ASSIST Consulting
Dear Charitable-Minded Person: Before you go too far into your diatribe about how, someday, you’re going to join Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg among the world’s great philanthropists, I have to ask you, no BEG you: PLEASE for the love of mercy, DO NOT START A FAMILY FOUNDATION! Why? Well for starters, there…
read moreAs a cat lover and admirer, I’ve always been troubled by the expression “there’s more than one way to skin a cat.” Why on earth would anyone want to skin a cat? But I have to admit, the saying makes a valid point. Any problem or goal can, and should, be approached from multiple perspectives…
read moreThe harsh reality about development staffing (as noted in the above 2013 report by CompassPoint), is that you’re very likely to go through a search every two years. Good Development Officers move on to higher pay and other adventures, and the not-so-good ones just move on. Either way, they leave a big hole in your organization’s operation…
read moreGiving Tuesday will be upon us before we know it, so organizations everywhere are (or should be) starting to plan their campaigns to solicit support from the vast ocean known as the Internet. Hopefully, instead of shooting arrows in the dark, your organization will take a more intentional, strategic approach to executing your crowdfunding campaign. Here are some…
read moreTo sustain long-term fundraising success, an organization must show potential donors that its work is meaningful, relevant, and impactful. But simply doing good work that addresses a pressing social need is no guarantee that an organization will attract funders—or even get a positive response when approaching funders. Nonprofits need a communications strategy that highlights the importance and…
read moreSo how’s that cure for ALS coming along? CONFESSION: When the Ice Bucket Challenge went viral, I was more than a little bit jealous. As a fundraiser who has spent many days and nights scraping and clawing for every dime, armed with a noble mission and compelling case statement (and not a cheesy gimmick), it filled…
read moreEverybody in your nonprofit should be able to articulate a clear case for support, from board members down to frontline staff. The case is your organization’s unique reason for existing, based on a very real social need—i.e. how you are equipped to offer an effective solution to a specific problem in society. It forms the…
read moreAn executive transition is a tumultuous time for any organization. Uncertainty is the order of the day. Some staff mourn the loss of their leader, while others update their resumes. Funders downshift into “wait and see mode,” while the board of directors circles the wagons, formulates a new plan for the organization and launches a…
read moreStartup. Executive transition. Departure (or addition) of key staff. Loss (or gain) of key funding relationships. New program development. Strategic planning. Scaling. Board restructuring. Rebranding. Is there ever a time when an organization isn’t going through some kind of crisis or transformation? In the nonprofit world, change is the rule, not the exception. And through it…
read moreI just got back from sunny Miami, where I attended a workshop that was a real eye opener. Fundraising the SMART Way, a training and coaching program by Bristol Strategy Group, shows a way out of the blind, hair-on-fire, tin-cup method of donor cultivation employed by most nonprofits. The coaching program helps organizations create ideal donor profiles…
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