Mike Herdlick

I've always wanted to grab a gift officer right in the middle of donor visits and ask "how's it going." On this episode, Mike Herdlick from Tiffin University joins the podcast, live from a Hampton Inn. He was a professor, a Dean, and now he's a fundraiser.  We talk about how relationships matter in getting appointments and boosting excitement about giving. And, how student affairs and teaching experience apply to our work in philanthropy.  Check out Tiffin University

I've always wanted to grab a gift officer right in the middle of donor visits and ask "how's it going." On this episode, Mike Herdlick from Tiffin University joins the podcast, live from a Hampton Inn. He was a professor, a Dean, and now he's a fundraiser. We talk about how relationships matter in getting appointments and boosting excitement about giving. And, how student affairs and teaching experience apply to our work in philanthropy. <a href="https://www.tiffin.edu/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Check out Tiffin University</a>

Gift Officer On The Road: Mike Herdlick from Tiffin University

Our boards, who give us advice, guidance and often, big gifts, are an important area of support in our advancement efforts. But we're not doing great with diversity on our boards. Just 22% of board members nationwide coming from underrepresented backgrounds. We have work to do. GHJ and the GHJ Foundation have been hard at work on this issue, and we got on the line with Donella Wilson and Derrick Coleman from GHK to talk about key strategies to build an inclusive and engaged board. Find out more about the GHJ Foundation Meet Derrick Coleman Meet Donella Wilson

Our boards, who give us advice, guidance and often, big gifts, are an important area of support in our advancement efforts. But we're not doing great with diversity on our boards. Just 22% of board members nationwide coming from underrepresented backgrounds. We have work to do. GHJ and the GHJ Foundation have been hard at work on this issue, and we got on the line with Donella Wilson and Derrick Coleman from GHK to talk about key strategies to build an inclusive and engaged board. <a href="https://www.ghjadvisors.com/about-us/ghj-foundation" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Find out more about the GHJ Foundation</a> <a href="https://www.ghjadvisors.com/about-us/people/derrick-coleman" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Meet Derrick Coleman</a> <a href="https://www.ghjadvisors.com/about-us/people/donella-wilson" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Meet Donella Wilson</a>

Board Diversity - Key Strategies for Furthering Inclusion with the GHJ Foundation

Crypto donations have become a hot topic in philanthropy. The incredible growth in crypto token popularity and value, along some significant incentive give in order to manage taxes means we’re all going to see more crypto donors in the coming years. And the cool thing is, these donors often work together. That’s what happened when a diverse group of donors participated in the largest charitable crowdfunding campaign ever,  Constitution Dao, and raised over $40 million to bid on one of the 13 original copies of the constitution. Their representative was Endaoment, and I’m excited to welcome Robbie Heeger, President and CEO to the podcast to talk about the effort, and to get some insights into how we can embrace this growing group of entrepreneurial, social and action-focused crypto donors.  Find our more about Endaoment

Crypto donations have become a hot topic in philanthropy. The incredible growth in crypto token popularity and value, along some significant incentive give in order to manage taxes means we’re all going to see more crypto donors in the coming years. And the cool thing is, these donors often work together. That’s what happened when a diverse group of donors participated in the largest charitable crowdfunding campaign ever, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/22820563/constitution-meme-47-million-crypto-crowdfunding-blockchain-ethereum-constitution" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Constitution Dao</a>, and raised over $40 million to bid on one of the 13 original copies of the constitution. <a href="https://endaoment.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Their representative was Endaoment</a>, and I’m excited to welcome Robbie Heeger, President and CEO to the podcast to talk about the effort, and to get some insights into how we can embrace this growing group of entrepreneurial, social and action-focused crypto donors. <a href="https://endaoment.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Find our more about Endaoment</a>

Crypto donations with Endaoment: crowdfunding the constitution, or just giving to your favorite charity

Bob Westfall

Creating great donor event experiences can go a long way toward inspiring philanthropy. Bob Westfall at Westfall Gold has helped inspire over $1B in gift commitments with their unique event strategy. Truly inspiring donors with the opportunity to make a transformative impact, giving them time to reflect, including great experiences, and surrounding donors with a community of like-minded givers is key. Bob breaks it down in this conversation. Find out more about Westfall Gold.

Creating great donor event experiences can go a long way toward inspiring philanthropy. Bob Westfall at W<a href="https://www.westfallgold.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">estfall Gold</a> has helped inspire over $1B in gift commitments with their unique event strategy. Truly inspiring donors with the opportunity to make a transformative impact, giving them time to reflect, including great experiences, and surrounding donors with a community of like-minded givers is key. Bob breaks it down in this conversation. <a href="https://www.westfallgold.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Find out more about Westfall Gold.</a>

Bob Westfall - Creating Great Donor Event Experiences

Maryann Kerr

Creating a positive environment for our fundraising teams is crucial to our success. How inclusive we are, how we behave as leaders, and how we value and support members of our teams makes a big difference. Maryann Kerr, a fundraiser with a ton of experience, has just released a groundbreaking new book, Tarnished, on this topic. It combines research, the experiences of fundraisers, and Maryann’s own story to ask key questions about how we can do better in how we treat members of our teams and networks. I got on the line with Maryann to preview the book, and get her take on how we can 'untarnish' fundraising in the future. You can order Tarnished here.

