Marion Conway - Consultant to Nonprofits

The Relationship between Offline and Online Giving - This Infographic by Frank Barry Says It All

2012-01-19T17:04:00.001-05:00

A big thank you to Frank Barry at Blackbaud for sharing this WOW! infographic which tells the story of the relationship between online and offline giving better than any words or traditional charts can. Infographics are the new in way to present data in an engaging and understandable way.

Have you considered using infographics to present information on your website? In your marketing materials? Your Newsletters? You may want to put learning more about infographics on your list of things to learn this year - its on mine.

See Frank's article here.

New Year's Resolutions - Not Goals - for Nonprofit Leaders

2012-01-08T19:50:00.002-05:00

For the last four years I have asked nonprofitthought leaders in my LinkedIn network to contribute to this list ofrecommended New Year’s resolutions for nonprofits. It is interesting to see the tone change fromyear to year. This year the tone is clearly on“Be the best you can be.” It is upbeatand forward looking – so very refreshing to be at this crossroads. The advice runs the gamut from down to earthbasic and practical to more philosophical and broad in scope. And….All of it is so RiGHT ON!

I recommendthat you peruse this list and find what inspires you to add or adapt to yourown resolutions fo 2012. I havegrouped them into two categories for “ease of absorbing the ideas.” You can click on the name of each of thecontributors and link to their website for more fascinating insight and advicefor nonprofits. I thank the contributors– profusely! - for taking the time sharetheir wisdom and experience with us.

Development/Fundraising

I’ve noticed that the fundraising experts are usually straightforward, no nonsense get to the points types. But this year we have a mix of approaches.Marc Pitman, Jay Frost and Linda Lysakowski stay true to thatcharacterization but Pamela Grow recommends a long term perspective.

Marc Pitman: I'd highly recommend people ask more. Readers of my blog or of my book "Ask WithoutFear!" will know that I believe in a holistic approach to fundraising. ButI'm seeing more and more fundraising folks that crowd out the "ask"for other aspects of fundraising. (If I hear "friendriasing" one moretime!!!!) Friends are very important, but even they know that you need to raisemoney. So in 2012 ask more!!

Jay Frost: Here are my top five...

1) Respond to every donor. Personally. Every single time. And, as much aspossible, do so by the donor's preferred means of communication.

2) Know your donors. Conduct sufficient research to develop growing anddeepening relationships, both at the major gift level and in every segment ofyour constituency.

3) Ask. Often. Through all available channels. Just because mail or phoneworked yesterday doesn't mean it will work tomorrow. And just because itdoesn't appear to be a big source of revenue today doesn't mean it won'ttomorrow either. If social media fundraising seems like a fantasy just rememberhow we all felt about email fundraising ten years ago.

4) Ask broadly. America is a rapidly diversifying philanthropic marketplace. Weowe it to our causes and organizations to open the doors to a much widercommunity of supporters.

5) Go Global. Wealth and philanthropy are expanding rapidly around the world.Social media is opening avenues to reach audiences in places we once thoughttoo far away to solicit support. This is a perfect time to begin cultivating aninternational donor constituency.

Linda Lysakowski:

Resolve to involve my board members in fundraising and get them the training and education they need to be effective fundraisers.

Resolve to clean up our donor database so we can be more hi-touch in addition to being hi-tech!

Resolve to regularly assess our development program and see where we can improve

Resolve to make at least three personal visits to major donors each month.

Resolve to involve my CEO in the donor identification, cultivation and solicitation process.

Pamela Grow:  I’m urging organizations to focus on the lifetime value of a donor – for long-term success. Resolve to cut the nonprofit jargon, learn how to market and, lastly, tryexploring outside-the-box educational venues. Rather than signing up for yetanother AFP workshop, try attending an Internet marketing seminar or eventaking a sales workshop. Get outside your comfort level.

Mission,Operations, Evaluation, Creativity, Boards

Anne Ackerson:   "We are, therefore we have value"is NOT the nonprofit mantra for the 21st century. Nonprofits of all stripesshould resolve to better understand their value and impact in a rapidlychanging world and they should embrace using a variety of ongoing evaluativemethods to get at the heart of why they're important to others.

Clearly, many segments within the sector do this quite well already, but many,many others simply have no handle on how to evaluate their impact, much lessunderstand WHY it is important to do so. However, audiences can be ficklethings unless there's real meat on the value bones. Mere window dressingdoesn't cut it -- audiences and their support will move on to a hundred othercharities where the value proposition is clearer, brighter, more meaningful anddelivers on the mission promise.

TerrieTemkin:     I wouldsay that boards and staff should resolve to add more play to their work.Research tells us that it makes us more creative. Today, we need creativitymore than ever.

This means pushing back when the strong personalities - we all know who theyare! - state emphatically that they don't want to waste their time with gamesor "touchy-feely" activities.

Susan Detwiler I hope that nonprofits resolve to pay attentionto aligning their internal operations with their mission. It brings lastingpositive effect on delivering the mission when every policy and decision isweighed against the effect on the mission.

Ithink that one of my own resolutions for 2012 will also be of value tononprofits leaders. It is simply toeliminate some of the “busyness” that takes so much time, and adds so littlevalue to my life. This busyness iscluttering my brain and keeping me from more in depth thoughtfulness. In 2012 I plan to fight back thesound bite life and give the “blue chips” the attention they deserve.

I am moving into a new more spacious officespace courtesy of my adult son moving into his own apartment. Moving is always an opportunity to get rid ofstuff and get organized. It is also aget time to reflect and have a fresh start. So I am looking forward to the type of year Anne talks about above with “real meat on the valuebones.” I also hope to take Terrie’s adviceand “add more play to my work.”

I hope you found valuein this list of recommendations. Icertainly did – and inspiration too! Thanks again to Marc, Jay, Linda, Pamela, Anne, Terrie and Susan for sharing such great ideas with us. Please leave your comments and join the conversation.

Wishing You Joy, Courage and Vision

2011-12-23T18:33:00.001-05:00

Dear Friends,

I wish all of you a joyous holiday season and a blessed New Year. This holiday letter is being posted both at Marion Conway – Nonprofit Consultant and The Grandma Chronicles.

Especially as I am getting older, Christmas is a time of reflection for me. It is a time to be thankful for all our blessings, for appreciating family and friends, and for sharing with others. It all brings joy. I have turned down the lights in my office, lit candles in the window and am playing Christmas Chant. It is my routine for writing this Holiday message. I can feel the peace of Christmas as I let go of the busyiness of the day filled with grocery shopping and cooking for Christmas Eve and Day.

This year has again been filled with the joy of grandparenting. Our grandson is now 2 1/2 years old and he brings new energy to our lives every day. I enjoy writing about him at The Grandma Chronicles and “shouting out with joy” about all of our adventures together. This year Zach helped bake Christmas cookies for the first time and he is already a pro – enjoying all the tasks from slicing cherries, breaking eggs, using the electric mixer and spooning cookies on the baking sheet. My husband had the courage to let him use a knife with supervision and Zach had the courage to use the electric mixer by himself. These pictures show how he approached this all with thoughtfulness. I had a vision of him enjoying baking cookies with Grandma and experienced total joy at the way he jumped in. In less than two weeks Zach begins pre-school and both he and my daughter Fran, will have to show some courage as they let go of each other.

This past year has been another difficult one for the nonprofit community. Funding continues to be a challenge while demand is strong. 2012 may be the time for nonprofits to take a serious look at their vision and how they can get where they want to be. I have seen in the last few months a new interest in strategic planning. I wish you success with your planning – keep it focused on your mission and realistic and also have the courage to try new things. How nonprofits deliver services, how they build relationships with all their constituents, how they fundraise – it is all changing. Just as families and businesses are changing how they deal with a changed economic climate, it is time for nonprofits to think beyond a “make it through” mentality and look at fundamental changes that may be in order.

This year my consulting work expanded to include quite a bit of speaking and I found that I really enjoy it. Need a speaker in 2012? Let’s talk. I worked at blogging at three blogs and hope to blog more often in 2012. I have lots of other goals for 2012 but I’ll write about that at a later date.

Last year I wished you all joy, pride and a spirit of action. This year, I wish you joy, courage and vision. It is time to look beyond the coming year and visualize your path to the future. Have the courage to take some big steps.

Grandparents, parents, nonprofit friends and the nonprofits you work for will be in my prayers as I attend services on Christmas Eve.

May You Have a Blessed and Joyous Holiday,

Marion

Need a Holiday Gift for Someone in the Nonprofit Community - A Curated List of Books

2011-11-29T12:17:00.000-05:00

This is the third year that I am making a list of books that you might want to consider giving to your nonprofit friends. This is a curated list - I asked leaders in the nonprofit community to contribute to this blog post. This year’s contributors to this list are Marc Pitman, Gail Perry, Maria Semple, Linda Czipo, Amy Sample Ward and a few of my own.

Amy Sample Ward

Amy Sample Ward was clearly thinking about new ways of thinking about organizational structure and people working together when she recommended this trio:
The Future of Nonprofits: Innovate and Thrive in the Digital Age
by David J. Neff and Randal C. Moss

The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations (Hardcover)
by Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom

Humanize: How People-Centric Organizations Succeed in a Social World
by Jamie Notter and Maddie Grant

These books are sure to give you a whole new outlook about how your organization can be successful in the future.

Linda Czipo, Executive Director of the Center for Nonprofits in New Jersey was also thinking about developing stronger nonprofits when she recommended:

Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability
by Jeanne Bell, Jan Masaoka, and Steve Zimmerman. Linda gives it a rave review with these comments: “It helps guide organization managers through crucial analyses (fund raising profiles, program and organizational viability, etc.) in a very accessible manner. Great blend of user-friendly prose, matrices, and diagrams to help organizations sift through the "tough questions." Very useful.” Every year I add some books to my own reading list as I put this one together and this is certainly a must read for me this year.

Marc Pitman

Marc Pitman has been reading books about human behavior and as the "fundraiser extraordinaire" that he is, he knows that understanding human behavior is a key to successful fundraising. Here are his recommendations:

Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive
by Noah J. Goldstein, Steve J. Martin and Robert B. Cialdini. If you read Influence by Cialdini – this is the sequel with lots of examples of the principles.

How We Decide
by Jonah Lehrer. This book describes the neuroscience behind decision making, and is a good compliment to Yes!

Two other good fundraising building block books are by two of the contributors of this list.

Fired-Up Fundraising: Turn Board Passion Into Action (AFP Fund Development Series) (The AFP/Wiley Fund Development Series)
by Gail Perry

"Panning for Gold: Find Your Best Donor Prospects NOW!" by Maria Semple is an interactive e-book with links to 75 websites used by prospect researchers. Vist Maria’s website to download this book. http://www.theprospectfinder.com/id12.html.

Encore Recommendations
Books recommended over the last two years and now recommended again include:

Ask Without Fear!: A Simple Guide to Connecting Donors With What Matters to Them Most by Marc Pitman

50 Asks in 50 Weeks: A Guide to Better Fundraising for Your Small Development Shop
by Amy Eisenstain

The Networked Nonprofit: Connecting with Social Media to Drive Change
by Beth Kanter and Allison Fine

The Pollyanna Principles: Reinventing "Nonprofit Organizations" to Create the Future of Our World
by Hildy Gottlieb

See the links to those posts at the end of this article.

Now for my picks.

I have to include You and Your Nonprofit: Practical Advice and Tips from the CharityChannel Professional Community
- I am proud to be a contributor to this book featuring over 40 contributors with articles on a wide range of topics important to nonprofit professionals. It features practical advice and tips from the Charity Channel Nonprofit Professional Community. This is an excellent on the shelf resource for new and experienced nonprofit leaders alike. There is a 25% discount until 12/31/11 if referred by a contributor. See the sidebar for details.

I’d like to also include a couple of good children's books for your holiday gift list. My favorite is
Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters
by Barack Obama
I reviewed this book featuring stories about American heroes and beautiful illustrations at my other blog – The Grandma Chronicles. This book is one of those that should be on every child’s bookshelf.

Kate Smith Milway has written another excellent book for children: The Good Garden: How One Family Went from Hunger to Having Enough (CitizenKid)
is about a young girl in Hounduras who learns new farming techniques at school, uses them and home, and grows food that can be sold in the local market. This book takes a difficult subject and tells an upbeat story.

I hope you find a book that is of interest to you on this list. I know that I have. The list goes the gamut from philisophical and strategic to the practical and down to earth. The common thread is the interest these books should have for the nonprofit community. I thank Amy, Gail. Linda, Maria and Marc for their thoughtful contributions to this list.

