<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:blogger='http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379</id><updated>2026-06-16T12:08:42.555+01:00</updated><category term="campaign"/><category term="news"/><category term="video"/><category term="website"/><title type='text'>Digital Fundraiser</title><subtitle type='html'>Latest news, tools, ideas and links for digital fundraising and campaigns by charities and non-profits. Blog researched by a Professional Digital Marketer working full time in the Third Sector.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default?redirect=false'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><link rel='next' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default?start-index=26&amp;max-results=25&amp;redirect=false'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>708</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-8548431760682653270</id><published>2014-03-20T11:51:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-20T11:51:32.050+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Hope for Children unveils website for new fundraising initiative</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Hope for Children (HOPE) has &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.pressat.co.uk/releases/hope-for-children-unveils-website-for-new-fundraising-initiative-1d6019a195aa5f6e38b5de11d23cfa54/&quot;&gt;launched&lt;/a&gt; a responsive website for its brand new student fundraising initiative &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/www.yourunitheirlives.org&quot;&gt;&amp;lsquo;Your Uni, Their Lives&lt;/a&gt;&amp;rsquo; (YUTL), developed by creative design and marketing agency Satellite Creative.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The website follows on from the initiatives launch event which took place at Speaker&amp;rsquo;s House, Westminster on 26th February and was hosted by the Speaker of the House, the Rt Hon John Bercow MP.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Chris Lyne, HOPE Marketing Manager, said: &lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;We wanted the site to showcase the amazing fundraising efforts of RAGs (Raising and Giving Societies), whilst connecting them with the East African projects that they have been supporting through HOPE. We also wanted to get across the excitement of the challenges they can continue to get involved in.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;On top of that, it was important we didn&amp;rsquo;t lose any linkage with the HOPE brand, which is our greatest strength. I feel we achieved this and I am absolutely delighted with the final result. I really hope people find browsing the website an engaging experience.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Features of the website include information on project work, challenges and partner profiles with real-time API totals showing how much each university has fundraised.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The initiative currently has seven UK university partners; Nottingham, York, Exeter, Bournemouth, UCL, Leeds and Abertay.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To find out more about Your Uni, Their Lives, please visit:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/20/hope-for-children-unveils-website-for-new-fundraising-initiative/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=hope-for-children-unveils-website-for-new-fundraising-initiative&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/8548431760682653270/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/hope-for-children-unveils-website-for.html#comment-form' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/8548431760682653270'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/8548431760682653270'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/hope-for-children-unveils-website-for.html' title='Hope for Children unveils website for new fundraising initiative'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-2322935579071195764</id><published>2014-03-19T18:31:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-19T18:31:27.493+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Real-time giant Mother’s Day card for Oxfam to be displayed at Westfield</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Proximity London have brought together &amp;nbsp;artist Lizzie Mary Cullen and cutting edge technology by Grand Visual to create a real time giant Mother&amp;rsquo;s Day card for Oxfam &amp;ndash; a celebration of mums around the world as part of the charity&amp;rsquo;s Mother Appeal.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The Happiest Mother&amp;rsquo;s Day Card is a giant canvas divided up into lots of little squares. When a member of the public goes online and dedicates a square to their mum via the website, the artist will paint within that square and bring it to life. This means the more people that take part and celebrate their mum, the more the design of the card will grow and blossom.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Launching on Wednesday 19March at Westfield London, the art event will run for five days until Sunday 23 March. During this time, the public will be invited to dedicate their square online at happiestmothersdaycard.org (live from 19 March) &amp;ndash; where they can also watch a live video stream of the artist working on the card and also make a small optional donation.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;At the end of the event, the artwork will be turned into a giant Mother&amp;rsquo;s Day card, hopefully breaking the world record for most contributions to a greetings card. The attempt has been officially approved by Guinness World Records with the current record standing at 5,339 contributions.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Creative agency Proximity London devised the strategy, creative concept and execution (including web user experience and design) and overall management of the event.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Oxfam&amp;rsquo;s brief to Proximity London was to generate buzz and publicity for Oxfam&amp;rsquo;s Mother Appeal (a mass audience fundraiser to raise over &amp;pound;10 million to help mothers worldwide lift themselves and their families out of poverty for good); then translate this buzz into donations and data capture for future support.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;John Treacy, Executive Creative Director at Proximity London said, &amp;ldquo;&lt;em&gt;The Happiest Mother&amp;rsquo;s Day card blends a live event with digital innovation to create a powerful idea that drives awareness, participation and ultimately donation.&amp;nbsp; But more than that, it&amp;rsquo;s also a celebration of some of the most powerful and important people in the world, in the run up to the day we think of them the most.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/19/real-time-giant-mothers-day-card-for-oxfam-to-be-displayed-at-westfield/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=real-time-giant-mothers-day-card-for-oxfam-to-be-displayed-at-westfield&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/2322935579071195764/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/real-time-giant-mothers-day-card-for.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2322935579071195764'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2322935579071195764'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/real-time-giant-mothers-day-card-for.html' title='Real-time giant Mother’s Day card for Oxfam to be displayed at Westfield'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3554166436229785651</id><published>2014-03-18T18:27:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-18T18:27:23.191+00:00</updated><title type='text'>3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Most of what you read about creating more reach for your nonprofit&amp;#8217;s Facebook Page either has to do with Facebook Ads or optimizing content.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;And while those things are crucial, it&amp;#8217;s also important not to forget about these 3 settings that can dramatically increase your reach:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;1. Turn On Posting Ability&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Allowing Facebook users to post photos and videos to your page increases your exposure to their friends.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;For example, the friends of the Facebook users who&amp;#8217;ve &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10200406802345896&amp;amp;set=o.5644748986&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;posted these photos of rabbits&lt;/a&gt; will see a story in their News Feed, exposing them to the mission of the National Wildlife Federation.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To allow others to post photos, videos, text updates and links to your page, click &lt;em&gt;&amp;#8220;Edit Settings&amp;#8221;&lt;/em&gt; under the &quot;Edit Page&quot; menu item in your admin panel. Once you&#39;re there, select both options, as shown below.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;2. Turn On Tagging&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Let Facebook users tag themselves and their friends in photos you post to your Page.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;This way when you post pictures from an event, you can &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/2012/11/13-ways-boost-your-facebook-reach-without-spending-dime/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;invite your fans to tag themselves and their friends&lt;/a&gt;. Tagged friends (who may not be fans) are prompted to visit the photo and like the Page.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;To turn tagging on, click &lt;em&gt;&amp;#8220;Edit Settings&amp;#8221;&lt;/em&gt; under the &quot;Edit Page&quot; and then select tagging ability.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/tagging-ability.png&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter  wp-image-15907&quot; alt=&quot;tagging ability 3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach&quot; src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/tagging-ability.png&quot; width=&quot;902&quot; height=&quot;139&quot; title=&quot;3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;3. Turn On Replies&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Allowing for threaded commenting helps create more engagement on posts in two ways:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ol&gt;  &lt;li&gt;With notifications to users who&amp;#8217;ve been replied to with a comment.&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;With threaded comments that organize conversations better.&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ol&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;To turn threaded replies on, click &lt;em&gt;&amp;#8220;Edit Settings&amp;#8221;&lt;/em&gt; under the &quot;Edit Page&quot; and then scroll down to select tagging ability.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/allow-replies.png&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter  wp-image-15908&quot; alt=&quot;allow replies 3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach&quot; src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/allow-replies.png&quot; width=&quot;862&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; title=&quot;3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Once this option is selected you&amp;#8217;ll notice a second level of commenting within your Page updates.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Have you already selected these options for your Page? How&amp;#8217;s it Working?&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.flickr.com/photos/meiatwork/&quot;&gt;photo cred &amp;#8211; Flickr: Creative Commons&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/social-media/3-quick-and-dirty-facebook-page-tweaks-that-will-quickly-increase-your-reach/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3554166436229785651/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/3-quick-and-dirty-facebook-page-tweaks.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3554166436229785651'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3554166436229785651'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/3-quick-and-dirty-facebook-page-tweaks.html' title='3 Quick and Dirty Facebook Page Tweaks That Will Dramatically Increase Your Reach'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3127598337524236526</id><published>2014-03-18T16:03:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-18T16:03:10.219+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Facebook Timeline Contests – Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter size-large wp-image-20764&quot; alt=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Fotolia_35771906_M-1024x687.jpg&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; title=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Facebook&amp;#8217;s opened up a fun new avenue for pages to entertain fans and boost engagement. Businesses and organizations may now reward fans for their activity (likes and comments, but not shares) on the page&amp;#8217;s Timeline.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Counting likes on a post or manually checking the comments for a right answer or a nice photo is not fun. Without an application to help you with that, you&#39;ll have to do it!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;We&#39;ve built a totally free &lt;a href=&quot;http://contest.agorapulse.com&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Timeline Contest Management app that you can try out here&lt;/a&gt;. It will help you run sweepstakes, Quizzes and Photo Contests without the burden of checking likes and comments manually or in a spreadsheet!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;But first, let&#39;s start with the basics.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;The 411 on Facebook timeline contests&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;You can reward fans and visitors for:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ul&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Posting on your Page (including photos)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Private messaging your page&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Liking a page post&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Commenting on a page post (including comments with photos)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Accumulating likes on their posts or comments (including comments with photos)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ul&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;You can&amp;#8217;t:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ol&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Ask users to tag themselves in a photo they are not pictured in&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Ask users to share a post&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Ask users to post something on theirs or their friends&#39; timelines.