I received zero training in my first MGO job. Or support for that matter. My boss showed me the donor files, made sure I got into the database, and then said, “OK, go raise some money!” I was scared to death. … [Read more...] about Are you setting your MGOs up to fail?
Stewardship Tactics
This is the final post in our series on donor stewardship. So far, our guiding principles have been: 1) stewardship is the right thing to do, and 2) good stewardship is a driver of future fundraising results. As always, we started big-picture. The first post was on the psychology of donor stewardship. It’s so important to understand what’s going on behind the scenes before diving into tactics. … [Read more...] about Stewardship Tactics
Auditing Your Stewardship Program
So, what does a high-functioning donor stewardship program look like? That’s a question I’ve been asking while thinking about my own organization’s stewardship efforts. We know stewardship is important. And, we have a sense that more would probably be better. But how much more? And more of what, specifically? There’s truly no limit to how much we could do in thanking, acknowledging, and celebrating our donors. But how do you get the most bang … [Read more...] about Auditing Your Stewardship Program
Fearless Stewardship
Giving should feel good, right? Our donors need to feel great about their giving. If they don’t, we’re sunk. Our slow, Fearless Fundraising march through the giving cycle has reached the final stage—stewardship. While stewardship may be final stage of one gift-giving journey, it is by no means the end of a donor relationship. When done well, stewardship serves as the first step of a donor's next gift-giving process. It strengthens their … [Read more...] about Fearless Stewardship
Fearless 2021
2021 has arrived! Finally. If you’re like me, there were days you thought we’d never get here. The past year was hard, maddening, and at times traumatic. And the difficulty lasted much longer than any of us expected. Yet, when chaos and disruption become the norm, we have to recognize the value of surviving. Maybe we didn’t all thrive in 2020, but we’re still here—doing good work on behalf of good organizations. And that’s … [Read more...] about Fearless 2021