Nonprofit Answers: Nonprofit Fundraising, Marketing, Monthly Giving Podcast By Jeremy Reis cover art

Nonprofit Answers: Nonprofit Fundraising, Marketing, Monthly Giving

Nonprofit Answers: Nonprofit Fundraising, Marketing, Monthly Giving

By: Jeremy Reis
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 Nonprofit Answers Podcast helps you raise more money to help more people by answering your nonprofit leadership, marketing, and fundraising questions. Learn how to reach more donors with answers to your philanthropy and advancement questions. For Development Directors, Chief Development Officers, CEOs, Nonprofit Leaders, Fundraisers, Marketing Managers, Major Donor Reps, and Nonprofit Board Members. Learn about monthly, annual fund, major, midlevel, grants, planned giving, direct mail, email fundraising, leadership, and more.Copyright 2018-2020 Jeremy Reis All rights reserved. Economics Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • 063 - How Do I Fundraise During Times of Economic Insecurity?

    063 - How Do I Fundraise During Times of Economic Insecurity?
    Jun 17 2025
    Fundraising During Economic Uncertainty: How to Raise Money When Everyone's Worried Built by nonprofit professionals, for nonprofit professionals. NonprofitPrompt takes the guesswork out of AI content creation with proven prompts for fundraising appeals, donor communications, and more. Join fellow nonprofit leaders at nonprofitprompt.com The Challenge When the economy is uncertain, inflation is high, and people are worried about their financial future, many nonprofits face a dilemma: Should they continue fundraising or is it insensitive to ask for money when everyone's struggling? This episode addresses this critical question through Patricia's situation - her Tampa homeless shelter has seen online donations drop 25% while demand for services has increased dramatically. The Key Insight Economic uncertainty doesn't mean you should stop fundraising - it means you need to fundraise differently.During tough times, people don't stop giving; they give more carefully and strategically. They become more selective about where they give, more focused on impact, and more concerned about organizational stability. Seven Strategic Adaptations for Economic Uncertainty 1. Lead with Increased Community Need, Not Organizational Need Focus on how economic conditions create greater community needPosition donor giving as community investment, not organizational bailoutExample: "As inflation affects Tampa families, 40% more families need shelter" vs. "We need funding to keep our doors open" 2. Emphasize Immediate, Tangible Impact Donors want clear, immediate results during uncertain timesFocus on direct services rather than capacity buildingBe specific: "$75 provides three nights of emergency shelter" vs. "Your gift supports our programs" 3. Offer Smaller Giving Options with Clear Impact Create compelling opportunities for smaller giftsAdd lower giving levels: if you typically ask for $100-500, add $25-100 optionsEach level needs specific impact: "$25 provides emergency meals for three days" 4. Focus on Stewardship and Retention Over Acquisition Keeping existing donors is more cost-effective than finding new onesIncrease thank-you calls, impact updates, and personal attentionHelp current donors feel so connected they maintain giving while reducing support elsewhere 5. Demonstrate Financial Responsibility and Stability Be transparent about challenges while showing responsible managementShare program expense ratios, reserves, and board oversightFrame challenges in terms of community need: "We've reviewed our budget to ensure every dollar helps people" 6. Create Urgency Around Community Need, Not Organizational Survival Wrong: "We need $50,000 to keep programs running"Right: "We need $50,000 to shelter families facing eviction due to economic stress"Make donors feel like community rescuers, not organizational bailouts 7. Leverage Partnerships and Matching Opportunities Aggressively Donors want gifts to go further during tough timesPromote matching gifts heavily: "Every dollar doubled for families in crisis"Create collaborative opportunities with businesses and foundations Addressing Common Concerns "Isn't it insensitive to ask during hard times?" People often want to help more during uncertainty because they understand financial worry. Acknowledge conditions: "We know times are challenging. That's why your support matters so much." "Won't donors give less?" Some will, and that's okay. A donor reducing from $500 to $200 is still a donor. A donor who stops entirely because you stopped asking is a lost relationship. "Should we cancel major gift asks?" Never. Major donors are often least affected and may increase giving. Focus on immediate impact and be sensitive to those affected by losses. Success Story A food bank during the 2008 recession saw 60% increased demand and 20% decreased revenue. By implementing these strategies - focusing on community hunger rather than budget shortfalls, creating smaller giving options, and increasing donor stewardship - they recovered lost revenue and increased it by 15% within eight months while building stronger donor relationships. Key Takeaway Community need likely increases during tough times, making the case for supporting your organization stronger, not weaker. Economic uncertainty creates both challenges and opportunities. Organizations that adapt their fundraising strategies to match donor psychology during difficult periods often emerge with stronger relationships and more sustainable revenue. The goal isn't to avoid fundraising during uncertainty - it's to fundraise more strategically, acknowledging economic realities while demonstrating urgent community need.
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    15 mins
  • 062 - How Do I Create a Donor Stewardship Calendar?