&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ol&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Basically, you can run a quiz by posting a question and rewarding a correct answer.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;You must:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ul&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Have official rules for your contest (included in the text or linked within your post)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Offer terms and eligibility requirements in your rules (ex: age and residency restrictions)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Acknowledge that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook (this language must be included in your post)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Comply with local, state and country rules regarding promotions, and prizes&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ul&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;You may not:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ul&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Run a contest on a personal profile&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Offer alcohol as a reward. There is no way to verify participants&amp;#8217; ages.&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ul&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Unfortunately, there&amp;#8217;s no escaping the legalese. Once your post is properly crafted, it will likely end up looking like a long disclaimer rather than a fun promotion.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;div&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;size-full wp-image-20758&quot; alt=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/3-Sixt-legalease.jpg&quot; width=&quot;650&quot; title=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; /&gt;&lt;p&gt;This is a properly formatted Timeline Contest post. Fun, huh?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;You are responsible for compliance with your local regulations&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;French contest rules must be registered with a notary public, Italian contest entries must be collected on a server located in Italy, and in Brazil, you can only run sweepstakes in very limited cases. California has different regulations for online giveaways than Connecticut.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Whew&amp;#8230;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;Timeline contests versus page contest apps&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Most page contest apps come with a fan gate for recruiting fans, and a form for qualifying them. If your goal is gaining new fans and knowing who they are, a Timeline Contest won&amp;#8217;t help you.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;However, if your engagement and organic reach are dwindling, a Timeline Contest can kick it up a notch.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;After a healthy Timeline Contest with a heavy engagement period, more fans and unique users will see your future posts. And that&amp;#8217;s good for your page!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;Fraud protection in page contest apps&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Some contest apps come with built in fraud protection. Fraud is real, and rampant in Facebook contests.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Scammers know what they&amp;#8217;re doing &amp;#8211; creating fake Facebook profiles and working in tandem with other scammers to manipulate voting results.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Most of your participants won&amp;#8217;t bother to read your contest rules. Scammers trying to game the system will pick apart each word.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;div&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;size-full wp-image-20760&quot; alt=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/6-spot-cheaters.png&quot; width=&quot;750&quot; title=&quot;Facebook Timeline Contests   Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success&quot; /&gt;&lt;p&gt;Some third party app providers have built fraud protection directly into your contest. Avoiding scammers can be easy.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you run a sweepstakes on your page, plan to spend some time verifying your winners are legit.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you run a voting contest (i.e. &quot;comments or photos with the most likes&quot;) it will be nearly impossible to verify the users who obtained the most likes didn&amp;#8217;t employ tricks such as a vote exchange scheme or votes from fake Facebook accounts.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you run a quiz type contest, keep in mind users can edit their comments. You have no way of knowing if an answer was correct when the first time or if it was edited after the user saw other participants&#39; answers.&lt;br /&gt;  Keep the size and nature of your audience in mind, and be sure to award prizes that will only attract genuine fans.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;The bottom line&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If your goal is to keep up interactions and increase engagement, run a Timeline Contest. Just be prepared to invest some time monitoring your entries closely.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If your goal is to recruit new fans and collect qualified data, or you&amp;#8217;re giving away larger, more valuable prizes, choose a Contest App with built in fraud protection.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Emeric Ernoult is the CEO of agoraPulse, and creator of a free &lt;a href=&quot;http://contest.agorapulse.com&quot; target=&quot;blank&quot;&gt;Timeline Content Management App.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:yIl2AUoC8zA&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=yIl2AUoC8zA&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:qj6IDK7rITs&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=qj6IDK7rITs&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=kg6TuKHW2G8:p5OrUFg5h70:TzevzKxY174&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=TzevzKxY174&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~4/kg6TuKHW2G8&quot; height=&quot;1&quot; width=&quot;1&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~3/kg6TuKHW2G8/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/7rpLzk&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3S3K&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3127598337524236526/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/facebook-timeline-contests-everything.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3127598337524236526'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3127598337524236526'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/facebook-timeline-contests-everything.html' title='Facebook Timeline Contests – Everything Your Nonprofit Needs for Success'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-9024672206861082279</id><published>2014-03-18T12:43:00.003+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-18T12:43:59.861+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Online counselling service for young people in Brighton &amp; Hove</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&lt;span&gt;Two Brighton &amp;amp; Hove based youth organisations &amp;ndash; Sussex Central YMCA and the Young People&amp;rsquo;s Centre &amp;ndash; are launching a new online counselling service for young people aged 13-25 in Brighton &amp;amp; Hove.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The &amp;lsquo;&lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/www.e-motionbh.org.uk&quot;&gt;E-motion&lt;/a&gt;&amp;rsquo; online counselling project is a partnership between Sussex Central YMCA Youth Advice Centre, Impact-Initiatives Young People&amp;rsquo;s Centre, and the Brighton and Hove Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG.)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The digital service which will offer 13-25 year olds in Brighton &amp;amp; Hove the opportunity to experience counselling by email, compliments their already existing vital face to face counselling services.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;E-motion&amp;nbsp;is open to everyone, however due to the nature of their work and the funding available, the service aims to target young people who, for whatever reason do not chose to access face to face counselling.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;It will also be a great help when other services are shut during school holidays or when young individuals can&amp;rsquo;t travel to a face-to-face appointment or can&amp;rsquo;t make the same time every week.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To get in touch, individuals send &amp;nbsp;an email to &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;mailto:frankie@e-motionbh.org.uk&quot;&gt;frankie@e-motionbh.org.uk&lt;/a&gt; . They are then invited to give some basic details about themselves. E-motion then tailor the online counselling to make sure it is the right service for the individual.&amp;nbsp;&lt;b&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Ginny Roads, Counselling Co-ordinator at the Young People&amp;rsquo;s Counselling Service in Central Brighton said:&amp;nbsp;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;This is an exciting new project giving young people the opportunity access an alternative to counselling other than talking to a counsellor face to face. It meets young people where they feel most comfortable, is often more convenient and reflects their growing use of technology and the internet &amp;ldquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;At present the service is a pilot project, but all e- counsellors are experienced in dealing with young people, have completed online counselling training and work in accordance with the BACP professional codes and standards. By working with the Brighton and Hove CCG and their GP&amp;rsquo;s the project will be promoted accordingly to make sure that everyone knows how and where to refer to.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/18/online-counselling-service-for-young-people-in-brighton-hove/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=online-counselling-service-for-young-people-in-brighton-hove&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/9024672206861082279/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/online-counselling-service-for-young.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/9024672206861082279'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/9024672206861082279'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/online-counselling-service-for-young.html' title='Online counselling service for young people in Brighton &amp; Hove'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-2436395101261511436</id><published>2014-03-18T12:43:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-18T12:43:58.903+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Older people lack digital skills to access new health services</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;Older people are the biggest users of health and care services, with the average NHS spend for retired households &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/key-issues-for-the-new-parliament/value-for-money-in-public-services/the-ageing-population&quot;&gt;nearly double&lt;/a&gt; that for non-retired households.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;But many lack the skills to take advantage of changes in the way healthcare is being delivered, warns Digital Unite, one of the UK&amp;rsquo;s main providers of digital skills learning.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Technology is transforming the face of healthcare and bringing huge benefits to patients. Being able to book appointments online, order repeat prescriptions and improved access to online information and services can really advance patients&amp;rsquo; health and well-being. Video calling your GP and personal health monitoring systems through mobile phone apps may be solutions for the future.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;However, many older people still aren&amp;rsquo;t online or don&amp;rsquo;t have the skills to use such services. New ONS figures (Q4, 2013) show that 6.7 million adults in the UK have never used the internet, with 5.8 million of them aged 55 and over.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Dick Stroud of Digital Unite says: &amp;ldquo;It&amp;rsquo;s vital that we encourage and inspire these millions of older people to get online. The healthcare industry can help by signposting to the many resources that are available &amp;ndash; whether it&amp;rsquo;s a beginners&amp;rsquo; computer course at the local library or a national digital inclusion campaign like Spring Online from March 31-April.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Spring Online in association with Carphone Warehouse sees thousands of free taster events and sessions held by volunteers all across the UK to help and inspire local people achieve a lasting use of the internet &amp;ndash; and transform their lives.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Digital Unite research has shown that of those people over 55s who are using the internet, four out of five (86%) said it had improved their lives. 72% said that being online had helped reduce their feelings of isolation and 81% said that using the internet made them feel part of modern society. In addition 20% of older learners in a Digital Unite social housing learning programme felt their understanding of health related issues had improved as a result of being online.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/18/older-people-lack-digital-skills-to-access-new-health-services/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=older-people-lack-digital-skills-to-access-new-health-services&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/2436395101261511436/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/older-people-lack-digital-skills-to.