November, 2013

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McDonald’s Lesson to Companies: Charity, Impact Better be on the Menu

Selfish Giving

'McDonald’s has a public relations problem. In a new report, Clowning Around with Charity , McDonald’s is portrayed as cheap, deceptive and selfish. Here are the highlights. McDonald’s charitable giving is just.32 percent ($34 million) of its pre-tax profits. Compare that to the one percent of pre-tax profits that generous companies donate to good causes.

Marketing 278
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New Amazon Program Enables Shoppers to Easily Donate to Their Favorite Nonprofits

Nonprofit Tech for Good

'AmazonSmile is a new program that enables Amazon shoppers to easily donate 0.5% of their purchases ($.50 per $100 spent) to their favorite U.S.-based nonprofits. With $26.5 billion in sales projected for the fourth quarter for 2013 alone, up to $13.25 million in funds could be raised. Through a partnership with GuideStar USA , over one million nonprofits are already listed in the AmazonSmile database and all shoppers need to do is search for and then select their favorite nonprofit to have 0.5%

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Trending Sources

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Who pays the tab at a meeting with a donor?

Fundraising Coach

'During a recent coaching call , my client asked me to walk her step-by-step through an upcoming donor meeting. I love doing this! We established her top goal for the dinner, talked about the environment, and scripted a couple questions for her to ask as the meal progressed. We even worked on keywords she could use should an opportunity to make an ask arise.

Retention 105
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Walk In The Donor’s Shoes

The Agitator

'Editor’s Note: This guest post by international fundraiser Francesco Ambroghetti was triggered by our piece, Your Call Is Important To Us. Please Continue To Hold. At last month’s International Fundraising Conference in the Netherlands, participants in a Master Class made calls and online visits to a variety of charities posing as donors attempting to make a contribution.

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Does Brand Drive Your Organization’s Culture?

Mission Minded

'We often say that your brand is the sum of the experiences your audience has with your organization. It’s as much about the experience of receiving your annual report as it is about seeing a van with your logo cut someone off in traffic. Brand is an idea—an idea that takes shape in the minds […].

Culture 86
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Board Members: Your Communication Kings & Queens

Getting Attention

'Guest blogger Susan Bowie is the Director of Nonprofit Strategy at the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. She’s a passionate and talented force for good, helping organizations in the region develop their nonprofit marketing finesse. Have you crowned your board members yet? These Kings and Queens of Communications are–or should be–your organization’s number one messengers.

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4 Ways Nonprofits Can Use Pinterest Place Pins

Selfish Giving

'I’m finding more and more ways to use Pinterest every day. I’ve created a Pinography to share head shots, testimonials, news coverage, etc. I keep track of all the cause marketing campaigns I read about on three major boards: Register , Digital , Employee. My new book , which will be out next month, has a URL and QR Code at the end of each chapter that will link the reader to a Pinterest board with additional examples of the chapter topic.

More Trending

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3 Things to Make Your Ask Easier

Fundraising Coach

'Don''t be chicken about asking! This is the time of the year to be asking people for money. Based on conversations with clients from around the world, December 31 is a powerful motivator for people''s giving. As I''ve been telling my Fundraising Kick members , you need to be out asking people between now and December 31 ! ( Click here to tweet that.).

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Snickers Bars And Matching Gifts

The Agitator

'Which Matching Gift Challenge formula works best? (A) 1:1 matching grant (“An anonymous donor will match your contribution dollar for dollar.”) (B) 2:1 matching grant (“triples your donation”) (C) 3:1 matching grant (“quadruples your donation”) The anecdotal (as opposed to scientific) ‘rule’ in our trade is that higher match levels are better than lower match levels.

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Is Your Event On-Brand?

Mission Minded

'This time of year, nonprofit organizations often celebrate their important work (and their coworkers) with parties or other special events. Yours might be a five-course fundraising dinner, or it might be a casual Christmas party at a colleague’s home. Whether your event is conventional or inventive, public or private, it needs to be on-brand for […].

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Nonprofit Storytelling Breaking Bad Style

Getting Attention

'Whether you love, hate or have never seen Breaking Bad , there’s a lot to learn from its emotionally intense, can’t-stop-watching storytelling. Pay special attention to these to-dos for your nonprofit storytelling: Remain flexible, i.e. stay relevant—If your network’s perspective, wants or needs change, change your stories (and the rest of your messages) too to ensure connection.

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How Local Nonprofits Can Use Mobile to Beat Goliath

Selfish Giving

'This Mediapost article has some good news for brick-and-mortar businesses: the skyrocketing rise of mobile may actually be good for business. As mobile grows, these businesses have trembled at the prospect of smartphone carrying customers showrooming their stores for better selection and prices online. While true in some cases, the author contends that mobile is helping to bring customers closer to physical businesses.

