Marketing Your Nonprofit

• Marketing is all about letting your different constituencies know what you're doing. Here's some techniques for proclaiming the good news. By Elizabeth Forsythe.
  
  Source: North Carolina Center for Nonprofits   |  Published: 2001

Ten Things That Will Make or Break Your Website

• Unmaintained or overwrought websites can fail to get the information to the clients, funders, and potential volunteers you need to reach. Here’s a 10-step guide to remember when making your website. By Markus Urban.
  
  Source: Network for Good   |  Published: 2007

How Electronic Newsletters Can Help Charities Further Their Missions Without Creating Virtual Junk Mail

• Great article about creating a successful email newsletter. Keep them short, promote interactivity, and don't get too flashy are several pieces of advice. Provides examples. Written by Darlene M. Siska.
  
  Source: Chronicle of Philanthropy   |  Published: 2002

Boards That Love Fundraising: Specific Responsibilities

• There is no excuse for a board member who is uninvolved in raising money for the organization. This excerpt from Zimmerman Lehman’s book lists four fund-raising responsibilities of board members, with accompanying tips on how to make them happen. This short read may open your eyes to the options available for board members who are not wealthy or who are uncomfortable asking people directly for money.
  
  Source: Zimmerman Lehman   |  Published: 2007

The Nonprofit Board's Pivotal Role in Philanthropy

• Helpful advice for assessing your board's involvement in fundraising efforts, then motivating and ennabling their efforts if they are found lacking. Discusses recruiting a fundraising board, and changing a board's expectations. Written by Barbara L. Ciconte and Roberta A. Healy.
  
  Source: American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging   |  Published: 2005

12 Principals of Fundraising

• 12 commandments to keep in mind whilst courting and keeping donors. Among them: "People Give Only in Trusting Relationships", "We Tend to Overload Donors", and "Constantly Build a Network." Written by Dr. Roger Parrott.
  
  Source: Dr. Roger Parrott   |  Published: 2006

Donor Development Guide

• This is an extensive FAQ pertaining to donor development. Questions include, "How to I identify large donors and approach them?", "How can I get corporate sponsorship of an event?", and "What kind of thank you gift is best?" Absolutely awesome.
  
  Source: Mal Warwick Associates   |  Published: 2010

Top 10 Tips for World-Class Donor Relations

• Adapted from Ken Burnett's book, The Zen of Fundraising. Very simple one-sentence rules for interacting with donors. Be committed, be personal, and be available are three of them. From Joanne Fritz.
  
  Source: About.com   |  Published: 2006

Sample Donation Thank You Letter

• The thank you letter to a donor concludes one transaction but, more importantly, it is a bridge to future support. Get the thank you letter right, and you are well on your way to future fundraising success. Joanne Fritz provides 2 example thank you letters.
  
  Source: About.com   |  Published: 2006

Donor Loyalty: The Holy Grail of Fundraising

• One-time donations are nice, but consistent donors are the bread-and-butter of most successful nonprofits. This article supplies donor retention data, suggests who you should pursue (and how), and tells you what to expect in the way of donor loyalty. 16-page PDF.
  
  Source: University of Virginia   |  Published: 2006

Donor Databases: Three Nonprofits Tell Their Stories

• After a certain critical mass is reached, every nonprofit should invest in some kind of donor databse. Here’s an article telling the story of three nonprofits that switched from cumbersome spreadsheets or rolodexes to donor databases, with great results. By Brian Satterfield.
  
  Source: TechSoup.org   |  Published: 2006

Ten Nonprofit Funding Models

• For-profit executives use business models—such as “low-cost provider” or “the razor and the razor blade"—as a shorthand way to describe and understand the way companies are built and sustained. Nonprofit executives, to their detriment, are not as explicit about their funding models and have not had an equivalent lexicon—until now. Truly fascinating and insightful, highly recommended. By William Landes Foster, Peter Kim & Barbara Christiansen.
  
  Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review   |  Published: 2009

Diversify, Diversify, Diversify

• The ability to weather economics storms lies in finding new funding streams. This article talks about doing a fundraising audit and community assessment to successfully plan for and sustain a new fund raising strategy. By Heather Burton.
  
  Source: fundraisingsuccessmag.com   |  Published: 2009

Nonprofit Fundraising Methods: An Overview

• This short is a brainstorm of the different ways an organization could raise money. Holding a special event, applying for foundation grants, promoting legacy gifts and planned giving, and holding a capital campaign are all listed and briefly described.
  
  Source: Nolo.com   |  Published: 2009

12 Bright Ideas to Grow Your Direct Mail Campaigns

• Advice for direct mail drives, reinforcing especially the integration of mail and internet to give the donor options. Other tips include keeping branding consistent, and issuing a challenge to donors.  From Steve Maggio.
  
  Source: fundraisingsuccessmag.com   |  Published: 2007

10 Common Mistakes Made in Nonprofit Direct Mail

• This is a very short enumerated list of things to absolutely avoid in direct mail campaigns. Not well-described but useful for its brevity. Written by Sandy Rees.
  
  Source: stepbystepfundraising.com   |  Published: 2009

Tips for Successful (and cheap) Direct Mail

• Very practical advice on direct mail design, to save money on postage and streamline your letter. This article explains the nuts and bolts of getting the letters out the door and into the hand of your potential donors.
  
  Source: Oak Tree Marketing   |  Published: 2008

RFM: A Formula for Direct Mail Success

• RFM is a numbers-based formula for achieving maximum efficiency in direct mail fundraising. This whitepaper is only 3 pages long and is worthy glancing at. Saving money make sense in the nonprofit world, too.
  
  Source: Blackbaud, Inc.   |  Published: 2004

The Well-Organized Grant Proposal Writer

• About.com has an especially developed section on grant-writing. There are articles detailing each section of the proposal, and the information you need to have at hand before you begin. This article gives some preparatory advice that will save time and energy. By Joanne Fritz.
  
  Source: About.com   |  Published: 2008