With summer vacations wrapping up and back-to-school season in full swing, it’s time to start taking a close look at your fundraising plans for the fall and year-end. 

Are you feeling prepared for the busy months ahead? We know how valuable this time of year is in your fundraising cycle, which is why it’s so important to focus on creating a strong strategic plan for your donors.

In this episode, Jeff Schreifels is joined by Debi Dunham, Client Experience Leader here at Veritus, and our special guest Jarrod Williams, Director of Development for the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh and an alumnus of our online academy.

Listen in to this episode to learn what steps you can take right now and in the months ahead to set yourself up for a successful year-end fundraising season.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about…

• What fundraisers need to do during the fall fundraising season to prepare for a successful year-end

• How to shift your efforts so that you’re using your time effectively in November and December
• Planning touch points that will cut through the noise during a busy time for your donors

It’s the most intimidating part of fundraising: asking someone for a gift.  

But that’s not the only thing that fundraisers need to ask for. You’re also requesting meetings, inviting donors to attend events, and asking them to share the personal drivers behind their giving.  

So, whatever you’re asking for – how do you do it in a way that honors the donor as a partner in your mission? 

We developed our Permission-Based Asking™ model as a framework for more authentic dialogue. No more guessing what your donor is thinking or making assumptions about what’s going on for them.  

This episode is a re-release of one of our most-downloaded podcast episodes on asking, featuring Karen Kendrick, our Senior Director of Client Engagement, and Debi Dunham, Senior Client Experience Leader. Listen in to hear some real-life examples of how a permission-based approach to asking can transform your donor relationships. 

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about…  

• How Permission-Based Asking™ works to build collaborative dialogue  

• Strategies to practice and develop your asking skills in any context 

• Results from Veritus clients who’ve used Permission-Based Asking with their donors 

We’ve all been in meetings where the conversation gets sidetracked. Maybe someone present is very chatty and wants to spend the first half hour catching up. Maybe one individual has another topic they want to discuss, outside of what was outlined in the agenda. Or maybe no one is clear on why they’re there at all, so the conversation wanders until the time is up.

How can you make sure your donor meetings stay on track, while being respectful of everyone’s time and contributions? In this episode, Karen and Diana share their tips for how to effectively prepare for a donor meeting and what you can do when things don’t go according to plan.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about…

• How to prepare for meetings and set expectations with all participants

• What you can say when a conversation gets off-track

• How to use Permission-Based Asking to move the conversation forward in a way that feels authentic and honoring

• How to handle emotions that may come up, in yourself and in your donor

As a major gift fundraiser, do you feel you’re being supported enough so you can be successful?

Unfortunately, we run into many MGOs who are basically left on their own, without the support they need to build authentic relationships with donors.

In today’s podcast episode, Richard and Jeff discuss the five reasons MGOs fail – and you’ll be surprised that most of the reasons have nothing at all to do with the MGO.

We believe that the work of a major gift officer is one of the hardest in the non-profit sector, and that’s why we’re committed to providing you the resources necessary to help you be successful and find joy in your job.

Because when you do, it’s the donor that wins!

In most of the higher education institutions where Veritus Group has conducted data assessments, they’re performing terribly.

What’s wrong here?

Universities have resources. They have dozens (if not hundreds) of major gift officers, researchers, and stewardship officers. And yet what we find is that they don’t have real relationships with donors and alumni.

Some of them are still raising millions if not billions of dollars… yet they could be doing so much better forming authentic relationships with donors and alumni!

In today’s rebroadcast of an episode from January, Richard and Jeff talk about their experiences with university major gift programs, tell stories about their MGOs, what their challenges are, and ultimately what can be done to turn those programs around.

“You can’t be serious!”

This is the reaction Richard and Jeff get from many non-profit leaders when we tell them NOW is the time to start a major gift program.

Yes, even in the midst of uncertainty, your organization should either be starting or heavily investing in your current major gift program.

Why? Because this is where you’ll eventually see most of your NET revenue come from.

Need inspiration to do it? Well, in this podcast episode, our guest is Joyce MacDonald, the President and CEO of Greater Public Media. They’re the association for all PBS and NPR stations around the U.S.