Creating a positive environment for our fundraising teams is crucial to our success. How inclusive we are, how we behave as leaders, and how we value and support members of our teams makes a big difference. Maryann Kerr, a fundraiser with a ton of experience, has just released a groundbreaking new book, Tarnished, on this topic. It combines research, the experiences of fundraisers, and Maryann’s own story to ask key questions about how we can do better in how we treat members of our teams and networks. I got on the line with Maryann to preview the book, and get her take on how we can 'untarnish' fundraising in the future. <a href="https://hilborn-civilsectorpress.com/collections/featured-books/products/tarnished" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">You can order Tarnished here.</a>

Fundraising Leadership: Creating a Psychologically Safe Environment  - Maryann Kerr

Donors want to make an impact. And when we think about transformative interventions, cleft palate and cleft lip surgery has incredible impact – literally changing lives of the recipients. Operation Smile has been around almost 40 years, providing this life-changing care. We got on the line with Joanne Bowers, Lauren Lemmons, and Amber Leonti from Operation Smile, and the team shares how they have transformed donor engagement, kept engaged during the pandemic, and even made the decision to accept cryptocurrency donations. Find out more about Operation Smile

Donors want to make an impact. And when we think about transformative interventions, cleft palate and cleft lip surgery has incredible impact – literally changing lives of the recipients. Operation Smile has been around almost 40 years, providing this life-changing care. We got on the line with Joanne Bowers, Lauren Lemmons, and Amber Leonti from Operation Smile, and the team shares how they have transformed donor engagement, kept engaged during the pandemic, and even made the decision to accept cryptocurrency donations. <a href="https://www.operationsmile.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Find out more about Operation Smile</a>

Operation Smile - Changing Lives, and Changing Fundraising

That thing we used to call phonathon has changed. It’s now about engagement, and the place where that happens is the engagement center. Every day, hundreds of locations across the US and Canada (with a lot of remote activity too), fuels the philanthropic outreach for great institutions. And the people driving the engagement are our engagement center managers, who  organize texting, video, calling and other outreach with student engagement ambassadors. We got four of these rockstar fundraising engineers on the line to talk about what it’s like to run a modern engagement center, and tech-enabled engagement program. Here’s the conversation with David Fullenwiley, Lucy Heady, Savannah Lammers, and Joe Arra who are right on the front lines.  A job where you get to be part of a couple of teams, motivate young people, use data, new technology, and all for a good cause?  We always have ECM positions available, across the country.  So, if you or someone you know is up for this sort of challenge,  check it out. It could be the next step in a great career with challenge and purpose. Head over to  RuffaloNL.com and check out these and other great positions, and maybe join the team. We’ll be watching for your application.

That thing we used to call phonathon has changed. It’s now about engagement, and the place where that happens is the engagement center. Every day, hundreds of locations across the US and Canada (with a lot of remote activity too), fuels the philanthropic outreach for great institutions. And the people driving the engagement are our engagement center managers, who <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/higher-education-fundraising-management/annual-giving-alumni-giving/digital-engagement-center/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> organize texting, video, calling and other outreach with student engagement ambassadors</a>. We got four of these rockstar fundraising engineers on the line to talk about what it’s like to run a modern engagement center, and tech-enabled engagement program. Here’s the conversation with David Fullenwiley, Lucy Heady, Savannah Lammers, and Joe Arra who are right on the front lines. A job where you get to be part of a couple of teams, motivate young people, use data, new technology, and all for a good cause? <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/about-ruffalo-noel-levitz/careers-at-ruffalo-noel-levitz/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> We always have ECM positions available, across the country</a>. So, if you or someone you know is up for this sort of challenge, <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/about-ruffalo-noel-levitz/careers-at-ruffalo-noel-levitz/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> check it out</a>. It could be the next step in a great career with challenge and purpose. Head over to <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/about-ruffalo-noel-levitz/careers-at-ruffalo-noel-levitz/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> RuffaloNL.com and check out these and other great positions, and maybe join the team</a>. We’ll be watching for your application.

What's an Engagement Center Manager?

Jim Harris, Assistant Director of Annual Giving at Ohio University joins the podcast with RNL's Theresa Jubert to talk about the power of crowdfunding to engage donors. Jim brings a wealth of experience and insights as a marketing and communications expert. Ohio U  set records for alumni engagement last year, and one part of that was the creation of Bobcats Give, launching with 16 initial campaigns. Check out Bobcats Give at Ohio University, powered by RNL ScaleFunder.

Jim Harris, Assistant Director of Annual Giving at Ohio University joins the podcast with RNL's Theresa Jubert to talk about the power of crowdfunding to engage donors. Jim brings a wealth of experience and insights as a marketing and communications expert. Ohio U <a href="https://www.ohio.edu/news/2021/02/ohio-university-doubles-its-alumni-engagement-2020" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> set records for alumni engagement last year</a>, and one part of that was the creation of Bobcats Give, launching with 16 initial campaigns. <a href="https://ohio.scalefunder.com/cfund/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Check out Bobcats Give at Ohio University, powered by RNL ScaleFunder.</a>

Ohio University - Crowdfunding to Fuel Donor Engagement

One of the world’s top giving expert, Dr. Russell James from Texas Tech University joins MarketSmart’s Greg Warner to give a rundown on how some of the key research on donor decisions impacts our work as fundraisers. A key goal in our donor engagement is tell the donor’s story, or better yet: let the donors tell their own story. Research shows that this is a key component in increasing giving, and it provides greater joy and a better donor experience. Dr. James has a new book series out that explores these concepts. You can find out more at: https://imarketsmart.com/donorstory

One of the world’s top giving expert, Dr. Russell James from Texas Tech University joins MarketSmart’s Greg Warner to give a rundown on how some of the key research on donor decisions impacts our work as fundraisers. A key goal in our donor engagement is tell the donor’s story, or better yet: let the donors tell their own story. Research shows that this is a key component in increasing giving, and it provides greater joy and a better donor experience. Dr. James has a new book series out that explores these concepts. You can find out more at: <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimarketsmart.com%2Fdonorstory&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7Cd0302ba2a9694e9cf52008d988201cf1%7Cd9fa72a80554450eb06be822956ab212%7C0%7C0%7C637690493794431313%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=V7MnLeXTjaGBgtilbO7k1bKbRg4F41QJUbowCrTohCQ%3D&amp;reserved=0" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">https://imarketsmart.com/donorstory</a>

