in … reminding us each day that he’s on vacation! OK, we’ll give Jeff the benefit of the doubt and assume he deserves his week off (or is it a month, Jeff?), while you, Roger and I slave […]

Learn More June 5, 2015

Does Your Reputation Matter?

The Agitator has recently reported on the latest body blows to the reputation of the nonprofit/charity sector, specifically with respect to fundraising practices. One would think that attention to reputation would be of paramount concern to our sector, but there isn’t much sign that individual nonprofit organisations think about their reputation in a systematic way. […]

Learn More June 1, 2015

I Hate To Rain On Your Parade, But …

Our US readers are heading off today for a well-deserved three-day weekend, with the celebration of it’s-almost-summer Memorial Day. A major parade day when I was a kid in small town New Jersey … we kids got to march in our Scout uniforms or sport team uniforms. I had a choice, since I was both […]

Learn More May 22, 2015

Ask A Behavioral Scientist

Behavioral Science Q & A

Q: Do you have any insight on whether integrating an individual giving appeal with other comms from the charity in both appearance and messaging can uplift results? Or does the actual appeal become ‘lost’ for lack of stand-out?

Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]

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Q: Is there any research on response rate impact in direct mail when referring to a sustainer gift as ongoing or recurring (catching all frequencies) v. monthly or annual?

I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]

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Q: A major conservation nonprofit sends me lots of mail, many of which have on the envelope “time to renew” or “2nd notice.” I find this practice deceptive, especially as I haven’t given to said organization since 1997. It must be effective or they wouldn’t do it. But is it ethical?

Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]

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Q: I find it irritating when some nonprofits accept my “gift” and then ask me to cover their credit card fees separately. It feels like a practice that does nothing to help win donors and runs the risk of turning others off. Is there any data on this either way?

Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]

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Q: What are the three most important things to consider when designing a brilliant supporter journey?

There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]

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Q: Is there any evidence that changes to the tax laws in the USA changed end of year giving behaviors? Previously, ~30% of US taxpayers filed itemized tax returns allowing them to receive a deduction for charitable giving. Tax law changed in 2017 so that now only ~10% itemize. This should mean tax year-end giving should not matter to millions of people for whom it used to matter. Is there any data evidence to support this?

I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]

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Fundraising analytics / data

The Fundraising Power of Now

Wallowing In Fundraising Delusions

Board Meeting Emergency Swipe File #2: Investment

The High Price Of Failure To Listen

Are You Flirting With A Corporate Partner?

To Improve Fundraising Results, What Needs To Change?

“Stop It. Fix It.”

Profoundly Simple: A Plan For Every Donor

Does Your Reputation Matter?

I Hate To Rain On Your Parade, But …

Ask A Behavioral Scientist

Behavioral Science Q & A

Q: Do you have any insight on whether integrating an individual giving appeal with other comms from the charity in both appearance and messaging can uplift results? Or does the actual appeal become ‘lost’ for lack of stand-out?

Q: Is there any research on response rate impact in direct mail when referring to a sustainer gift as ongoing or recurring (catching all frequencies) v. monthly or annual?

Q: A major conservation nonprofit sends me lots of mail, many of which have on the envelope “time to renew” or “2nd notice.” I find this practice deceptive, especially as I haven’t given to said organization since 1997. It must be effective or they wouldn’t do it. But is it ethical?

Q: I find it irritating when some nonprofits accept my “gift” and then ask me to cover their credit card fees separately. It feels like a practice that does nothing to help win donors and runs the risk of turning others off. Is there any data on this either way?

Q: What are the three most important things to consider when designing a brilliant supporter journey?

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