Blog
Current Cybersecurity Trends and Risk Mitigation for Direct Marketing Professionals
Is your business or nonprofit prepared for a cyber attack? In the event of a data breach, would you know what to do? The risks of cyber attack are only increasing, so preparing for an intrusion is vital—to protect your donors, clients, staff, and your organization. We’ll tackle your questions head on and provide you…
Merry, Merry or Quite Contrary?
Right before Christmas, President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, into law. If you are a non-profit, you must be wondering how it will impact your fundraising—and what to do about it. Let’s break it down into five factors (for a more in-depth look, read the full article here. ​ 1. Uncertainty. The…
Ten Commandments of Copy & Design Part II
You Still Can’t Risk NOT Reading This! (Continuing on with a quick wrap up of DMAW’s Ten Commandments Lunch & Learn featuring Tom Gaffny and Steve Fleshman.) Among the Commandments according to Tom and Steve is NEVER break a multi-page letter with the end of a sentence. Entice the reader to turn the page and…
Ten Commandments of Copy & Design Part I
You Can’t Risk NOT Reading This! Did you decide to read on? Good. You’re already on your way to improved fundraising results by just knowing these Ten Commandments. (A quick wrap up of DMAW’s Ten Commandments Lunch & Learn featuring Tom Gaffny and Steve Fleshman.) Commandment Number 1 — It’s Not All About YOU! Sorry.…
My direct mail fantasy, and other myths
I’ve found the perfect direct mail donor. Her name is Gladys, and she gives to everything I send her, 100% of the time. But I’m not sharing her with you guys. She’s mine. When Gladys gets a mailing from me, she does exactly what she’s supposed to do. When she sees my piece of…
11 Commandments of Fundraising Design
I look in the mirror, and I start to think I LOOK as old as Moses, but that’s where the comparison seems to end. Though I do have close to 30 years in the industry, so I guess I have a few things I can share in the upcoming DMAW Lunch & Learn…
Google Analytics and Ecommerce: Learning the Value of your Website in Dollars and Sense
When I sat down to attend the DMAW’s Lunch & Learn, led by the Harrington Agency’s Chief Digital Strategist Adam Ruff, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew the seminar (which I was happy to discover was a working session) would cover getting the most out of Google Analytics, but to what degree? I…
The Donor Who Keeps on Giving—How Often to Appeal to Your Monthly Givers
At the recent Bridge Conference, I ran into a colleague who asked me the question that many nonprofits grapple with: How often should you ask your existing sustainers for more money? We know that monthly donors are a good source of revenue, but if you aren’t asking for extra gifts during the year, your ‘single’…
Lights, Camera, Action: Turning Views into Donations
Views and likes are everything nice, but do they really help drive donations and web traffic? According to See3 Communications CEO Michael Hoffman, those likes and views don’t mean much if they don’t turn into action—and that means you have to be reaching the right people. During the DMAW co-hosted webinar “How to Create an…