Joyce has a great story of how she identified public media’s need to create a real major gift program and what she did to make it happen – and she’ll inspire you to do it yourself! It was no small feat, but Joyce is making it happen.

If you just read the headlines from fundraising news publications, you’d think the sky is falling and revenue from non-profits is tanking.

But is it?

If you actually get past the “doom and gloom” headlines, you’ll read that giving is actually up in 2020 vs. 2019!

What? Yep, giving is up.

In this episode, Richard goes on a rant about the effects of these negative headlines, and he urges non-profit leaders to not succumb to them by not reaching out to donors. Then, he and Jeff give you some practical steps to reach out to your donors and ask.

Why should you ask? Because they are giving!

This pandemic has been a stress test for many non-profits. The biggest threat to the future of a non-profit in times like this is the lack of multiple funding streams for a non-profit.

Today, those organizations that rely heavily on events, or corporate and government funding, are struggling. And non-profits that only rely on direct-response to bring in the majority of their revenue are reeling.

Why? Because having a diverse array of funding streams, especially those who promote individual donor giving, will help you get through economic downturns. And as you know, we’re in a massive downturn at the moment.

In this podcast episode, Richard and Jeff discuss why you need to diversify your funding, how to detect where you’re hurting, and how to create a plan to change it.

Pivoting is good, but it implies that once we get back to normal, we just go back to what we used to do.

Well, this pandemic is giving us the opportunity to not only pivot, but to permanently change.

Change what?

Change the way we evaluate MGOs and major gift programs.  Richard and Jeff believe that the old metrics that most non-profits use to measure major gift officers perpetuates transactional giving.

In this episode, Richard and Jeff discuss why we need to let go of the old metrics and suggest a few new ones that actually help major gift officers develop authentic relationships with donors.

Isn’t that what major gifts should be all about?

Find out what metrics every non-profit should evaluate that actually help you build relationships and go from transactional to transformational.

In this episode, Richard and Jeff are joined by Veritus Group's Director of Planned Giving Services, Bob Shafis. Bob will discuss with them why you should be considering several planned giving strategies now, and how to do it. 

They’ll also talk about the $2.2 Trillion Care Act that was recently enacted and how it will affect your non-profit.

Join Richard, Jeff and Bob for an informative discussion and get inspired to use planned giving as a tool that will help you now in this crisis and well into the future.

Do you know your organization’s coronavirus story? In other words, if a donor asked you how the virus is affecting your organizations mission would you know what to say?

Our team at Veritus is worried that many non-profit leaders and managers haven’t figure out how the virus has really affected your mission. What potential shortfall are you looking at? What added services are you now providing that you weren’t before? What is all this costing you?

In today’s podcast, Richard and Jeff specifically speak to non-profit leaders and managers about making sure you know your coronavirus story, what it will cost and urge you to boldly tell donors that story so they can help you weather the crisis.

We are hearing things in our sector that disturbs us. “You shouldn’t talk to donors now.” “We need to pull back our fundraising efforts to allow people to deal with the crisis.”

No.

If you've built solid relationships with donors, you have their trust to reach out to them, find out how they're doing, tell your organization's story in this crisis and be able to ask for the donor’s help.

Now is that time. We hope this episode inspires you as you continue to communicate with your donors.

In today’s episode Richard and Jeff give you an update on stories they're hearing from other major gift officers and start answering a number of questions from your colleagues about how you should fundraise, given this crisis we're all in.

At the end of the episode we also direct you to our COVID-19 Resource Page and tell you about two new courses we've designed just to help you through this crisis and, because we don’t want cost to be a factor, we’ve decided you can pay whatever you can to take this four week, eight-hour course over the month of April.

You are now fundraising in an unprecedented time in our history. You may be worried, anxious or concerned personally and professionally. All those feelings are normal.

Richard and Jeff have recorded a special podcast to help you think about major gift fundraising in a crisis like the one we face today.

Both of them have been through multiple national and international crises and tragedy, and they have experience on how non-profits and major gift fundraisers should respond.