The Myths and Science of Fundraising

RNL's AJ Pennington offers insights from two decades of experience in talent management. AJ offers advice on how to assemble and submit a good application, key tips for the application process, and what it's like to work at RNL.  Check out the latest job postings at RNL

RNL's AJ Pennington offers insights from two decades of experience in talent management. AJ offers advice on how to assemble and submit a good application, key tips for the application process, and what it's like to work at RNL. <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/about-ruffalo-noel-levitz/careers-at-ruffalo-noel-levitz/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Check out the latest job postings at RNL</a>

Applying for Advancement Jobs and Working at RNL

This podcast features conversations with fundraisers, researchers and thought leaders to help propel your fundraising results.

Fundraising Voices from RNL

Shaun Keister

On this episode, Shaun Keister, Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations at the University of California, Davis talks to us just a few days before their annual giving day. We discuss maintaining relationship with donors amidst the COVID-19 crisis, how donors are responding, and what we've learned from previous financial crises.

On this episode, Shaun Keister, Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations at the University of California, Davis talks to us just a few days before their annual giving day. We discuss maintaining relationship with donors amidst the COVID-19 crisis, how donors are responding, and what we've learned from previous financial crises.

Shaun Keister - Full Steam Ahead Donor Engagement

Francesco Ambrogetti

Emotion—it’s a key part of fundraising, and definitely impacts the response we receive from donors. We don’t talk about emotion in fundraising enough, really. We’re usually more concerned with what segment we’re calling or mailing or what we need to tell donors. We don’t often think about how donors feel when we reach out to them.   Francesco Ambrogetti has a long career as an international fundraiser, and his groundbreaking book Emotionraising: How to astonish, disturb, seduce and convince the brain to support good causes, really gets at this issue. He’s combined the best concepts in emotive response, including research in neuroscience and psychology, to provide some great examples and tips for fundraisers. I got Francesco on the line to lay out a few of the concepts and tell us what he thinks them mean for the future of fundraising. Emotionraising, and the concepts introduced by Francesco Ambrogetti in this provocative and insightful book, could just be what your fundraising campaign needs. The science of emotional response is important to your success. As fundraisers, we shouldn’t be afraid to investigate and embrace this new research and try it out on our appeals.  You can find Emotionraising at Amazon.

Emotion—it’s a key part of fundraising, and definitely impacts the response we receive from donors. We don’t talk about emotion in fundraising enough, really. We’re usually more concerned with what segment we’re calling or mailing or what we need to tell donors. We don’t often think about how donors feel when we reach out to them. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Emotionraising-astonish-disturb-convince-support-ebook/dp/B01NGT7OV8/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a> Francesco Ambrogetti has a long career as an international fundraiser, and his groundbreaking book Emotionraising: How to astonish, disturb, seduce and convince the brain to support good causes, really gets at this issue. He’s combined the best concepts in emotive response, including research in neuroscience and psychology, to provide some great examples and tips for fundraisers. I got Francesco on the line to lay out a few of the concepts and tell us what he thinks them mean for the future of fundraising. Emotionraising, and the concepts introduced by Francesco Ambrogetti in this provocative and insightful book, could just be what your fundraising campaign needs. The science of emotional response is important to your success. As fundraisers, we shouldn’t be afraid to investigate and embrace this new research and try it out on our appeals. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Emotionraising-astonish-disturb-convince-support-ebook/dp/B01NGT7OV8/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> You can find Emotionraising at Amazon.</a>

Emotionraising with Francesco Ambrogetti

Richard Perry

Jeff Schreifels

Working with major donors to ignite their passion to give is the #1 to transform your organization. Richard Perry and Jeff Schreifels know this, and talk in this episode about what's changing with major giving, and how to provide gift officers the tools to connect with the best major and planned giving donors. Check out Veritus Group at veritusgroup.com

Working with major donors to ignite their passion to give is the #1 to transform your organization. Richard Perry and Jeff Schreifels know this, and talk in this episode about what's changing with major giving, and how to provide gift officers the tools to connect with the best major and planned giving donors. Check out Veritus Group at <a href="http://www.veritusgroup.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">veritusgroup.com</a>

Richard Perry and Jeff Schreifels, Veritus Group - Major Giving

Larry Johnson

Philanthropy is more than money. It's more than values. It's all the other ideas and time of the things that they bring, and this is becoming more and more critical as we look at the younger generations. We spend a lot of our time in the fundraising world thinking about how we can better connect to donors, how we can make the ask better, how we can engage donors, how we can increase their passion for giving. But we're probably not spending enough time thinking about how we work, how we can work more effectively, and how we behave as leaders. Well, Larry Johnson knows this and he's written a book called The Eight Principles, and has a really great training program and opportunities for fundraisers to really think about how they're developing as leaders. He's actually somebody who knew Stephen Covey himself and I got on the line with them to talk about The Eight Principles and how we can be better leaders in the nonprofit world.  Here's link to Larry's great book on Amazon. And here's the 8 Principles web site.

