Soapbox Engage Blog

Issue 66

Happy Tuesday, fundraisers!

Can you believe it’s already November? With Giving Tuesday just four weeks away, there is no denying we are now deep into the busiest time of the year for nonprofits— and particularly for fundraisers and development professionals. Hang in there, find some ways to celebrate the season, and let’s make these last two months count!

Curating this week’s newsletter was a lot of fun. Scroll down for some awesome content about major gifts, donation pages, digital donor retention, and more!

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Great Fundraising Posts

How to Choose the Right Fundraising Event for Your Nonprofit

Tim Forbes (Soapbox Engage)

Most nonprofits use fundraising events to raise large portions of their annual budget. The right fundraising event can generate a lot of revenue, but it's critical to choose events that match your nonprofit's budget and execution capacities. We gathered a list of some of the top fundraising event ideas and practical insights about their ease of execution and potential return on investment.

Way Worse than 'BOO'— Things You Really Don't Want to Hear in Fundraising

Jeff Brooks (Future Fundraising Now)

Halloween might be passed, but there are still some scary things that haunt development professionals year-round. In his usual short, direct, and punchy style, Jeff highlights four of the scary phrases you might have heard about fundraising in your nonprofit.

Changing Your Major Gifts Program from Transactional to Relational

Karen Kendrick (Veritus Group)

Donor programs aren't inherently bad and often are very effective at getting donors to begin giving. However, if you forget what else is possible, you may lose sight of the fact taht many donors would joyfully give much more than their current giving levels. Because of your expectations, and how many membership programs are set up, you're actually training donors to give less. You need a program that continues to move donors into a deeper connection with your organization, instead of stifling giving because donors are stuck in a membership program. This blog has some insights about how to do just that.

Finding the Hidden Gold in Your Donor List (WEBINAR)

Joe Garecht (Joe Garecht Fundraising)

Donor stewardship is about a lot more than just thanking your donors at teh right times. That's only the first step. Implementing a smart donor stewardship program will help your donors give to your organization more frequently, give larger gifts, adn introduce you to new potential donors. This webinar will reveal some of the secrets of great donor stewardship and will be available for a live broadcast on November 4, 2021, or you can watch the recording--or both!

4 Storytelling Tips for Your Online Donation Page

Ann Green (Ann Green)

Good stories create connection and understanding between people, helping us cultivate empathy and positive change within our communities. Storytelling is a critical skill for development professionals to master because if you can tell stories that help people connect with your cause, you'll generate more support and keep your nonprofit moving forward. Ann shares four essential storytelling tips you should use on your online donation pages.

The Stories You Tell Yourself About Fundraising

Steven Screen (The Better Fundraising Company)

Surprisingly, Steven argues that the stories your organization tells itself about fundraising matter more than the stories you tell your donors. Most of the stories organizations have about fundraising, donors, and money are based on personal experiences, upbringing, and our relationship with money. Head over to this blog for some examples of how the stories your organization believes about fundraising have a direct effect on the tactics and strategies you use in fundraising.

3 Ways to Segment and Steward Donors to Improve Digital Donor Retention

Amanda Baldwin (NonProfit PRO)

Donor stewardship is just as important for digital engagement as other types of donor care. Organizations should steward new relationships virtually adn bring moves management strategies into their digital fundraising programs. Using personal segmentation in your crowdfunding and peer-to-peer campaigns can help you define even more specific communication strategies! Head over to this blog to learn more about how to segment donors for greater digital donor retention.

The Unavoidable Power of Facebook Fundraising

Julia Claire Campbell (Marketing for the Modern Nonprofit)

Despite all the recent revelations about Facebook's ethics and questionable business practices, nonprofits around the world rely on this social media platform to connect with donors and raise valuable funds. In this combination blog and podcast, Julia interviews Facebook fundraising expert, Nick Burne about the power and potential of Facebook and Instagram fundraising, including topics like the biggest mistakes nonprofits make when fundraising via Facebook and how to use Facebook Group Challenges to engage your community.

3 Direct Mail Fundraising Lessons from the Statue of Liberty

Lindsay Thibault (Good Works)

Did you know that small donations from about 125 thousand people, totalling about $2 million in today's dollars saved the Statue of Liberty project? Joseph Pulitzer promised to print the name of each donor in his newspaper, no matter how small the donation. This relatively unknown story packs three valuable fundraising lessons that remain true today. Head over to this blog to learn more!