We hope this special podcast is helpful in your work and gives you comfort that over time, we will get through this tough time… together.

In celebration of Women’s History Month, today’s episode is all about how women are shaping and changing the field of fundraising. Our special guest joining us for this conversation is Yolanda F. Johnson, President and Founder of YFJ Consulting and Women of Color in Fundraising and Leadership (WOC)™, which specializes in fundraising, philanthropy, and best practices for equity and inclusion.

Listen in to learn more about Yolanda’s work and to hear her perspective on lifting up more women and people of color in the non-profit sector. If you enjoy the episode and you’d like to continue the conversation with Yolanda, see the show notes below for ways to get in touch.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about…

• Yolanda’s work through her organization, Women of Color in Fundraising and Philanthropy (WOC)™

• The four pillars of allyship, and how embracing the idea of “sponsorship” can help to elevate more women and women of color in the sector   
• Mentorship opportunities for women who are interested in non-profit management and leadership
• Moving away from the scarcity mindset and finding ways for women to work together, to champion each other

As you know, the most important job for an MGO is to build relationships with their donors. How are you going to do that without administrative support?

You can’t.

We hear from so many MGOs who say they’re bogged down doing expense reports, handling travel details and entering information into the database. They’re doing so much admin work they end up having very little time to talk to donors!

In today’s episode, Richard and Jeff talk about the importance of what an administrative assistant can do to support major gifts and how having one actually brings in more NET revenue for an organization.

Yes, you heard that right: more NET REVENUE!

Even better, Richard and Jeff interview a major gift officer, Frank Mumford, from the Greater Twin Cities United Way on how he uses an administrative assistant, what specific tasks he has that person do, and how it’s helped him work more efficiently and develop relationships with donors.

You’ll often hear that fundraising professionals are “jumping ship” every 1.8 to 2.3 years in search of something better.

Quite frankly, the number one reason people quit their job is because they have a bad manager or leader as a boss.

Today Richard and Jeff are joined by fundraising expert, author and writer of the popular blog, “Future Fundraising Now,” Jeff Brooks.

Jeff has worked with hundreds of organizations and has some great stories and interesting observations about why we seem to have such bad bosses in the non-profit sector.

Best of all, we come up with some great solutions to help you and your boss become better at what they’re doing. It’s far from being a hopeless situation!

Today’s podcast episode is a little different. We’re talking about the spirituality of major gift fundraising. No, we’re not talking about religion, but we ARE talking about how fundraising has a spiritual nature to it – not with a capital “S,” but with a small “s.”

Richard and Jeff explore the mystical act that happens at the moment a donor gives, and the organization receives that gift.

Find out not only why we think fundraising is a spiritual endeavor, but also how you can continue to keep your heart soft and focused on the need, so you can continue to help your donors find joy and fulfillment in their giving.

In today’s episode, Richard and Jeff talk with Veritus Group's new Director of Planned Giving Services, Robert Shafis. Robert is one of the most knowledgeable, sought-out experts on planned giving in the country. And now he’s working with Veritus to help non-profits everywhere do planned giving right!

Specifically, Robert highlights some of the main problems and misconceptions about planned giving, and what can be done to turn those problems into solutions. Then he offers everyone listening the opportunity to receive a free planned giving assessment.

If you think universities have it all figured out with major gift  fundraising, you’d be very wrong. In fact, at most of the higher education institutions where Veritus has conducted data assessments, they’re performing terribly.

Universities have resources. They have dozens (if not hundreds) of major gift officers, researchers, and stewardship officers. And yet what we find is that they don’t have real relationships with donors and  alumni.

Some of them are still raising millions if not billions of dollars… yet they could be doing so much better!

In this episode, Richard and Jeff talk about their experiences with university major gift programs, tell stories about their MGOs, what their challenges are, and ultimately what can be done to turn those programs around.

Are you concerned that the donors on your file are too old? Are you scrambling to get younger donors?

Don’t be.

In major gifts and planned giving, the vast majority of your revenue will come from donors who are 55 and older. So why is everyone  so enamored with younger donors?

This episode teaches you why older donors should be the bread and butter of your major gift program – and why you shouldn’t be anxious about finding  younger donors.