Some Related Links:

A Wish List of Books for Nonprofit Folk - 2010
Nonprofit Books That Make Great Holiday Gifts - 2009

Books to Add to Your Reading List in 2010 – The Well Known and a Few Discoveries (2009)
You and Your Nonprofit – Just Published!
Of Thee I Sing - A Letter to my Daughters by Barack Obama

Lets Start a Movement for Small Nonprofit Day

2011-11-18T08:54:00.004-05:00

American Express has sponsored “Small Business Saturday” to encourage people to shop in small businesses the Saturday after Thanksgiving for several years. If you haven’t taken advantage of it before – I have– American Express will give you a $25 statement credit for shopping at a small business that takes your American Express card – when you shop on Small Business Saturday. You have to register online first – but, gee, this is a pretty good offer.

On the Saturday after Thanksgiving I have made it a practice to shop downtown in nearby Montclair at a qualified small business. And I always “double up” being a good citizen by making sure that at least one of my Christmas gifts is a fair trade product. Our family favorite past fair trade purchase was these beautiful napkins by Global Mamas. We use them all the time.

Anyway – I have a proposal – lets also make the Saturday after Thanksgiving – Small Nonprofit Day. The lion’s share of giving goes to large nonprofits – for many reasons. This is actually true of my personal giving too because I believe in the effectiveness of large organizations such as Oxfam America.

But I always allocate a portion of my giving to small, more local nonprofits. They may not have fancy websites, a great facebook presence and professional appeal letters. But they are an important part of the fabric of our communities – especially today. There are more people than ever using food banks, libraries, attending church run programs, etc.

Just as the excellent American Express campaign promoting small business is having an impact on small business, I believe that having it also be Small Nonprofit Day can also be a boom for small, locally based, nonprofits. I hope American Express considers expanding the focus of the day and I hope you – members of the nonprofit community - will join me in spreading this idea.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving and the whole holiday weekend. On Thursday I cook for 20 people, on Friday I recover and on Saturday I shop – locally. Also, I’m thinking about the nonprofits I will be donating too …. on Saturday.

My local favorite is PCCI where I am Board Secretary. PCCI provides after school tutoring and mentoring to children in Newark, NJ by committed volunteers creating a one on one bond with a child and an adult and bridging urban and suburban communities. Our combination of one on one paring of adult and child and being volunteer powered makes our service both personal and efficient. I invite you to support PCCI with me today.

Click here to make your donation to PCCI through Network for Good. (Note: I LOVE Network for Good.)

Check out Trade for Change for fair trade items …My Global Mamas napkins are the best and aren’t the little girls dresses the cutest ever. If you go to Amazon and search on fair trade lots of choices come up too.

Anticipation – Year End Fundraising – Let’s Look in the Crystal Ball and Beyond

2011-10-27T11:08:00.001-04:00

At this time of year nonprofits have a lot of anticipation and worry about their year end fundraising. Fortunately, there are a few clues of how things might work out from surveys and results for 2011 so far. In good times they generally predict expected increases. In bad times they predict expected decreases. The good news this year is that the predictions are mixed and also had some good tidbits to take heed of. So lets look in the crystal ball...and beyond.
This article provides key 2011 fundraising results highlights from three different perspectives. Blackbaud is based on actual giving using hard statistical data - year over year for the same month. Fidelity Charitable conducted telephone interviews with donors and the Nonprofit Research Collaborative (NRC) polled nonprofit organizations. They each have something different to offer and you can read the reports for more details.

I will also be writing a companion piece at the Nonprofit Capacity Building Blog where I’ll write more about the NRC report.

The Blackbaud Index of Charitable Giving
The Blackbaud Index of Charitable Giving reports that overall giving increased by 6.8 percent for the 3 months ending August 2011 as compared to the same period in 2010. The Index is a broad-based fundraising index that reports total giving trends of 1,276 nonprofit organizations on a monthly basis. It is based on actual giving statistics from nonprofit organizations of all sizes - both offline and online. Although there are large variances when broken down into segments this is certainly overall good news. For more details and new results every month, visit the blackbaud website.

Fidelity Charitable
Fidelity Charitable, the nation's largest donor-advised fund program, reports that despite continued economic challenges, the 502 donors surveyed remain committed to charitable giving. 72% of donors plan to maintain or increase their level of charitable giving this year compared to last year. This number is up from 63% in 2010. An additional piece of good news from this survey: 64% agree that charitable tax deductions have no impact on their giving.

Fidelity has no vested interest in online giving or nonprofits using social media so it is of particular interest to see what they found in their survey. Their respondents are people over 18 who participated in a telephone interview and said that they expected to give $200 or more in 2011. The survey was conducted in mid-October 2011 - this is very fresh data. So does the Internet play a role in charitable giving and what online resources do potential donors use? This survey sheds some light on this subject.

42% use online resources to find information about charitable organizations
31% Internet search engines
20% Social media sites

Of all donors surveyed, 40% report they are using some form of technology to make charitable donations this year.

25% organization's website

21% personal fundraising web page established by a friend or family member

10% other – including text to give

The importance of face to face has not died just yet. 51% say they will make donations this year by attending, donating to and/or purchasing items at a charitable event.
See the full Fidelity Charitable story here.

Nonprofit Research Collaborative
This comprehensive report provides survey results from 813 responding charities about their fundraising results and approaches in the first half of 2011. This report does not have hard data like Blackbaud but it is loaded with insight about what is working. Some of the key findings are:

Compared to 2010: 44% of responding charities reported increases in funds raised; 25% said giving was the same as in the same period the prior year; and 30% saw a decline.

Almost all methods of increased investment in fundraising saw increased results at about 30% to 36%

The biggest increase was special events, where 46 % of responding charities reported an increase.

Download the full report via Guidestar here.

So what’s the bottom line here. I think all this means that you have the potential to do better with fundraising in 2011 than 2010 but you have to invest in making it happen - it won’t just happen by hoping it will. Invest in online and offline - there is potential in both.

2010 wasn’t a great year for fundraising so increasing from that base isn’t all that great, but considering the continued economic situation it certainly is good news that donors aren’t – and don’t plan to - give up on charitable giving.

A companion piece to this article “Show Me the Money - Where Nonprofits Should be Looking" at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog covers what the Nonprofit Research Collaborative reported on what nonprofits are increasing their fundraising efforts on and what is working for them.

Board Recruitment –Don’t Expect the “Fully Loaded Baked Potato” at First

2011-09-23T16:13:00.000-04:00

This is a companion piece to “Hosting a Board Recruitment Event” at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog at managementhelp.org

At this time of year many nonprofits begin to think about recruiting new Board members. When I ask what they are looking for I am usually – usually, not just often, told they want people who have high incomes, who will make a significant personal donation and be involved in fundraising. This is an honest answer albeit often not a reasonable expectation – especially for most small organizations. Such people may emerge from your Board after becoming involved in your organization but it is unlikely you can recruit them as a “fully loaded baked potato.” To attempt to is putting the cart before the horse. Board Members need nurturing to understand your organization in depth and become committed to it. That happens over time as you engage them with your work and your impact. They can develop into a fully loaded potato but chances are they don’t arrive on your plate as one. A good baked potato takes slow cooking.

So how should we go about Board Recruitment?
Governance Committee – Rather than a separate nominating committee, I recommend that the nominating process should be a function of the Governance Committee. The committee should complete a Board Profile Assessment which provides a profile of existing members including, age/gender/ ethnic profile, skills, professional experience and economic ability to contribute to your organization. The data available to complete this may not be perfect, but it is usually accurate enough to highlight the gaps you want to fill.

The committee should complete a Board Member job description and application. Write it down! Make it clear to potential Board members what your expectations are.

The Board Member description
Responsibilities should include:

Attend Board meetings
Participate on at least one committee
Make a personal financial commitment
Participate in fundraising

Include the characteristics you are looking for in Board members including:

Passion for the mission
Understanding your community needs
Team player
Good listener

The Board Member application should include:

Basic bio and contact information
List of skills you desire on the Board – legal, accounting, marketing, technology, property, etc with check off for applicants
List of committees with check off for preserences

Hosting a Board recruitment event is a good way to informally meet with potential Board members and give you each a chance to see each other. Key features of the event should be:

Informality
Social component
Presentation about your organization and what you are looking for in a Board member
Request to fill out the Board application
Absolutely no request for donations - No envelopes in packets

You can read my article on Hosting a Board Recruitment Event at the companion piece at the Nonprofit Cacity Blog for more detail on a sample format.

The Executive Director or governance committee member can follow up with a one on one conversation and visit to a program. By then the courting should be done and you and the candidate should both know if you are a good match. You can’t start out with the “fully loaded baked potato” but following a formal recruitment and orientation process are important steps towards developing the engaged Board that you want.

What are your ideas for recruiting good Board members. Please comment and share your ideas.

LinkedIn Gets “Nonprofit Friendly” - Highlight Your Volunteer Experience

2011-09-08T21:41:00.001-04:00

I am often asked about how LinkedIn should be used by nonprofits. I have always thought that it is an asset that can be used effectively in a variety of ways. I’ll recap those in a minute. But first I want to tell you about what is NEW at LinkedIn that is of special interests to nonprofits.

A couple of months ago LinkedIn named Bryan Breckenridge to head up LinkedIn services for nonprofits and he has been busy introducing a bunch of new services – some of which are fee based. Now LinkedIn has made a huge leap in providing a basic, free feature of value to nonprofits. You can now update your profile to show causes you support and your volunteer experience. Wow! I just updated mine. It’s simple but not that obvious at first.

Here’s how you do it:

Go to edit profile.

There is a line that says New – Click on add sections.

There are actually lots of new sections you can add and one of them is causes and volunteer experience. I added this new section and filled in the brief summary for each of my current activities. While I was editing my profile I also added a section for publications and added You and Your Nonprofit.

I recommend that everyone update their profiles to include your causes and volunteer experience and that you encourage your Board Members and volunteers to update theirs too.

LinkedIn has had the ability to have organization pages for awhile but it is not an idea that has taken off with nonprofits. With this new feature now may be the time to set up your organization’s page and then if someone sees a profile where you are mentioned, they can check out the page.

I recommend that every executive director and development director have a LinkedIn page and use LinkedIn for everything but fundraising. LinkedIn has a no fundraising policy that you should respect.

So how should you use it?

Join groups – There are thousands of groups and you can find lots of nonprofit specific and cause specific groups. Some of my favorites are Boardsource, NTEN, Google for Nonprofits, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Leader to Leader Institute and Strategic Planning for Nonprofits. All of these groups are active. There are great questions and great answers. I learn a lot from the groups that I participate in and I have added people to my network based in the interaction. Groups on LinkedIn are an incredible but underused resource for nonprofit professionals. You can use groups for advocacy, to promote events and to find volunteers and Board Members.
Ask/Answer Questions – You can ask questions and see answered questions by category and the nonprofit categories get some interesting commentary.

Networking - You can build an impressive network on LinkedIn. You’ll be surprised at how many people you know are on LinkedIn. There are several ways to identify them and it is easy to grow a network. You can send a message to your whole network or to selected connections. You should use this wisely but it can be very useful to so easily reach out to your network.

Apps, Apps, Apps – LinkedIn has a useful set of apps that can spruce up your profile and personalize your home page. I use apps to enhance my profile by featuring my recent blog article titles and presentations I’ve loaded to slideshare. I also use the recommended reading list to feature recommended books. My home page has the blogroll which highlights titles of blog posts by everyone in my network. Interesting articles catch my eye with this feature all the time.

Recommendations – Recommendations for volunteers and board members will be appreciated by those you recommend. Your recommendation will show up on their profile and may influence potential clients and employers. This is an excellent way to thank people for the work they do for your organization.

There’s more, or course. As with any social media platform, click away and learn how to use it best.

Blogging Plan for Nonprofits

2011-08-10T11:11:00.000-04:00

I love blogging. In fact I love it so much that I blog at three blogs. I jump head over heels when someone else mentions my blog and when it is someone like Beth Kanter or John Haydon - I feel like doing cartwheels for joy. I think that more nonprofits should blog and I encourage blogging in my social media workshops. I even have my “Easy Approach to Successful Nonprofit Blogging” that causes people to pause and say “We can do that!” If only more actually would!

It is important to start with defining your goals for the blog and then using that for your guide. Blogs should be about building a relationship with your constituencies and that should definitely be one of your goals. Blogging is excellent for developing advocacy and providing education. Fundraising can be a by-product but should not be a primary goal of blogging.

Some blogs are effective because they have a laser focus and stick to the topic. Some blogs are effective because they cover a lot of ground and feature variety. This dish of cupcakes does both. It can be done if you think about it.

Here is my formula for starting a nonprofit blog:

Once a month: Executive Director writes about national trends and issues related to mission of the organization

Once a month: Program Director writes about programs – whether it be an event, an award, or just everyday happenings.