Philanthropy is more than money. It's more than values. It's all the other ideas and time of the things that they bring, and this is becoming more and more critical as we look at the younger generations. We spend a lot of our time in the fundraising world thinking about how we can better connect to donors, how we can make the ask better, how we can engage donors, how we can increase their passion for giving. But we're probably not spending enough time thinking about how we work, how we can work more effectively, and how we behave as leaders. Well, Larry Johnson knows this and he's written a book called The Eight Principles, and has a really great training program and opportunities for fundraisers to really think about how they're developing as leaders. He's actually somebody who knew Stephen Covey himself and I got on the line with them to talk about The Eight Principles and how we can be better leaders in the nonprofit world. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Eight-Principles-Sustainable-Fundraising-Transforming-ebook/dp/B006L9L9P4/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Here's link to Larry's great book on Amazon.</a> And here's the <a href="https://theeightprinciples.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8 Principles web site.</a>

8 Principles of Sustainable Fundraising - Larry Johnson

We’ve just released our seventh chapter in the RNL Advancement Leaders Speak series, where we ask you, the fundraisers about your challenges, successes and best practices. This release is focuses on annual giving multichannel strategy – or how we contact annual giving donors through all the various fundraising channels. The report revealed some interesting things about how annual giving is judged and evaluated by institutions, how fundraisers are timing appeals, and what we feel are the best ways to capture, retain and upgrade donors. You can download the full survey at ruffalonl.com. I got on the like with Shad Hanselman, RNL’s annual giving guru, to talk about the survey and what it means for fundraising strategy.    Download the full study at RuffaloNL.com Looking at the results of this survey of 300 fundraisers, it does look like there are some opportunities to optimize our multi-channel outreach to donors. As Shad mentioned, making your appeals work together like a symphony will really help engage donors. This takes technology, and careful analysis of your results, two things that fundraisers wanted to be utilizing more.

We’ve just released our seventh chapter in the <a href="http://www.ruffalonl.com/papers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">RNL Advancement Leaders Speak series</a>, where we ask you, the fundraisers about your challenges, successes and best practices. This release is focuses on annual giving multichannel strategy – or how we contact annual giving donors through all the various fundraising channels. The report revealed some interesting things about how annual giving is judged and evaluated by institutions, how fundraisers are timing appeals, and what we feel are the best ways to capture, retain and upgrade donors. You can download the full survey at <a href="http://ruffalonl.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ruffalonl.com</a>. I got on the like with Shad Hanselman, RNL’s annual giving guru, to talk about the survey and what it means for fundraising strategy. <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2017AnnualGivingMultichannelReport_LandingPage.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a> <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2017AnnualGivingMultichannelReport_LandingPage.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Download the full study at RuffaloNL.com</a> Looking at the results of this survey of 300 fundraisers, it does look like there are some opportunities to optimize our multi-channel outreach to donors. As Shad mentioned, making your appeals work together like a symphony will really help engage donors. This takes technology, and careful analysis of your results, two things that fundraisers wanted to be utilizing more.

New Survey: Annual Giving multi-channel best practices

Jason Lewis

This Fundraising Voices podcast features provocative fundraising expert Jason Lewiss, CFRE, author of The War for Fundraising Talent. Jason and host Brian Gawor discuss:  Challenging the assumptions we have about what it takes to be a successful fundraiser. What’s happening in small and large shops to recruit and retain top fundraising talent. What you can do as a fundraiser to become better, and advance your career. What’s next for 21st fundraisers looking to engage new and diverse donor populations.   Get the War for Fundraising Talent book here. And check out Jason at Responsive Fundraising. Our guest: Jason Lewis, CFRE, Founder of Responsive Fundraising   Jason Lewis is willing to question deeply engrained beliefs and assumptions about how effective fundraising really works.  Whether writing or speaking, Jason challenges the prevailing wisdom about effective fundraising practices, hiring decisions, and donor behavior. In the last two decades, Jason has raised millions of dollars for a variety of non-profit organizations throughout the United States. He has been certified and re-certified as a Certified Fundraising Executive and recognized as a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ Master Trainers. Jason earned his MS in Nonprofit Management at Eastern University in 2010 and in 2014 graduated from the College of Executive Coaching. Jason also hosts the Fundraising Talent podcast where he features the voices of top fundraising professionals.

This Fundraising Voices podcast features provocative fundraising expert Jason Lewiss, CFRE, author of The War for Fundraising Talent. Jason and host Brian Gawor discuss: <ul> <li>Challenging the assumptions we have about what it takes to be a successful fundraiser.</li> <li>What’s happening in small and large shops to recruit and retain top fundraising talent.</li> <li>What you can do as a fundraiser to become better, and advance your career.</li> <li>What’s next for 21st fundraisers looking to engage new and diverse donor populations.</li> </ul> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/War-Fundraising-Talent-Small-Shops/dp/1642370002/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Get the War for Fundraising Talent book here.</a> <a href="https://responsivefundraising.com/founder" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">And check out Jason at Responsive Fundraising.</a> Our guest: Jason Lewis, CFRE, Founder of Responsive Fundraising Jason Lewis is willing to question deeply engrained beliefs and assumptions about how effective fundraising really works.  Whether writing or speaking, Jason challenges the prevailing wisdom about effective fundraising practices, hiring decisions, and donor behavior. In the last two decades, Jason has raised millions of dollars for a variety of non-profit organizations throughout the United States. He has been certified and re-certified as a Certified Fundraising Executive and recognized as a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ Master Trainers. Jason earned his MS in Nonprofit Management at Eastern University in 2010 and in 2014 graduated from the College of Executive Coaching. Jason also hosts the Fundraising Talent podcast where he features the voices of top fundraising professionals.

