Nonprofits are constantly on the lookout for new and improved ways to fund their causes. And the less time and effort required, the better! That’s where recurring donations can be a lifesaver. After all, securing consistent, reliable revenue is a must for nonprofit fundraisers aiming to make a significant impact on their overall missions. And donors love the ease with which they can support their favorite causes! In fact, fundraising research states that online giving revenue grew by over 40% as recurring donation options become increasingly popular with online donors. Planned giving, or legacy giving, is a philanthropic form of giving through which donors arrange for a donation to be given as a part of their financial or estate plan. Planned gifts are often deferred until a donor has passed. In comparison to other types of donations, planned gifts tend to be larger and more infrequent. For many nonprofits, planned gifts are an untapped resource. This is because when compared to more common forms of fundraising, they do not provide the same immediate benefits. Consequently, valuable planned gift opportunities can easily be neglected amidst the demands of the regular fundraising season. Issue 135 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! Get ready to say goodbye to February and welcome a new month! Soapbox Engage has a brand new free downloadable guide, and I wanted you all to be the first to know. Most nonprofits are constantly on the lookout for new and innovative ways to increase their organizations’ revenue and better establish funding for their missions. If that sounds like you, check out our Guide to Volunteer Grants to learn about this unique funding strategy. You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Salesforce is one of the most popular CRM platforms. But there are still many organizations who aren’t yet using Salesforce, or are debating on if it’s a worthwhile investment. If that’s you, keep reading to learn how Salesforce is beneficial for nonprofits. Issue 134 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! Can you believe how fast February is flying by? We’ve been keeping busy here at Soapbox Engage. If you want even more fundraising advice, nonprofit tech news, and free resources, you can sign up for our monthly newsletter here. Scroll on down for some great fundraising ideas relating to multichannel marketing, virtual events, grant management, and more! You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! On every commercial airline flight, a flight attendant instructs the passengers that, if cabin pressure changes during the flight, they should put on and adjust their own oxygen masks before assisting others. Similarly, before your nonprofit can make a genuine difference in the lives of its beneficiaries, your internal team has to thrive. The key to this is honing your organization’s approach to employee retention. Capital campaigns are unique fundraising ventures. These campaigns not only require months (and sometimes years!) of a nonprofit team’s time and effort. They also help organizations raise massive amounts of revenue that make large-scale projects possible, like building a new facility or purchasing important equipment. Because of the sheer scale of capital campaign work, there are many moving parts to keep track of and thus, many opportunities for error. To help your nonprofit team prepare for future capital campaigns, we’ve assembled a list of common capital campaign mistakes and how to avoid them: If you are a school leader, you may not think Salesforce has anything to offer you. However, that’s not the case. Salesforce Education Cloud for K-12 is a CRM platform for schools, aimed at keeping students and their families, alumni, and staff connected. This integrated platform offers many benefits for schools and students. Keep reading to learn more about the Salesforce Education Cloud, and whether or not it’s right for your school. Issue 133 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! We put a little extra love into the newsletter this week! Scroll on down for some top fundraising content relating to design and accessibility of nonprofit websites, CRMs for nonprofits, sponsorship letters, and more! You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Your nonprofit’s website is a hub for all information about your organization, including everything from how to donate to how to sign up for events. It should be full of meaningful content that serves long-time supporters, current donors, and newcomers to your cause. But meeting the evolving needs of these audiences requires constant changes and growth. A website growth or transition plan is a strategy for growing your website sustainably over time. Keep these four tips in mind when developing your growth plan: CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software is an incredibly important tool for nonprofit organizations. And when it comes to CRM software, Salesforce is an excellent option. It is without a doubt one of the most widely utilized business software platforms. However, many who are using Salesforce don’t fully know how to utilize it. They’re missing out on capabilities and therefore not functioning as well as they could be. If you’re wanting to implement Salesforce to its highest capacity, you should consider hiring a Salesforce consultant. Keep reading to discover what a consultant can do for you. Though soliciting board members sounds like a simple enough topic, it’s often not done in the most effective way. If you’re planning or currently conducting a capital campaign, you’ve likely already thought about what the best approach will be to secure these important commitments from your organization’s leaders. This step comes long before the public-facing projects of promoting your campaign and engaging with the community, so it needs early consideration. Issue 132 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! How do you plan on expressing gratitude for your donors this year? Here are 6 cost-effective donor thank you gifts to consider. Timely and meaningful acknowledgment of support really does make all the difference! Scroll on down for last week’s top fundraising content! We’ve got great ideas relating to reconnecting with donors, using text-to-give, and preparing your nonprofit for financial uncertainty in a recession. You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Issue 131 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! Here’s to finishing out the first month of 2023 strong! This year, you may want to consider improving your wording when asking for donations. The words you choose can make all the difference. After all, giving is about connecting with your community. And language is one important tool we use to connect. Download this guide to asking for donations to learn tips on how to strengthen your relationships with your donors through the words you use. Scroll on down for some top fundraising ideas relating to major donor meetings, engagement strategies, and monthly giving. Enjoy! You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Salsa Engage is sunsetting and it’s time for Salsa customers to look for an alternative solution for their online engagement and fundraising needs. Salsa Engage is a cloud-based solution that unifies an organization’s campaigning and advocacy efforts. It was a great all-in-one-platform for fundraising, advocacy, CRM, and more, but it will be phasing out entirely by 2024. Luckily for Salsa Engage clients, there is a wide variety of alternatives out there that can give you exactly what you’re looking for. We’ve compiled the top five alternatives to Salsa Engage. Issue 130 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! Lately we’ve had some rainy weather in DC, which has encouraged me to rest up in the new year. I hope you’ve been doing the same! Are you considering adding fundraising software to your nonprofit strategy in 2023? If so, might I invite you to an introductory webinar at the top of next month? Introduction to Soapbox Engage will walk you through a suite of apps that offers solutions to any nonprofit’s online engagement needs, from fundraising, to events management, to classes, directories, and forms of any variety. You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Issue 129 Happy Tuesday, fundraisers! What are your fundraising resolutions for 2023? Maybe it’s time to look into creative fundraising strategies to expand your support— whether that’s using popups to drive site traffic to your donation pages or starting a corporate matching gifts program. Scroll on down for some great fundraising ideas to get the juices flowing! You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Many schools rely on fundraising to support clubs, sports teams, field trips, and other fun activities. But since these activities persist year after year, certain fundraising ideas can become boring after being repeatedly used. But school fundraisers don’t have to be boring or “been there, done that.” When done right, they can be great community building activities. Issue 128 Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! This week’s newsletter is packed with great content relating to fundraising SEO, goal assessment, donor appreciation, and nonprofit fundraising trends for 2023. Dig in! You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today! Hosting a nonprofit event allows you to deepen relationships with supporters and raise valuable funds to drive your mission forward. But, in order to generate the large turnout needed to achieve a successful event, you need to be diligent about creating personalized and targeted outreach. Whether you’re hosting an in-person gala or a series of livestreamed raffles, adopting a data-driven marketing strategy can help you reach your goals. In this guide, we'll walk through three event marketing tips powered by actionable metrics. |