Legacy Giving and Your Donor’s Final Chapter
Think of life as a story. More specifically, think of it as a book – an autobiography to be precise. If you were going to take on the task of writing a book about your life, how would you lay out the chapters? Maybe your chapter outline would start out something like this: Before you […]
Don’t Go Breaking My (Direct Mail Loving) Heart
How to Write Direct Mail for Donors Who Don’t Read Direct Mail 💌 Here at Good Works, we’re passionate about sharing emotional stories with your donors. But we also know a little secret about direct mail donors… Lots of them decide to give without even reading the letter! (If you love writing stories for donors […]
How Aging Changes The Way We Read Mail
Just last week, I read this tweet showed up in my newsfeed. Now admittedly, this is pretty old, but it did offer up a Groundhog Day moment for me. I was both transfixed and blown away by this image: Astigmatism is when the cornea is slightly curved rather than completely round.. With astigmatism, light focuses […]
Your Story Is Worth Its Weight In Gold!
Fundraisers always ponder questions about offers. How much should I ask for? What would a donor pay for this? Or for that? There are well-paid consultants who make a living by helping charities put a valuation on sponsorship opportunities and naming rights. But, have you ever thought about how the right story could a real […]
Trust Your Gut: Five Times The Fundraiser Is Always Right
If you’re a fundraiser, you’ve likely encountered someone within your organization (or at a dinner party!) who thinks of fundraising not as a profession, but rather, a fun job that any friendly person can do. I mean, what’s so hard about asking people for money…right? What these well-meaning people don’t know is that good fundraisers […]
A Smart Way Forward
The COVID-19 pandemic has sent a lot of charity leaders into a tailspin. In this unknown environment, many of us have felt that it’s somehow inappropriate to be ‘pushy’ about asking for money when so many are suffering. Wrong! Canadian donors have told us that they’re still generous – and that they still intend to […]
3 Tips for Pandemic-Proofing Your Digital Campaigns
Days are getting shorter, the nights a little cooler, and my work from home attire now includes a lot more hoodies. It can only mean one thing… Fall is in the air! Which means the craziness of year-end digital fundraising is upon us. And this year, I think we’re in for year-end giving season like […]
The Hectic Fall Season – Pandemic Style
For those of you that are savvy veterans of the direct mail fundraising game, you know that we are heading into the busiest and most important time of year, pandemic or not. For the vast majority of direct mail fundraisers, the September to December stretch is the biggest in terms of revenue coming in and […]
The Legacy Lift – Your Secret to Increasing Annual Revenues
Over the years, I’ve heard dozens of reasons why fundraisers don’t think that now is the right time to invest in their legacy giving program. Legacy & Planned Giving Inertia Often, the reason for not ramping up legacy gift fundraising is the fear that annual donors will stop giving once they’ve made their bequests. This […]
The 6 Ingredients You Need To Build A Digital Fundraising Program
Building a digital program is kind of like baking a macaron: you need the right ingredients, combined in the right way, or it’s just not going to work! No smooth round top, no bubbly little feet, no crispy outside and chewy inside. Sure, it might still be tasty – but it won’t be as good […]