The War for Fundraising Talent - Jason Lewis

We’ve just released part two of our major research series Advancement Leaders Speak here at Ruffalo Noel Levitz. This time, we surveyed and spoke with 270 major and planned giving officers to find out how they do their jobs and how they feel about productivity. You can download the study at RuffaloNL.com—we included questions about average prospect pool sizes, number of visits with donors, key frustrations and challenges for gift officers, as well as what they think would make their jobs easier. I got on the line with Caryn Stein, Vice President here at RNL, to go through the results and talk a bit about what we are hearing from gift officers about their important work with donors.    Download the Report here Productivity—it’s not always the first topic that major and planned giving programs jump on. For a profession primarily focused on personal relationships with donors, we’re not really drawn to metrics and deep data on our solicitation effectiveness. But given the increase pressure all charitable organizations are facing, and definitely for higher education, putting the right tools in place so your major and planned giving team can have success is crucial. And as Caryn and I mention, focusing on the right contact to the right donors at the right time is a key donor-centric practice that will keep your top supporters happy and increase their joy in giving. You can download the full study at RuffaloNL.com. We’d also love to hear from you about your major and planned giving program. Drop us a line, and we’ll talk about how you can improve your team’s productivity and book more gifts, immediately.

We’ve just released part two of our major research series Advancement Leaders Speak here at Ruffalo Noel Levitz. This time, we surveyed and spoke with 270 major and planned giving officers to find out how they do their jobs and how they feel about productivity. <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2017MGPGProductivityReport_LandingPage.html?utm_source=Major%20and%20Planned%20Giving%20white%20paper&amp;utm_medium=general&amp;utm_campaign=Papers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">You can download the study at RuffaloNL.com</a>—we included questions about average prospect pool sizes, number of visits with donors, key frustrations and challenges for gift officers, as well as what they think would make their jobs easier. I got on the line with Caryn Stein, Vice President here at RNL, to go through the results and talk a bit about what we are hearing from gift officers about their important work with donors. <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2017MGPGProductivityReport_LandingPage.html?utm_source=Major%20and%20Planned%20Giving%20white%20paper&amp;utm_medium=general&amp;utm_campaign=Papers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Download the Report here</a> Productivity—it’s not always the first topic that major and planned giving programs jump on. For a profession primarily focused on personal relationships with donors, we’re not really drawn to metrics and deep data on our solicitation effectiveness. But given the increase pressure all charitable organizations are facing, and definitely for higher education, putting the right tools in place so your major and planned giving team can have success is crucial. And as Caryn and I mention, focusing on the right contact to the right donors at the right time is a key donor-centric practice that will keep your top supporters happy and increase their joy in giving. <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2017MGPGProductivityReport_LandingPage.html?utm_source=Major%20and%20Planned%20Giving%20white%20paper&amp;utm_medium=general&amp;utm_campaign=Papers" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">You can download the full study at RuffaloNL.com.</a> We’d also love to hear from you about your major and planned giving program. <a href="mailto:contactus@ruffalonl.com">Drop us a line</a>, and we’ll talk about how you can improve your team’s productivity and book more gifts, immediately.

New Survey: Major and Planned Giving Productivity

Arlene Cogen

The basic job description of a fundraiser is to reah out to donors, listen to them, and provide opportunities. To see if there might be a chance that the donors want to make a difference for your organization, institution, school or charity. Well, increasingly, those conversations will happen with numerous members of the donor's family or even 's financial planners. Arlene Cogen used to be a financial planner, someone who was really focused on amassing money for her clients. Then, she left financial planning and became a fundraiser. She began to really talk to fundraisers about how to engage financial planners and found that fundraisers don't need to be afraid, and financial planners can engage with their clients about how to increase philanthropy and find joy in giving. I got on the line with Arlene to talk a little bit about her book and the way she suggests people should engage donors, their families and their financial planners in the 21st century. Read Arlene's book, Give to Live And find out how she helps organizations truly inspires donors: https://www.arlenecogen.com/

The basic job description of a fundraiser is to reah out to donors, listen to them, and provide opportunities. To see if there might be a chance that the donors want to make a difference for your organization, institution, school or charity. Well, increasingly, those conversations will happen with numerous members of the donor's family or even 's financial planners. Arlene Cogen used to be a financial planner, someone who was really focused on amassing money for her clients. Then, she left financial planning and became a fundraiser. She began to really talk to fundraisers about how to engage financial planners and found that fundraisers don't need to be afraid, and financial planners can engage with their clients about how to increase philanthropy and find joy in giving. I got on the line with Arlene to talk a little bit about her book and the way she suggests people should engage donors, their families and their financial planners in the 21st century. <a href="https://tinyurl.com/GiveToLive-Cogen" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Read Arlene's book, Give to Live</a> And find out how she helps organizations truly inspires donors: <a href="https://www.arlenecogen.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.arlenecogen.com/</a>

Arlene Cogen - Fundraising, Financial Planning, And Giving to Live

Ashutosh Nandeshwar

Strong use of data is the cornerstone of any great fundraising program. The best programs take this to the next level, moving from descriptive to predictive – actually guiding gift officers and annual giving appeals to the donors who seem the most ready. Making this transition can be daunting. So today, we’ll talk with one of the authors of a new book, Data Science for Fundraising, building data-driven solutions using R. Ashutosh Nandeshwar is a fundraising data veteran, and a thought leader in this important emerging field. The book is part introduction to new data techniques and an in depth hands on manual to get started. Whether you’re the geek who will be manipulating the data or just interested in how this new way of thinking can transform your fundraising, he’s a great source of insight.  You can find the book here: www.nandeshwar.info/ds4fundraising Ashutosh's website: www.nandeshwar.info   In our recent surveys of over 3,000 fundraisers, fully three quarters told us that they don’t feel like they are using data in the best way possible. This extends to annual giving, major and planned giving, as we try to harness our massive databases to provide better, more personalized appeals. As Ashutosh and I discussed, this isn’t just the best way to fundraise—it’s better for donors, and uses their time and attention efficiently and with the highest impact. If you’re ready to roll up your sleeves and get into the data, Ashutosh and Roger’s book is a great tool. Data-driven fundraising is a big focus here at RNL, and we’ve launched new products which do what we’ve discussed in this podcast –taking fundraising into the 21st century. If you’re ready to provide a more personal experience to donors and transform your fundraising, drop us a line. We’re ready to help.