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2436395101261511436'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2436395101261511436'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/older-people-lack-digital-skills-to.html' title='Older people lack digital skills to access new health services'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3070465487413417608</id><published>2014-03-17T22:51:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-17T22:51:49.043+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Mazarine_Treyz.png&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;wp-image-14533 alignleft&quot; alt=&quot;Mazarine Treyz Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step&quot; src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Mazarine_Treyz.png&quot; width=&quot;198&quot; height=&quot;175&quot; title=&quot;Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;Guest post by Mazarine Treyz, author of &lt;a href=&quot;http://wildwomanfundraising.com/product/the-wild-womans-guide-to-fundraising/&quot;&gt;The Wild Woman&#39;s Guide to Fundraising&lt;/a&gt;, called one of the Top 10 books of 2010 by Beth Kanter, and author of the Networked Nonprofit. Her second book is The Wild Woman&amp;#8217;s Guide to Social Media, published 2012, given a 5 star rating by About.com. Her latest book, &lt;a href=&quot;http://wildwomanfundraising.com/product/get-the-job-your-fundraising-career-empowerment-guide/&quot;&gt;Get the Job! Your Fundraising Career Empowerment Guide&lt;/a&gt;, was given a 5 star review by About.com.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;         &lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;        &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Our donors don&amp;#8217;t give year after year&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Donors staying loyal is the exception, not the rule. &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/online-fundraising/12-donor-retention-tips-from-nonprofit-fundraising-experts/&quot;&gt;According to Chuck Longfield&lt;/a&gt;, ten years ago the average retention rates of a newly acquired donor were roughly 33%.  Today it&#39;s 27%.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/npexperts?utm_source=npENGAGE&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_term=corp&amp;amp;utm_content=Mar17&amp;amp;utm_campaign=npEXPERTS2014#.Utgtx_RDudA&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;What can we do about this?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Make a donor retention calendar to keep your donors loyal!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;OK, so donor retention isn&amp;#8217;t part of your job description.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Your boss probably doesn&amp;#8217;t religiously count how many donors were retained and how many were lost every year.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;You just have to get money in, by any means necessary.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Meanwhile, that grant needs to get written, that trade show with potential sponsors is next week and you&amp;#8217;ve got to craft your pitch, and your big event is coming up in two months and there&amp;#8217;s still so much to do!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;There&#39;s so much on your plate! How can you keep your head above water?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p&gt;&quot;Remember, good customer service is often just deciding what you&amp;#8217;re going to be bad at, so that you can focus on the things that matter.&quot; &amp;#8211; &lt;span&gt;Uncommon Service&lt;/span&gt;, by Frei &amp;amp; Morriss&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Even though this quote is from a for-profit business book, I&amp;#8217;d like to invite you to think of it as donor service. Remember, good donor service is just deciding what you&amp;#8217;re going to be bad at.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Here are 4 Steps to help you focus on the things that matter:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Step One: Don&amp;#8217;t Focus on Everyone!&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Try focusing on:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ul&gt;  &lt;li&gt;People who gave multiple times per year for the last two years.&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;People who give monthly&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;People who gave once a year for the last two years&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Former board members (from the last two years)&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Current volunteers&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ul&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Another way to make this process less overwhelming is to decide different levels attention for different levels of donations.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Do you have a donations policy? &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/interactive/how-your-way-donor-retention/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Why not create a thanking policy?&lt;/a&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Step Two: Make your Donor Retention more Manageable by Creating a Thanking Policy&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/interactive/the-7-keys-donor-retention-strategy-full-thanks/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Here are some examples of thanking policies:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;1. Over $100 Check in the mail: Thank them with a phone call &amp;amp; letter.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;2. Over $1000 check in the mail: Call them up and see if you can go to coffee&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;3.  Multi-year donor: thank them with a phone call&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;4. Once a year thank-a-thon for all donors&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;5. Thank recent donors on the anniversary of their first donation, and ask if they&amp;#8217;d like to give again.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Step Three: Put it all Together in your Donor Retention Calendar&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Once you know WHO to focus on, what does a donor retention calendar include?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;ul&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Appeals&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Surprise and delight tactics&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Surveys&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Friendraisers&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Thank you notes&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Monthly e-newsletter themes&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Phone-a-thons&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Thank-a-Thons&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;li&gt;Volunteer Appreciation Days&lt;/li&gt;  &lt;/ul&gt;  &lt;p&gt;BOTTOM LINE: Solicitations Calendar + Surveys + Event Calendar + E-News Calendar = Donor Retention Calendar&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;BUT IT&amp;#8217;S TOO MUCH TO DO!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;How can you fit all of these extra donor retention tasks into your already busy schedule?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;You need to start having the conversation with your board, your volunteers, and other staff, that EVERYONE needs to be taking responsibility for fundraising.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;On a personal level, try something that looks like this:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Step four:  Putting Retention into Action Every Day&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Monday: &lt;/strong&gt;Coffee with a donor&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Tuesday: &lt;/strong&gt;Email a donor&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Wednesday: &lt;/strong&gt;Call a donor&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Thursday: &lt;/strong&gt;Thank a donor with a note&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Friday: &lt;/strong&gt;Write up all donor touches, add to board report&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you&amp;#8217;d like to get started on a systematic way to keep your donors, I have an e-course called &lt;a href=&quot;http://wildwomanfundraising.com/product/secrets-of-keeping-your-donors/%20&quot;&gt;Secrets of Keeping Your Donors&lt;/a&gt; that you might like, starting on March 28&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt;, 2014. &lt;a href=&quot;http://wildwomanfundraising.com/product/secrets-of-keeping-your-donors/%20&quot;&gt;Go here&lt;/a&gt; to check it out!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;And for even more expert advice on donor retention, check out our &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/npexperts?utm_source=npENGAGE&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_term=corp&amp;amp;utm_content=Mar17&amp;amp;utm_campaign=npEXPERTS2014#.Utgtx_RDudA&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;npEXPERT eBook&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href=&quot;http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=743571&amp;amp;s=1&amp;amp;k=CDE94C506F6C5C9F54485FF47463B9BF&quot;&gt;webinar series!&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt; &lt;strong&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/npexperts?utm_source=npENGAGE&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_term=corp&amp;amp;utm_content=Mar17&amp;amp;utm_campaign=npEXPERTS2014#.Utgtx_RDudA&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; alt=&quot;npexperts donor retention banner ad 742x24622 Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step&quot; src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/npexperts-donor-retention-banner-ad-742x24622.jpg&quot; width=&quot;742&quot; height=&quot;246&quot; title=&quot;Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;photo cred: &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.flickr.com/photos/50363705@N02/&quot;&gt;Sparklehausen, Flickr Creative Commons&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/npengage/~3/FQLvbndZh6w/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3070465487413417608/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/making-your-first-donor-retention.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3070465487413417608'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3070465487413417608'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/making-your-first-donor-retention.html' title='Making Your First Donor Retention Calendar, Step by Step'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-1728188404358311194</id><published>2014-03-17T16:04:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-17T16:04:12.614+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Major Gift Fundraising: 3 Vital Storytelling Tips</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Marketers use stories to draw the attention of a wider audience and to generate interest in your organization. In fundraising, including major gift fundraising, stories motivate donors to provide financial support.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Here are three tips for using stories to boost your organization&amp;#8217;s bottom line through major gifts:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;1. Facts are important, but emotions motivate.&lt;/strong&gt; Any marketer – or experienced fundraiser – will tell you that most people make decisions with our hearts and, after we&amp;#8217;ve decided, we use our minds to think about the reasons for our choice. As you gather information about the good work your organization is doing, keep in mind those all-important personal angles and highlight them.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;2. Our stories aren&amp;#8217;t just for an audience of donors and prospects. &lt;/strong&gt;You can also use them to motivate your board. In fact, when I facilitate board retreats I always strongly recommend that the retreat include a &quot;mission moment&quot; consisting of anything from a client presenting their personal story of how they&amp;#8217;ve been helped by your organization to &quot;Thank You&quot; letters or even a video of those wetlands or testimonials. The success of any major gift program depends largely on developing a board of directors who are willing and able to both &quot;give and get&quot; those gifts, and nothing makes it easier for board members to overcome their discomfort with asking for money like a moving story.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;3. Ask your prospects and donors to tell you &lt;i&gt;their&lt;/i&gt; stories.&lt;/strong&gt; From the start of the cultivation process, ask your donors about themselves. Why do they care about your organization? What specific area of your work excites them? Do they have a personal connection with you – a relative who benefited from your work, for example? Donors, and major gift donors in particular, will be happy to share these things with you. And while doing so they&amp;#8217;ll remind themselves why they want to make that major gift!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt; &amp;#8212;&amp;#8212;&amp;#8212;-&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Amy Eisenstein, ACFRE is the author of the recently published book, &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.tripointfundraising.com/increase-your-annual-fund-with-major-gifts/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Major Gift Fundraising for Small Shops&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Special offer:&lt;/b&gt; The first 100 people to purchase &lt;i&gt;Major Gift Fundraising for Small Shops&lt;/i&gt; between 6 am &amp;#8211; Midnight&lt;b&gt; &lt;/b&gt;on Tuesday, March 18 will get free access to Amy&amp;#8217;s webinar, &lt;i&gt;The Art of the Ask&lt;/i&gt; (a $129 value). &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.tripointfundraising.com/increase-your-annual-fund-with-major-gifts/&quot;&gt;http://www.tripointfundraising.com/increase-your-annual-fund-with-major-gifts/&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:yIl2AUoC8zA&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=yIl2AUoC8zA&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:qj6IDK7rITs&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=qj6IDK7rITs&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=h1p2jTldZkQ:ewfdcxvWoPQ:TzevzKxY174&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=TzevzKxY174&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~4/h1p2jTldZkQ&quot; height=&quot;1&quot; width=&quot;1&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~3/h1p2jTldZkQ/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/7rpLzk&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3S3K&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/1728188404358311194/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/major-gift-fundraising-3-vital.