This episode sheds light on some of the craziest misconceptions we’ve heard from leaders and managers about major gifts, and what you can do as a major gift officer to help educate them and set them straight.

Major gift fundraising is too important to be left to folks who don’t know what they’re doing. There’s too much riding on your organization’s future not to know how a major gift program should be run correctly.

Get inspired to help your manager or non-profit leader understand how major gifts actually works.

Most of the time, when we ask a major gift fundraiser what the Return on Investment (ROI) of their portfolio is, we get nothing but a blank stare – and then a look of panic.

Well, you don’t have to panic. In this episode, Richard and Jeff talk about how to calculate your ROI. They tell you what’s acceptable for a new portfolio vs. a mature one. They discuss how it should grow over time, and they let managers and leaders know it takes TIME to develop.

Then they list 12 reasons why there is low ROI in many major gift portfolios. Richard and Jeff go over what you can do to avoid these pitfalls so that you can realize net revenue and ROI growth, year after year.

To serve your major donors outrageously, you have to know your programs and projects so well that you’re able to inspire those donors to make a significant gift to your organization.

The most effective and best way to do that is to get to know the people behind those programs. These are the program, finance, HR, and executive team that are passionate about your organization’s mission.

In this episode, Richard and Jeff have some great tips for how you can do this.

Major gift fundraising has a problem: MGOs are leaving their non-profits after only 1.8 years on the job! How can they build lasting relationships with donors that way?

In this episode, Richard and Jeff discuss why people are leaving, and how managers can work with MGOs to keep successful, experienced staff intact.

Asking your donors for gifts isn’t something you should save for the year-end giving season. When you’re tuned in to your donor’s giving preferences and interests, you can bring them additional giving opportunities even outside their regular giving season.

For this episode, we invited two guest fundraisers and clients of ours to share their expertise on this subject. Sarah Coen-Frei, Senior Individual Giving Manager at Minnesota Public Radio, and Fritz Gutwein, Major Gift Officer at Bread for the World, join Veritus Group’s Karen Kendrick (Senior Director of Client Engagement) and Diana Frazier (Senior Client Experience Leader) for this conversation about how to approach asking year-round. 

We hope you find these tips helpful as you work toward your next donor asks!

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Moving away from transactional asking (e.g. waiting for year-end appeals) to adopt a more relational model

• How to use Permission-Based Asking when asking your donor for a gift

• Inspiring donors to give outside of their regular giving season

In the last decade there's been a lot of talk about building a culture of philanthropy. But who's actually doing it? And what does it actually take to do it?

In this episode, Richard and Jeff interview Mark Rovner, the founding principal of SeaChange and a much sought-after keynote speaker.

Mark will give you some great ideas on how YOU can help change your non-profit’s culture, how to be effective in doing it, and how not to lose hope in the process.

Is your organization considering creating a capital campaign in the near future? Before you spend a bunch of time, energy and money on it, you have to listen to Richard and Jeff talk with Amy Eisenstein, the CEO and Co-Founder of Capital Campaign Toolkit. Amy has a unique approach to capital campaigns, one that could save you thousands of dollars if you heed her advice.

She has some really good questions for you to answer as you consider whether or not you should start a campaign. She also gives you tips and advice for what not to do.

Please listen closely and alert your CEO and board to what Amy has to say. It could be the best advice you get all year.

Do you wonder what it will take to take your major gift program to another level?  The answer is not about some new strategy or innovation.

The answer to bringing more net revenue from your major gift program is to get to know your donors so well you know their passion and interests and why they have them.

If you know those and why, you can match that up with everything your organization does to change the world.

In this podcast episode, Richard and Jeff talk about your knowing your donor’s passions and interests; they have many stories to share that highlight why it’s so important.

How do you create compelling donor offers that will result in gifts that are significant, or even transformational? In this episode, Richard and Jeff talk with legendary fundraiser, copy-editor and author Tom Ahern about how he helps clients reach donors and motivate them to action.

Have you ever thought it would be nice to be able to qualify,  steward, and cultivate your donors in a more efficient, less costly way – all while using new technology?