Strong use of data is the cornerstone of any great fundraising program. The best programs take this to the next level, moving from descriptive to predictive – actually guiding gift officers and annual giving appeals to the donors who seem the most ready. Making this transition can be daunting. So today, we’ll talk with one of the authors of a new book, Data Science for Fundraising, building data-driven solutions using R. Ashutosh Nandeshwar is a fundraising data veteran, and a thought leader in this important emerging field. The book is part introduction to new data techniques and an in depth hands on manual to get started. Whether you’re the geek who will be manipulating the data or just interested in how this new way of thinking can transform your fundraising, he’s a great source of insight. <a href="http://www.nandeshwar.info/ds4fundraising" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"></a> You can find the book here: <a href="http://www.nandeshwar.info/ds4fundraising" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">www.nandeshwar.info/ds4fundraising</a> Ashutosh's website: <a href="http://www.nandeshwar.info" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">www.nandeshwar.info</a> In our recent surveys of over 3,000 fundraisers, fully three quarters told us that they don’t feel like they are using data in the best way possible. This extends to annual giving, major and planned giving, as we try to harness our massive databases to provide better, more personalized appeals. As Ashutosh and I discussed, this isn’t just the best way to fundraise—it’s better for donors, and uses their time and attention efficiently and with the highest impact. If you’re ready to roll up your sleeves and get into the data, Ashutosh and Roger’s book is a great tool. Data-driven fundraising is a big focus here at RNL, and we’ve launched new products which do what we’ve discussed in this podcast –taking fundraising into the 21st century. If you’re ready to provide a more personal experience to donors and transform your fundraising, drop us a line. We’re ready to help.

Data Science for Fundraising - Ashutosh Nandeshwar

Meg Weber

Pressure in higher education advancement offices is high right now. In part from the economy and how tough it is for many donors. And in part because the double whammy of economic issues and real enrollment concerns amidst this crisis are causing institutions to evaluate budgets. Motivating your team, especially when you can’t be with them physically during a difficult time is a key challenge. RNL’s Meg Weber has been through tough economic times before in her career and has successfully led teams through them. I got on the line with Meg to talk about how to be a good campus partner, maintain the morale of your team, and do what’s necessary to emerge from a crisis like this with strong donor engagement.

Pressure in higher education advancement offices is high right now. In part from the economy and how tough it is for many donors. And in part because the double whammy of economic issues and real enrollment concerns amidst this crisis are causing institutions to evaluate budgets. Motivating your team, especially when you can’t be with them physically during a difficult time is a key challenge. RNL’s Meg Weber has been through tough economic times before in her career and has successfully led teams through them. I got on the line with Meg to talk about how to be a good campus partner, maintain the morale of your team, and do what’s necessary to emerge from a crisis like this with strong donor engagement.

Meg Weber - Morale, Partnerships and Strategy in a Crisis

Melissa Brown

Aggie Sweeney

Every year, the Nonprofit Research Collaborative puts out two big surveys to track trends in giving. Organized around 15 different fundraising methods, it’s one of the most comprehensive surveys around. The Winter 2018  Nonprofit Fundraising study report is just out, and shows that most charities are doing better through the end of the calendar year. I got on the line with Melissa Brown from the Non Profit Research Collaborative and Aggie Sweeney from Giving USA to go over the results and talk about what they think is next for nonprofit fundraising.   Download the latest report here The Nonprofit Research Collaborative and Giving USA are great resources to track trends in fundraising. Melissa and Aggie had great insights about how wealth demographics and donor engagement are changing our work. Head on over to npresearch.org to download the most recent research. And stay tuned in June for the always important Giving USA annual report. Tracking trends is a key part of fundraising strategy. And we’re doing this every day at RNL. If you’d like to apply the latest trends to your fundraising strategy, drop us a line. We’re ready to help. Find out more: npresearch.org GivingUSA.org

Every year, the Nonprofit Research Collaborative puts out two big surveys to track trends in giving. Organized around 15 different fundraising methods, it’s one of the most comprehensive surveys around. The Winter 2018  Nonprofit Fundraising study report is just out, and shows that most charities are doing better through the end of the calendar year. I got on the line with Melissa Brown from the Non Profit Research Collaborative and Aggie Sweeney from Giving USA to go over the results and talk about what they think is next for nonprofit fundraising. <a href="npresearch.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> <a href="npresearch.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Download the latest report here</a> The Nonprofit Research Collaborative and Giving USA are great resources to track trends in fundraising. Melissa and Aggie had great insights about how wealth demographics and donor engagement are changing our work. Head on over to <a href="http://npresearch.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">npresearch.org</a> to download the most recent research. And stay tuned in June for the always important Giving USA annual report. Tracking trends is a key part of fundraising strategy. And we’re doing this every day at RNL. If you’d like to apply the latest trends to your fundraising strategy, <a href="mailto:ContactUs@RuffaloNL.com">drop us a line.</a> We’re ready to help. Find out more: <a href="npresearch.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">npresearch.org</a> <a href="GivingUSA.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">GivingUSA.org</a>

Nonprofit Research Collaborative and Giving USA - Melissa Brown and Aggie Sweeney talk the Winter 2018 Nonprofit Fundraising Study

We've just released our annual report on annual giving trends, from a survey fundraisers this year. I got on the line with Shad Hanselman, RNL's annual giving guru, to talk about the results, including what fundraisers say about: - Usage of channels, like direct mail, phone, email, crowdfunding, giving days and online giving. - Where fundraisers wish they were spending more time. - What fundraisers think is best for donor acquisition, retention, and upgrade of donors. - What's being done for young alumni engagement. - What's next for the future of annual giving.  Download the full report here