Once a month: Development Director writes about something relating to fundraising – an event, results, a campaign, planned giving….whatever…but only once a month.

Every Wednesday: Participate in Wordless Wednesday – blog favorite with the “mommy bloggers - and post a picture every Wednesday. Include a short caption – no need for an article.

This approach does require an editor who reminds people and perhaps makes suggestions to keep the blog on track and not miss the rotation. The editor can be one of the contributors but does not have to be. If you can establish this rhythm, your blog may just grow from here and be filled out more frequently. You don’t want to have occasional only entries or it will just be ignored.

You also don’t have to re-invent the wheel to have something unique and special happening at your blog. One of my favorite nonprofit blogs is by the New Jersey based Geraldine Dodge Foundation. They are a major supporter of the arts and their annual Poetry Festivals now held in a major venue at the NJPAC in Newark, NJ are well known nationally. The Dodge Foundation blog features video, audio and pictorial clips from its archives on Friday. I am sure that there are many people who visit the blog every Friday for this feature. This ingenious blog approach quietly promotes the poetry festival all year long and works to develop a relationship with its readers.

Building relationships – keep that focus – and before you know it blog idieas will pour forth.

This blog article was inspired by Emily Weinberg who publishes one of my favorite nonprofit blogs – the Nonprofit Blog Exchange and posted this question in NTEN’s Nonprofit Blogging Community of Practice:

It seems like one of the biggest challenges nonprofits have with blogging is coming up with content to write about. I'd like to start a discussion about this topic.

What type of content do you write about on your organization's blog? What type of content can nonprofits write about?

Thanks, Emily!

Oh and by the way - where else I blog:

The Grandma Chronicles

Nonprofit Capacity Building at managementhelp.org

It's Summer - Give Your Website a Quick Facelift

2011-07-27T18:12:00.001-04:00

The summer is a good time to get to those things that have been put off during the busier times of the year and for nonprofits it is the time to do some prep work before the Fall fundraising season. One thing that you might do now is give your website a facelift. Here is some great straightforward advice from Firespring. Firespring is a marketing company serving small businesses and nonprofits. In partnership with 17 nonprofits they conducted this survey of 468 constituents to learn what they want from a nonprofit website. This is not a large scale study but the results do ring true and I’d like to share them with you.

Firespring has made an engaging two minute video summarizing the results and you can also download the two page report. Get both here.

Here are the highlights – as always you get my commentary with it:

1. Concise and Compelling Content - Content about your programs and services, future goals, and how donations are spent ranked highest in interest.

2. Attention Grabbing Design – 91% mentioned the appeal of photos. This is an area that almost all small nonprofits I work with can improve in. All too often they sparse out pictures like they were gold coins or think a picture of a building without any people is okay. If your picture causes furrowed brows rather than a smile, its the wrong one.

3. User-Friendly Navigation – Being able to easily navigate your website is really important. People came for a reason and they want to quickly be able to find out how to get to whatever they were looking for. Firespring recommends three points of navigation. 89% of respondents said that a site search is useful. This may be really easy for your webmaster to add. If you don’t already have one ask for it. This blog is on blogger.com – a free platform. The site search is just a free app that is a couple clicks away from being on the website. Depending on the platform you’re using this may be true for you too.

4. Useful Functionality – Having functionality that visitors expect today sends a message that your website is worth visiting. This is a good step in building a relationship online with your supporters. Functionality appreciated by the respondents included the ability to register for an event, sign up for an eNewsletter, and register to volunteer. There are both easy and more sophisticated ways to implement these features. Start by discussing them with your webmaster to find out how easily it can be done.

5. Strong Vitality – Not enough can be said about how important it is to update your website frequently. It doesn’t have to be a major overhaul – just fresh updates. 66% of respondents said that in order for content to be relevant your website must be updated at least once a week. How about posting a program picture of the week. Make sure you call it “a picture of the week” and post it on the same day every week. This type of thing causes people to visit on a regular basis. Making frequent updates to your website also increases your position in search – and that can be important.

If you are redesigning your website these are important ideas to incorporate. If you are not redesigning your website there is lots here you can do with your existing website. Do not wait for some future redesign – get busy today. Here is what you can do today:

1. Fresh new content about your programs
2. Photos – with people in them!!!!
3. Add a Where Your Donations Go page today
4. Ask your webmaster if s/he can easily add a site search
5. Ask your webmaster if s/he can easily add a eNewsletter sign-up.
6. Commit to updating something once a week on the website.

Thanks for bringing this study to my attention to Jocelyn Harmon at the Marketing for Nonprofits blog and @GuidestarUSA for tweeting about it.

You can see the companion piece to this article at the Nonprofit Capacity Building blog at managementhelp.org. Read Understanding Your Website from a Visitor’s Perspective now.

All About Executive Directors - Results of a New Daring to Lead Study on Nonprofit Leadership

2011-06-29T14:42:00.003-04:00

A new national study of nonprofit executive leadership provides a keen insight into and useful benchmarking statistics on the state of nonprofit leadership. Daring to Lead 2011 is a joint project of CompassPoint and the Meyer Foundation. The report is based on responses from over 3000 executive directors and follows similar studies in 2001 and 2006.

I am again writing companion pieces here and at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog at managementhelp.org about the study. This piece discusses the results from the perspective of the executive director and the other one the perspective of the Board. As always, I add my two cents along the way.

Here are the key findings:

Though slowed by the recession, projected rates of executive turnover remain high and many boards of directors are under-prepared to select and support new leaders.

The recession has amplified the chronic financial instability of many organizations, causing heightened anxiety and increased frustration with unsustainable financial models.

Despite the profound challenges of the role, nonprofit executives remain energized and resolved.

The last few years have been challenging for nonprofit executive directors by any measure. Although a grand exodus was expected, more EDs than expected hung in there but not without its toll. Sixty-five percent (65%) of executives reported significant levels of recession-related anxiety. Even with this to deal with, 45% reported being very happy in their jobs, and another 46% reported that they have more good days than bad in the role. The exodus of EDs is sure to pick up pace as 20% of the respondents were over 60. In this study 67% said they expect to leave their present position within five years. Retirement isn’t the only reason.

Here is something for EDs to know when they are new in the job. By and large the first year is a honeymoon period and EDs' happiness in a job takes a dive in year 2 slowly building - taking over 10 years to pass a 50% rate of happiness with the job. My advice to new EDs is to take a page from experienced EDs and conjure up all the resilience they can.

EDs do take the time to invest in their own development as leaders. This chart shows the breadth and effectiveness of various strategies employed by EDs for their own development.

They consider executive coaching, peer networks, and leadership programs as most effective and reported that peer networks were especially effective for decreasing feelings of isolation and norming the trials and tribulations of their jobs.

In my year end blog post in 2009 I said that I wished my readers resilience for 2010 as that is what they would need most. It is interesting to me that was a key finding in this report. EDs have remained resilient through the recession and with as much passion and commitment to their causes as ever.

One area of concern that I see frequently in nonprofit leaders they see in themselves: financial management skills. A significant number of EDs say that they don’t thoroughly understand the financial underpinnings of their organizations. At the same time boards of directors are evermore focused on financial oversight. In my experience financial management issues can be a key point of tension between a board and an ED. In addition to being a primary contributor to executive director burnout, financial instability can threaten an organization’s ability to carry out its mission and its very existence. This report most definitely sends a strong call for more training and development in this area for EDs.

This chart highlights the concern on the EDs part of their own ability in this crucial factor of nonprofit leadership.

40% consider financial management as a “depleting” part of their job.

Although ED’s recognize this as a very important part of their job 36% say they don’t spend enough time on it.

73% say there is significant board financial oversight while only 47% say boards provide significantly to fund development.

So what are the energizing part of an ED’s job? This next chart is fascinating but not surprising. The most energizing aspects of a ED’s job are working with partners, program management and working with individual donors.

What was the career path of the 3000 ED’s that responded to this study? This is another fascinating result. Only 32% were hired from outside the organization and 68% were an employee on staff, a board member or the founder. A closer look at the data suggest there is almost an equal chance as becoming an ED with a promotion from within as there is as an outside hire.

A big thank you to CompassPoint and the Meyer Foundation for this insightful report on what makes Executive Directors tick. We have so much to be grateful for – the cadre of nonprofit leaders who have weathered the storm of the recession and kept the ships afloat and righted. Gracias! And some good advice for newer EDs.

See the whole report here.

You and Your Nonprofit – Just Published!

2011-06-20T20:37:00.001-04:00

Thursday’s mail brought my copy of the newly published You and Your Nonprofit. I have been waiting for my copy anxiously as I am a proud contributor and it did not disappoint.

You and Your Nonprofit is published as part of Charity Channel's In the Trenches series and features practical advice and tips from the Charity Channel Nonprofit Professional Community. The almost 70 articles cover nonprofit leadership, management and fundraising topics. I have already read many of the articles and I am amazed at how succinct and yet thorough each one is. The editors did an excellent job with article selection, presentation format, and organization. I will be referencing my copy frequently. I particularly like the easy-to-reference format with sidebar practical tips and bulleted lists. You and Your Nonprofit is a must have for your go to reference shelf.

My featured articles are:

Planning a Board Retreat

Getting Your Strategic Plan Working Together and Then Taking It Up a Notch!

Both of these articles were adapted from articles that originally appeared in Charity Channel’s Nonprofits Boards and Governance Review and later on my blog. They also are among my articles that have been chosen to appear in major online databases and receive frequent hits here on this blog.

This is the first time I am published in a book and it is exciting. I’m thinking about how to celebrate locally. Any ideas – please leave comments and share your ideas.

A 25% discount is available through 7/31/11.

Here is the coupon code for the 25% discount: CCPRESS423

Order Now!

Find Out More About the Book

Making Facebook Work for a Nonprofit - But Which Tool in the Toolbox Is It?

2011-06-08T16:30:00.000-04:00

Today I saw the most amazing statistics about Facebook and Idealware just published a great report with lots of hard data about facebook and nonprofits so I said to myself: “It’s Kismet – Write about Facebook!”

AllFacebook.com reported on the results of a study which finds that 56% of content shared online happens via facebook. Wow! Now that’s a big number! Facebook accounts for 38% of all sharing referral traffic (That’s fancy for a shared link that was actually clicked on) - more than email and twitter combined. The study looked at the sharing and clicking habits of the more than 300 million people a month who pass links with a ShareThis button on over a million websites, producing 7 billion pageviews a month. This data certainly confirms that facebook cannot be discounted - it should be in your toolbox. But what kind of a tool is it?
Idealware has just published Using Facebook to Meet Your Mission: Results of a Survey. Idealware surveyed 505 nonprofits and interviewed 8 people who said they were having some success with facebook. Thanks idealware for this thorough and insightful report that all nonprofits can use on their journey with facebook.
You can download the whole report here and there even is a free online seminar on June 16th to discuss the results.
Highlights:

Facebook is more likely to succeed in attracting constituents that require a lower level of commitment was the overriding finding. Some specific results with nonprofit facebook pages are:

• More than 70% attracted new attendees to events and generated increased traffic to their website.

• 40% had success converting some fans into donors or volunteers

• 66% of respondents from advocacy organizations saw an increase in people taking action like signing a petition.

• 29% saw an increase in donations

• Over 80% said facebook increased awareness and relationships with constituents

Making Facebook Work for a Nonprofit
The study clearly found that putting in a reasonable amount of time and setting goals contributed to having success with facebook:
The average time spent per week reported by organizations who saw
positive impact from facebook was 2.6 hours.

Only 36 percent of respondents reported having defined goals. Almost 40 percent of those reported a generally positive impact from the site, compared to less than 25 percent of those that did not set goals.

So are you ready to get serious about facebook? Organizations who reported success with donors say that it takes a long time to develop donors. Do not get discouraged easily, grow and learn, intereact and follow other nonprofits. It takes some commitment to be successful with facebook so be prepared to make a reasonable commitment.
There are many resources specifically for nonprofits online to help and here are a couple of good basic ones.
John Haydon at http://www.johnhaydon.com/ John does these great simple walk you through videos that I can even follow. I have figured out more than one facebook mystery from John Haydon.
Facebook’s Nonprofit guide Facebook has a nonprofit guide and a fan page that can help you get off to a good start. Check them out.
I'd love to hear your experience and questions about nonprofits and facebook. Please leave your comments here. And .....like my facebook page to see my blog posts in your news feed:

http://www.facebook.com/marionconwayconsulting

Being on a Board - What's It All About

2011-05-18T12:12:00.001-04:00

I recently gave this presentation at the Grant Professionals MidAtlantic Regional Conference and I thought I would share it here. I was asked to present on this subject because grant professionals frequently get asked to be on boards and some are interested in joining Boards as part of their professional development.

Although this is basic stuff I thought some of you may find something of value here and/or may want to pass this on to others.

