Making the Most of Giving Tuesday 2019
Last year, my colleague Lisa Tarshis shared her valuable insights on the age old question:…
Keep Your Friends Close–And Your Donors Closer: A Quick Guide to Improving Donor Stewardship
There are several definitions of the word stewardship. My favorite is “the job of taking…
Leveraging Lay Leadership
Do you have a sense that your nonprofit board could be playing a more significant…
Start Planning for Your Year-End Campaign, Now!
Let’s be honest. You are avoiding it. Planning for your year-end campaign always seems so…
What ROI Should You Expect from Your Nonprofit Video?
In the fundraising world, ‘storytelling’ is the buzzword du jour. Written stories, face-to-face donor events,…
Finding the Support You Need to Succeed
As March draws to a close, we’ve been talking a lot about Women’s History Month…
Creating a Major Donor Prospect List
Does the thought of starting a major gifts program overwhelm you? If you’re like many…
Is March too Late for New Year’s Resolutions?
Welcome to the very first edition of Giving Tree Associates’ quarterly newsletter, the L.E.A.F., our…
The Case for Support – the Key to Inspiring Your Donors
We all have a story to tell. As a nonprofit, telling that story well is…
Top Three Tools You Need for a Successful Fundraising Year
It’s the beginning of February and the year is well underway. Maybe it’s smooth sailing…
Giving Tuesday–Should we, or Shouldn’t we?
Giving Tuesday is one of the most stressful times of year for fundraisers. We often…
Is it too late for a year-end fundraising campaign?
It’s early November and you haven’t started a thing. You’re tempted to skip it—but don’t!…
Be Sure the Shoe Fits: Differentiation And Campaign Planning
This article originally appeared in Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools’s fall issue of its quarterly publication, HaYidion. Before launching a private consulting practice, I served for five years as director of development at a sizable Orthodox school in a major metropolis. On my first visit as a consultant to…
"Building Your Brand" Recap
Hi everyone! Becca here. I’m taking over Amy’s blog this week because I was so inspired by our “Building Your Brand” Speaker Series session yesterday that I wanted to share my thoughts with you. You probably saw in Amy’s last blog post that Giving Tree Associates was looking forward to…
Brand New Thinking
You may have received an invitation to next week’s Speaker Series program, “Building Your Brand”. Why, you might ask, would a firm that specializes in fundraising, leadership development and strategic planning offer an afternoon dedicated to branding to its clients and prospective clients? This would be a reasonable question. And…
St. Louis in July? Why You Should Attend More Conferences
I know I promised to talk about training your board committee chairs this week, but I am interrupting our regular broadcasting (don’t worry, it’s on the agenda for next week – I will indeed get to it) to create a quick commercial for conference attendance. Shocking, given that most fundraising…
Is It October Already?
This is the time of year where we start talking about how fast everything is moving…. Two minutes ago it was summer, and we felt like we had all the time in the world to dream, plan and strategize. Now, we’re into the second quarter and some of us might…
End of Summer Stewardship
For many non-profits, summer is a time when active donor work slows down. Donors and lay leaders may not be as available or accessible. People travel, spend time with their children and families and take a break from work and volunteer responsibilities. The beginning of fall signifies a return to…
Don’t Judge a Book By Its Cover
I used to sit by the window at a previous job. Great seat – looking out on the world below – contemplating how the money I was raising was making a difference, and taking inspiration from these thoughts to write the next campaign piece. Every two weeks, the window cleaner…
Putting Together a Successful Auction
Many organizations offering large-scale fundraising events find that a silent auction nicely compliments their fundraising efforts. Do you ever wonder how all of those wonderful packages and prizes are organized and readied for bidding? Giving Tree’s client, IMD Guest House, will be hosting their Annual Golf Outing in two weeks.…