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/1728188404358311194'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/1728188404358311194'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/major-gift-fundraising-3-vital.html' title='Major Gift Fundraising: 3 Vital Storytelling Tips'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-8539314125280073421</id><published>2014-03-17T13:49:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-17T13:49:07.371+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Sparks partners with Checkprint and Barclays on QR code donations system</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Checkprint, a provider of secure paper and payment solutions,&amp;nbsp;&lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://investing.businessweek.com/research/markets/news/article.asp?docKey=600-201403170536M2______EUPR_____971a0000022fa080_3600-1&quot;&gt;has created&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;and applied uniquely personalised two dimensional QR codes for children&amp;rsquo;s medical research charity Sparks.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The new system will allow Sparks to incorporate QR codes into its welcome letters for the 2014 Bake for Bumps campaign, which will enable fundraisers the option to pay their funds using the Barclays Pingit smartphone app, which has a built-in QR code scanner.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Laura White, Head of Regional Fundraising at Sparks, said:&amp;nbsp;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;We have worked with Checkprint for a number of years and its solutions have helped us raise a vast amount of money for medical research. By generating QR codes for our latest Bake for Bumps campaign Checkprint will save us, and our supporters, even more valuable time and money which we can put to good use in other areas of Sparks&amp;rsquo; work.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;Milon Veasey, Head of Mobile Solutions Specialists at Barclays, added:&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;People today are looking for quick, easy and convenient payment option which is driving the demand for mobile payment solutions and charities like Sparks are fully recognising this. Barclays Pingit provides an easy and secure way for people to make those all-important charity donations, at anytime and anywhere.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/17/sparks-partners-with-checkprint-and-barclays-on-qr-code-donations-system/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=sparks-partners-with-checkprint-and-barclays-on-qr-code-donations-system&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/8539314125280073421/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/sparks-partners-with-checkprint-and.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/8539314125280073421'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/8539314125280073421'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/sparks-partners-with-checkprint-and.html' title='Sparks partners with Checkprint and Barclays on QR code donations system'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-2390781254036646815</id><published>2014-03-17T13:16:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-17T13:16:38.318+00:00</updated><title type='text'>11 Nonprofit Professionals Share Social Media and Technology Advice for Nonprofits via Instagram Video</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://instagram.com/nonprofitorgs/&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;alignright  wp-image-15757&quot; style=&quot;border: 1px solid black;&quot; alt=&quot;Instagram Nonprofit&quot; src=&quot;http://www.nptechforgood.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Instagram-Nonprofit-300x298.png&quot; width=&quot;300&quot; height=&quot;298&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Thanks to a partnership with the &lt;a href=&quot;http://pir.org/&quot;&gt;Public Interest Registry&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nptechforgood.com/heather-mansfield/&quot;&gt;Heather Mansfield&lt;/a&gt; of Nonprofit Tech for Good was able to &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nptechforgood.com/services/&quot;&gt;report live&lt;/a&gt; from the Nonprofit Technology Conference (&lt;a href=&quot;https://twitter.com/search?q=%2314ntc&quot;&gt;#14NTC&lt;/a&gt;) last week in Washington, DC. Empowered with a tablet and smartphone, one of Heather&amp;#8217;s first priorities was to reveal the faces and expertise behind some our favorite nonprofit brands. The results are below and what you&amp;#8217;ll hear are the responses to the question: &lt;em&gt;&amp;#8220;What is your number one piece of nonprofit technology advice for nonprofits?&amp;#8221;&lt;/em&gt; You can view all videos at &lt;a href=&quot;http://instagram.com/nonprofitorgs/&quot;&gt;instagram.com/nonprofitorgs&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;1. Alexandra Bezdikian, Interactive Events and Video Producer&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.techsoup.org&quot;&gt;TechSoup&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;2. Liz Ragland, Content Writer &amp;amp; Non-Profit Marketing&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www1.networkforgood.org/&quot;&gt;Network for Good&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;3. Jessica Sotelo, Deputy Director of Online Marketing&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://worldwildlife.org/&quot;&gt;World Wildlife Fund&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;div data-li-template=&quot;name&quot;&gt;  &lt;div&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;4. Megan Soffer, Marketing Coordinator&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://pir.org/&quot;&gt;Public Interest Registry&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;5. Susan Tenby, Director of Online Community&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.caravanstudios.org/&quot;&gt;Caravan Studios&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;6. Joleen Ong, Director of Marketing and Publications  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nten.org&quot;&gt;Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN)&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;7. Dan Michel, Digital Marketing Director&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.feedingamerica.org&quot;&gt;Feeding America&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;8. Debbir Walyus, Web Communications Manager&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/&quot;&gt;The Salvation Army&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;9. Debra Askanase, Director of Outreach&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.braintumor.org/&quot;&gt;National Brain Tumor Society&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;10. Ivan Booth, Director&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://rootwork.org/&quot;&gt;RootWork&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;11. Darian Rodriguez Heyman, Co-Founder&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://socialmedia4nonprofits.org/&quot;&gt;Social Media for Nonprofits&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nptechforgood.com/2014/03/17/11-nonprofit-professionals-share-social-media-and-technology-advice-for-nonprofits-via-instagram-video/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/tFVRF2&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3R7L&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/2390781254036646815/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/11-nonprofit-professionals-share-social.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2390781254036646815'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2390781254036646815'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/11-nonprofit-professionals-share-social.html' title='11 Nonprofit Professionals Share Social Media and Technology Advice for Nonprofits via Instagram Video'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-4485128216617727400</id><published>2014-03-17T12:49:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-17T12:49:12.748+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Macmillan’s new social media service encourages donating through dating</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;Macmillan Cancer Support &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Aboutus/News/Latest_News/OnlinedatingmoreacceptablethaneverbeforebutmostBritsdontbelieveitsthebestwaytofindtruelove.aspx&quot;&gt;has launched&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span&gt; a new social media fundraising initiative that helps people find their perfect match while donating money to the charity.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.mymateyourdate.com/&quot;&gt;My Mate Your Date&lt;/a&gt; is a free service that lets people ask friends to match-make them via Facebook. Over a 30 day period, a carefully selected group of friends are asked to suggest suitable dates for the single person, who names an amount they will donate per date suggested. He or she then reviews the suggestions (no online profiles or photos are shared to protect privacy)&amp;nbsp;and requests introductions to those that appeal. All money collected at the end of the 30 days goes to Macmillan.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Macmillan have simultaneously revealed the results of a survey a survey it commissioned by which showed &amp;nbsp;that while nine out of ten Brits think online dating has become more acceptable in the past three years, 84% don&amp;rsquo;t believe it&amp;rsquo;s the best way to meet a long term partner. Single people also admitted that they are three times more likely to trust a Facebook profile (40%) than an online dating profile (14%).&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Dating expert Elizabeth Sullivan commented:&amp;nbsp; &lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;Whilst online dating is a great way to meet fellow singles, people often feel nervous about meeting a stranger. And with our ever increasing schedules, people are often too busy to play cupid or too embarrassed to ask friends to set them up. That&amp;rsquo;s why My Mate Your Date is a brilliant concept: it uses a very modern social media tool but goes back to the traditional method of introducing friends&amp;hellip;with an added feel good factor of giving to charity at the same time!&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/17/macmillans-new-social-media-service-encourages-donating-through-dating/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=macmillans-new-social-media-service-encourages-donating-through-dating&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/4485128216617727400/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/macmillans-new-social-media-service.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/4485128216617727400'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/4485128216617727400'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/macmillans-new-social-media-service.html' title='Macmillan’s new social media service encourages donating through dating'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-409591816559129445</id><published>2014-03-15T00:56:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-15T00:56:50.171+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Yes, Fundraising is Hard Work!</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;I stopped in my tracks and chuckled as I was getting ready for work this morning. I was listening to &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npr.org/2014/03/14/289596240/forget-nancy-drew-thanks-to-fans-veronica-mars-is-back-on-the-case&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;an interview&lt;/a&gt; with Rob Thomas, Veronica Mars creator. He was talking about TV show and its leap to the big screen. The TV show&#39;s ratings were never great, but Veronica Mars had and it turns out still has a dedicated and loyal fan base.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Thomas created a Kickstarter page to raise money for a Veronica Mars movie. He started with a $2million goal and ended up raising $6million from 91,000 dedicated fans. But, here&#39;s the part I loved, here&#39;s what made me pause and chuckle:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;blockquote&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;&quot;It&amp;#8217;s been the most work,&amp;#8221; said Thomas &amp;#8220;I just finished signing 5,500 posters this week that are all going out to Kickstarter backers.&amp;#8221;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;/blockquote&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Yes, thank you! Fundraising is hard work; sometimes hand cramping work. Maybe fundraising isn&#39;t for everyone. The story also featured Alyssa Rosenberg, Washington Post pop culture blogger.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;blockquote&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;&amp;#8220;It&amp;#8217;s a way of picking the lock on the Hollywood gate and getting around the gatekeepers,&amp;#8221; said Rosenberg. &amp;#8220;But that doesn&amp;#8217;t mean there [aren&#39;t] enormous advantages in working with mainstream studios.&amp;#8221;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;/blockquote&gt;  &lt;p&gt;While crowd funding is in vogue; I often refer to crowd fundraising as peer to peer event fundraising&#39;s cousin – it&#39;s important to recognize that it&#39;s hard work. If stewarding donors was easy wouldn&#39;t everyone be raising more money?&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;I hope this makes you chuckle today as well. It&#39;s not often that you hear someone in Hollywood be able to relate to the nonprofit world. Be great to your donors, embrace the hard work and know that it does make a difference.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Curious to see how your organization measures up with the rest of the crowd? Visit the &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/blackbaud-index&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Blackbaud Index&lt;/a&gt; and compare your fundraising prowess with the rest of the landscape.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/blackbaud-index&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/index-742x454.png&quot; alt=&quot;index 742x454 Yes, Fundraising is Hard Work!