Uncategorized - Agitator

Breaking Out of the Status Quo

Be Attentive to Incentive

“Never, ever, think about something else when you should be thinking about the power of incentives.” — Charlie Munger, investor, author, philanthropist and Warren Buffet’s irreverent partner at Berhshire Hathaway. In my post on the future of “full service” agenciesI urged that we all give serious thought to re-directing the financial incentives to reward innovation, growth […]

Learn More July 9, 2018

A $400 Billion Industry Powered by Anecdote

You’d think a $400 billion industry like ours would have empirically based standards and practices readily available and accessible to all. After all, most sectors — ranging from apple growers to doctors and hospitals, and even zoos — have them. Fundraising doesn’t. What we do have is mass of accumulated tribal wisdom, often conflicting, seldom […]

Learn More July 6, 2018

Volume is not a retention solution (part MMCCLVI)

I feel like I’m taking crazy pills. Yet another agency has argued for more email volume as the solution to online retention. Sigh. Well, once more into the breach. We’ve debunked a lot of this before, so to catch those up just joining us: There is a negative correlation between email volume and retention for us as […]

Learn More July 5, 2018

The Slow, Painful and Costly Death of the “Full Service” Agency

Four years ago In Part 5 of our Barriers to Growth series I raised the question of whether the “full service” fundraising agency has outlived usefulness. More pointedly I wondered whether in fact they’re actually a danger to the sector. Today, I’m revisiting this issue because, if anything, I’m convinced the “full service” agency is more […]

Learn More

Celebrating Dissent

This photo of my grandsons Jalen (at left) and Zachary (in the “kiddie cage” at right) joining the national protest against the Trump Administration’s separation of migrant families made me more than proud. It serves as assurance that the gene of dissent has successfully made its way to the next generation. I wanted to share […]

Learn More July 4, 2018

STRATEGY: What it Is. What it Isn’t.

From Make to Stick by the Heath brothers: “Herb Kelleher [the longest-serving CEO of Southwest] once told someone, “I can teach you the secret to running this airline in thirty seconds. This is it: We are THE low-cost airline. Once you understand that fact, you can make any decision about this company`s future as well […]

Learn More July 3, 2018

The Oldest Profession in Fundraising

As our Canadian readers recover from yesterday’s celebration of their 151st Canada Day and American readers prepare for Wednesday’s 242ndcelebration of Independence Day we thought it appropriate to devote this week to reexamining some fundraising fundamentals that may—or may not—be in need of major change or at least updating. Consequently, tomorrow Nick will explore the […]

Learn More July 2, 2018

I Hate the Big Check Photo

Every nonprofit has a photo like this somewhere: Yes, it’s a photo that your corporate partner can use on their Web site or in their annual report as a way of showing their commitment to the community. And, among a still-sadly-plurality-older-white-male business community, the big check sends the message to other business people in the […]

Learn More June 29, 2018

A tale of two acquisition methods

You have two canvassers recruiting recurring donors for your nonprofit: Jack and Diane. (Names changed to protect innocent and guilty alike; all statistics are real.) Jack brought in 88 donors in your latest canvassing campaign. Diane brought in 72 donors. Traditionally, that’s how canvassers would be measured: Jack brought in 25% more donors; he is […]

Learn More June 28, 2018

I Hate The Way We Fail New Fundraisers

Whenever I’m at a loss to describe a problem I turn to the dog-eared volumes in my fundraising library for help. Currently– like many others– I’m wrestling with the issues of turnover and the levels of skill in our trade. More and more nonprofits (47% more in the past decade) are in need of “fundraisers”. […]

Learn More

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

Breaking Out of the Status Quo

Be Attentive to Incentive

A $400 Billion Industry Powered by Anecdote

Volume is not a retention solution (part MMCCLVI)

The Slow, Painful and Costly Death of the “Full Service” Agency

Celebrating Dissent

STRATEGY: What it Is. What it Isn’t.

The Oldest Profession in Fundraising

I Hate the Big Check Photo

A tale of two acquisition methods

I Hate The Way We Fail New Fundraisers

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?

DonorVoice products

Commitment System

Donor Feedback Platform™

PreTest Tool

TouchPoint Mapping