FundRaiser Blog

You still have time to catch them... and it's easier to do it while they are still in sight, than later when they are totally gone. That's lapsed donors I'm talking about.

One of the most important groups to send letters to are Lapsed Donors - those who have given in the past, but not in the most recent 9-24 months. It’s much easier, and less expensive, to win a donor back than to find a new one.

Lapsed donors have indicated that they are interested enough in your organization to donate at least once. This makes them highly qualified as potential future donors. For some reason they have not felt the incentive to donate again recently. That may be for reasons beyond your control, but it might also be because you haven't asked.

Does your organization depend on volunteers to get its work done? Are you satisfied with your volunteer retention? Do you have a few problem volunteers that may actually be more trouble than they are worth, but who just won't go away? In one of my favorite articles written about volunteer management, Michael McKee addresses these points, distilling years of experience into a short article. When I talked to him to get his permission to post the article on the FundRaiser website, I found him to be as engaging and direct in person as he was as a writer, brief and helpful.

The Care and Feeding of Volunteers

by Michael McKee

Are you using FundRaiser's Multi-User or Single-User license? FundRaiser is beginning a gradual phase-out of these licenses and a mandatory upgrade to a Client/Server license. The reason is that Client/Server is much faster and more reliable when accessing FundRaiser on your network.

Many of our users have already moved from multi-user to Client/Server. Here are the stories of a few of them, and why they like Client/Server:

• Fast organizational growth at Siena/Francis House had them chewing their nails over the slow operation of FundRaiser multi-user. They solved the problem by switching to FundRaiser Client/Server. Case Study: Siena/Francis House

• Keeping up with the work of a regional organization is no small job. It takes several people sometimes working simultaneously in FundRaiser to get the work done at Siloam Family Health Center. It gets done smoothly with FundRaiser Client/Server. Case Study: Siloam Family Health Center.

• The online version of FundRaiser includes Client/Server as part of it's core program to allow several users working from different locations to smoothly access the program. Bishop McDevitt High School uses it for that reason. Case Study: Bishop McDevitt High School.

• CrossTalk TV & Radio also uses FundRaiser Online version. They like how staff members can work both in the office and at home, viewing and editing the same data  simultaneously. Case study: CrossTalk TV & Radio.

As social media director for FundRaiser, I make posts and write articles for forums, facebook, blogs like this one, and newsletters. It's a job I really like, in part because of the ongoing challenge to understand and integrate how the new and emerging tools of online communication can be used to really add something to the conversation between FundRaiser and our nonprofit customers.

As I know that many of you are also dealing with a similar challenge, I'd like to occasionally share what I am learning and experiencing. If you'd like to share your thoughts, too, please feel free to join the conversation on our facebook page, or email me directly at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Probably the most important thing to keep in mind, always, is to remember that for all its pizzazz, social media and online communication are about trying to make a connection with the people who want to hear from you and are interested in what you have to say. This isn't new, but sometimes the 'newness' of social media tools makes us forget that it's still always about understanding and meeting the needs of your audience, whoever they are.

Every time you write something, try to put yourself in the shoes of your supporters. If you do this,then you are starting from the right place. Nancy Schwartz, editor of the Getting Attention blog/newsletter for nonprofit marketing , is one writer who has some excellent tips and advice for staying in tune with your audience.

It's time to produce Tax Summary letters (also called End of Year letters) again. They are usually sent in January after the last donation for the year is in. To help you breeze through this process, here's a coherent plan of attack for FundRaiser users.

Step One... Read More

Last week, a friend of mine was complaining about people who ask to 'friend' her on Facebook and don't bother to add a personal note to their request. Reading this, I was aware of an uncomfortable feeling, because I've gotten pretty casual about this myself, although I really enjoy getting a little note myself. It only takes a few words to let me know that the person values the connection they are asking for.That's the topic of a new FundRaiser case study. In it, Joe Emert of Life Radio Ministries reminds us of the need for staying human in our communications with donors.

