Lisa Robinson

Take three minutes to help fund youth mental health promotion! 📣Submit Mental Health America's Action Alert to encourage your members of Congress to support the EARLY Minds Act. ➡️ What is it? H.R. 7808, the Early Action and Responsiveness Lifts Youth (EARLY) Minds Act, would provide states with flexibility within the Mental Health Block Grant to offer education, outreach, supports, and services to young people before they reach severe distress or crisis. ➡️ Why does it matter? The block grant is the primary source of federal funding to states for mental health services; however, it's restricted from being used to help individuals when signs of a mental health condition first start. This means it requires significant distress and disability for funds to be used. We are investing in equipping young people, families, and communities with the tools and knowledge to talk about mental health and ask for support. Let's make sure they do not have to wait until they are in severe distress or crisis to get it. Learn more and submit here:

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Are you a donor or a grantmaker? Help our colleagues at 21/64 & the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) gain valuable insights on how you engage philanthropy consultants or advisors to advance your giving. Click here to start the survey > https://bit.ly/49FGn76

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Is your nonprofit facing a capital need? Here’s a great resource to help you determine the priorities and strategies necessary to succeed. #christianschoolfundraising #nonprofitfundraising #capitalcampaigns #feasibilitystudies

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The National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) and 21/64 are partnering on a survey to assess the practice of philanthropy by understanding the behavior and attitudes of grantmakers and the consultants and advisors who serve them. If you are a donor, staff at a grantmaking institute, or a consultant or advisor who works in the field of philanthropy, take this survey and share your insights on the role of consultants and advisors in helping Grantmakers advance their philanthropy:

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The National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) and 21/64 are partnering on a survey to assess the practice of philanthropy by understanding the behavior and attitudes of grantmakers and the consultants and advisors who serve them. If you are a donor, staff at a grantmaking institute, or a consultant or advisor who works in the field of philanthropy, take this survey and share your insights on the role of consultants and advisors in helping Grantmakers advance their philanthropy:

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Tough Love for Donors? As nonprofit pros, we are eternally grateful to our donors and funders of all stripes. “We couldn’t do this without you.” 🫂 It’s a fundraising letter cliché yet sincere and truthful every time it’s said. There are, however, some funders who can do a lot of damage to staff well-being and/or willingly subvert your organization’s mission. 😡 In the next few days, I’m going to highlight a few general red flags that indicate it’s time for a “tough love” conversation with a funder. But I’m curious: ·     What scenarios have you encountered from a donor or patron that made you consider whether their support was worth the headache? ·     Does your organization have a clear definition of what is acceptable and what’s not? ·     Have you ever walked away from a funder who previously provided significant support? If so, why? #nonprofit #fundraising #donors

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Last week we had the chance to co-present as part of the Maryland Nonprofits accelerator program. Thank you to the great group of nonprofit fundraisers and leaders who took time out of their day to join us and engage in the discussion. We talked a lot about Fundraising Planning and Strategies and wanted to share the top takeaways. Here are just a few that we loved discussing: 📍 Know where you are. Know who your people are. Know what resources you have to get started with. Start with understanding this to efficiently go after what you need. 🚗 When you go on vacation, you have a plan of how you’re getting there, right? The same thought process applies to your fundraising planning. You need to know your final destination (how much you’re trying to fundraise) and how you plan to get there (your fundraising plan.) 💰 Diversify your fundraising and your revenue streams. Know what’s involved with each and understand that if one method of your fundraising isn’t successful, you will have other reliable methods to help sustain your fundraising. 🤓 BE REALISTIC and be fair.  Knowing what you have to work with and what is available is necessary to understand what you can accomplish with your team. 👏 The community you create is everything. Regardless of how you set out to build yours, build it with transparency in mind and an alignment to ensure that your community becomes your organization's “Swifties.” Thank you to Maryland Nonprofits for having us!   If you are one of our Maryland nonprofit friends and not already a member, check them out! They are an organization that provides local nonprofits with resources and connections to strengthen the nonprofit community. Let us know if we can help you to connect. 💛 https://lnkd.in/gxw9JNrx

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The National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) and 21/64 have partnered to explore the ways that consultants and advisors help foundations and donors achieve their goals, and how consultants and advisors can better serve the needs of their clients. If you are a donor, grantmaking foundation staff or trustee, consultant to grantmakers, or philanthropic advisor who works with donors, this survey is for you! It will take no longer than 15 minutes. Learn more and take the survey: https://lnkd.in/drfkGKgv

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If you are a philanthropic consultant or donor advisor, please take a few minutes to complete this benchmark survey! 2024 Philanthropy Benchmark Survey - Insights on the role of Consultants & Advisors in Advancing Giving

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In the ever-shifting world of fundraising, donor-advised funds (DAFs) have become an important tool for donors to manage their giving, offering a flexible and tax-optimized way for individuals to support a range of nonprofit organizations. As nonprofit fundraisers, we’ve got to engage DAF donors and connect with them in ways that work best. Drawing insights from a recent article by Lisa Schohl in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, "9 Ways to Raise More From Donor-Advised Funds," I’ve shared some tips to optimize DAF contributions and cultivate these donor relationships in this recent blog post. https://lnkd.in/dyuxdJGE

