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Do I Still Love Premiums!? (2022 update added)

Direct Mail, Bequests and Legacies, Major and Mid Value Donors, Monthly Giving
Are premium direct mails still pulling their weight in donor acquisition? Direct mail, and in particular, premium direct mail, provided the largest source of new ‘one-off’ donors in Australia and New Zealand in 2016.  Also, direct mail is also the…
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Nine Ways to Beat Burnout, Even This Year

Self-Care
If you’ve been through a pregnancy — even if only via a partner or family member who was pregnant — you know just how long nine months can be. It’s a taste of eternity. And not the good kind. So…
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BOOK REVIEW: Orbiting the Giant Hairball

Books, Creativity
Orbiting the Giant Hairball: A Corporate Fool’s Guide to Surviving with Grace by Gordon MacKenzie I read a lot of books that are meant to make me better at my work. You probably do too. Every fundraising book I can…
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All You Need Is Love: Nearly Everything I Know about Fundraising I Learned from the Beatles

Fun
One of the great things about fundraising is you can find the information and inspiration you need just about anywhere. I’ve found a treasury of fundraising wisdom in the work of the Beatles … When I’m Sixty-Four By a wide…
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26 Tips for More Effective Fundraising Writing

Fundraising, Writing
1. Write the call to action (the reply device or landing page) first It’s very un-Zen to say it, but fundraising is more about the destination than the journey. You’re going to arrive a lot more successfully when you know…
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Effective Fundraising Is Always a “Choose Your Own Adventure” Story

Storytelling
Remember those Choose Your Own Adventure books? They are kid-fiction adventures that originated in the late 70s. Each book is narrated in the second person — you — and offers periodic decision points for the reader. It goes something like…
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Bananas and Direct Mail Fundraising: 3 Easy Improvements

Direct Mail
I bet you didn’t know there’s another way to peel a banana. Not just another way, but a far better way that’s easier, less messy, and leaves you with more yummy banana to eat. How often do we get to…
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The Beauty of Ugly Fundraising

Fundraising
How many times have you heard people complain about fundraising — especially direct mail:  It’s so ugly! In fact, you’ll often hear the hypothesis that if it weren’t ugly, it would work a lot better. As if the problem is…
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Your donors are not robots

VIDEO: Adrian Sargeant Reveals How Fundraising Meets Human Needs

Donor Psychology
Professor Adrian Sargeant of The Philanthropy Centre describes research into some of the human needs that charitable giving can help people meet: Connectedness Autonomy Competence Growth Purpose in Life Self-acceptance When fundraisers aim their strategy and messaging at these fundamental…
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VIDEO: Does Fundraising Make You Feel Like a Used Car Salesman? GOOD!

Fundraising
Fundraising professional, meet Crazy Eddie. You probably aren’t going to like him. He’s loud and obnoxious. I mean, really REALLY LOUD and OBNOXIOUS. But Crazy Eddie can teach us fundraisers a thing or two, especially when it comes to that…
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