In this episode, Richard and Jeff talk with Greg Warner, the CEO and founder of MarketSmart. Greg talks about what inspired him to start his company and how hundreds of non-profits are using his software to help them connect with donors.

You’ll notice immediately Greg’s passion for fundraising and donors.  He wants to change how our industry views donors and help fundraisers do  what they do best – build relationships with donors.

In this episode, Richard and Jeff will inspire you for major gifts fundraising with some great thoughts and ideas you can implement right now.

They talk with Frank Mumford, a major gift officer with Greater Twin Cities United Way, who shares his experience and tells a story about how noticing "little things" can have a big payoff with your donors.

Do you ever get in a rut about what you should be doing with your donors to cultivate them properly? Richard and Jeff hear from many major gift fundraisers who are just tapped out of ideas. 

Today’s episode is LOADED with new ideas for you to use when cultivating and stewarding your donors, all with the intent to help you understand their passions and interests – which will allow you to solicit your donors in a more meaningful and impactful way. 

The job of a major gift officer is difficult. In this episode, we talk with Christine Tesmer, a major gift officer from Colorado Public Radio. We get insight into her success, what it takes and how she manages work and life.

We also learn how her unique background in sales prepared her for her role as a major gift officer. Her story is compelling and offers great ideas for you to be successful in your role.

Major gift fundraisers are going to get frustrated quickly if they focus on donors who don't want to talk to them. In this episode, Richard and Jeff tell you what it means to "qualify" these donors, so you're talking only to the donors who respond to the individual attention you want to give them. When your focus is on these receptive donors, you'll be more successful in achieving – and exceeding – your goals for their giving.

Major gift fund-raisers can slip into thinking of people as "prospects" even after they've given many times. Richard and Jeff examine this practice and encourage a different approach to these people who are already partnering with you to change the world.

When you work at a non-profit organization, just as in any job, there will be times that you feel stuck, discouraged, or uninspired. This work is hard, and it’s not uncommon to experience feelings of burnout or frustration. 

If you’re in a space like that, how do you shift your energy so you can bring your best self to your work with donors?

For this episode, Karen and Renita share some questions to ask yourself on those days to help you approach your energy differently. We hope these suggestions leave you feeling encouraged with some strategies to help you move forward and find more satisfaction in your daily work!

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Mindset challenges that affect how you feel and show up in your work

• Practices to help you avoid burnout as a non-profit professional

• Steps leaders can take to support their staff

How do you keep donors moving from direct response giving, to bigger gifts, into your major gift program? Fundraising expert Jeff Brooks talks with Richard and Jeff about the major gifts "pipeline" and the best things you can do to keep, lift and move your donors forward.

Richard and Jeff kick off their podcast by discussing how donors give best – not as an annual duty, but as an ongoing response to their desire to do good in the world, through your organization.

The "Nothing But Major Gifts Podcast" is a production of Veritus Group, an industry leader in major gifts fundraising. Learn more at VeritusGroup.com.

When you’re looking for your next fundraising position, how do you evaluate which opportunities are most aligned with your professional goals? What questions should you ask in your conversations with hiring managers to learn more about their culture and evaluate whether the role is a good fit?

In this podcast episode, Karen and Matt are joined by special guest Paul Towne, VP of Executive Search with Cooper Coleman. As a search consultant who works exclusively with non-profit and social impact organizations, Paul has extensive knowledge about how to interview for the right roles and identify which opportunities will be the best fit for you.

We hope this conversation gives you some helpful ideas and tools to use when you’re interviewing for your next fundraising role!

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Factors impacting the job-hunting landscape across the non-profit sector

• How to identify roles that will be the best fit for you

• What candidates should look for when interviewing at a non-profit

• Questions to ask that will help you learn more about an organization’s culture 

Welcome to January! In these first weeks of the year, you’re likely still finishing out the year-end season, thanking donors for gifts received, and assessing your performance compared to your goals. At the same time, you’re working on communication plans and strategies for the year ahead. 

In this episode, Jeff is joined by Theresa Tapocsi and Edie Dahlen, two of our Client Experience Leaders, for an overview of what fundraisers and leaders need to know right now while you’re wrapping up from year-end and getting started on your top priorities in 2024.