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19 Holiday Gift Programs That Benefit Nonprofits

Nonprofit Tech for Good

'As follow-up to 29 Online Gift Stores That Benefit Nonprofits , below are 19 nonprofits that are offering symbolic gifts and adoptions this holiday season. These gift programs are ideal for socially and environmentally conscious holiday shoppers that would prefer their spending directly empower nonprofits. They also make excellent gifts for activists and advocates of global development, environmental conservation, and wildlife protection.

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Emergency relief in the Philippines and fundraising for your nonprofit

Fundraising Coach

'Congratulations to Facebook and the Red Cross for making it ridiculously easy to support those devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines! Even if you don''t have the connections or relationship to get this type of top billing on Facebook, there are loads of ways you and your nonprofit can support the relief efforts. Support typhoon relief in mission-related ways.

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Death Of A Hero

The Agitator

'This week our community lost a great and largely unsung hero. Michael MacLeod, co-founder and chair of Public Interest Data, Inc (PIDI), died on Wednesday leaving behind his wife Whitney, his daughter Kafi, and a legion of friends and causes whose lives he touched for the better. I don’t use the term ‘hero’ lightly. In our field I generally reserve the term for those few who understand and put into practice the responsibility that comes with success.

91
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A Story You Have To Read

Mission Minded

'If you’re like me, you get 20 – 40 emails a day that say you simply must read them. These emails range from scams to spam to promotions for things I don’t want or need. I recently got an email whose artful copy motivated me to read on. (View the email online.) It didn’t start […].

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How to Fundraise in the Wake of Disaster

Getting Attention

'As I read accounts of Typhoon Haiyan survivors struggling for basic needs, I’m struck by the number of lives that have been taken and touched by this disaster in the Philippines. That’s a significant communications challenge for the nonprofit organizations that work delivering aid : How to mobilize giving while communicating respectfully about their efforts and impact on the ground?

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Tis the Season for Bad Cause Marketing

Selfish Giving

'I couldn’t make up this stuff if I tried. I found these two examples of bad cause marketing on the same day! That’s a first. As first reported in Nonprofit Quarterly , a New Mexico company sponsored a Coyote Kill Contest this weekend, saying that half the proceeds will go to the Children’s Outdoor Adventure Association. According to the contest organizers, the nonprofit takes kids with cancer, disabilities, etc. on outdoor adventures.

Marketing 248
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HOW TO: Reserve a Custom URL for Your Nonprofit’s Google+ Page

Nonprofit Tech for Good

'Last year Google+ began enabling page admins to reserve custom URLs for their Google+ Pages, but the service was offered to a relatively small number of verified pages of well-known brands and celebrities. However, last week Google+ began rolling out the ability to reserve a custom URL, such as google.com/+nonprofitorgs , to all page admins provided that your page has been active for at least 30 days, has a minimum of ten followers, has uploaded a profile photo, and has been linked to your web

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3 Ways to Help Donors Recruit Donors

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

'Our next Nonprofit 911 webinar guest, Darian Rodriguez, is a big proponent of leveraging your organization’s year-end momentum to boost individual giving. Promoting your cause on #GivingTuesday is a great start, but you can take this a step further by empowering donors to promote your work on their own all year long. Here’s my true story and three things I learned about donors recruiting donors: The button that sparked a donation while waiting in line for coffee.

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Thoughts On National Philanthropy Day

The Agitator

'Around the globe today, more than 100 communities and 50,000 people will have participated in events and celebrations marking National Philanthropy Day. These events, much like the one we attended on Tuesday organized by the Miami Chapter of the AFP included award ceremonies, galas, luncheons, seminars and other special activities. Outstanding donors, volunteers, corporations, foundations, small businesses, youth in philanthropy, and others are honored in recognition of their work in improving

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Infographic: How Foundations Use Social Media

Care2

'While the majority of nonprofit organizations have a social media presence, only 45% of foundations use social media. The Foundation Center surveyed over 1,000 foundations across the U.S. to dig deeper into what’s trending with foundations and social media. My firm Rad Campaign had an opportunity to dig into the survey data and team up with the Foundation Center to produce an infographic that reveals some interesting trends.

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Nonprofit Message Tip—What’s Vital BUT Unknown?

Getting Attention

'I was thrilled to see this Facebook post this from the Elizabeth Coalition to House the Homeless (ECHH), one of our favorite clients. We’ve been working with the ECHH team on year-end fundraising campaigns for a few years now. And among the many things I’ve learned is just how many of the individuals and families they serve work full-time (or more) but still can’t make ends meet—68%!

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New Book Offers Honest, Humorous Take on Nonprofit World

Selfish Giving

'I’ve worked for and with nonprofits for twenty years, but it isn’t always easy to describe to people what it’s really like. The challenges, the the rewards…the stupidity. Thanks to Jennifer Maher I don’t have to! I can just give people her book: Nonprofit Nonsense: How to Survive and Thrive in the Crazy World of Nonprofit Business.

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4 Easy Ways to Become Designated as a Planned Gift Beneficiary

iMarketSmart

'Recently I found myself wondering… “why aren’t we promoting beneficiary designations more?” A beneficiary designation is by far the simplest way to create a planned gift. Plus it’s a great way to avoid probate. And anyone can do it easily. A donor just needs a pen, a beneficiary designation form, and the desire to create a legacy gift.

