The Agitator

If you haven’t yet seen Convio’s benchmark report on online fundraising for 2009, founder Vinay Bhagat’s video summary should wet your appetite. Heaps of data here, based on results from some 600 Convio online fundraising clients. Some highlights: Individual giving down only ...  Read more

I’m seeing more and more marketing articles these days that emphasize relationship building and seriously engaging “best” customers. Here’s an example from Seth Godin, where he discusses Fans, participants and spectators: “Likes, friendlies and hits are all ...  Read more

Yesterday I reminisced about the “old days” when a small handful of “big brand” media delivered the news that fueled the fire in the belly of donors to many causes. Through their coverage, those same media — NY Times, PBS, CNN, NPR — also provided the credibility ...  Read more

My nonprofit fundraising and communications experience has been grounded primarily in the world of advocacy organizations, as opposed to mainstream charities focused on health research, education and the like. And more narrowly still, advocacy of the center-liberal persuasion. For groups like ...  Read more

Having just watched The Netherlands eliminate Uruguay (justice being served IMHO), I moved on to reading fundraiser Mal Warwick’s latest newsletter. In particular, an article by Tom Ahern titled We don’t care what our donors think of us caught my eye. Tom talks about a recent ...  Read more

The Harris Poll released some data recently on use of social media to criticize or compliment brands. They found that one-third of US adults use social media to air their feelings, positive or negative, about a company, brand or product. Within that group the percentage of complainers and ...  Read more

The recent e-letter of donor loyalty specialist Lisa Sargent describes how the Atlanta Union Mission builds relationships with its donors. AUM provides emergency food and shelter, residential recovery programs and transitional housing for men, women and children. Lisa’s article focuses on ...  Read more

Back in November 2007 we ran a post titled, Snorting Oxytocin, with this lead … “Attention major gift fundraisers!! Next time you’re about to pop the question to a prospect (the fundraising ask, that is), squirt a dose of oxytocin up their nose. You might get two-and-a half ...  Read more

Last week was long and surreal. Deep Horizon vomiting even more into The Gulf of Mexico…the U.S. and U.K. World Cup teams seemingly cheated out of goals…a three-day-long tennis match at the very proper strawberries-and-cream Wimbledon. Enough! So, on this Monday morning it’s time to kick it ...  Read more

The Agitator is often asked to endorse specific fundraising campaigns, and our policy is to respectfully decline. There are simply too many, we haven’t the resources to evaluate conscientiously, and who are we to pick and choose anyway?! It’s bad enough that we bombard you daily with ...  Read more