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When thinking back to my time as a nonprofit CEO, I recall many sleepless nights wrestling with funding challenges. Conversations often focused on writing grants, annual campaigns, and donor engagement, but the results stayed the same. It wasn’t until we started thinking differently that we saw real change. 🚀Imagine a nonprofit and philanthropic world where innovation drives fund development, creating sustainable impact within our organizations, where new ideas are celebrated, and risks are seen as opportunities.  🌟 In my latest Coaching Innovation Blog, Innovating Fund Development for Greater Impact, discover how embracing innovation can transform your organization's approach to funding. ❓How can nonprofits elevate their fund development strategies to create greater impact? 🧠 Cultivate a Culture of Innovation: Encourage an environment where creativity thrives, and risks are part of the growth journey. 🔍 How can you foster a culture of innovation? Reflect on your organization's openness to new ideas and discuss your risk tolerance and risk threshold. 💡 Innovation Pop-ups: Organize regular brainstorming sessions to bring together diverse perspectives and generate innovative new fund development strategies. When we create a culture of innovation that leverages technology and embraces diverse funding sources, we can transform our organizations and the communities we serve. How have you leveraged innovation to support fund development? 🔗 Check out the full article at www.Jordansydnor.com . 

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Are you a donor? Grantmaker?  Do you have 10 minutes? Help our colleagues at 21/64 and the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) gain valuable insights on how you engage philanthropy consultants or advisors to advance your giving. Click here to start the survey >> https://lnkd.in/ejBbSgt7

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Are you a donor? Grantmaker? Do you have 10 minutes? Help our colleagues at 21/64 and the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) gain valuable insights on how you engage #philanthropy consultants or advisors to advance your giving. Click here to start the survey >> https://lnkd.in/gu_e_PEY

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Imagine If Donors Were By Our Sides at All Times Would we: Brag more about our fundraising prowess than donors’ generosity? Celebrate the numbers we raised rather than the promises we must keep having secured so much of their trust and support? Build donor profiles around how much they have and might give? Speak of donors as “targets" or "suspects" or kvetch about what they "should do" for us? Cajole staff to close gifts rather than deepen relationships to meet arbitrary annual goals? Emphasize the importance of "making moves" and repeated asking? Spend as much as we do on events? Go on retreats where we don't reflect on how fortunate we are to have them? Expend as much on conference attendance? Buy as many tchotchkes? Produce as many expensive brochures? Spend as much time talking about how wonderful and impressive we are? Engage in highly speculative fundraising exercises? File expense reports with every conceivable charge on them? I’m not suggesting the answer will always be “no”, I'm just stressing the importance of always imagining a donor by our side before and when we engage in these activities. Fundraising has become about what we do to donors; philanthropic facilitation is about what we do with donors - with full transparency. As in all things in life, the less we do to others for our personal gain and the more we do with others for our mutual gain: The more we will achieve of real substance The less lonely we will be The more meaning and purpose we will find The more we will learn to love neighbors who are the least like us The more benevolent we will become The more we will love and treasure life. With not to. Focus on that and you will see the face of true philanthropy, especially when you look in the mirror.

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Read about Business Retention and Expansion, REDS and more...

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If We Truly Valued the Donors We Had Wouldn't we: Survey and/or interview them about what institutional attributes they find most important and impressive to ensure we hire fundraisers who embody them? Tell fundraisers their most important job is to perpetuate and deepen relationships with those assigned to their portfolios? Require fundraisers to demonstrate that they have studied donor profiles and developed engagement plans attuned to their donors' passions and sensitivities? Equip fundraisers with questions to ask so they can fill gaps in those donors' records to ensure they are managed well over time? Check in with those donors after a few months to make sure all is going well with their new development officer? Work with the development officer to learn what each donor does and does not want to receive knowing how many complain of being bombarded with information? Make sure any solicitation is well-thought-out and respectful as evidenced by the number of conversations preceding it and interest expressed by the donor in a particular initiative? Conduct annual stewardship interviews or surveys to make sure donors feel that their gifts have been well-stewarded and they feel respectfully treated, then compare results year over year to make sure gaps are not growing? Show fundraisers how they can help donors develop multiple connections to the organization? Yet, how often do we see fundraisers: Selected on the basis of bravado Pushed into the field with too little training and no review of their plans Expected to solicited after a set number of visits with no review as to whether what is being solicited aligns with donors' interests Not required to show evidence of relationship or affinity building Gone after two years so that donors not only experience giving fatigue but breaking-in-new-fundraiser fatigue So let's be honest. While many organizations have a stewardship office, few have anything that looks like an asset management plan or the awareness of how important one is. Despite what we give lip service to, is it not a fact that we care little about how positive an impression our fundraisers make or how well they treat their donors as long as they bring home some bacon? So here's the lesson that must penetrate or our thick organizational skulls: A stewardship office, no matter how good, cannot compensate for: Leadership attitudes that treat donors like cordwood Fundraisers who don't reflect values and ideals touted by the organization Fundraising imperatives that favor insensitive fundraisers or desensitize good ones Donors being made to feel like ATMs accessed by revolving fundraisers Inappropriate or inept solicitations Most organization leave much too much to chance. They need to build awareness around donors as invaluable organizational assets and, at minimum, hold themselves to ethic articulated in the Hippocratic Oath:  "I will do no harm or injustice to them."

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