The presentation covers the basic responsibilities of being a board member, gives advice on how to be a successful board member and recommends questions to ask before joining a Board. Lots of thanks to Boardsource and Independent Sector for all the good information. In the session we talked about a lot of Board related topics not covered here including Board recruitment, Board orientation and the Board manual. Here are the slides:

Being on a Board What's It All About

View more presentations from Marion Conway

What are your thoughts on this subject? What makes a good Board and a good Board Member? Please join the conversation and leave your comments.

Workshop: Donating Online: How to Make it Work for Your Non-Profit

2011-05-05T13:50:00.000-04:00

On Tuesday, May 17th, I will be presenting this workshop. The workshop covers basic options for using online donation tools and will help you decide the best option for your organization. We will examine how the donation tool works and compare some popular tools, such as Razoo, Network for Good and Guidestar. We will discuss strategies for maximizing the effectiveness of your online donation process.

Sponsoring Organization and Location: Volunteer Center of Bergen County
                                                           64 Passaic Street Hackensack, NJ 07663
                                                           201-489-9454

Date/Time: Tuesday, May 17, 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Registration Fee: $45, $35 for member agencies

Audience: Board, Executive, Development

To Register: contact Tess Tomasi, 201-489-9454, ext. 114
                              ttomasi@bergenvolunteers.org.
or register online securely at bergenvolunteers.org

Donating Online - How to Make It Work Best for Your Nonprofit

2011-04-29T10:07:00.000-04:00

On April 30th (Tomorrow) I will be presenting at the Literacy Volunteers of NJ annual conference. The presentation is geared for small organizations who are just getting started with accepting donations online. The presentaion is on slideshare.net and can be viewed here:

Donating online how to make it work for your nonprofit 4 11

View more presentations from Marion Conway

Soon I will be presenting a longer workshop on this subject at the Volunteer Center of Bergen County. For more information contact Tess Tomasi at (201) 489-9454 or email training@bergenvolunteers.org.

Branding for Nonprofits - Professionals Share Expertise at the Fist to Five Series

2011-04-07T14:12:00.000-04:00

Some of my most popular blog articles have been about the Fist to Five series for Nonprofits sponsored by Sax Macy Fromm, an accounting firm in Clifton, NJ. Todd Polyniak, a principal, designs and chairs these forums. Yesterday, I attended one of the best yet. Branding for nonprofits was the topic and two experts discussed the branding makeover they did on two very different nonprofits. It was fascinating to learn about the process and the results. There is a lot of interest in nonprofit branding today and it is with due cause. In this day of information overload and internet clutter, it is easy for organizations to not be heard – or worse, not be heard correctly. Communicating who we are and doing it crisply, accurately and endearing passion of our mission is no small task. It is a job for professionals. And Todd interviewed two professionals about their branding work with two very different nonprofits.

Todd first interviewed Walt Guarino, President and Managing partner at SGW and opened with offering this as a definition of a brand: “A brand is a one of a kind promise about who you are, what you stand for, and what unique and meaningful benefits you deliver.” He asked Walt to comment on this as it applies to nonprofits. Walt’s remarks really resonated with my experience when he said, “Nonprofits have a lot of different things to say and when the name doesn’t connect, it takes effort to get people to understand what they are about. Branding triggers reactions and feelings when you see the brand so it is important to get it right.

Todd then referred to marketing guru, Seth Godin’s “Purple Cow” proposition – the purple cow being that which makes an organization remarkable (worth talking about, worth noticing, exceptional, new, interesting) and asked what methods Walt uses to help find “purple cow” in clients?

Walt discussed a specific example of an organization which is over 40 years old and has been home to developmentally disabled individuals during that time. Although the individuals they serve are now adults there are reasons they cannot change the name of their organization which includes the word children. They conducted interviews with a wide spectrum of constituents looking for the nuggets to capture the essence of the organization to use in their branding statement. Involving the participation of all constituents is an important part of the process - to capture the essence of the organization. “Caring haven” is the short phrase they decided on. They also developed a positioning theme: “More than a home to individuals who are developmentally disabled.” This statement invites us learn more about what the “more” is.

Next Todd interviewed David Kessler, founder of Starfish. His general remarks about branding were similar to Walt’s: “Brands are created not only by what it says, but also how people react and interact with it.” I think that when we try to develop our marketing messages from within we tend to stay to much “inside the box” and don’t think about how what we say will capture the attention and heart of those seeing the message. This came through loud and clear in both Walt and David’s examples.

Todd asked David to name the top blunders companies make in branding and David responded citing a briar patch you don’t want to wander into:

1) Brand is not clearly defined and even people within the organization give different opinions about what the brand is

2) Worse thing you can do is send a message with expectations and not meet those expectations

Next Todd brought out a rather wordy plain looking bottle of Dr. Bronner’s all in one soap that doesn’t advertise yet is able to fetch a premium price in stores such as Whole Foods and asked David to comment on why. David’s assessment was quick – It looks “authentic” – that’s the message that people are getting. And when Todd asked about how a nonprofit should go about developing and promoting their brand, David responded with:

1) The nonprofit has to clearly understand what they stand for and actively promote that.

2) Understand your primary purpose, core competencies and the competitive framework you are working in

A brand is an “idea that spreads and to spread it has to be simple, compelling and relevant.” Word of mouth advertising has always existed and today it includes social media and these characteristics are especially important with social media. The potential today via social media is greater than word of mouth advertizing has ever been.

David worked with a Newark, NJ based nonprofit which is expanding the types of programs it offers and would like to expand to have a national presence. David worked with them to develop a new name and logo/identity with the following goals:

• Not limiting
• Has stature
• Competes well nationally
• Works in all media – print, web
Coupled with a key line “transforming young lives through the arts and innovation" the new name and logo captures what they are all about and has a clear, bold look.

The audience was awed by the potential impact the new organization names and positioning statements could make for these organizations. We felt the brands speak.

Here are some great online resources for nonprofits on the topic of branding.

Nancy Schwartz at Getting Attention - Search categories Branding and Taglines for great ideas on this subject. Nancy’s annual tagline contest and report are not to be missed and will inspire your branding ideas for sure.

Kivi Leroux Miller at the Nonprofit Marketing Guide always has great marketing and communications articles including on branding.
An excellent basic article at Guidestar is Nonprofit Branding: Unveiling the Essentials

Just published by Wiley/AFP:
Breakthrough Nonprofit Branding – by Jocelyne Daw and Carol Cone

The Convio Online Marketing Benchmark Index– Highlights and My Two Cents

2011-04-01T15:10:00.001-04:00

There are two new large scale study reports on Nonprofits and technology just released in March 2011 that have quite a bit of noteworthy information in them. I am again writing two companion pieces on this topic:
You can check out my report on The Third Nonprofit Social Network Benchmark Report published by NTEN, Common Knowledge, and Blackbaud at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog at mangementhelp.org.
This article has highlights – along with my commentary - from the Convio Online Marketing Nonprofit Benchmark Index™ Study. The report uses data from nearly 600 nonprofit organizations that use the Convio Online Marketing platform.

I am often asked in my workshops about what are reasonable expectations for online engagement. This type of large scale study provides some reasonable benchmarks that can be used as goals. Keep in mind that all of these organizations are all at least somewhat established – many are at expert level. If you are just starting out you will need to work to reach these levels.

Here are some highlights:

Online is the fastest growing fundraising channel for nonprofits. In 2010, Convio’s clients raised more than $1.3 billion online, up 40 percent from 2009. Wow! Now that’s a big number!

Online giving is growing fastest for small organizations – 26% in 2010

Median donation size increased from $83.44 in 2009 to $91.94 in 2010

Website visit growth rate was only 2% and website registration rates declined. So don’t feel bad if your web traffic does not seem to be growing by leaps and bounds. The report speculates that some of this is due to emails and social media providing better communication and thereby having less traffic to websites to keep up to date. My opinion – we are all on web overload and trying to pare down anything that is not necessary.
The total number of email addresses grew by 22% in 2010. The number of email addresses on file has a direct impact on your organization’s ability to communicate, cultivate, and drive actions from constituents. However, the quality of your relationships and how email addresses were acquired are both important and a large email file alone will not guarantee your online success. Organizations that are growing their online results are proactive in collecting email addresses at events and at their facilities –with people they already have a good relationship with.

The open rate for email newsletters was 19% this year. Organizations need to continue to refine their subject lines, content, and use of segmentation to resonate with subscribers. There is a strong differentiation between those who do this well and those who don’t. The 3.06% click-through rate for email newsletters was down slightly from 2009 (3.3%) but remains almost double that of email fundraising appeals.

The Convio platform saw an increase of 19% in the number of online advocacy actions in 2010. There is a great disparity in the types of nonprofits using their email lists for advocacy. A big mystery to me is why 27% of animal welfare organizations are using online advocacy and only 2 ½% of human services organizatios did. Are animals worth spending more time advocating for than people? I do hope that more human services nonprofits will begin look past program delivery and to think about the power of advocacy. An interesting fact and nudge - 6.42 percent of online activists also supported the same organization financially online. Encouraging advocacy can be profitable on multiple fronts and I predict it will be a growth area for nonprofits using their online presence.

Convio concludes their report with this list of common attributes of organizations that have had the most success online:

• Success in driving traffic to their websites by optimizing search engine visibility, using paid search/advertising, offering compelling content, and promoting their site via other media including mail, DRTV and social media

• Effective content and incentives to convert website traffic into registered users who can then be cultivated into supporters

• Proven ability to build large email files via online registration programs, list uploads, and viral campaigns

• Effective email communication through compelling content, segmentation, and personalization to sustain interest in their programs

• Engaging online members through online advocacy and developing strategies to engage new audiences through social networking websites

• Timely delivery of critical/urgent fundraising or advocacy appeals which resonate with constituents

• Proactively test methods aimed at optimizing donation form conversion rates.

• Develop strategies for segmenting email audience and developing dynamic ask-strings that go beyond current Recency, Frequency, Monetary models.

• Engaging and converting offline members/donors through online communications

• A high response rate for online appeals, generated by having an effective case for supporting their organization, segmenting and personalizing their appeals, and testing elements of each email, such as the subject line, frequency, and delivery timing

To see the full detailed report with information by segments, click here

Where in the World Is Marion?

2011-03-12T18:00:00.001-05:00

Over the next two months I have a busy schedule which includes some events that you may be interested in. Here are the highlights and registration information.

March 16 –19   Nonprofit Technology Conference, Washington, DC
Almost 2000 people will gather to discuss “everything nonprofit tech” in action packed day and night activities. I’ll be at workshops on blogging, social media, marketing, online giving, and more. I also signed up for a special storytelling workshop and I will be part of the storytelling team reporting on the conference. If you are on twitter you can follow the hashtag #11NTC for commentary and updates on all the conference happenings. Or follow @MarionConway – I’ll be reporting starting Wednesday night.

I know lots of nonprofit technology experts and I am looking forward to this once a year event to see each other in person and also the opportunity to meet new people.

April 5th     Sax, Macy & Fromm Fist to Five Lecture Series
I have been attending and blogging about these events for the last two years. The emcee host, Todd Polyniak, is a partner at this accounting firm and these programs for nonprofits are very well attended. The topic is Branding for Nonprofits and the program will be held in Clifton, NJ. If you are interested in attending you should contact Danielle Atkinson at (973) 472-6250. I’ll be blogging about the program after the event. One of my favorite articles on one of these forums is:

Facing Changing Paradigms – A Nonprofit Accountant in the Catbird Seat

April 6th      Donating Online - How to Make It Work Best for Your Nonprofit
This is a new workshop that I will be offering due to popular demand. The workshop covers the options for using online donating tools and will help you decide the best option for your organization. It includes tips on how to be more effective with your online donation process. This workshop is sponsored by the Partnership in Philanthropy and will be offered in Chatham, NJ. Click here for more information.

April 30th     Literacy Volunteers of NJ Annual Conference
I will be presenting a workshop on Donating Online - How to Make It Work Best for Your Nonprofit at this conference which will be held at Montclair State University, Montclair NJ. To learn more, click here.

May 16th     5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Grant Professionals Conference

I will be presenting a workshop on Being on a Board: What's it all About? at this conference which will be held at the FEA Conference Center, Monroe, NJ. This conference has a very diversified program with workshops on fundraising and nonprofit leadership. To learn more, click here.

I also have clients I am working with on an executive search, strategic planning and board retreats. So if you get an email from me at a weird time of day in the next couple of months you know why.

From a Foundation Perspective - What Makes An Effective Nonprofit?