&quot; width=&quot;580&quot; height=&quot;354&quot; class=&quot;alignleft size-large wp-image-15868&quot; title=&quot;Yes, Fundraising is Hard Work!&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/event-fundraising/yes-fundraising-hard-work/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/409591816559129445/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/yes-fundraising-is-hard-work.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/409591816559129445'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/409591816559129445'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/yes-fundraising-is-hard-work.html' title='Yes, Fundraising is Hard Work!'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-5547174203721309056</id><published>2014-03-14T13:13:00.005+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-14T13:13:31.103+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Free Daffodil Day app for Android, Apple and Microsoft launched</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Dell and the Irish Cancer Society have &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;http://www.cancer.ie/content/free-daffodil-day-app-android-apple-and-microsoft-launched&quot;&gt;announced&lt;/a&gt; the availability of a free Daffodil Day smartphone app, which will empower users to discover nearby Daffodil merchandise in their area.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The app works on all platforms and has a range of exciting features including a location mapping functions that will help users find merchandise.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The new app is also a powerful charitable giving tool which makes it easier than ever to donate to the Irish Cancer Society on Daffodil Day, which will be held on March 28th this year. The team at Dell Ireland is behind the innovative mobile application, which the Irish Cancer Society hopes will be instrumental in attracting a new generation of supporters to the Daffodil Day campaign.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Shane Breslin, Web Services Manager from the Irish Cancer Society, thinks that the app will generate awareness of and support for Daffodil Day among young people.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;The tech experts at Dell have come up with a range of brilliant features including a dynamic map that lets you track down locations where campaign merchandise is available.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;You can also use the app to make a donation, to volunteer your time on March 28th, or simply to keep up to date with all the latest news and social media posts from the Irish Cancer Society. We&amp;rsquo;re encouraging everyone to download the free app today,&lt;/em&gt;&amp;rdquo; said Breslin.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The Daffodil Day app is available to download free from Google Play, Windows Phone and the iOS App Store today.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/14/free-daffodil-day-app-for-android-apple-and-microsoft-launched/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=free-daffodil-day-app-for-android-apple-and-microsoft-launched&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/5547174203721309056/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/free-daffodil-day-app-for-android-apple.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/5547174203721309056'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/5547174203721309056'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/free-daffodil-day-app-for-android-apple.html' title='Free Daffodil Day app for Android, Apple and Microsoft launched'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-2973779673345063525</id><published>2014-03-14T13:13:00.003+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-14T13:13:30.133+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Users of Cancer Research UK’s smartphone game analyse DNA data faster than scientists</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;In one month &amp;lsquo;citizen scientists&amp;rsquo; have analysed DNA data that would have taken a scientist six months to analyse by eye by playing Cancer Research UK&amp;rsquo;s new smartphone game &lt;i&gt;Play to Cure: Genes in Space. &lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If this amount of DNA &amp;ndash; tightly-coiled strings of genetic information &amp;ndash; was unravelled it would stretch across 40 miles, or (65 km). Incredibly, this is a distance equivalent to the length of more than 540 football fields, or about 80 times the height of the world&amp;rsquo;s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;These figures follow the February launch of the charity&amp;rsquo;s unique game which global gamers of all ages can play on their smartphones and simultaneously analyse gene data.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Cancer Research UK&amp;rsquo;s scientists must decode vast amounts of data to discover cancer-causing genetic faults in order to develop new targeted treatments for patients. But the human eye is needed to spot patterns in the data &amp;ndash; computers aren&amp;rsquo;t precise enough. And it would take scientists years to do this manually &amp;ndash; diverting their time from other essential research.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;But the collective clout of the sheer numbers of gamers across the world have sped this up, and will boost accuracy with many pairs of eyes examining each stretch of DNA.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In just one month, there have been 1.5 million classifications through the game from players in almost every country in world.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;And citizen scientists have collectively dedicated more than 53,000 hours &amp;ndash; six and a half years &amp;ndash; playing the game and analysed around half the data from the first research project.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Hannah Keartland, Cancer Research UK&amp;rsquo;s citizen science lead, said: &amp;ldquo;&lt;em&gt;We&amp;rsquo;re astounded by this fantastic support from citizen scientists across the world which goes to show &amp;ndash; you don&amp;rsquo;t need to wear a lab coat to be a hero.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;It&amp;rsquo;s crucial we don&amp;rsquo;t stop here because the more people who play in their spare moments, the quicker we&amp;rsquo;ll make a difference. There never again needs to be such a thing as a boring queue!&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;It&amp;rsquo;s still early days but we believe the collective force of global gamers could have a massive impact and speed up our life-saving research.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The game is available to download now for free for anyone with an Android or Apple Smartphone.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/14/users-of-cancer-research-uks-smartphone-game-analyse-dna-data-faster-than-scientists/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=users-of-cancer-research-uks-smartphone-game-analyse-dna-data-faster-than-scientists&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/2973779673345063525/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/users-of-cancer-research-uks-smartphone.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2973779673345063525'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2973779673345063525'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/users-of-cancer-research-uks-smartphone.html' title='Users of Cancer Research UK’s smartphone game analyse DNA data faster than scientists'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-7523458010163196897</id><published>2014-03-14T13:13:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-14T13:13:29.406+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Virtual mentoring charity in Africa looks for volunteers</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&lt;span&gt;Grow Movement&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;has helped create hundreds of jobs in Africa through virtual mentoring, helping to transform the lives of thousands through a simple phone call.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The charity pairs up business consultants across the world with businessmen and women in Uganda, Rwanda and Malawi to give advice over Skype, phone and email.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;lsquo;Volunteer Consultants&amp;rsquo; use their specialist knowledge to share information with anyone from chicken part sellers and tailors in Malawi, perfume shops in Uganda and rubbish collectors in Rwanda and identify areas for improvement, eventually growing the business and creating vital jobs in the community from the comfort of their desks.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Grow Movement was set up by fund manager Chris Coghlan in 2009 after studying the Rwandan genocide at university and witnessing the extreme levels of human suffering when volunteering in Mozambique, the DR Congo and Rwanda.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Frustrated by current methods of tackling world poverty, and seeing how easy it was to get a mobile connection in even the most remote areas, he identified a way to utilise this to empower business owners.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The charity has now helped to create almost 500 jobs &amp;ndash; 84 in Rwanda, 27 in Malawi and 371 in Uganda &amp;ndash; with the aim of creating another 1,000 jobs by 2015. Through this success, approximately 15,216 people have been positively affected &amp;ndash; be they families, children, friends or the wider community.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;21 per cent of the businesses involved have also evolved from micro to small businesses, and 41 per cent have seen an increase in profits.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Volunteering with the charity is a way to play a role without needing to take a sabbatical or spend months away from home; an opportunity to create jobs and see the direct results of their advice through personal relationships rather than simply contributing money. They can learn about the day-to-day challenges entrepreneurs in remote parts of Africa face as well as practice their own skills and enhance their CVs.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;With a huge need for expertise to help the growing numbers of retail entrepreneurs in these countries, the charity is now launching a drive to sign up Volunteer Consultants within the industry to coach in everything from marketing to price promotion and product placement.&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;According to CEO Claire Jenkins CEO: &lt;em&gt;&amp;ldquo;I am constantly blown away by the energy and drive of all our entrepreneurs &amp;ndash; there is such motivation to improve their businesses, to become employers themselves and to contribute to their countries. All they need is guidance in the issues we take for granted when going shopping, such as advertising and promoting products by price and USP. This is a chance for potential volunteers to take on a life-changing role without taking a long break from work &amp;ndash; all it takes is a few phone calls and emails. It&amp;rsquo;s an incredibly insightful, unique and challenging experience where skills are shared on both sides &amp;ndash; the volunteers also learn a huge amount from their clients.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/14/virtual-mentoring-charity-in-africa-looks-for-volunteers/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=virtual-mentoring-charity-in-africa-looks-for-volunteers&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/7523458010163196897/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-mentoring-charity-in-africa.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7523458010163196897'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7523458010163196897'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-mentoring-charity-in-africa.html' title='Virtual mentoring charity in Africa looks for volunteers'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3174006884994303752</id><published>2014-03-14T11:22:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-14T11:22:53.443+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Why You Should Start Your Year-End Fundraising NOW</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Blackbaud published &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving-infographic#.UyJev1FdU70&quot;&gt;this stunning infographic, summarizing their 2013 Charitable Giving Report&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; style=&quot;font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.5em;&quot; alt=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/static_top-877x1024.png&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; title=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; alt=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/static_middle.png&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; title=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; alt=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/giving-distribution-by-month-1024x630.png&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; title=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; alt=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; src=&quot;http://www.johnhaydon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/static_bottom.png&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; title=&quot;Why You Should Start Your Year End Fundraising NOW&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;Three action items from Blackbaud&amp;#8217;s 2013 Charitable Giving Report&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Scroll up for a moment and check out the monthly giving chart.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Doesn&amp;#8217;t it look like an interval training screen on a Stairmaster? You start out with smaller peaks and valleys (sprint, rest) during the first nine months, followed with an all out dash to the finish line.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Here are three training tips for success in 2014:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;1. Build stamina&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Given the fact that most giving happens during the last three months of the year (a trend that will continue for years to come),  spend the first nine months training for a successful 4th quarter.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Set shorter-term goals for online engagement, list growth, open and click rates, and conversion rates. This will help you create a community that&#39;s vibrant and responsive to your messages, going into October.