    062 - How Do I Create a Donor Stewardship Calendar?
    Jun 16 2025
    The Donor Stewardship Calendar: Stop Losing Donors Between Campaigns

    Tired of getting generic responses from ChatGPT for your nonprofit content? NonprofitPrompt provides expert AI prompts built specifically for fundraising, donor stewardship, and grant writing. Finally, AI that understands your mission. Get a free account at nonprofitprompt.com

    It's March and you suddenly realize you haven't contacted donors since December. Sound familiar?

    You're great at running campaigns - your year-end appeal crushed it, your spring event was a success - but then... radio silence. Donors hear from you only when you need money, and you wonder why retention rates keep dropping and supporters seem less engaged each year.

    What You'll Discover in This Episode

    The counterintuitive truth: The nonprofits with the highest donor retention don't ask for money less often - they ask MORE often while providing tremendous value between asks.

    The game-changing strategy: How to create a systematic donor stewardship calendar that combines regular fundraising with impact reporting, turning every communication into both relationship-building AND revenue generation.

    What's Inside the Framework
    • Monthly communication strategy that donors actually appreciate (hint: it's not about asking less)
    • The dual-purpose content formula that shows impact while creating giving opportunities
    • Segmentation secrets for different donor engagement levels
    • 12-month calendar template with specific examples for each month
    • The integration method that makes fundraising feel like partnership, not pestering
    Real Results You'll Hear About

    A social services nonprofit afraid they were "too pushy" completely transformed their approach:

    • 40% increase in revenue (more opportunities = more gifts)
    • 30% improvement in retention (regular connection = stronger loyalty)
    • Donors writing thank-you notes for keeping them informed about impact

    One donor said: "I love that you keep me updated on both the needs and the progress. It makes me feel like a real partner in your work, not just someone you ask for money."

    Perfect For Veterans Services (and Every Other Nonprofit)

    Michael from a veterans nonprofit gets specific strategies for showing measurable outcomes - veterans finding jobs, securing housing, successful transitions - while maintaining consistent giving opportunities.

    The Bottom Line

    Donors don't get tired of hearing from organizations they care about. They get tired of hearing from organizations that only contact them for money or provide no value.

    Ready to transform scattered, guilty communications into a strategic system that builds relationships AND raises more money? This episode gives you the exact month-by-month blueprint that turns donor stewardship from an afterthought into your secret retention weapon.

    Stop losing donors between campaigns. Start building the kind of ongoing relationships that create lifelong supporters.
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    15 mins
  • 061 - Which Email Metrics Matter?

    061 - Which Email Metrics Matter?
    Jun 13 2025
    Your 28% Email Open Rate Means Nothing (Here's What Actually Matters)

    Transform your AI results from bland to brilliant. NonprofitPrompt provides sector-specific prompts that turn ChatGPT and Claude into your most effective fundraising tool. Created for nonprofit professionals who need content that converts. Get a free account at nonprofitprompt.com

    Your appeal email had a 35% open rate but only raised $500. Your newsletter had a 22% open rate but generated $8,000 in donations. Which one was more successful?

    If you answered based on open rates, you're making the same costly mistake that's sabotaging nonprofit email programs everywhere.

    Steven from a Seattle homeless services nonprofit perfectly illustrates this problem: His open rates improved by 8 percentage points (now consistently 26-28%), but his email fundraising results stayed completely flat at $15,000 per year. Great engagement, terrible results.

    Here's the hard truth: Email open rates are a vanity metric that can actually hurt your fundraising when you optimize for them.

    What You'll Learn in This Episode:

    ✅ Why open-rate optimization destroys fundraising results (and the psychological trap that keeps nonprofits focused on the wrong metrics)

    ✅ The 6 email metrics that actually correlate with donations:

    • Click-through rates vs. open rates
    • Time spent reading (not just opening)
    • Response rates that generate revenue
    • List quality over list size
    • Conversion from email to actual donation
    • Unsubscribe patterns that reveal what donors really want

    ✅ The case study that proves everything: One organization decreased open rates from 25% to 21% but increased email revenue by 180%

    ✅ 5 specific strategies to optimize for results instead of vanity metrics:

    • Why "You won't believe what happened" subject lines kill long-term engagement
    • How to write subject lines that attract donors, not browsers
    • The segmentation strategy that turns casual subscribers into committed supporters
    The Bottom Line:

    A smaller list of engaged supporters will always outperform a larger list of casual observers. Opens don't pay the bills—conversions do.

    Perfect for: Communications directors, development professionals, and anyone frustrated that their "great" email metrics aren't translating into actual fundraising success.

    The wake-up call your email program needs: Stop celebrating the wrong numbers and start measuring what actually moves your mission forward.
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    16 mins
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