We've just released our annual report on annual giving trends, from a survey fundraisers this year. I got on the line with Shad Hanselman, RNL's annual giving guru, to talk about the results, including what fundraisers say about: - Usage of channels, like direct mail, phone, email, crowdfunding, giving days and online giving. - Where fundraisers wish they were spending more time. - What fundraisers think is best for donor acquisition, retention, and upgrade of donors. - What's being done for young alumni engagement. - What's next for the future of annual giving. <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/papers-research-higher-education-fundraising/advancement-leaders-speak-2019-annual-giving-best-practices/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Download the full report here</a>

Fundraisers Speak: Advancement Leaders Annual Giving Report 2019

Student philanthropy programs are an important part of the advancement efforts. We know from research that almost 90 percent of colleges and universities do some type of student philanthropy program, whether it’s a philanthropy day, a student phonathon, a student organization, or even involving students in thanking donors. The Engaging Students in Philanthropy Symposium, offered by CASE as part of the Student Advancement conference coming up in just a few months, is a great place to find out about the best practices in starting and improving a student philanthropy program. I’m proud to be on the faculty once again this year. I got the great group of symposium faculty on the line to talk about what we’ll be covering this year, and what’s hot in student philanthropy work right now. Register for the Symposium here!  Engaging your student body in philanthropy is a key best practice to grow future givers and provide a great experience for all your donors. Join us at the symposium to find out about how to start or expand your program, interact with other passionate student philanthropy missionaries. You can find out more at case.org. We’ll see you there.

Student philanthropy programs are an important part of the advancement efforts. We know from research that almost 90 percent of colleges and universities do some type of student philanthropy program, whether it’s a philanthropy day, a student phonathon, a student organization, or even involving students in thanking donors. The Engaging Students in Philanthropy Symposium, offered by CASE as part of the Student Advancement conference coming up in just a few months, is a great place to find out about the best practices in starting and improving a student philanthropy program. I’m proud to be on the faculty once again this year. I got the great group of symposium faculty on the line to talk about what we’ll be covering this year, and what’s hot in student philanthropy work right now. <a href="https://www.case.org/CSA18/ESPS18_Home.html" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Register for the Symposium here!</a> <a href="https://www.case.org/CSA18/ESPS18_Home.html" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"></a> Engaging your student body in philanthropy is a key best practice to grow future givers and provide a great experience for all your donors. Join us at the symposium to find out about how to start or expand your program, interact with other passionate student philanthropy missionaries. <a href="https://www.case.org/CSA18/ESPS18_Home.html" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">You can find out more at case.org.</a> We’ll see you there.

Student Philanthropy: The 2018 CASE Engaging Students in Philanthropy Symposium Faculty

Michael Stoner

Having a good relationship between your marketing department, and your advancement division is absolutely crucial. Michael Stoner, co-founder, and president of mStoner Incorporated knows this, and he's completed some research recently showing how this relationship can really propel the results of an advancement division’s ability to engage donors. I got on the line with Michael to talk a little bit about his history in higher education marketing and what he sees next for the integration of communications to donors.  Check out this article on Michael's research here at Inside Higher Education Find out more about mStoner at: https://www.mstoner.com/

Having a good relationship between your marketing department, and your advancement division is absolutely crucial. Michael Stoner, co-founder, and president of mStoner Incorporated knows this, and he's completed some research recently showing how this relationship can really propel the results of an advancement division’s ability to engage donors. I got on the line with Michael to talk a little bit about his history in higher education marketing and what he sees next for the integration of communications to donors. <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/call-action-marketing-and-communications-higher-education/partners-advancement-marketers-and-0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Check out this article on Michael's research here at Inside Higher Education</a> Find out more about mStoner at: <a href="https://www.mstoner.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.mstoner.com/</a>

Michael Stoner - 24/7 Marketing And Advancement

Join RNL's Josh Robertson, Dayna Carpenter, Chris Bingley, Shad Hanselman and Greta Daniels as we talk about what the health crisis means for donor engagement, as well as our immediate and future strategy. Find more resources at: https://www.ruffalonl.com/category/fundraising/ And join our COVID-19 Higher Education LinkedIn group. And if you would like to utilize the RNL ScaleFunder platform at no cost through June to put up  mobile-optimized campaigns for your supporters, let us know here. We recorded this podcast panel discussion the afternoon of Monday, March 16, just following the declaration of the national health emergency.

Join RNL's Josh Robertson, Dayna Carpenter, Chris Bingley, Shad Hanselman and Greta Daniels as we talk about what the health crisis means for donor engagement, as well as our immediate and future strategy. Find more resources at: <a href="https://www.ruffalonl.com/blog/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.ruffalonl.com/category/fundraising/</a> And join our COVID-19 Higher Education LinkedIn group. And if you would like to utilize the RNL ScaleFunder platform at no cost through June to put up <a href="https://learn.ruffalonl.com/MQL2020-03CrowdfundingFreeFromRNL_LandingPage.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> mobile-optimized campaigns for your supporters, let us know here.</a> We recorded this podcast panel discussion the afternoon of Monday, March 16, just following the declaration of the national health emergency.

