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Pop Art Surprised woman banknote hundred dollars e1528105619960

Does Your Fundraising Secretly Say, “Don’t Bother Giving”?

Fundraising
Let’s say you go to a shoe store and find a perfect pair of shoes: comfortable, great looking, right style. You ask a clerk (“footwear specialists” they’re probably called these days) how much the shoes cost. “You can purchase footwear…
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Pop Art Hand with envelope

Should You Call Your Direct Mail Appeal an “Annual Fund”?

Direct Mail
From his new comfy chair, Fundraisingologist Jeff looks into the often-used but puzzling phrase “Annual Fund” that’s so often seen in direct mail fundraising. Does it work? Find out. (And witness the strange drama of the comfy chair.) Have you…
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pop art man singing 123rf

What Singing in a Swedish Choir Taught Me about Fundraising

Fundraising
I sing in a Swedish choir. I wasn’t expecting to learn anything about fundraising from the experience, but I did. I’ll show you what I learned. (It’s quite practical, I promise.). I’ll also show you some interesting things about Swedish…
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Pop Art Sing

5 Professional Tips for Making Your Fundraising Stories Sing

Storytelling
Jeff Brooks joins long-time friend and colleague, Kristine Poggioli to talk about writing great stories for fundraising — for direct mail, email, or any other medium. Kristine’s tips for fundraising stories that really do the job: Grab the reader’s attention…
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VIDEO: Stupid Fundraising Sometimes Works

Donor Love
Jeff dons his “mean teacher” costume to tell the smart fundraisers a secret about how to think about fundraising in a way that will keep you clear-headed, realistic, and open-minded. Don’t miss this important mini-lecture. It might be on the…
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Fundraising ideas

Where Good Fundraising Ideas Are Born

Creativity
In fundraising, as in any creative work, ideas are among the most precious things we have. Big ideas. Small ideas. New ideas. Even old ideas brought back to life. People who are good at dreaming up ideas — especially good…
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I Want an Award for My Fundraising Work! Do You Too?

Direct Mail
This happens to me from time to time: Some kind of awards for fundraising are announced. And I didn’t win any. I feel jealous. I start thinking, I’ve done some really great work in the last year. I should win…
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Angry Bees and Direct Mail Fundraising

Storytelling
Not long ago, when I was in Toronto airport on Canada Day (1st July) I read a fascinating story about a ‘Transportation mishap’ (no kidding, that is what the local paper called it). A truck with millions of bees had…
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Pop Art Map of Africa

The Uncomfortable Blessing of Fundraising

Storytelling
I was in Uganda, gathering stories on behalf of a client. At that time, Uganda was Ground Zero of the AIDS epidemic. The disease had devastated parts of the country, killing nearly all adults under 60. The tranquil beauty of…
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Pop Art Robot Hamlet

You Have No Dramatic Stories to Tell? You’re Looking at it Wrong!

Storytelling
We don’t have any dramatic stories to tell! How can we tell great stories? We don’t work with babies or puppies! We have no way to be emotional. Have you heard or said things like this? It’s flat-out wrong. If…
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