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;2. Build community&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;It goes without saying that donors need to know, like and trust your organization before they will give you money.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;If you wait until October to start engaging your community, they&amp;#8217;ll have little reason to trust your year-end appeal. Use social media to listen to and connect with your community.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Be passionate, present, and make every effort to be useful.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;3. Build systems&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In order to be successful during an event like #GivingTuesday, you need to have the systems.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Your fundraising software should support the specific types of fundraising campaigns you do (walks, peer-to-peer, matching, etc).&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Your e-mail software should also support &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-admin/%5Bhttp%3A//www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2014/02/04/how-are-you-segmenting-your-email-list/&quot;&gt;smart segmentation&lt;/a&gt; so that you can be sure you&#39;re communicating with your donors in more meaningful and purposeful ways.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;Write it down&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;p&gt;There&#39;s no shame if you don&#39;t have a written plan. But there is shame If you don&#39;t write one soon.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Set your plan. Refocus. Review.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h3&gt;How are you preparing for year-end?&lt;/h3&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div&gt;  &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:yIl2AUoC8zA&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=yIl2AUoC8zA&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:V_sGLiPBpWU&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:qj6IDK7rITs&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=qj6IDK7rITs&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:gIN9vFwOqvQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:bJvry7eZRwQ&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?i=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:F7zBnMyn0Lo&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?a=RgXXI2ZPNjk:YyPT3q-bR-g:TzevzKxY174&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing?d=TzevzKxY174&quot; border=&quot;0&quot;&gt;&lt;/img&gt;&lt;/a&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~4/RgXXI2ZPNjk&quot; height=&quot;1&quot; width=&quot;1&quot; /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Corporatedollarorg-ExceedYourOn-lineFundraisingGoalsWithSocialMediaMarketing/~3/RgXXI2ZPNjk/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/7rpLzk&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3S3K&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3174006884994303752/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/why-you-should-start-your-year-end.html#comment-form' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3174006884994303752'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3174006884994303752'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/why-you-should-start-your-year-end.html' title='Why You Should Start Your Year-End Fundraising NOW'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-2885513717592189155</id><published>2014-03-14T00:19:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-14T00:19:04.499+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Invest in the 3 Cs for Strong Fundraising Results: Capacity, Cultivation and Communication</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;2013 was a strong year for fundraising, with charities posting their best increase since before the economy plunged in 2008, according to the &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving?utm_source=npengage&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=CGR2014&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;2013 Charitable Giving Report&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Helping to drive that growth, experts say, was a recovering economy and a focus on fundraising fundamentals, including investment in fundraising capacity and attention to cultivating major donors, using data to better understand and segment donors, refining communications, focusing on impact, and making more effective use of technology.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Here are fundraising strategies that proved effective across the sector:&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Healthcare – Investing in capacity&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Investment in fundraising capacity continued to pay off in 2013 for hospitals, medical centers and long-term care facilities, said Bill McGinly, president and CEO of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP). Organizations that raised the most money invested more in staff, in securing major gifts, and in overall fundraising capacity. &amp;#8220;It costs money to bring in money,&amp;#8221; McGinly said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Higher education – Cultivating major gifts&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  A rebounding economy and long-term investment in major gift donors paid off for colleges and universities in 2013, said John Lippincott, president of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Schools that have shown fundraising success also are doing a good job in their stewardship of donors, including younger donors, by engaging them in their institutions in ongoing ways, he said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;K-12 – Driven by data&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Attention to data is driving fundraising at independent schools, which have seen steady growth in fundraising revenue since 2000, said Donna Orem, chief operating officer at the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). Schools are using data to better understand donors based on factors such as gender and race, segmenting their base of donors and prospects. And with 10 percent of donors typically accounting for 90 percent of fundraising revenue, she said, schools are focusing most of their efforts in major-gift fundraising.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;International affairs – Refining the message&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  With serious disasters abroad in 2013 eclipsing those in the U.S., international aid organizations showed an enhanced focused on disaster planning and preparation before disasters, said Bob Ottenhoff, president and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy. International aid groups also have focused more attention on post-disaster recovery and rebuilding, and turned increasingly to social media to help educate donors about disaster needs, he said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Faith-based – Focus on fundamentals&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  For those faith-based-affiliated charities that are increasing revenue, fundraising fundamentals continue to drive that increase, said Rick Dunham, president and CEO of Dunham &amp;#038; Company. Those fundamentals include effective integration of communications using multiple channels. Among them are attention to major donors, the use of direct mail, online communications and the use of telephone communications to support those appeals. In addition, there is attention to major donor development and a focus on the cause and the people affected by the work of the charity.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Arts and culture – Giving for impact&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Museums have shifted the focus of their fundraising to better address demand from donors who want to know the difference their gift makes, said Ford Bell, president of the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). With donors receiving a growing number of funding requests from nonprofits that address basic needs such as shelter, food and clothing, Bell said, museums have been doing a much better job talking about the diverse roles they play in their communities.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Public society benefit – Diversification and impact&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  With growth in fundraising growing only modestly in recent years, United Way has been diversifying its fundraising and focusing on its impact, said Sherrie Brach, executive vice president of investor relations at United Way Worldwide. That strategy has included targeting women, young professionals and major donors, engaging workplace donors as volunteers, focusing on solving community problems, and &amp;#8220;productizing&amp;#8221; priority community initiatives to generate new investment opportunities for individuals, corporations and foundations, Brach said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Environment – Connecting with donors&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Conservation-oriented environmental groups have focused their fundraising on getting donors more involved in &amp;#8220;places that matter,&amp;#8221; and showing them the impact of their gifts, said Doug Barker, co-founder and principal at Barker &amp;#038; Scott Consulting. So environmental and conservation groups have been inviting donors and prospective donors to outings and talking to them about &amp;#8220;what&amp;#8217;s so special about those particular places.&amp;#8221; Those outings can include activities for families and children, and can pave the way for additional gifts.&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Human services – Communication and planning&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  Human services organizations, faced with uncertain government funding, are turning increasing attention to communicating more effectively and planning more strategically, said Michael Nilsen, vice president for public affairs at the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). That includes rebranding themselves, telling their stories more effectively, assessing the impact of their programs, making better use of digital technology, and turning to donors for advice, he said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Medical research: Peer-to-peer fundraising&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  The last five years have seen a flowering of smaller peer-to-peer fundraising programs, said David Hessekiel, president of The Run Walk Ride Fundraising Council. Still, while the number of new peer-to-peer programs has grown, fundraising revenue that big proprietary programs generate has remained flat, he said. Nonprofits considering peer-to-peer programs should set realistic goals and recognize the costs that will be required, Hessekiel said.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Read more sector analysis in the A Closer Look section of the &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving?utm_source=npengage&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=CGR2014&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;2013 Charitable Giving Report&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/npengage/~3/HgXypB6aBdU/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/2885513717592189155/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/invest-in-3-cs-for-strong-fundraising.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2885513717592189155'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/2885513717592189155'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/invest-in-3-cs-for-strong-fundraising.html' title='Invest in the 3 Cs for Strong Fundraising Results: Capacity, Cultivation and Communication'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-7276579478532094894</id><published>2014-03-13T17:01:00.000+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-13T17:02:00.624+00:00</updated><title type='text'>How to Overcome the 4 Roadblocks Facing Your Grant Strategy</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Guest post by David Kilmer. David is the Lead Solutions Engineer at Blackbaud for our enterprise customers. David has over 10 years experience working with nonprofit organizations to optimize their accounting processes.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;       &lt;/span&gt; &lt;span&gt;      &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In such a competitive landscape, nonprofit organizations are facing a variety of challenges that start with the need to diversify revenue streams and can include a range of issues including a decrease in unrestricted monies to growing demands in services offered.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;For organizations that received government funds through grants or contracts, these government agencies require detailed and &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/nonprofit-management/the-impact-your-accounting-system-has-grant-tracking/&quot;&gt;highly specific reporting and accountability structures&lt;/a&gt; to ensure the monies were used appropriately and to avoid fraud, waste and abuse.  Meeting the requirements can generate significant challenges and &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/financial-management/what-are-admin-expenses/&quot;&gt;increased administrative burdens&lt;/a&gt;, but is essential for future grant consideration.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;So what are the 4 most common challenges and what can be done to limit their impact on your &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/nonprofit-management/need-killer-grant-strategy-maybe-its-time-partner-with-these-two-groups/&quot;&gt;grant strategy&lt;/a&gt;?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Cost Accounting&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;One of the primary roadblocks nonprofits face when awarded grants or contracts is their cost accounting practices.  Cost accounting for grants and contract typically leads to a more stringent set of requirements related to cost charging practices.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To avoid noncompliance issues, organizations will need to provide assurance that there is consistency in estimating, accumulating, and reporting expenditures incurred, and that costs incurred for the same purpose in like circumstances have been treated consistently as either direct or indirect costs. Many organizations opt for multiple segments or other tracking mechanisms to alleviate this burden.