Oh, No, Not Again!
Ah, autumn. The crunch of falling leaves under your feet. The crisp, cool air. Football. And the start of — you guessed it — fundraising season. This year, like every other, I fully expect my mailbox and inbox to be...
An Ounce of Prevention
New Miracle Diet Targets Belly Fat! Bye Bye Belly Fat! No Exercise Required! These are the kinds of e-mails that have been showing up quite frequently in my inbox since I signed up recently for a nutrition-related newsletter. I’ve been...
Case Study: Ask and Receive
All donors are not created equal. As in the for-profit world, the most financially valuable ones are the ones who undertake long-term relationships with an organization — those who embrace a nonprofit’s mission and make donations again and again. In...
Drawing Attention to Your Cause
Why would anyone in his right mind suggest using humor in a fundraising campaign to help fight a terrible disease or address an important social cause? Ask any conventional direct-mail expert, and he’ll tell you humor is one of the...
Focus, People! Focus!
Mad as hell, and not gonna take it anymore? Get in line. These are vexing times. There’s plenty to worry about and a lot of issues that need action. That’s probably why we keep hearing various nonprofit leaders telling us...
Lead the Way
“How to Look Good Naked” … “Yard Crashers” … “Pimp My Ride” … “Extreme Makeover” … “Kitchen Nightmares” … “What Not to Wear” … “This Old House” … “Makeover Manor” — we are a society obsessed with transformation, renovation and...
Major Gifts: The Art, the Heart, the Ask and the Attitude
Henry Rosso, a legendary modern fundraising professional, created several working philosophies from his book, “Lessons from a Master’s Lifetime Experience.” One, people need and want to give, yet many do not know how, to whom or how much. Second, people...
Reader Panel Poll
Q: What do you feel is the most important issue facing nonprofit fundraisers as we approach the end of 2008? “It seems to me the changing face of philanthropy is the most important issue. We have older, first-generation philanthropists dying...
Something to Smile About
Forty-five minutes and $240 can change a child’s life forever. That’s about how long it takes and how much it costs for Operation Smile to fix one child’s cleft lip. The organization has been fixing smiles and changing lives for...
Some Tips for Fundraising Success From Operation Smile
When all is said and done, Kyla Shawyer, Operation Smile’s senior vice president of response marketing and development, says the key to the organization’s fundraising success hinges on a few simple things. ● Operation Smile continues to diversify and integrate...
What is an Operation Smile Mission?
(from www.operationsmile.org) “Operation Smile’s standard International Medical Mission is comprised of a team of credentialed medical professionals from around the world who travel to Operation Smile partner countries to treat children during a two-week period. On a typical International Medical...
Operation Smile Facts
6435 Tidewater Drive Norfolk, VA 23509 Phone: 757.321.7645 Web: www.operationsmile.org Annual operating budget: $55.6 million for fiscal year 2009 Contributed income: $57.1 million contributed income for fiscal year 2008 Mission: (From www.operationsmile.org) Throughout the world, Operation Smile volunteers repair childhood...
USP? BOM? WTH?
Unique selling proposition … benefit-oriented messaging … brand management — sounds like a bunch of advertising execs talking strategy, doesn’t it? Could be. Or it just as easily could be a bunch of development professionals....
