[Guest Post] 15 Fundraising Mistakes That Have Already Been Made for You

by Marc A. Pitman | Aug 2, 2013 | 1. Research, 2. Engage, 3. Ask, 4. Love (Stewardship), Fundraising Secrets, Guest Posts

I’m glad to introduce you to Tom Harrison, the CEO of Russ Reid. Tom and I are members of the FundRaising Success Editorial Advisory Board and were able to present at a recent conference in Philadelphia. He has an amazing mind for nonprofits and a good sense of...

5 Things Not to Do at Your Next Major Gift Solicitation

by Marc A. Pitman | Jul 30, 2013 | 3. Ask, Fundraising Secrets

Even if you’re working through the steps of the Ask Without Fear! system, asking for a major gift can be challenging. Here are 5 things you definitely want to avoid on your next major gift solicitation visit! 5 Things Not to Do When Asking for a Major Gift Be...

[Guest Post] The money making secret of effective donor newsletters

by Marc A. Pitman | Jun 23, 2013 | 4. Love (Stewardship), Fundraising Secrets, Guest Posts

I’m a huge fan of Tom Ahern. The very first time I heard him speak, I learned tactics that transformed my fundraising writing and made it much more effective. He even convinced me donor newsletters could be actual fundraising tools! So when I saw this blog post...

The secret for nonprofits recovering from a recession – Giving USA

by Marc A. Pitman | Jun 19, 2013 | 3. Ask, Board Members, Fundraising Secrets, Personal Leadership

Yesterday I wrote about Giving USA’s 2013 Report and the highlights about giving last year. At the end of the npVOICES interview with Gregg Carlson of the Giving USA Foundation, Steve MacLaughlin asked for Gregg’s impressions for fundraisers. With 50 years...

Throw statistics out of your fundraising letters!

by Marc A. Pitman | May 7, 2013 | 3. Ask, Fundraising Secrets

A couple weeks ago, I was grounded in Newark, NJ so I got to listen to some NJ radio. One ad for a nonprofit caught my attention and then quickly failed. I blogged about it at Does the phrase “tax deductible” kill donations? And I gave some suggestions on...

The Art of Fundraising – as a 140 second Icarus Presentation

by Marc A. Pitman | Jan 25, 2013 | 3. Ask, Fundraising Secrets

Wednesday, I had the opportunity to join over 375 people to hear Seth Godin speak at MIT. He was sharing ideas from his new books The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly? and V Is for Vulnerable: Life Outside the Comfort Zone. After he spoke, he invited six of us...