2011-03-01T10:15:00.002-05:00

Once in a while I like to write about what “the other side” is saying. The “other side” being the foundation point of view. I recently came across this article by the Association of Small Foundations entitled, “What Makes An Effective Nonprofit?” The thrust of this report is that there are five main characteristics that make a nonprofit effective and donors should consider the overall effectiveness of an organization or the potential of an organization to be effective and give a gift to increase effectiveness. So what do they think is important? The basic stuff of course – but here are some interesting highlights:

The five characteristics which are common to effective nonprofits:

1. Clear mission and purpose - The most fundamental quality of an effective nonprofit is clarity about its mission—both what it seeks to accomplish and why this purpose is important.

2. Ability to perform key functions - Communicate vision, Engage stakeholders’ input , Achieve results and track impact against a few key measures, Plan for the future and be a learning organization.
3. Strong practices, procedures, and policies - Effective nonprofits also follow good practices in three functional areas: finance, governance, and organizational and program development. The list in this topic included:

• Solid fiscal management processes are in place including a board finance committee, careful cash monitoring, and regular budgets monitored with monthly cash flow statements.

• Diverse range of funding

• Efforts to establish and maintain a reserve fund, ideally 3 to 6 months of operating expenses.

• A strategic plan is in place and used. It is reviewed annually and adjusted as necessary. Key staff refer to it when talking to you.

• Regular client input is welcomed and used for continual program improvement.

• Other organizations doing similar work speak highly of the organization.

• Staff can articulate key accomplishments, lessons learned, and future directions.

• The organization is recognized as an institution; it is not identified solely with one or two individuals who work there.

• The organization is able to demonstrate measurable outcomes.

4. Good people - Above all, nonprofits depend on one key resource to fulfill their missions: qualified, skilled, and talented board members, staff, and volunteers. Since people are key to performance, look for nonprofits that invest in their human resources.
5. Ability to mobilize others - The ability to mobilize and engage volunteers, other nonprofits, businesses, and government agencies is an essential skill for nonprofits seeking to address the root causes of problems and bring about long-term change.

Recommended Due Diligence
In advising small foundations to do due diligence, it suggests looking at things on this list. In the financial review it recommends annual reports, 990s, financial statements (which I was glad to see they note an audit is optional and not required) and budgets. It strongly recommends doing a site visit and talks about the importance of meeting with the executive director, assessing the competence and professionalism among staff and observing the interaction with clients.

I find that many small nonprofits don’t publish an annual report and I think this is a huge missed opportunity. In this report it is listed as the first thing that small foundations should look at. See my companion piece to this article at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog on nonprofit annual reports.

So What Really Caught My Eye
What is most interesting about this report for me were the last two items – Good people and the ability to mobilize others. I personally really value these two characteristics and I think that too often nonprofits that ARE effective don’t emphasize those characteristics about themselves enough. Listen up – foundations may actually be looking at this.

The report doesn’t discourage a donor from making grants to organizations that don’t meet all of these criteria. Rather it encourages donors to consider the potential of a nonprofit and fund the things it will help make them effective. A summarizing quote: “ As a donor, you have not only the power to identify effective nonprofits but also to build and strengthen the ones most aligned with your goals. In other words, excellent nonprofits are often made, not found.”
An interesting perspective…from “the other side.”

Read the whole report here.

Real Time Strategic Planning

2011-02-21T09:27:00.004-05:00

Real Time Strategic Planning is the topic of my winter eNewsletter and a recent presentation I gave to the local chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants.

Both of these resources are available for download.

The feature article of my winter eNewsletter is on this topic. You can easily subscribe at the sign-up in the sidebar. I only publish it a few times a year so don't worry I won't blitz your email.

eNewsletter with Real Time Strategic Planning feature article

I also presented on this topic recently to the Morris and Essex chapter of the Institute of management Accountants. The presentation is available on slideshare.net which you can link to here.

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Real time strategic planning 2 9 11 slideshare notes

View more presentations from Marion Conway.

The newsletter and presentation is based on the research and book of David LaPiana - The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution. The book comes with lots of worksheets and a CD with worksheets that you can download and use. You can order the book from Amazon via this link.

Bill Gates Third Annual Letter for the Gates Foundation – A Passion for Causes and Determination to Achieve Results

2011-02-01T15:08:00.000-05:00

Bill Gates’ third annual letter emphasizes the importance of generosity – especially by well developed nations - and highlights the importance of and results with vaccines. And there is a lot, lot more. This is a must read – download the whole letter.

The Bill Gates Annual Letter

Vaccination has been a major priority for the Gates Foundation and this year it is front and center in Bill's letter. Bill highlights the importance of results with the polio vaccine - and they are impressive. To many younger people polio may seem like a foreign and exotic disease, but not to me. My first grade best friend died of polio, and I still remember the surrounding details that I won’t bore you with here. Both of our parents initially decided against us lining up for the somewhat controversial vaccine, but after she died I was promptly brought to our family doctor for the shot. Polio has been wiped out in the United States due to mandatory vaccinations. It can be wiped out everywhere on earth with inexpensive vaccines. I am ecstatic about this commitment to wiping out polio.

Bill also talks about malaria and AIDS. His remarks have facts that have emerged from taking and analyzing data that will help advance doing things better in the future. There is a fascinating chart graphing the impact on IQ of disease. Bill cites this impact on human potential as a major reason for his and Melinda's commitment to these world health projects. Both his passion for the causes and his determination about improving results shine through his comments. All nonprofits can learn from this commitment to the benefits of the cause and the emphasis on results.

Like many of the Gates Foundation projects, their work with agriculture is innovative and seeks to make fundamental long term change. They have worked with small farmers to meet quality standards and form cooperatives to meet bulk standards to be able to sell to world food program relief projects, They have been successful in doing this. This addresses a major problem with large scale food aid causing market problems for local farmers.

The next topic is education – the main area of the foundation’s funding in the US. His two big areas of concern – hours spent in school and rewarding teacher’s excellence. The Gates Foundation always marches to it own drummer and here too this is true. They are working with teachers’ unions rather than trying to conquer them in developing teacher excellence.

Bill wraps up his letter talking about the Giving Pledge and its origins to which he credits Warren Buffett. It wouldn’t be a Bill Gates annual letter without accolades for Warren Buffet. Although originally focused on the wealthiest people in the United States, he and Warren have been invited to discuss this idea with groups in China and India. You just can’t hold a great idea back I guess.

The Gates Foundation uses Bill's annual letter to accomplish so many things. It informs us on a new level about world health. He thanks nations and individuals and publicly encourages future support (advocacy done well). He presents results and gives us insight to his vision for the future. Yes, it is a long letter, but it holds your attention throughout. Bill Gates is an excellent communicator about the causes the foundation supports and we can learn a lot about how the Foundation operates from reading this letter.

News and Nonprofit Technology Mysteries - Is There a Gap? Funding?

2011-01-27T14:26:00.001-05:00

I plan to continue to blog here at Marion Conway - Nonprofit Consultant but I want you to know that I am now also a host blogger at the Nonprofit Capacity Blog of the Free Management Library. The library, also know as ManagementHelp.org is a major resource used by nonprofits and it is exciting to be writing for this large audience. I was quite surprised when Carter McNamara asked me, and I will be writing two posts a month as does my co-host, Ingrid Zacharias.

Here are the links to my first two posts:

The Nonprofit Technology Gap – Really? New Report Sheds Light on the Issue

Funding for Technology – Ask for the Right Thing and Connect to Your Mission

I am working on a new newsletter with Strategic Planning as the topic so please sign up now for my newsletter to be emailed soon.

Marion

US Government Meets Transparency via Creative Commons

2011-01-24T13:52:00.000-05:00

Transparency in nonprofits and grantmaking foundations has been a serious topic of discussion in recent years and every time some baby step is taken there are people like me who write about it and laud it. But now the federal government has taken a BIG step – as big as only the government could take. The reaction has been a little quiet but I think it will begin to roar as people learn about it.

Last week the Department of Labor in partnership with the Department of Education announced $2 Billion in grants to support educational and career training programs for workers. The program has two important distinctions: the magnitude of support for 21st century job skill training and for making grantmaking transparent at a new level.

What makes the grants transparent? The grants require that the training materials, curricula, online courses, and other courseware created by grantees with taxpayer money be made freely available for reuse to the public by means of a Creative Commons License. Wow! Every picture or graphic I use on my blog is from Creative Commons. I always talk about using CC to spruce up your blog or presentations in my workshops. I go to FLICKR, search on a word or phrase and under advanced search choose Creative Commons license only. Its as simple as that.

This means that any nonprofit or institution other than those with the grant can use these materials developed with our tax money in their own training programs – at no cost. The government has paid for them and has decided to make them available for free to anyone who wants them. And it will easily be available at Creative Commons not by some arcane hard to get and know about method. The government has actually been taking quite a number of steps towards transparency with the products of their funding. It is of course in some area a complex issue that cannot be handled with a broad brush everywhere. You can read a more thorough report of other government departments and the steps they have taken here.
This is big news. And the Departments of Labor and Education should be thanked for taking this step. Besides the practical benefits, it sets a new high note for the power and benefits of transparency. I hope it rekindles the discussion of transparency in grantmaking in the private sector too.

We’re Back So Let’s See Some Action... Resolutions for Nonprofits in 2011

2011-01-07T18:10:00.004-05:00

Well, it is a snowy day here in New Jersey and I enjoyed the homemade pea soup I made earlier so now its time for this more serious post. For the last three years I have asked some experts on my LinkedIn network to provide their recommendations for New Year’s resolutions for nonprofits – and people associated with nonprofits. Once again they have come through with such great advice – and quite a diversity of recommendations. There is even a video recommendation submitted by Marc Pitman!
Last year I said the resolutions had a “Lets straighten up and face the future squarely and show them we’re ready” panache. This year they have more of a “We’re back in business so let’s see some action” tone.

I thank all of the nonprofit professionals who contributed to this post making this such a rich set of encouraging ideas that all of us can use as we develop our goals for this year. Click on their names to go to their websites. I’ve grouped them by topic for easy reference.

Development/Fundraising
Amy Eisentstein and Linda Lysakowski offer straightforward, no nonsense advice

Amy says: “Ask More Frequently. Specifically, incorporate an individual giving program into your annual fund and ask at least 10 people for gifts, face-to-face, this year.”

Linda says: “ Invest in development and not expect instant results.”

Building Relationships and Marketing
Maria Semple’s recommendation encourages us to take a more integrated view and develop deeper relationships with key donors:

"Resolve to become less dependent on special events to generate revenue and focus instead on establishing quality relationships with individuals who can make meaningful gifts to your organization. Try doing smaller, more intimate cultivation events that will enable people to learn more, ask questions, and become engaged. Find a way to stay in touch either via email marketing, snail mail, and social media (or preferably all 3!). The social media piece is free, so take advantage of uploading photos and videos to tell your nonprofit's story & successes. If you find it is too time consuming to maintain it yourself, then find a high school student who is looking to build their college resume and help your nonprofit at the same time."

Marc A. Pitman submitted the first ever video recommendation for this list. He says: “I'm really taken by the simplicity of Scott Harrison's message in the video I posted today.
I think nonprofits should resolve to:
(1) Watch this clip and
(2) List out three things they'll change in their organization as a result!"
I watched the clip and you can’t help but be encouraged to action by it.

Finance//Management/
Elizabeth Clawson suggests an excellent professional development activity for us to learn more about the finances of the organizations we are associated with. I plan to recommend this one to organizations I work with…and it has the makings of an excellent blog article.
"Know your 990. Assuming your organization files one, print out your most recent IRS Form 990 and have staff review it during a meeting. This is a great way for:

1) Executive staff to introduce the form to others;
2) Finance/accounting staff (if any) to clarify part of their work and answer questions;
3) Fundraising staff to understand what grantmakers see when they evaluate funding proposals and highlight recent sources of funding;
4) Communications staff to glean new statistics from the numbers (such as dollars invested in programs, diversity of funding, etc.)
5) All staff to better understand the organization's finances and see the balance sheet that translates their often intangible work into real-world numbers. "

Jean Block has a resolution for the New Normal: "Nonprofits have got to diversfy their revenue this year...relying on traditional funding sources and the same old 'tried and true' fundraising will simply not cut it anymore. We hear lots about getting in tune with social media as the new trend, but I would add that investing in social enterprise (earned income) should be an important part of every nonprofit's tool kit."

Susan Detwiler has a recommendation for us as individuals: "Just for today, I will set a realistic goal to accomplish in the next 8 hours, leaving time to handle the inevitable fires, so I am not sidetracked by them. Repeat."

Hmmmm….sounds simple enough but could be hard for many of us unless we stay disciplined about it.

Finally my own two cents....

Most nonprofits have been through the mill in the last couple of years and many of those who have landed on their feet are in a new place. Carter McNamara recently made a list of trends he sees coming in 2011 and action planning is one of the main trends on his list. I think this is a good trend and doing action oriented strategic planning is my recommended resolution for 2011. Stay tuned for a detailed post on this subject.

