For years, open rate was the go-to metric for email performance. It was easy to measure, easy to test and it provided a helpful starting point for gauging donor interest. So without it—or rather, with every Apple email looking “opened”—what’s a marketer to do? Continue reading Soooooo, Should I Care About Email Open Rates Anymore?
The AFP ICON conference, put on by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, is the world’s largest conference for professional fundraisers. Some 3,000 attendees from five continents gathered. Here are five top conference takeaways. Continue reading Don’t Miss These Takeaways from the AFP ICON Conference
In our roles as planned giving fundraisers, we get to support donors as they make the trek from mission-lovers to legacy givers. Stelter recently spent time mapping this journey, identifying five unique phases. Continue reading How to Move Your Donors on a Journey From Interested to Invested
Inflation is at its highest rate in 40 years. For many leaders in the nonprofit community, this is uncharted territory. Here’s a roadmap. Continue reading Inflation’s BIG Effect on Donors, Dollars and Doing Good
Social proof has become the currency of marketing and it plays a powerful role in fundraising, too. Here’s how to use social proof in your next appeal. Continue reading Social Proof: Why We Look to Others to Tell Us How to Behave
GUEST BLOG: While each donor relationship is unique, this 3-step process will guide you through identifying and coming to terms with problems, finding innovative solutions and staying on message. Continue reading How to Maintain Strong Donor Relationships During the Pandemic
The natural experiment forced on us by COVID-19 has pushed everyone to pivot and think differently. The planned giving world was no exception. Here’s how the recent past can direct our fundraising future. Continue reading The Real Impact of 2020 on Fundraising: What We Lost, What We Gained
Most donors aren’t telling us if they’ve made a planned gift (according to a 2019 Giving USA study, fewer than 40% of legacy givers informed the nonprofit). Here we propose and solve for a key reason why: We’re not asking them! Continue reading This 1 Thing Encourages Donors to Tell You About Their Planned Gift
Recently, I read a Q&A with Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin, in Delta’s Sky magazine. (Work travels.) Something he said stuck with me. Continue reading The 1 Mistake (You Can Avoid) That Can Kill a Planned Gift Prospect
How long have you been in planned giving? Think back, say 15-20 years, and you may remember taking a more traditional path to cultivating prospects’ and donor’s planned gifts. Continue reading What Are You Doing to Connect with Your Self-Directed Donor?
With every marketing piece that we encounter—an email on our phone, an envelope in our mailbox, a post on our Facebook wall—we ask, Is this worth my time? The fact that you’re reading these words implies that you likely did all the following: Opened an email or stumbled upon a social media post from TheContinue reading How to Make Them Care: Inspire Donors Through Storytelling
The season of giving and receiving is here. Instead of wrapped gifts and glad tidings, however, let’s reflect on the season in a way that speaks to our business. The reciprocal nature of giving and receiving with donors, of building relationships with them that last throughout every season and through the years. The Fundraising EffectivenessContinue reading The 3 Things Your Donors Really Want
We’ve all heard the phrase, ”Don’t put all your eggs in one basket!” The meaning behind this old saying: Don’t put all your efforts into one thing because you could lose everything else—and be left with nothing altogether. The same logic applies to fundraising. While we at Stelter spend majority of our time in theContinue reading How to Fill Your Baskets with Funding Support
Have you heard? The kindness is catching, and it’s going global. Knowing you, my planned giving friends, you’re already committing random acts of kindness daily. It’s who you are and what you’re inclined to do, especially in the realm of nonprofit work. The good news is that we’re taking it to the streets: World KindnessContinue reading 3 Ways to Thank Your Supporters on World Kindness Day
Let’s face it, planned giving has a spooky side. As fundraisers, you may have your share of nonprofit horror stories. But being prepared, makes things a whole lot less scary. SCARY TRUTHS OF PLANNED GIVING Gift planning isn’t easy, and it can be confusing. Bequests, CGAs, DAFs—these acronyms can overwhelm your donors. That’s why you’reContinue reading Scary Truths About Planned Giving
