Guest Bloggers
MAXI Madness Strikes Again at National Harbor
It was a star-studded afternoon as Direct Marketing’s top fundraising experts and their guests gathered at the elegant Gaylord National Hotel at Washington D.C.’s National Harbor for the 38th Annual Marketing Awards for eXcellence and Innovation – the MAXIs! The MAXIs have become one of the industry’s most coveted prizes over the years because of…
Read MoreThree Steps to a Better Performing Website
Why do your competitors’ websites continuously outrank and seemingly outperform your own? It’s a question many organizations may find themselves asking. But thanks to the relative open nature of the Internet, we can grab glimpses of their digital strategies—and see what’s working. In this post, we will briefly examine steps your digital team can…
Read MoreFrom Sacred Cows to Successful Campaigns — Real Life Victories
What happens after you tip your sacred cows? In our previous blogs (one and two), we discussed how to identify your nonprofit’s specific sacred cows — those programs, events, campaigns, and practices that you perform religiously, often because that’s the way it’s always been done. Or sometimes our sacred cows are programs that represent too…
Read MoreIdentifying the Sacred Cows That Are Holding You Back
Let’s say you’re committed to tipping some sacred cows. You are ready to challenge and evaluate everything: your mission, your approach, your revenue. How do you identify your organization’s specific sacred cows? In our first blog of this series, we discussed the various fundraising practices nonprofits perform religiously — often with the only strategy being…
Read MoreHow Do You Tip a Sacred Cow? Strength and Patience.
Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” We all tend to agree with this — but do we as nonprofits put it into practice? Particularly in our fundraising work? Echoing this same sentiment, management expert Tom Northrup once said, “All organizations are perfectly designed to get…
Read MoreNonprofits Must Leverage Millennials to Navigate the Digital Era
Digital communications have undoubtedly become an integral part of daily life. President Trump’s tweets instantaneously reach over 30 million people worldwide. Media outlets such as The Washington Post, The New York Times, and BuzzFeed routinely use Facebook Live and other digital applications to engage with supporters and share breaking news. Through Instagram and Snapchat, high…
Read MoreSneak Peek on What to Expect at Upping Your Digital Program Workshop
Don’t have a digital program? You’re not alone—more than half of nonprofits and charities don’t take advantage of the opportunities that digital marketing brings to the table. For those organizations and those who are looking to improve their digital programs, DMAW is hosting the Upping Your Digital Program Workshop on June 8th. I had a…
Read MoreFundraisers Face Significant Retention Decline
Retention matters. It is sometimes the greatest—but most profitable—challenge you may face as a fundraiser. And it’s getting harder. That’s why DMAW is hosting a Lunch & Learn to provide a Retention Roadmap—answering your top retention questions and putting you on a path to file growth. For the past 10 years, donor retention has been…
Read MoreData Strategy Forum Brings List Community Under One Roof
On May 9th, list professionals will be convening once again, but instead of heading to the List Bazaar, they are all coming down for the new and improved Data Strategy Forum. The name change reflects the changes in the industry. Certainly, for a long time now, we have been working with more than just mailing…
Read MoreMonthly or Bust: Creating a Sustainer Culture
On his very first day as membership director, Dane Grams strove to make monthly donors the centerpiece to the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) sustainer strategy. Why? Well, as he convinced the HRC development team—and now the audience at the DMAW Lunch & Learn: Sustainer Recruitment and Engagement event—monthly sustainers give the most money over…
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