This list is not intended to be exhaustive, rather it is intended to give you ideas provided by some experts to consider for your own list of resolutions and objectives for 2011. Thanks again to each of the contributors to this list - you have provided us with an encouraging list of ideas on which to build our 2011 resolutions. I hope you will visit their blogs for ongoing commentary throughout the year – I know I do.

Do you have ideas you would like to add to this list - I'd love to know what they are. Please share your ideas by posting a comment to this post.

Make the 25th MLK Day a Day "On" not "Off" for You and Your Organization

2011-01-04T20:39:00.000-05:00

This year is the 25th anniversary of Martin Luther King Day. The theme for this year’s Day of Service is built around Dr. King’s quote, "Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What are you doing for others?'" Whether you are looking for something to volunteer at, want to sponsor a project at work that day or are a nonprofit with a project looking for volunteers a good place to start is the official MLK Day website. It is chock full of resources and links with information about where you can volunteer and register your project.

Here are some ideas I posted last year – with a couple of new ones…..

Not a Holiday for You – No problem! Easy ideas for Service on MLK Day – No Excuses
If MLK Day is a work day for you why not see if your employer is willing to sponsor an early quit for a group who volunteers at a local charity or lead a food or winter coat drive at your workplace. It is a good day for group activities and lots of nonprofits are prepared with one day or short time frame projects.

Or how about sponsoring a re-gifting opportunity. Ask co-workers to bring in a holiday gift they got and don’t really want and bring these new items to a shelter.

Nonprofits Take Action – Now!! Today! – MLK Day is January 17th!!!
If you are a nonprofit - right now – not tomorrow – register your projects available for MLK Day at serve.gov and at any local databases collecting projects such as your local Volunteer Center or United Way. This is a perfect opportunity to introduce your organization to new volunteers and supporters. The projects do not have to be elaborate. Onsite projects like painting a room, cleaning out and organizing closets are popular projects. Don’t pass up opportunities for after work groups to come for an hour or sponsor food or other drives at their workplace. Are you an arts group? Do you need some help working on making sets – a great after work project.

Need Professional Skills? List it in all the databases you can. Ask for help with your website, marketing materials or social media launch. Or how about resume writing and interview coaching at homeless shelters. Would a local beauty salon/barber be willing to sponsor haircuts and a blow dry for homeless mothers? Perhaps a plumber or electrician project is just waiting for the right person to come along and volunteer.

Don’t forget to market your volunteer opportunities….
Your website…facebook for starters.. Consider putting up signs so that current volunteers and passersby can see that you have volunteer opportunities available for individuals, families, work teams, organizational groups, etc. Be prepared that day to give people some information about your organization, get their contact information, and see if they’d be interested in volunteering in the future. How about name tags for existing volunteers with stickers identifying each of them as a “Gold Star Volunteer.” Or have your current volunteers lead the work projects.

It is free and easy to register your projects. You never know - the perfect person may show up on a cold winter morning and begin a lasting relationship. This opportunity is to good to pass up.

Wishing You Joy, Pride and a Spirit for Action

2010-12-23T21:05:00.002-05:00

Dear Friends,

I wish all of you a joyous holiday season and a blessed New Year. This holiday letter is being posted both at Marion Conway – Nonprofit Consultant and The Grandma Chronicles.

The joy of grandparenting has been a major theme for me this year. Our grandson is now 18 months old and it is a total joy to watch him grow, discover and enjoy life. It really is quite inspirational. And so I enjoy writing about him at The Grandma Chronicles and “shouting out with joy” about all that is going on. It has been fun to watch him experience getting ready for Christmas from decorating to wrapping presents to watching the family room transformed with a Christmas tree and decorations everywhere. I was sort of surprised that the poinsettias by the fireplace went completely unnoticed.

Christmas is a time of reflection and of joy for me. It is a time to be thankful for all our blessings, for appreciating family and friends, and for sharing with others. I have turned down the lights in my office, lit candles in the window and am playing Christmas Chant. The soft light brings a still peace and I have left the hustle bustle of the day with grocery shopping and cooking for tomorrow and I am enjoying this quiet time to write this message.

This past year I have been so proud to be working in the nonprofit community. I’ve seen organizations make it through a rough time, look inside their soul and come out strong. I’ve seen Board and staff working hard and more thoughtfully to make a new path or stay steady on a firm one. Unfortunately layoffs and reduced pay have frequently been necessary at many of the places I worked with this year. The people impacted are in my thoughts and prayers this Christmas.

This year I continued to stay focused especially on smaller nonprofits but I did expand my reach attending two national conferences and presenting at one of them. It was totally wonderful to meet people in person that I have only known online and meeting in person has brought those relationships to a new level. Also, I have been asked to take on new kinds of projects for nonprofits and that has been a growth experience for me.

I look forward to the New Year and a recovering economy. This last couple of weeks our political leaders have shown a new ability to think independently and work together to compromise. None of us are entirely happy with everything, but it is uplifting to see action rather than inaction. It sets a good tone as we start a new year.

Last year I wished you all joy, pride and resilience. This year I wish you joy, pride and a spirit for action. I think that 2011 will be one where action will again be in vogue – a time for trying new ideas - taking new steps. I’m planning on it, and I hope you do too.

Here is the picture of my husband and me with our grandson, Zach that we sent with our Christmas cards.

And Zach alone - picture taken by my husband and used by his parents for their Chritmas card.

Happy Holidays,

Marion

Online Giving Study by Network for Good - Relationships and Timing

2010-12-13T13:54:00.000-05:00

In my last blog article “Really Simple Year End Fundraising – Make it Good to the Last Drop" one of my suggestions was to send out a short email in the last week of December as a reminder about last minute gifts because New Year’s Eve is the biggest online giving day of the year. That is an important piece of marketing intelligence to have and today's article provides a bunch more marketing intelligence.

Network for Good and True Sense Marketing have just released the findings of a massive online giving study covering $381 million in online giving through Network for Good’s platform, including 3.6 million gifts to 66,470 different nonprofits from 2003-2009. The study has some interesting statistics about online giving. . including that 22% of all online giving through Network for Good takes place in the last two days of the year. That is just incredible.

But there is also information that we can use all year long…… Like online giving by day of the week and time of day.

64% of donors who give online give through a nonprofit’s own website versus through social media such as facebook or other portals such as guidestar. And donors who gave via charity websites started at the highest level and gave the most over time. Having a good website is an essential ingredient for increasing your online giving. If you are considering expanding your presence in social media – your first step should be to get your website in shape.

The major finding of this study is that relationships count online just like they do offline. The study data supports Network for Good’s product of branded giving versus their free generic giving process. The data is overwhelming - The loyalty factor for donors acquired through generic giving pages is 66.7% lower than for donors who give via charity-branded giving pages.

For small charities who are just beginning with online giving I usually recommend that they begin with a generic approach and then once their email list grows and their eNewsletters and website are well coordinated and updated, then they may be ready to switch to the paid branded service such as Network for Good’s branded product.

I suggest you download and read the whole report if you are interested in online giving.

Really Simple Real Year End Fundraising – Make it Good to the Last Drop

2010-12-01T10:41:00.004-05:00

Does this sound familiar? It is December and your holiday campaign is well underway. The direct mail appeal has gone out and this year it was coordinated with a very nice eNewsletter. The email list is growing – still not as big as you’d like but it did grow in the last year. Your website now has donate now capability or it has a more established provider that people would actually recognize and trust versus that cheaper clunky one requiring three clicks to donate that you used last year. You’re feeling pretty good about the improvements you made this year and all that remains is to open the envelopes that come in and record donations in your database and pray that this year is better than last. Right? NOT!!

The most lucrative day of the year for online donations is…. guess….New Year’s Eve. Network for Good says that one third of all donations they receive in a year are in December. Large nonprofits know this and have their “real year end” marketing plans in the hopper. Will your small nonprofit be thought about on New Year’s Eve when last they heard from you was the middle of November? Are you on vacation during Christmas week and so you aren’t planning on doing any fundraising then? Now is the time to put all that new technology you’ve been working on to work for you.

Put your “Really Simple Real Year End” campaign together now and be ready to go during the last week of December. Here are a few ideas:

1. Update you website with Holiday news – Picture of holiday celebrations with people you serve, video of gifts being distributed to children, meals served to the homeless, puppies finding a new home, holiday theater performances, art shows, etc.

2. Provide an update on the needs you hope to fill in 2011 on your website. Make it short and concise – people are busy this time of year. Think bullet points.

3. Put these featured holiday messages on the homepage – not buried several clicks away.

4. If your donate now button is in an obscure place or too small to immediately get a reader’s attention, have your webmaster take care of that TODAY. And make sure the donate now button is on every page – your home page is not the only landing page.

5. Sign up and attend the Network for Good free webinar on December 7th - The Final Word on Year-End Fundraising: The 5 Things You Can Still Do to Boost Your December Income. Mark Rovner of Sea Change Strategies is the presenter so this is sure to be worthwhile.

6. Write some facebook updates with pictures now but post them in the week after Christmas – don’t be shy – post more than one. Showing up in your fans newsfeed in the week after Christmas is – as Martha Stewart would say – a good thing.

7. Send a brief email to everyone AFTER Christmas with a reminder that there is still time to make your 2010 donation and it’s the last chance to get a tax deduction this year. Reinforce you key message of what you want to accomplish in 2011 using the bullet points you developed for your website earlier. Have the donate now button prominent in you eNewsletter.

If you will be on vacation during Christmas week, prepare this eNewsletter early, save it as a draft in your email provider database and have it ready to go on December 26th or 27th.

Presto – by doing a few things in the next couple of weeks you can really give your Really Year End campaign a powerful boost and make it good to the last drop.

Please share you ideas in the comments and also let us know how successful your really year end campaign was.

A Wish List of Books for Nonprofit Folk

2010-11-23T22:14:00.001-05:00

We have a tradition in our family for the day after Thanksgiving. We all have our Christmas wish list of books, CDs and DVDs and we go to Amazon.com as a group and I do a good deal of my Christmas shopping all at once. This year I have a longer list than usual because like lots of other people I have given up my newspaper subscription and so I have more time for books. It is always fun just to see what each of us wishes for - we all have very different tastes. Sometimes we just have an author or artist and we check to see if there is something new. I don’t buy everything on the lists, but I do get most of it. When we are done, everyone is exhausted (Online shopping isn’t supposed to be exhausting, I know) but there is also a quiet joy that some things we actually really want to have will be under the Christmas tree.

Last year I blogged about books you might want to give your nonprofit friends or put on your wish list for the holidays and this was one of my most read blog articles. So here is this year’s list – just in time for the holidays.

I’ve included books by authors who I know and I’ve heard them speak on the topic they have written about. Some of these books are on my Christmas list and then I hope to have them signed by the authors at the NTEN 2011 Nonprofit Technology Conference in March. I asked some of my friends on Linkedin to contribute to this list and they provided great suggestions. The result is not a long laundry list but rather an eclectic list providing choices ranging from downright practical to ones that will have you jump out of your chair with enthusiasm and inspiration. Actually I think there are a few that can do both. All of the books on this list have rave reviews at Amazon – Check them out for yourself.

At the end of this article there are links to Amazon for each of the books on this list.

Leadership and Innovation
The Power of Social Innovation: How Civic Entrepreneurs Ignite Community Networks for Good by Stephen Goldsmith - This book looks like an inspirational yet practical guide (Lots of case studies) to social innovation and creative ways for overcoming obstacles to change. Recommended by Jesse Wiley

Linchpin by Seth Godin - Seth Godin is the author of 10 best selling books and really a 21st century leadership guru. He used to be thought of as a marketing expert but his work has gone way beyond marketing. One reviewer sums up Linchpin this way - “This book breaks down every barrier we've built between ourselves and our greatness.” Recommended by Pamela Grow

Soul of a Citizen by Paul Loeb - Allison Jones says that Loeb “focuses on the importance of developing spiritual strength, living deliberately and thoughtfully, the challenges we face on that journey, and remembering why we got into nonprofit work in the first place.” The Amazon reviews are excellent on this book first published in hardcover in 1999 and released in paperback for the first time this year. Recommended by Allison Jones

Marketing
The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build Support for Your Good Cause by Kivi Leroux Miller - This is the definitive resource for nonprofit marketing. It is a must have resource if you are interested in this topic.No one covers this topic better than Kivi - she was my favorite speaker at this year's NTC conference. Recommended by Jesse Wiley and me

Fundraising
The Ask: How to Ask for Support for Your Nonprofit Cause, Creative Project, or Business Venture by Laura Fredricks: Laura is a well known expert in fundraising and this book appears to be thorough and if you’ll excuse the pun “right on the money.” Recommended by Jesse Wiley

Developing Your Case for Support by Tim Seiler - This book will help you build a detailed case and case statement. There are exercise worksheets and a step by step process to follow. Looks like a winner to me. Recommended by Linda Lysakowski

Linda also is the author of The Development Plan - a best seller with AFP, and her newest book is Fundraising as a Career: What, Are You Crazy? Linda shares her expertise, provides solid guidance and will lead you in the right direction when it comes to anything to do with fundraising.