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Cost Charging&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Cost charging issues faced by nonprofits can include challenges around allowable charges, lack of documentation, and shifting of costs. These issues can lead to costs being disallowed under government grants and contracts and organizations will have to bear the impact.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To be allowable, all direct and indirect costs must be adequately supported by source documentation that clearly shows the purpose and circumstance for the cost incurred. It is important to note that verbal approval is insufficient support for costs under a contract or grant. In addition, nonprofits should have controls in place to avoid costs being shifted to a federal award to overcome funding deficiencies.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Payroll Timekeeping&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Due to the nature of the work and a lack of training, detailed and accurate timekeeping can be an ongoing challenge for nonprofits.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;To be allowable, labor must be based on accurate timesheets reflecting the actual activities of all employees. It is important for nonprofits to convey to employees the difference between actual and budgeted hours for timesheet purposes.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Budget Limitations&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Nonprofit organizations must adhere to any budget limitations or restrictions incorporated into their grants or contracts. These limitations can be in the form of types of expenses (allowable vs. non-allowable), spending caps on certain expenses, ceilings on indirect rates, or overall funding limits.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;It is important for nonprofits to establish a budgeting process to ensure all parties involved understand the grant or contract budget limitations. In addition, many grants and contract agreements may include a clause to prevent increases in budget line items without the prior review and approval of the granting body. The organization should ensure this approval is retained for documentation purposes.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Nonprofits should make it a priority to review their current practices for compliance and be more prepared to appropriately administer their grants and contracts.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://hello.blackbaud.com/GMBU_5012_FINA_1HProgram_March_eBook_eBookRegistrationLP?utm_source=npengage&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=fe_grants_ebook&quot;&gt;Need More Expert Advice? Download our new FREE eBook on Grant Management!&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://hello.blackbaud.com/GMBU_5012_FINA_1HProgram_March_eBook_eBookRegistrationLP?utm_source=npengage&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=fe_grants_ebook&quot;&gt;&lt;img class=&quot;aligncenter&quot; alt=&quot;FINA March BlogCTA eBook How to Overcome the 4 Roadblocks Facing Your Grant Strategy&quot; src=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/FINA_March_BlogCTA_eBook.jpg&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; height=&quot;150&quot; title=&quot;How to Overcome the 4 Roadblocks Facing Your Grant Strategy&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/nonprofit-management/how-overcome-the-4-roadblocks-facing-your-grant-strategy/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/7276579478532094894/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/how-to-overcome-4-roadblocks-facing.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7276579478532094894'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7276579478532094894'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/how-to-overcome-4-roadblocks-facing.html' title='How to Overcome the 4 Roadblocks Facing Your Grant Strategy'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-1899217137835842365</id><published>2014-03-13T11:09:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-13T11:09:30.820+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Crimestoppers launches social media campaign to combat rural crime</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Crimestoppers is launching a social media campaign in a bid to tackle rural crime such as poaching, hare-coursing, and theft.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Working with Northamptonshire volunteer committee, law enforcement agencies and rural partners, the &amp;ldquo;Scene it. Herd it. Speak up about it. Anonymously&amp;rdquo; message urges the public to speak out about any crime they have witnessed. The message will be spread using Facebook, twitter and local alert systems.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Northamptonshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Adam Simmonds, said: &lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;As ever, Crimestoppers is a key advocate in the fight against crime. Rural crime can have a devastating effect on its victims so it is desperately important that communities help to tackle the problem by reporting suspicious behaviour and incidents. Rural communities matter and I think this is a marvellous campaign.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/13/crimestoppers-launches-social-media-campaign-to-combat-rural-crime/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=crimestoppers-launches-social-media-campaign-to-combat-rural-crime&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/1899217137835842365/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/crimestoppers-launches-social-media.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/1899217137835842365'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/1899217137835842365'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/crimestoppers-launches-social-media.html' title='Crimestoppers launches social media campaign to combat rural crime'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-788676482668733091</id><published>2014-03-12T15:26:00.000+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-12T15:27:02.768+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Emerging technology, the cloud and your charity</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Technology Trust has joined up with Microsoft and SoftwareONE to bring together a day which will cover all aspects of the cloud and how it can help your charity achieve more.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The event, which takes place on 26th March at Microsoft in London, will also feature a hands-on experience of cloud technology on the very latest tablets including the Surface.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Spaces are limited, so&amp;nbsp;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; rel=&quot;external&quot; href=&quot;https://api.hubapi.com/email/v1/click?v=3&amp;amp;e=f18dQhb0S65M2jXDgjW11MbRN51zXByW55j.j13SLMG7W1ZnJhG2vPNZ9W1dnNSF3sBdMNW86M98Q7TSGwNW4QlPQy8_ScgWVmsKgG76mrq9W7FhXCQ6WG1NNW9gG6Hh92zwshW3_4qd_1sd6bFW3K5xvt73kGMSW53jpTc30b3k0N4dlb_2XMNLfW33jKGw6rsMwrF8lvZKw4k0yW8gP.D11.R3b1VDZVD878kKyZW1LwdH35mfTwgVkT_zw6bgfKNW3nVlyy1VMPs6W7tQLQP5wklCxW6pZJRg2Dk2h9W4yLGN042pScLN70628ZTHFzwW6RnQJP13_4ZbW22jwtR7.j23bW6RPgKj6ZC60kW6Vm3Qj4L09bHW1BGfQT8x_k51W7Wnb_m63kCKZW2xmFDv3FZVjnW3z8mpy3gngFsW4L_ClR8Zh8F4W1NYYT96.sPQ5V6_XH35Xx23cW3Cyrc43CSrSFW99cT_.7P0JghW6YWfMj88p9.f102&quot;&gt;register&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&amp;nbsp;your attendance now!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/12/emerging-technology-the-cloud-and-your-charity/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=emerging-technology-the-cloud-and-your-charity&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/788676482668733091/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/emerging-technology-cloud-and-your_12.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/788676482668733091'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/788676482668733091'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/emerging-technology-cloud-and-your_12.html' title='Emerging technology, the cloud and your charity'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-67192318762703266</id><published>2014-03-12T13:48:00.004+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-12T13:49:00.175+00:00</updated><title type='text'>What Can Your Event and Whole Foods Have in Common?</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;At this year&#39;s P2P Professional Forum there was much discussion in the Endurance Summit about recruiting, retention and the participant experience. Later while shopping at my neighborhood Whole Foods, it had me thinking how an event experience compares to my favorite grocery store from choosing to participate and deciding to return.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;My husband argues that Whole Foods isn&#39;t the most economical choice, and he isn&#39;t completely wrong. While I feel like I score big frugal points when scooping out my red quinoa and French lentils in the bulk foods isle, we do pay more for our produce whether it is organic or not. So &lt;em&gt;why am I&lt;/em&gt; willing to pay almost 8 cents more for my conventional bananas?&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;While strolling through my neighborhood store, I understood exactly why: their service and the experience are impeccable almost every time.  While all Whole Foods aren&#39;t created equal, there are ways my store keeps me coming back. As you read through these ways below, think: Does my organization offer the same qualities to our event participants?&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Customer Service&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  No matter what time of day, I&#39;m greeted by smiling associates asking if I am finding everything I need. Early one morning not wanting to bother the associate on a ladder a few feet down, I found myself standing on my tippy toes trying to reach a can of garbanzo beans. But without asking, she stepped off her ladder assisted me, smiled and then asked me if I was making hummus. I was. Then she inquired if I liked spicy food. I do! Then she described an easy roasted chipotle pepper hummus recipe. Nice!&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;My point isn&#39;t about the chipotle hummus or even that I wasn&#39;t forced to use my &quot;Go Go Gadgit&quot; arms to reach those beans, but that she engaged me with a great recipe idea. I had the can of beans, but was I aware I could make something really delicious?&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;How do you engage and serve your participants as they fundraise through your event? They&#39;ve registered and they have access to online tools, so now offer them tips and training opportunities to move them toward success.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;How Well Do You Know Your Supporters?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  I&amp;#8217;m just one of the thousands of people that meander through their doors everyday, but my store takes opportunities to know me personally.  Gretta, an associate, approached me when I voiced my excitement about a new wine find. After a brief chat, she offered to call or text me if she saw a comparable vintage in my price range. And when she does, her suggestion is spot on.  I&#39;ve had similar experiences with associates in other departments as well.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;I know they do this to increase my total at the register, but it still makes me feel special AND I&#39;m not flooded with information about every new thing that passes through the isle. (Think segmenting!) These little efforts keep me coming back.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;How do you recognize all of your fundraisers? What do you do to make your top 10% fundraisers feel special versus your top 40%? It can be as simple as a phone call, a nice note, taking someone out for a cup of coffee, or sending an email when they&#39;ve reached their goal, but remember great engagement goes beyond sending something to the inbox.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Sense of Community&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;  My store has community events all year round. Every Fourth of July, their parking lot is jam-packed with tailgaters waiting for the fireworks to start. Throughout the year there are in-store dinners featuring local farms and cooking classes for kids and adults. They find ways to bring us all together at &lt;em&gt;our&lt;/em&gt; store, reminding us that we have things in common and giving us the opportunity to meet new people. It provides us a sense of place.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Make your supporters are part of your community and find ways to provide them sense of belonging. Most of your participants have a connection to your cause, so find ways to nurture that connection. Schedule a Run and Brunch, send out recipes as they train for the big ride or offer additional ways to learn more about the impact your organization makes. Show them they are a true partner in your organization working together towards accomplishing your mission.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;I started going to Whole Foods simply because they make it fun, but it is the way they connect with me that keep me coming back as a loyal customer.  The same can apply with your event. Your supporters sign up because they have a connection, they want to have fun and also because they want to be a part of something. Once you&#39;ve got their foot in the door, think about how you will nurture them to make them long-time supporters.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;I would love to hear from you in terms of how you engage your event participants. What are ways you make your participants feel special to keep them coming back?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/npengage/~3/zIXZiEGHFAg/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/67192318762703266/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/what-can-your-event-and-whole-foods.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/67192318762703266'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/67192318762703266'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/what-can-your-event-and-whole-foods.html' title='What Can Your Event and Whole Foods Have in Common?'