Impact of the Coronavirus on Fundraising and Donor Engagement - RNL Expert Panel

Missy Kennedy

Running your giving program strategically definitely means thinking out to start of the year, how you're going to approach donors, ask them for gifts and thank them, but it also means putting in place the infrastructure to deal with the unexpected. Missy Kennedy at UNC Wilmington is an expert at this. She's had a lot of success over the past few years engaging the entire campus community and dealing with unexpected needs and challenges that philanthropy could definitely have an impact on. I got Missy on the line to talk about her annual giving program and what she thinks is next for the agile, strategic annual giving program. Check out UNCW at https://giving.uncw.edu/

Running your giving program strategically definitely means thinking out to start of the year, how you're going to approach donors, ask them for gifts and thank them, but it also means putting in place the infrastructure to deal with the unexpected. Missy Kennedy at UNC Wilmington is an expert at this. She's had a lot of success over the past few years engaging the entire campus community and dealing with unexpected needs and challenges that philanthropy could definitely have an impact on. I got Missy on the line to talk about her annual giving program and what she thinks is next for the agile, strategic annual giving program. Check out UNCW at <a href="https://giving.uncw.edu/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://giving.uncw.edu/</a>

Missy Kennedy at UNCW - Annual giving agile strategy

Brady Josephson

Recurring giving is a big topic these days, particularly among our higher education partners. Everyone's watching the massive increase in subscription services, and particularly how young alumni or donors use them. Also, we're just really excited about the idea of people buying into consistent, regular giving. But most of us haven't really figured out how to give for monthly gifts real well, how to thank recurring donors, or even in some cases how to receive the gifts correctly. It's a tremendous opportunity to build a base of committed, regular donors who have bought into your cause. So when NextAfter, the great fundraising research outfit, published their recent recurrent giving study where they actually made gifts to a couple hundred charities and saw how recurrent giving was marketed, we gobbled it up. The same day it came out, I called Brady Josephson and got him on the line to talk about how to optimize the donor experience, to tell us what they heard in the study, and how he thinks in his words we can unlock the most generous generation in history. Here's our chat. Check out the full report at: https://recurringgiving.com/ And Brady's NextAfter podcast at: https://www.nextafter.com/podcast/

Recurring giving is a big topic these days, particularly among our higher education partners. Everyone's watching the massive increase in subscription services, and particularly how young alumni or donors use them. Also, we're just really excited about the idea of people buying into consistent, regular giving. But most of us haven't really figured out how to give for monthly gifts real well, how to thank recurring donors, or even in some cases how to receive the gifts correctly. It's a tremendous opportunity to build a base of committed, regular donors who have bought into your cause. So when NextAfter, the great fundraising research outfit, published their recent recurrent giving study where they actually made gifts to a couple hundred charities and saw how recurrent giving was marketed, we gobbled it up. The same day it came out, I called Brady Josephson and got him on the line to talk about how to optimize the donor experience, to tell us what they heard in the study, and how he thinks in his words we can unlock the most generous generation in history. Here's our chat. Check out the full report at: <a href="https://recurringgiving.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://recurringgiving.com/</a> And Brady's NextAfter podcast at: <a href="https://www.nextafter.com/podcast/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.nextafter.com/podcast/</a>

Brady Josephson - NextAfter - Recurring Giving

Martin Leifeld

Martin Leifeld is a career fundraiser, speaker and author that has raised over $500M in his career. He's the author of  Five Minutes for Fundraising, a great book that features leaders from across the fundraiser world. I talked with Martin about how fundraisers navigate the path of personal growth, and what he thinks is in store for the future of our profession. Check out all of Martin's great content at martinleifeld.com

Martin Leifeld is a career fundraiser, speaker and author that has raised over $500M in his career. He's the author of <a href="http://www.martinleifeld.com/five-minutes-for-fundraising-a-collection-of-expert-advice-from-gifted-fundraisers-1/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Five Minutes for Fundraising</a>, a great book that features leaders from across the fundraiser world. I talked with Martin about how fundraisers navigate the path of personal growth, and what he thinks is in store for the future of our profession. Check out all of Martin's great content at <a href="http://www.martinleifeld.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">martinleifeld.com</a>

Martin Leifeld - Fundraising Leadership

There is no denying that higher education campaigns have been transformative. These comprehensive efforts help us build buildings, fund scholarships and even boost current use support. And they are growing. It’s more and more common for us to see campaign totals exceeding 1 billion. Almost every institution is either in or thinking about a campaign. So we wanted to know what fundraisers feel about the future of campaigns in higher education. We surveyed almost 600 fundraisers and got their opinions about what is working and they key challenges to campaign success. I got on the line with RNL expert Caryn Stein to break down the results of this latest edition in our Advancement Leaders Speak series.  Download the full report here We know from the survey that you are either in a campaign or working on starting one soon. A few things we learned from this survey: fundraisers do expect campaigns to increase their advancement budgets. But they are under big pressure for big totals, and unless we can think a bit differently, those resources may not be enough. It’s time to reinvent fundraising, and how you organize your campaign, using the best tools and data-driven technology, will make all the difference. That’s what we’re focused on here at RNL, so if you’re ready to take you campaign to the next level give us a call. We’re ready to help.

There is no denying that higher education campaigns have been transformative. These comprehensive efforts help us build buildings, fund scholarships and even boost current use support. And they are growing. It’s more and more common for us to see campaign totals exceeding 1 billion. Almost every institution is either in or thinking about a campaign. So we wanted to know what fundraisers feel about the future of campaigns in higher education. We surveyed almost 600 fundraisers and got their opinions about what is working and they key challenges to campaign success. I got on the line with RNL expert Caryn Stein to break down the results of this latest edition in our Advancement Leaders Speak series. <a href="http://learn.ruffalonl.com/WEB2018FutureofFundraisingCampaignsReport_LandingPage.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Download the full report here</a> We know from the survey that you are either in a campaign or working on starting one soon. A few things we learned from this survey: fundraisers do expect campaigns to increase their advancement budgets. But they are under big pressure for big totals, and unless we can think a bit differently, those resources may not be enough. It’s time to reinvent fundraising, and how you organize your campaign, using the best tools and data-driven technology, will make all the difference. That’s what we’re focused on here at RNL, so if you’re ready to take you campaign to the next level give us a call. We’re ready to help.

The Future of Higher Education Campaigns - New Survey

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