50 Asks in 50 Weeks by Amy Eisenstein – I had the privilege of hearing Amy deliver a workshop on this subject at the Charity Channel Summit in Saint Petersburg earlier this month. Amy gives great guidance for even a one person shop in choosing priorities and effectively completing 50 Asks in 50 Weeks. I walked away with a feeling that any development office could become more effective and focused by simply following Amy’s straightforward, no nonsense advice. Recommended by me.

Governance
The Handbook of Nonprofit Governance by BoardSource - This is a basic Boardsource reference book that is sometimes just what we need. Recommendation by Jesse Wiley

Nonprofit Technology and Social Media
The Networked Nonprofit: Connecting with Social Media to Drive Change by Beth Kanter and Allison Fine - This book is one of the top books for nonprofits published this year and will for sure be on many wish lists. Nobody addresses this topic with such passion, knowledge and down to earth good advice as Beth and Allison. I had the pleasure of hearing Beth and Allison together at the NTC conference in Atlanta this year. The room was overflowing with people standing and sitting in the aisles. Recommended by Jesse Wiley and me

The Idealware Field Guide to Software – Idealware is the consumer reports of nonprofit technology and the place to check out anything you want to know about technology for nonprofits. This handy, inexpensive field guide is a good first place to look for a high level overview of many nonprofit technology topics. Laura Quinn, co-author signed my copy at the NTC conference in Atlanta. Recommended by me.

2010 High Net Worth Philanthropy Study and What It Means for Small Nonprofits

2010-11-18T12:34:00.002-05:00

Through an ongoing research partnership with the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, the Bank of America and Merrill Lynch have sponsored their third extensive study of philanthropy by high net worth families. The study has lots of great information and provides comparison with the 2006 and 2008 studies so that we can see the trends. This series of studies are a major resource in understanding the philanthropic behavior of wealthy donors.

You can read a summary and download the full 75 page report here.

Framework and scope of the study

• More than 800 respondents throughout the United States with household income greater than $200,000 and/or net worth (excluding the value of their residence) of at least $1,000,000

• Average wealth of respondents was $10.7 million

• Respondents were asked about their giving for 2009

• Charitable giving by high net worth households to nonprofit organizations accounts for about two-thirds of all individual giving in the U.S.

Basic Highlights
• 98% of respondents donated to charity.

• 66% donated to same charities year after year

• Average giving dropped 35 percent from $83,034 in 2007 to $54,016 in 2009, after adjusting for inflation
• As reported in other studies for all donors, these respondents (64%) gave more to meet basic needs and for general operating support than they did in 2008. • When wealthy donors also volunteer they give significantly more.

Data that I Found Particularly Interesting
The most frequent categories that high wealth individuals gave to were:

Basic needs
Education
Arts
Religious
Health

Although the good news for basic needs categories is that the number of people giving is the highest, the more significant news is the bad news – this category has by far the lowest average gift. While the average gift to education and religious organizations is in the $10K - $13K range the average gift to basic needs organizations is under $3K. That is the challenge for these organizations and high net worth individuals – to learn how to raise the giving level. So although giving to basic needs is increasing while other formerly more popular categories is decreasing, there still is a great divide in giving levels among these categories.

In 2007 those “managing or selling a business” and “currently working” had the highest average gifts. But both have significantly dropped and those who are “retired” had the highest average gift in 2009.

How Donors Give – Cash is still king but nonprofits need to be cognizant of changing trends. 94% said they made a donation with a check in 2009 but only 78% said they plan to do so in the future. 41% said they plan to donate with a credit card and 33% said they plan to donate online. Respondents could make multiple choices. (Marion’s two cents – It is a bad idea for nonprofits to fret over the small percentage charge for paying by credit cards and online. We need to accept this as the preference for some donors. People want to make their donations in the same way they pay their bills. So – GET OVER IT!)

73% say they have a strategy for their giving and 61% say there are two or more people involved in the decision making. 85% say they instruct their children in philanthropic values and this manifests itself in a variety of ways. More than 70 percent of wealthy families have family traditions of involving children/younger relatives in charitable giving. Providing an opportunity for children – including adult children – to learn about the impact of their philanthropy may be a frontier for smaller locally based organizations to explore.

75% say that their personal experience with an organization influenced their giving. This really confirms how important it is to get a potential wealthy donor to come through your door. This can be a particularly tough challenge for small urban based charities but one that they should not overlook. Having events where people “visit your home” rather than a suburban catering hall may be something to look at.

Top reasons that motivate giving: Moved at how gift can make a difference (72%) and giving to an organization that is efficient (71%). An interesting piece of data in this category is “Being Asked” dropped from 48% in 2008 to 31% in 2010. So the lesson here is it isn’t enough to just ask – you better be prepared to say how their gift will make a difference.

Why Wealthy Donors Stop Donating - In 2009, almost all households stopped giving to at least one organization that they previously supported. The top four reasons cited for why they stopped giving to a particular charity last year included:
59% Too frequent solicitation/organization asked for inappropriate amount
34% Decided to support other causes
29% Household circumstances changed
29% Organization changed leadership or activities

A couple of lessons here - Frequently we are coached to not “leave money on the table” and make sure you ask for enough. Be careful in this area and make sure you know what you are doing. Also, when you have a change in leadership, take care to introduce the new person and develop confidence in their leadership.

There are lots more so download and read the whole study. Let’s discuss it - please leave your comments on the study here.

This article provides some key highlights and data analysis that is of particular interest to me. And as always – comes with my own commentary. Since many of the organizations I work with are small to medium sized and locally based my highlights and comments are those that I think are most pertinent for them.

Accountability, Accounting, Risk….What’s a Board Member and ED to Know

2010-10-04T16:37:00.002-04:00

My nonprofit consulting work has specific focus on the following areas:
• Strategic Planning
• Board and Leadership Development
• Technology, Online Giving and Social Media for Nonprofits
• Nonprofit Hiring for Executive Positions

But….I get asked about a much wider range of nonprofit issues. Now that nonprofits have made it through their first 990 with the new govern ance questions they are looking even more seriously at accounting and accountability issues. I am not an accountant and when I took a graduate course in accounting I learned how much more complicated it was than I had thought.

This article has some resources that are worth checking out if you are interested in these topics. These are not resources for accountants – these are resources written for us “lay people” who need to know something at the policy and “what are the right questions to ask” level.

Principles of Governance Guide and Workbook
Independent Sector and BoardSource collaborated on development of this thorough resource for nonprofits. There are 33 principles in four major categories and information and activities for Board learning are provided for each one. The categories are: Legal Compliance and Public Disclosure, Effective Governance, Strong Financial Oversight and Responsible Fundraising. The materials are availe at each organization’s website.

BoardSource
BoardSource really is the premier resource for nonprofit governance and financial issues. I’ve recommended Financial Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards by Andrew Lang as a good resource on this subject.

Blue Avocado
Formerly The Board Café, Blue Avocado is a free newsletter and besides the Board Café general articles it features Financial and Strategy and Human Resources sections. I have personally found this extremely useful and learned such important facts as the difference between a financial “audit and a “review” and when each is required which can mean thousands of dollars in savings for a small nonprofit.

Blogs
Gene Takagi is a California nonprofit attorney and writes authoritatively about governance, financial and legal issues the the Nonprofit Law blog.

Kate Barr, Executive Director of the Nonprofit Assistance Fund writes an excellent blog about financial and leadership issues at their blog.

Centers for Nonprofit Management
These centers usually have good basic and state specific information. New Jersey’s Center for Nonprofits provides lots of information written in clear English, workshops and webinars. They have one on risk management that is important for Boards to know more about than they frequently do.

Accounting Firms with a Nonprofit Specialty

I have a relationship with two local accounting firms that provide nonprofit seminars, symposiums, an executive director roundtable, nonprofit newsletters and nonprofit specific accounting articles on their websites. When asked an accounting question I check out these resources to see if there is a good reference I can pass on. I subscribe to Grant Thornton’s nonprofit newsletter and check their website for resource material too. They also have workshops in New York on a regular basis. I have learned a lot about nonprofit finance by people asking me questions and doing a little research to give them a resource.

If you are in a nonprofit leadership position – whether Board or Staff you really cannot be a “complete blank” of knowledge in this area. These resources are meant for YOU. They are not the detailed stuff the accountants know but they provide the knowledge you need to make knowledgeable decisions and ask the right questions. Start checking some out…today!

September is a Good Time to Attend a Workshop!

2010-09-08T13:18:00.002-04:00

This month I am presenting two workshops and registration is still open for both of them. Here are the details:

Social Media for Nonprofits
Somerset County Library, Bridgewater, NJ
September 15, 2010
9:30 AM to 1 PM
$35
Sponsored by Partnership in Philanthropy

• Overview of how nonprofits can use online social networking including Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube
• How to "listen online" and use what you learn to become more effective in your online strategies
• How to increase traffic to, and get more mileage out of your website.
• What tools are right for you?
• What are reasonable goals for your online presence?
• How do you measure success?
To register:
Online: http://www.pipnj.org/component/option,com_chronocontact/Itemid,108/
Call: Joyce Wackenhut at PIP - 973-701-9810

Strategic Planning for Nonprofits
Volunteer Center of Bergen County
64 Passaic St., Hackensack, NJ 07601
September 29, 2010
9:30 AM – 12:30 PM
$45
This course covers everything you need to know about strategic planning for your organization: what it is, why you should do it, processes, timeframes, budgets, and implementation. A must for any organization that is embarking on the planning process – it’s your plan before the plan!
To register:
Online: https://bergenvolunteers.ejoinme.org/MyPages/NonProfitTrainingRegristration/tabid/163365/Default.aspx
Call: 201-489-9454

Guidestar’s Report on the Economy– A Wake Up Call not Just All Gloom

2010-09-02T18:45:00.002-04:00

Guidestar has released the report of their June 2010 survey on the effects of the economy on the Nonprofit sector and the findings should provide a wake up call when we look past all the numbers. There were over 7000 respondents to this survey across a wide variety of size and types of organizations. Here are the highlights:

As is usually the case as funding for nonprofits declines the demand for services has increased. The impact of this trend is most serious this year in mental health and crisis interventions. The exception – as was the case reported in other studies in 2009 – are charities providing food and nutrition services. Although their demand has skyrocketed, their funding has actually increased. Just today I was talking with a nonprofit in this field whose demand and services have tripled in the last few years.

The sources of decline in funding are widespread and the breakdown is:

67% Individual giving – both fewer and reduced level of giving
40% Smaller foundation grants and corporate gifts
20% Government grants smaller and foundation grants discontinued
10% Government – grants discontinued and contracts smaller

In addition organizations that depend largely on government contracts are experiencing serious cash flow problems as payments are delayed and funding levels are being cut. My home state of New Jersey was singled out as one where nonprofits are expecting major cuts in funding.

So how are nonprofits coping with this gloomy picture? Here are the actions they are taking:

58% Reduction in services
50% Salary freeze
38% Layoffs
30% Hiring freeze
23% Reduction in benefits
21% Reduction in salary
12% Merger with another organization
32% Increase use of volunteers

In 2009 Paul Light predicted that the downturn in the economy could cause 100,000 nonprofits to fail and that mergers were an alternative that many should seek. Since then many people have been surprised that there haven’t been more mergers. As the recession lingers, many individuals are realizing that things are definitely not going back to the way they were and that they must personally retool, perhaps work in a new industry or acquire new skills and many need to adjust to a lower income even if they have a job.

This is true for nonprofits too. It is one thing to reduce services and staff for survival. That is happening. But more nonprofits need to really “retool.” It is time to think strategically. What should we be doing differently? Are there more efficient approaches? Are there opportunities to collaborate and enhance our services while cutting costs? How many nonprofit program spaces have significant amounts of time when the space isn’t used? How many competing services could be merged and enhanced while operating at lower cost? Hpw many programs need to have some new life breathe into them and updated to attract a new following? What about social entrepreneurship? What about starting for profit businesses to support the nonprofit services?

Let’s not let these kind of reports just be a confirmation of gloom. Let’s take them as a wake up call.