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Fundraising is not really about money

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

'“Fundraising is not really about money. It’s about people.” Fundraising expert Larry C. Johnson, author of The Eight Principles of Sustainable Fundraising , challenges nonprofits to look at the bigger picture to create a sustainable funding model for their missions. As you execute your final fundraising campaigns for 2013, make sure you are planning for long-term success instead of just short-term dollar gains.

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7 Questions For Your 2014 Marketing Plan

The Agitator

'With November almost half gone, there’s not much we can timely advise regarding your year-end marketing/fundraising program. For the next 90 days or so, it’s all about execution. Much of your execution will be online, so I do hope you noted Roger’s advice yesterday about breaking through the Gmail barrier. So now let’s turn to planning for 2014.

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Tips to Manage Facebook Embeds and Typos

Care2

'Facebook is pretty picky about what you can and cannot do on their platform, but the available tools and options are beginning to shift as they test what works for people and orgs, and what doesn''t. It''s important for nonprofits to stay on top of the newest trends, and to utilize new tools effectively. Embeds. A new option for nonprofits'' status updates, though, is the ability to embed your Facebook statuses in a blog post or on a website.

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Stop the Communications-Program Tug of War

Getting Attention

'Are you in a tug of war with program colleagues for control of your communications? Raise your hand if you’ve run up against any of these challenges: Your colleague on the program side makes an outrageous communications demand based on a consumer marketing model. You know it’s likely to hurt, rather than help, build relationships with prospective supporters and participants.

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CauseTalk Radio Ep74: Harry’s Co-Founder Gives a Shave About Causes

Selfish Giving

'Today on CauseTalk Radio , Megan and I talk to Jeff Raider , co-founder of men’s grooming brand Harry’s , on their signature cause platform. Give a Shave supports causes with one percent of sales and one percent of volunteer time. Jeff discusses how they are rolling out this program with their newest partner, City Year. Jeff talks about the companies that inspired Harry’s to have a strong cause connection, including his first venture, eyewear disrupter Warby Parker.

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Multichannel Communications - Management & Tips

Ken Goldstein

'A point I''ve been harping on for some time whenever I speak to groups of nonprofits is the importance of communicating to your supporters the way they want, not the ways you''re used to. In other words, while some of your supporters may still be looking for that annual holiday letter in the mail, others want to hear from you on Facebook, or by email, at an event, or even by the old telephone.

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Get ready for #GivingTuesday: resources for nonprofits

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

'#GivingTuesday is just two weeks away—is your nonprofit ready? While some organizations have been planning their #GivingTuesday campaigns for quite some time, if your nonprofit’s still wondering how to get in on the fun, don’t worry. There’s still time to participate and kick off December with a boost in donor activity. Some ways to get started: 1.

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Heads-Up for Year-End Email

The Agitator

'Here are two factoids to alert you to some tweaks you should be making in preparation for your year-end fundraising activities. 74 percent of consumers/donors use Google search; 60 percent own GMAIL accounts. So what? In mid-to-late July Google introduced Gmail Tabs, a change to its Inbox designed to differentiate between what they call ‘Primary’ emails and ‘Promotions’.

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Do fundraisers donate to charity?

iMarketSmart

'I’m not sure if this is the type of post that will get people riled up or not. But I’ve been wondering (from a marketer’s point of view): Do fundraisers donate more money and/or more frequently to charity than others? . Why am I wondering about this? What do I mean when I say, “from a marketer’s point of view?” Well it seems to me that… if fundraisers donated more money to charity more frequently, then they would have a better understanding of what i

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15 Fantastic Nonprofit Marketing Jobs: Movin’ Up Monday!

Getting Attention

'Please post your nonprofit marketing position here for full-time or part-time staff, consulting or internship opportunities. New Opportunities. Communication Coordinator , Austin Food Bank (Austin, TX). Communications and Learning Coordinator-Youth Economic Participation Initiative , Talloires Network (Medford, MA). Communications and Marketing Intern , New Hampshire Children’s Trust (Concord, NH).

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CauseTalk Radio Ep73: New York YMCA Reflects on Hurricane Sandy Lessons

Selfish Giving

'Today on CauseTalk Radio , Megan and I talk to Gary Laermer , Senior Vice President & Chief Development Officer of the YMCA of Greater New York , about lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy one year later. The YMCA of Greater New York was at ground zero for Hurricane Sandy. The Y was caught between dealing with the damage to several of its 22 facilities and using its resources to aid the displaced victims of the storm.

Education 198
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3 Ways To Celebrate National Philanthropy Day

Lets Talk Nonprofit

Every year on November 15, National Philanthropy Day gives us a chance to recognize and honor the people who make a difference in our lives, in our communities and in our world. You won't find any cards at Hallmark that celebrate this annual event. Even so, I'd like to suggest that you send a card anyway. In fact, I encourage you to thank at least three different supporters this month.