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3459471817595964465</id><published>2014-03-12T13:48:00.003+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-12T13:48:59.066+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Fundraising Basics:[Part 2] Provide Great Donor Service</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In &lt;strong&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.npengage.com/fundraising/create-and-provide-value-donors/&quot;&gt;part one of the Fundraising Basics&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; series, we began exploring the core principles of fundraising and how your organization can harness them to acquire, retain, and upgrade your donors. I believe that when organizations focus on these core principles and best practices, no matter how simple, basic, or straightforward, it leads to &lt;strong&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving&quot;&gt;sustainable and substantial growth&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;We kicked-off by exploring the importance of viewing your donors as customers and offering value in exchange for contributions.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;This week, in part two, we&amp;#8217;ll cover why it is important to provide exceptional service to your donors, and how to do so with one simple rule:&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://iframewidth=420height=315src=//www.youtube.com/embed/ArVUoJuxRagframeborder=0allowfullscreen/iframe&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;How to Provide Exceptional Donor Service with One Simple Rule &amp;#8211; Video Transcript&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;This is Part two of Back to Basics: How to Acquire, Retain, and Upgrade Your Donors.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In Part one, we learned why donors are customers and we also learned three principles for fundraising success &amp;#8211; offer a valuable product, provide great service, and build a donor-focused approach.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In this video, we&amp;#8217;ll cover number two: provide great service. I don&amp;#8217;t know many people who don&amp;#8217;t like or are indifferent towards great service. Personally, I enjoy great service. In fact, in certain circumstances, I will choose certain companies, businesses, and non-profit organizations based on the quality of service they provide. Donors are no different. Providing great service is about building relationships and loyalty with donors. Great service is a product of being responsive, attentive, accurate, timely, courteous, and gracious to your donors, while providing them an experience that is memorable, valuable, and enjoyable.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Here is one statistic that shows why providing great donor service is important: Adrian Sargeant&amp;#8217;s research on donor retention found that only 10% of donors were very satisfied with the service quality of the organizations they supported, but donors who were very satisfied with service quality, were two times more likely to make a further donation than those who were merely satisfied. So, if only 10% of donors give five stars for service, then there is considerable value to be gained by improved donor service. Donors that rate service at five stars are two times more likely to give than four stars. Think about the potential swing in giving from two and three stars to five stars. That statistic shows an incredible opportunity to capture more donor value with better donor service. But, this statistic makes intuitive sense. Would you rather have a relationship with an organization that is responsive, attentive, and courteous? Or a relationship that is unresponsive, inattentive, and ungrateful? This sounds like a silly question, but donors make this choice everyday.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;We&amp;#8217;ve all experience poor service, whether as a customers of a business or a donor of a non-profit. And I am positive that you weren&amp;#8217;t dying to support that business or non-profit again. Donors are customers of your organization. As a result, donors services are an important part of the donation process before the donation, during the giving process and after a donation is collected.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;So, how do we provide great service? There are three components of great customer service: be responsive, be attentive and be positive. Be responsive. Good customer service is always marked by responsiveness. Be responsive to your donor&amp;#8217;s needs, questions, comments, concerns, likes and dislikes. Being responsive shows respect, courtesy, and is a core staple of good customer service. Be attentive. Listen to your donors. Listen to their likes, dislikes, passions, challenges, and feelings. Use the wealth of information you can get directly from the source. Then use this information to implement changes that connect with your donors on their level. Be positive. Be happy, cheerful and energetic with your donors. Represent your mission with passion and positive energy. The act of giving to your organization should feel good.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;In addition to those three concepts, the single greatest way to test whether you are providing great donor service is to use the golden rule. Yes, I&amp;#8217;m talking about the rule we all learned in grade school. Treat others the way you would like to be treated. The golden rule is the perfect test for the donor service you provide. If you were giving, and felt passionately about your contribution to an organization, how would you like to be served by that organization?&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Treat donors the way you would like to be treated. Test the way you serve donors on yourself. If the service you provide passes the test, then you know the service you are providing donors is authentic, genuine, and in keeping with your personal expectations and standards.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Watch part three of this series to learn why it is important to build a donor-focused approach, and how to do it.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;h2&gt;Don&amp;#8217;t Miss Part Three!&lt;/h2&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Next week we&amp;#8217;ll be covering why it is important to put the donor at the center of your fundraising efforts.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/npengage/~3/rh1f3zYzl_A/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3459471817595964465/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/fundraising-basicspart-2-provide-great.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3459471817595964465'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3459471817595964465'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/fundraising-basicspart-2-provide-great.html' title='Fundraising Basics:[Part 2] Provide Great Donor Service'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-7357699054247225958</id><published>2014-03-12T13:48:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-12T13:48:57.805+00:00</updated><title type='text'>[Infographic] 2013 Charitable Giving Report</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving?utm_source=agitator&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=CGR2014&quot;&gt;2013 Charitable Giving Report&lt;/a&gt; includes 24 months of overall giving data from 4,129 nonprofit organizations representing more than $12.5 billion in total fundraising. The report also includes online giving data from 3,359 nonprofits representing $1.7 billion in online fundraising. It is the largest analysis of actual overall and online giving data in the nonprofit sector.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Here&amp;#8217;s an infographic that highlights some of the most important findings and trends from the report. You can visit &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving?utm_source=agitator&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=CGR2014&quot;&gt;www.blackbaud.com/charitablegiving&lt;/a&gt; to down the report.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/charitablegiving?utm_source=agitator&amp;amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;amp;utm_campaign=CGR2014&quot;&gt;&lt;img alt=&quot;2013 Charitable Giving Report By Blackbaud [Infographic] 2013 Charitable Giving Report &quot; src=&quot;https://www.blackbaud.com/image/infographics/2013_Charitable_Giving_Report_By_Blackbaud.jpg&quot; width=&quot;960&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; title=&quot;[Infographic] 2013 Charitable Giving Report &quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/npengage/~3/4CJj4re3NwM/&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/rHXsSS&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3Tjj&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/7357699054247225958/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/infographic-2013-charitable-giving.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7357699054247225958'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/7357699054247225958'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/infographic-2013-charitable-giving.html' title='[Infographic] 2013 Charitable Giving Report'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-3101853332816297265</id><published>2014-03-11T11:28:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-11T11:28:59.879+00:00</updated><title type='text'>Sightsavers gives global staff increased visibility and control with SelectHR</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Sightsavers has plans to work with Access Group to utilise its human resources software SelectHR across 30 developing countries.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;The software will allow employee records to be updated by staff through the self-service module, reducing the administrative strain on by the HR department. Staff have improved access to information and more control, enhancing efficiency across the organisation.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Elissa Pette, Director of Human Resources and Operational Development said: &lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;We&amp;rsquo;re upgrading to SelectHR to give us the functionality required to support our global systems.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;We work in more than 30 developing countries and so we were looking for a system that works for all the offices. We have a great deal of confidence in Access&amp;rsquo; SelectHR, as we are able to work collectively from one point of information.&amp;rdquo;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;We plan on using SelectHR as a strategic point of data for reporting. Starting with enabling line managers, now we have the ability to access data and reports, without relying on additional staff to approve the process, this will save a great deal of time for the HR team.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/11/sightsavers-gives-global-staff-increased-visibility-and-control-with-selecthr/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=sightsavers-gives-global-staff-increased-visibility-and-control-with-selecthr&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/3101853332816297265/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/sightsavers-gives-global-staff.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3101853332816297265'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/3101853332816297265'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/sightsavers-gives-global-staff.html' title='Sightsavers gives global staff increased visibility and control with SelectHR'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4335693858066390379.post-155945727212340482</id><published>2014-03-11T10:47:00.001+00:00</published><updated>2014-03-11T10:47:33.153+00:00</updated><title type='text'>ActionAid to improve supporter care services with help from Connect Assist</title><content type='html'>&lt;p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In a bid to raise its income by 39% by 2017 and its supporter base by 20%, global poverty charity ActionAid brought in external consultants Connect Assist to support the review and redevelopment of its supporter care services.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Connect Assist, which advises charities and public sector organisations on best practice for efficient communications, made plans to implement multi-channel services and integrated online services. This will ensure that the anti-poverty charity can connect more effectively with its supporters, harnessing platforms such as online communications, SMS and live web-chat.&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;Patrick Nash, CEO of Connect Assist said:&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;The review highlighted the need for Action Aid to update and improve the delivery of its Supporter Care services and over the 35 days, our consultancy work helped them to develop plans to deliver a flexible, highly agile and responsive service to manage their supporters&amp;rsquo;needs. &lt;/i&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;&amp;ldquo;Charities must care for their supporters and keep them informed about their activities &amp;ndash; but against a backdrop of increasingly tight budgets, this can be difficult. Yet, by communicating with donors through platforms like SMS and social media, they can reduce their costs, while maintaining a high impact.&amp;rdquo; &amp;nbsp;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/2014/03/11/actionaid-to-improve-supporter-care-services-with-help-from-connect-assist/?utm_source=rss&amp;amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;amp;utm_campaign=actionaid-to-improve-supporter-care-services-with-help-from-connect-assist&quot; target=&quot;_tab&quot;&gt;View full article&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;    &lt;p style=&quot;font-size:0px&quot;&gt;(&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/n0v/b7KTg&quot;&gt;unsubscribe from this feed&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;img src=&quot;https://blogtrottr.com/spot/4Ybq/0/3RgR&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/feeds/155945727212340482/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/actionaid-to-improve-supporter-care.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/155945727212340482'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/4335693858066390379/posts/default/155945727212340482'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://digitalfundraiser.blogspot.com/2014/03/actionaid-to-improve-supporter-care.html' title='ActionAid to improve supporter care services with help from Connect Assist'/><author><name>Anonymous</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/04420661648385629976</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>