We are honored to walk alongside fundraisers as they chart their course for a new year. If you could use an external partner to support your work as a fundraiser, we’d love to chat. Schedule a call today for a no-pressure conversation about ways we can partner with you and your organization so you can achieve even more for your mission.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Common challenges facing fundraisers in January after a busy year-end fundraising season

• How to evaluate your performance, beyond whether or not you met your revenue goals

• Where to focus your attention at the start of the calendar year

• Tips for leaders to help their teams celebrate their work last year and transition to new priorities in the year ahead

When we talk to passionate fundraisers who are deeply committed to their donors, their most common complaint about their work is that they don’t feel supported by their managers. People leave organizations because of it, yet management skills are often undervalued in the non-profit space. 

In today’s episode, Karen and Jeff talk through some of the obstacles that may be holding you back as a leader for your fundraising team, and how you can take steps to turn things around. For anyone managing a team of frontline fundraisers, we hope you’ll tune in to this episode for strategies to help you be the kind of manager who inspires your team to do their best work.

And if you could use an external partner to support your work as a manager or non-profit leader, we’d love to chat. Schedule a call today for a no-pressure conversation about ways we can support you and your team so you can achieve even more for your mission.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Some of the most common issues that cause managers and leaders to be ineffective in their roles

• Practices and actions that define the most effective non-profit leaders and managers

• How to change the culture at your organization and address any management issues that may be holding your team back

When an anonymous check for $100,000 arrived at the American Brain Foundation, their fundraising team was blown away. The organization certainly wasn’t so large that this level of giving was typical. Who was this anonymous person, and what made them decide to give so generously? 

In this episode, Jeff and Diana interview two members of the team at the American Brain Foundation (ABF) – Jane Ransom, Executive Director, and Lisa Dahlberg, Philanthropic Advisor – to learn how they responded to this unexpected gift. Their efforts to connect with this anonymous donor ultimately led to a multi-million-dollar commitment for ABF. Listen in to learn how a transformational gift like this is possible for your organization.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• How an anonymous gift led to a multi-million-dollar commitment

• The steps that ABF took to learn more about the donor’s passions and goals

• The internal culture at ABF that supported this transformational partnership

When you have a healthy donor pipeline, there will come a time when you need to transition a donor relationship to someone else. Whether the donor is moving from mid-level to a major gifts portfolio or from a higher level of giving back into mid-level or direct response, you need to have protocols in place so that the transition feels seamless to the donor. 

For today’s podcast episode, Karen Kendrick speaks with Diana Frazier, Senior Client Experience Leader, and Kara Ansotegui, Director of Client Engagement Services, to ask them about their top tips for how you can meaningfully transition a donor relationship in a way that honors the donor and strengthens their connection to your organization.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• The kinds of donor transitions you need to develop protocols around (how to move a donor from mid-level to major gifts or planned gifts, or back down to mid-level)

• Some of the common issues we see in non-profits that lead to bumpy transitions for both donors and fundraisers

• How to manage transitions when you have a hybrid mid-level / major gifts caseload

When moves management was first introduced as a strategy to help fundraisers manage their caseloads, it was a step forward in putting some much-needed structure around the donor pipeline. 

But now, some non-profits have taken the idea too far. A lot of organizations have gotten stuck on rigid definitions of what “stage” a donor is at. Moves management has led to these metrics that have caused fundraisers to forget about how actual relationships work.

In this podcast episode, Richard and Jeff share an alternative approach to caseload management that will allow you to move your focus back to your donor.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• Having a mindset of cultivating donors all the time, instead of designating a status for “Cultivation”
• How to stay focused on the donor relationship, rather than the stage
• How to advocate for this new approach when leadership has only known moves management

Did you know that Veritus Group is an international consulting agency, with offices in the UK & Europe (in addition to our US & Canada team)? We often get questions about how The Veritus Way works in different cultural settings, so we wanted to spend some time sharing about our work with international clients and highlighting what’s been working well for them. 