Last week, a friend of mine was complaining about people who ask to 'friend' her on Facebook and don't bother to add a personal note to their request. Reading this, I was aware of an uncomfortable feeling, because I've gotten pretty casual about this myself, although I really enjoy getting a little note myself. It only takes a few words to let me know that the person values the connection they are asking for.That's the topic of a new FundRaiser case study. In it, Joe Emert of Life Radio Ministries reminds us of the need for staying human in our communications with donors.

Today I was looking through my emails and I noticed that I have quite a few from customers who want me to update their contact information for billing  purposes in our database. I’m happy to do this, of course, but I also wanted to  point out a way that you, as a FundRaiser customer, can control your own contact information.  Accessing this information through our Customer Portal is just for you!

You can log in, set up multiple users, view free training videos, review help technical support help documents and interact with other users and the FundRaiser staff through the Support Forum.  Make sure you contact our Technical Support staff to obtain your username or you can reset your password on your own from the login page.

Recently, Joshua and I had the opportunity to attend and exhibit at the 2011 National Religious Broadcasting Convention in Nashville, TN. I cannot easily describe how invigorating and inspiring it was to be surrounded by passionate, engaged nonprofit leaders for four whole days! It’s so easy to get so caught up with everyday management details, that I sometimes forget why I got involved in this business in the first place. The convention was a wonderful reminder of how much I love working with nonprofits. I can honestly say that I love my job because I get to work with the most important people in the world.

While we were there, we also had the opportunity to meet with some of our clients, many of whom have been with us for a long time. Caleb, Jennifer (in photo at left with Joshua Shirley), and Josh Weiss from CrossTalk Ministries came by to meet us and could not have been more kind! They have been using FundRaiser since 1999, and are a brilliant example of a nonprofit who has really made the best use of donor management software, beginning with FundRaiser Basic and upgrading over the years all the way up to Professional Hosted! You can read the story or how CrossTalk has used FundRaiser to increase their donor base in their case study here.


We also met Joe Emert (in photo at right with Joshua Shirley) from Life Radio Ministries, who spent a long time talking with Joshua about some of the ways he uses FundRaiser to manage their events, and to provide us with some thoughtful input for future development. Joe was so kind to share so much of his time with us.

This week I was reminded how important it is not to just do a good job but to be able to SHOW that you have and can do a good job. Calculating ROI (Return On Investment) on fundraising activities such as events or appeals is one way to do this.

Judy Nerl has done this with some of  Our Lady of the Holy Spirit's outreach activities. She gathered figures to show which activities were generating more income. In this she needed to know the balance between incoming donations and outgoing expenses. The organization runs a large and historically rich facility on a tight budget. The facility serves as a spiritual center for the Catholic Church. Among the Center’s many activities this year, are events and retreats for high schools students.

This week I was reminded how important it is not to just do a good job but to be able to SHOW that you have and can do a good job. Calculating ROI (Return On Investment) on fundraising activities such as events or appeals is one way to do this.

Judy Nerl has done this with some of  Our Lady of the Holy Spirit's outreach activities. She gathered figures to show which activities were generating more income. In this she needed to know the balance between incoming donations and outgoing expenses. The organization runs a large and historically rich facility on a tight budget. The facility serves as a spiritual center for the Catholic Church. Among the Center’s many activities this year, are events and retreats for high schools students.

This week I was reminded how important it is not to just do a good job but to be able to SHOW that you have and can do a good job. Calculating ROI (Return On Investment) on fundraising activities such as events or appeals is one way to do this.

Judy Nerl has done this with some of  Our Lady of the Holy Spirit's outreach activities. She gathered figures to show which activities were generating more income. In this she needed to know the balance between incoming donations and outgoing expenses. The organization runs a large and historically rich facility on a tight budget. The facility serves as a spiritual center for the Catholic Church. Among the Center’s many activities this year, are events and retreats for high schools students.