Empowering strategies and tools for fundraising success

Streamlining donor qualification: Utilize this powerful discovery visit question…
If you are struggling to quickly qualify who your true prospective major gift donors are from your first visit with them, all you really need to ask is one essential high-impact question… the “continuum question.”

Does a $10 Donation Really Matter? Showing Donors their Tangible Impact
How can we show donors that their annual fund gifts of all sizes make a difference, especially when tuition costs are so high? Let’s take a page from successful non-profits’ playbooks and apply it to benefit your educational institution with real-life examples for you to share with your prospects and donors.

Buck the High Turnover Rate of Fundraising Staff: Your Guide to Conducting Stay Interviews
Don't wait until it's too late! Here is a guide to conducting stay interviews - a tool to empower employees to share their valuable insights and concerns. This direct feedback allows you as a manager to take action and create a workplace where employees feel heard, valued, and motivated to stay.

The Key to Hiring Fantastic Fundraisers?… Treat Them like Major Donors! (Part 3)
Leaning on cultivation skills throughout the interview process
Show your top candidates that they should make their next career investment with you. Here is my guide to recruiting fundraisers like a fundraiser, broken down step-by-step with useful tips, samples and resources.

The Key to Hiring Fantastic Fundraisers?… Treat Them like Major Donors! (Part 2)
Creating a prospect pipeline and flexing your discovery skills to find “the one” for this job
Are you hiring for a fundraising position but find yourself desperately tearing out your hair because qualified candidates are not applying? Here is my guide to recruiting fundraisers like a fundraiser, broken down step-by-step with useful tips, samples and resources.

The Key to Hiring Fantastic Fundraisers?… Treat Them like Major Donors! (Part 1)
Developing a clear and thoughtful recruitment strategy
Are you hiring for a fundraising position but find yourself desperately tearing out your hair because qualified candidates are not applying? Here is my guide to recruiting fundraisers like a fundraiser, broken down step-by-step with useful tips, samples and resources.

9 Ways to Give Thanks to Your Donors this Holiday Season
This holiday season, let's make our donors feel truly valued. By implementing these strategies, you can cultivate deeper relationships, inspire donor retention, increase future giving, and create a lasting impact.

Spark Hope and Confidence in Your Organization: 5 Ways to Plug Your Board Into Your Advancement Team
Is your board unplugged from your current team, fundraising efforts or new initiatives? Here are 5 quick and easy ways to get board members connected as part of the team.

7 Steps to Create Individualized Stewardship Plans: Your Pathway to Transformational Gifts (Free Template Included)
What would you do if you lost your top 10 donors tomorrow? Having a personalized retention strategy is paramount. Included is a template for a 12-month set of customized and strategic set of engagement steps — an Individualized Stewardship Plan — all customized around what matters most to the donor and the impact they are making through your institution.

Boosting Board Engagement: 10 Effective Strategies Between Meetings
Are you seeing a decline in meeting attendance or lackluster volunteerism amongst your board members? Here are 10 ideas to keep board members feeling connected and valued between meetings so they're more likely to actively contribute to your institution’s mission.

Establish Yourself as an Authentic Leader from Day One: Start Strong with This Free Email Template!
Ever walk into a new leadership role at your K-12 school or university, feeling overwhelmed by the pressure to impress and get your team bought in? Set the right tone and build a thriving development team from day one: demonstrate your Authentic Leadership by sharing your personal manager 101 document.

Could a Blended Campaign Be Your Answer to Achieving a Fundraising Goal that Seems Out of Reach?
Feeling pressure to launch an impactful fundraising comprehensive campaign, but worried about hitting a lofty goal? There's a new game-changing approach: a Blended Campaign. It combines the dollars brought in through philanthropic gifts with the commitments secured from university sponsored projects/research.