In this episode, Jeff is joined by Sara Di Lullo, Director of Client Engagement for Veritus UK and Europe, along with Karen Kendrick, Senior Director of Client Engagement for Veritus Group in the U.S. and Canada. Tune in to hear Sara and Karen share how our clients are taking a relational approach to major gifts in an international context.  

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about…  

• Some of the concerns we hear most often from leaders or fundraisers who aren’t sure if The Veritus Way will work for them 

• The challenges to implementing a culture shift and adopting a strong major gifts strategy 

• How our approach has been working for our international clients 

At the AFP Conference last summer, two fundraisers from the East Texas Food Bank reached out to Jeff. They wanted to share with him how taking our Certification Course two years ago has made a huge difference for them in building deeper donor relationships and bringing in more revenue for their mission.

We felt so inspired by the conversation and the long-term results they’re seeing now, two whole years after taking the training. So, for today’s episode, we invited Hannah Harris, Donor Engagement Advisor, and Alex Fruth, Director of Development for the East Texas Food Bank, to come and share with us about their experience with The Veritus Way of fundraising. 

If you’ve been considering taking a training with us, or you’re wondering what it would mean for your organization to adopt a more relational approach to fundraising, listen in to hear from Hannah and Alex about how it’s made an incredible difference in their work with donors. 

Show Highlights: In this episode, we ask Hannah and Alex to share about… 

• Key takeaways from our Certification Course and how it’s impacted their work

• The before-and-after difference of adopting The Veritus Way

• Learning to use Permission-Based Asking™ in donor conversations

One of the greatest barriers to your success in relational fundraising is whether or not the rest of your organization understands and supports this work. 

We hear stories all the time from frustrated fundraisers who aren’t able to get important program information, can’t easily share the impact, and don’t have donor offers to present. 

So for this episode, we’re sharing some guidance, tips, and language to help you start talking about fundraising within your organization so you can get everyone on board and moving in the same direction. 

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn… 

• The problems that arise when organizations don’t understand or value the role of fundraising

• How fundraisers and leaders can educate other groups about fundraising

• How to connect with Program and Finance teams so they can see the impact donors have on their work

• How to explain a relational approach to fundraising for those without a background in it

We get a lot of questions from our community about basic best practices in fundraising. And we get it! It’s one thing to understand these ideas in theory, but even the most experienced fundraisers run into questions when it comes to implementation.

So, for this podcast episode, we’ve compiled some of the most common questions we receive about the basics to encourage you and help you make sure you’ve got the basics down.  

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn… 

• Why you still need to ask donors to give, even though they’re receiving direct mail

• How to layer direct mail communications with your relational strategy

• Why it’s necessary to build a strategic communication plan for each major donor

• Why you need a 7-step donor qualification process

• The role of wealth ratings in qualifying your donors

For your organization to continue to grow, you need to invest in an organized program for identifying and stewarding planned gifts. Planned giving is an essential part of relational fundraising, yet so many fundraisers avoid it simply because they don’t have a system that supports them to engage donors in this way.

So for this podcast episode, we’ll be talking about the three legs that make up a successful planned giving program. Listen in to learn how to build a program that will support your fundraisers in securing more planned gifts for your organization’s mission.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll learn about… 

• How we define the three legs of planned giving, and where these areas can support each other

• Organizational division of labor for these functions – whether you have a distinct position for each role, or one person who manages them all

• What can go wrong when an organization is not properly supporting all three areas of planned giving

• Opportunities for collaboration between major gifts and planned giving

If you put off your year-end planning until October or November, you may find yourself scrambling to get things done at the last minute, without any broader strategy behind your communications. Which is why we recommend starting now! 

But we know it can be overwhelming to think about everything you need to do at year-end. So in this episode, we’re sharing some of our favorite tips and ideas to help you build efficiencies into your year-end plan, so that this time of year can stop being overwhelming and start being fun, creative, and impactful.

Show Highlights: In this episode, you’ll discover… 

• What gets in the way of effective year-end planning

• Tips for fundraisers looking for efficiencies in their year-end planning and strategy

• How non-profit managers and leaders can help their teams create an effective plan for year-end