A Creative Way to Nurture a Blog

2010-08-15T15:43:00.004-04:00

This month Kivi LeRoux Miller is hosting the Nonprofit Blog Carnival at her blog – The Nonprofit Marketing Guide. The theme is “Creative Ideas You Can Make Your Own.” This is a great topic and I can’t wait to see the ideas in the roundup post at the end of the month. Here is my idea that you can make your own.

I love blogging and always recommend starting a blog in my social media workshops for nonprofits. I am fully prepared for the looks which say “Go on to the next topic, I don’t have time for that” or “I don’t have enough to write about to have a blog.” Well here is a simple painless way to have a blog and keep it current and interesting.

Marion’s simple recipe for posting up to 7 times a month:
1 post: Executive Director writes on “industry” news and trends and advocacy issues related to your mission. Use a graphic to compliment the article. You can search a word or phrase in the Creative Commons section on Flickr for a free photo or graphic.

1 post: Program Director writes about a program event or just about what’s happening in one of your programs. Make sure you include a picture – anecdotal articles on your blog really contribute to telling your story.

1 post: Development Director writes an article related to fundraising –about a current campaign, an event or whatever is relevant. Compliment with a picture or graphic.

Wordless Wednesday - - This is popular with the mommy bloggers. Every Wednesday post a picture with a caption – no article necessary. This sort of approach – having a predictable pattern will cause people to come back on a regular basis.

So there you have it. This is an easy, painless way to have an active and varied blog and all you need is three people willing to write one article a month to make it happen. At this point in my workshops I always have some people making copious notes and some people looking at me thinking about it. I always hope some of them are thinking blogging isn’t such an off the wall idea anymore.

Think about it – and be creative in how you can make it happen!

Creating a Juicy Blog for Nonprofits

2010-07-22T17:46:00.003-04:00

This month, Britt Bravo at the Have Fun, Do Good blog is hosting the Nonprofit Blog Carnival. The way the carnival works is a blogger volunteers to host the carnival and puts out a call for bloggers to submit articles on a particular subject. Britt, whose blog title tells us squarely that she thinks doing good and having fun belong together has chosen “How to Create a Juicy Nonprofit Blog” as the carnival topic. How fitting. So here’s my two cents:

When I talk with nonprofits about starting a blog we always start by talking about what the objectives of the blog will be. The answers usually cover things such as advocacy, education, get information out about what we do, fundraising, etc. No one has ever told me that they want to have a “juicy blog.” But if they had they would probably be the one with the most successful blog. In my workshops I use a great slide originated by Chris Garrett which says we should blog about the overlapped area of what you know and what readers want.

This is the juicy midsection. The dictionary provided this definition of juicy: “thirst quenching.” Writing a blog should be fun – I know it is for me – and not a “going to the dentist” experience. (Right now I apologize to my dentist friends.) One of the basic tenants of good blogging is that it is personal – written from a particular individual’s point of view. How many of us check the reviews on Amazon before purchasing a book. We value that personal opinion of another person we don’t even know sometimes more than the professional, well thought out words the publisher has provided on the dust jacket. (Is it really a dust jacket if you read it online?) Don’t let your blog read like pablum on a dust jacket.

We all know the importance of storytelling for nonprofits but how many of us do it well? Good storytelling is really juicy. We can “taste” the pain and the joy. It quenches our thirst. This can most effectively be done in a blog from the perspective of individuals. Why is Law and Order so successful after all these years and on so many TV channels all the time. Its opening lines….”This is their story” ……. They don’t feature a lot of blood and gore or fancy sets or costumes. We are captivated by the story and the turns it takes as the story unfolds. And we always come back for more or are willing to watch the same story over again.

Here are some basic tips to get into having a “juicy blog.”

1. Lively Bio (Maybe even a little bit juicy) - Whether you have one or more bloggers have their personal bio – not just professional credentials in the sidebar. Include details like that they have three cats and are a soccer fan. A picture of the person who is writing helps us connect with them. If you have multiple bloggers, each article should be signed by the author.

2. Content - This is the most important aspect of your blog. Don’t just talk about your organization. That can be boring and repetitive. Sorry, but it's true. Write about your cause on a larger scale and what is happening elsewhere. Invite guest bloggers. Don’t be predictable.

3. Pictures and graphics - ALWAYS use pictures and/or graphics in your articles. Almost ALL of us connect better on a visual level.

4. Get your readers involved – Include questions that encourage comments. Readers comments truly enhance the value of your blog. Even if it isn’t all “You are wonderful” feedback. Run a poll and have a box with your top ranked articles.

5. Promote the next installment and related posts – Is the article one in a series? Leave hints about what aspects of the subject will be addressed in future posts. Ask readers what else they would like you to write about a topic.

6. Link! Link! Link! – Link to other related articles both on your blog and other blogs. Links to other blogs will be appreciated by both your readers and the other bloggers.

7. Predictable pattern – Sort of “Law and Order format style. Feature a particular topic every Friday. The Geraldine Dodge Foundation’s blog
has “Poetry Fridays” and features poets on Friday blog articles. Some bloggers post only a picture on Wednesday participating in the “Wordless Wednesday” phenomena. This causes people to come back to see what is happening with a particular pattern of interest to them.

Most of all, enjoy blogging! If you enjoy it, that will shine through. And if you approach it as a required task, that will shine through too.

A Nonprofit Accounting Update and a Remarkable Social Entrepreneurship Story – All in the Same Post!

2010-06-27T21:23:00.006-04:00

Last week I attended the latest in a series of seminars for nonprofits offered by Sax, Macy, Fromm, an accounting firm in Clifton, NJ. For the last couple of years, Todd Polyniak has talked about how to deal with the current economy – sometimes a challenging subject. The theme last week was more upbeat and entitled “There is a Tomorrow.”

Todd began with financial nonprofit updates. At the recent AICPA conference an IRS official said that they had increased their staffing dedicated to exempt organizations and planned ramped up auditing of randomly selected nonprofits. They would be especially focused on organizations less than five years old and on payroll – not just 990s. Hmmm... I'll be advising a few agencies on this one.

He reviewed plans that the New Jersey government has including limiting the pay for top executives for nonprofit organizations receiving state contracts on a sliding scale and changes from a level of service to a fee for service payment format. This will require more administration for billing.

Todd also commented on these three issues:
•Changes in auditing standards will require increased sampling
•Disclosure requirements for NJ Unrelated Business Taxes on financial statements
•Nationwide uptick in fraud as nonprofits have cutback and there is less oversight and controls in place.

By the time Todd was done with this I was sure ready for the more upbeat part of the program – I think everyone else was too – even the accountants. Here are Peg and Frank Brady celebrating receiving The Purpose Prize.

Todd interviewed, Frank and Peg Brady, a truly remarkable couple who founded Medical Missions for Children. After retiring from a successful career that involved a great deal of international travel, Frank was not ready for a life of playing golf. He and Peg talked about what to do over the kitchen table, and Medicial Missions for Children (MMC) was born. Frank built on the memory of his own childhood, when a “new,experimental” drug not yet used on children saved his life. He gave away his age by revealing it was penicillin. MMC uses technology to have doctors in the United States diagnose children literally all over the world, and train local doctors to treat children with disease. Over 40,000 children have been helped with this global telemedicine and teaching network. You can see how proud and dedicated Frank and Peg are when they talk about the work of MMC.

Frank used his Roledex at first to raise funds. Next they turned to traditional fundraising approaches. But they soon found out that events are way too much work for the funds they earned. Now that is something we can all identify with.

Frank then founded a completely separate for profit business with the proceeds going to Medical Missions for Children. MMC Worldwide has some interesting businesses but the most fascinating for me is a joint venture with St. Joseph’s Hospital, Paterson, NJ and the city of Paterson to build a Hyatt Hotel on Saint Joseph’s property with the operating proceeds to fund MMC. This project will be a win-win-win for all the partners.

I haven’t written about social entrepreneurship before, but I am becoming increasingly convinced that nonprofits should be pursuing profit making businesses as an avenue to sustainability and growth. The days of government funding may have peaked but demand for services has not peaked. We still want to grow our organizations and make them better. Frank and Peg Brady, and the road they have taken with MMC provide a valuable example for us.

Thanks again Sax, Macy, Fromm for providing an informative and thought provoking program.

Marion

Spending Too Much Time on Your Website and E-News?

2010-06-18T08:52:00.005-04:00

Kivi Leroux Miller, who blogs at Nonprofit Communications, is the author of the newly released book, The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build Support for Your Good Cause .

Kivi is stopping by my blog today on her virtual book tour with a guest post and a drawing for book buyers. Purchase the book today, Friday, June 18, and forward the receipt to book@nonprofitmarketingguide.com and you’ll be entered into a drawing for a free review of your website for social media readiness by me (Marion).

The book is a hands-on survival guide for small nonprofits and communications departments of one, and includes an entire section on doing it yourself without doing yourself in, with many time-saving tips. In this guest post, Kivi offers some advice on saving time on your website updates and e-newsletters.

Nonprofits love all the benefits that email newsletters and websites provide: they are fast, affordable ways to stay in touch with supporters. The only problem is that producing and updating them regularly can be anything but fast. Some nonprofit communicators report spending the equivalent of several days per month on a monthly e-newsletter and monthly website updates. In most cases, that’s way too much time.

Here are three tips to help you reduce the amount of time you spend producing a monthly e-newsletter and website update. These tips require some planning upfront, but once you have these systems in place, you should be able to reduce the time you spend each month on these tasks to about one day’s work.

1. Minimize design time by using templates. Don’t waste a bunch of time fretting about where to put the pictures, what colors and fonts to use, etc. For your website, use a content management system (CMS) with a template. CMSs make updating your site very fast and easy because you update text and pictures without mucking around with the site design. My favorite CMS is Wordpress, but there are many open-source (free) and paid solutions available.

Use a simple, clean template for your email newsletter. It should have a consistent look from issue to issue. Don’t try to make your e-newsletter look like your website. An e-newsletter design with one main column and one sidebar column is fine. Right-justify photos in the main column and wrap text around them. Your email newsletter service provider should have many templates to pick from, or you can have a web designer create a simple template for you (the html code in an email newsletter is the same code that websites use).

2. Shorten your email newsletter. Most nonprofit e-newsletters are simply too long. People just don’t read emails that require them to scroll, scroll, and scroll some more. Try to keep your e-newsletter to under 1,000 words. A single-topic, focused newsletter of 500 words is even better, because it’s more likely to be read. Shorter newsletters mean you have less to write, which saves you time!

3. Streamline your review and decisionmaking process. The back-and-forth, back-and-forth is enough to drive anyone crazy and eats up too much time. Streamline your content creation and approval process with three documents:

An editorial calendar that says what you are going to write about and when. For a monthly newsletter, try to forecast 3-6 months at a time. This minimizes (and hopefully eliminates) all the wrangling at deadline time about what to include. Coordinate your website updates with your e-news content so you can use much of the same writing, with minor tweaks, in both places.

A style guide that outlines decisions about the type of articles you’ll include, word use (what you call certain things, how you describe them), abbreviations, fonts, colors, etc. This forces everyone to agree ahead of time on decisions that will remain constant from issue to issue, so you aren’t correcting the same mistakes over and over.

A simple decision flow chart to outline who does what, and how long it should take. For example, if the communications director writes the newsletter, the program staff get two business days to provide comments. Communications director produces a second draft, which goes to the executive director (or whoever has final approval) for another two business days. Final changes are made and it’s out the door.

For more time-saving tips, pick up a copy of The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build Support for Your Good Cause . Remember, get your copy today and email it to book@nonprofitmarketingguide.com to win a free website consultation!

Thanks Kivi for sharing your expertise with us. I used your tips on my own eNewsletter and it was my best one ever. You can sign up for my eNewsletter in the sidebar.

Marion's eNewsletter

Giving USA 2010 Report– No Surprises and My Assessments per Social Media and Corporate Giving

2010-06-14T11:03:00.003-04:00

The Giving USA 2010 Report was released last week and it doesn’t have any surprises. Many smaller studies conducted throughout 2009 found similar results. But it is the largest and most statistically intense report on this subject so it is considered the “Bible” for Giving data in the United States. The report is develped at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University – a major nonprofit research and educational center.

You can read and download the Executive summary here

You can order the full report and presentation charts here

Here are some highlights:
Total charitable giving fell 3.6 percent in 2009 to an estimated $303.75 billion. This is the steepest decline in current dollar terms since Giving USA began its annual reports in 1956.

Remarkably, Individual giving only fell .4% and corporate giving actually increased 5.5% but charitable bequests and foundation giving had large declines to make this overall picture.

Giving to international causes, human services, health, environment and animal welfare organizations increased.

Giving to foundations, public sector benefit organizations (ex. United Way, Jewish federations), education and the arts organizations decreased.

That’s the objective data. Giving USA also has Topical Digests on subcategories which will provide more in-depth analysis about trends and what all this means.

My Assessments
I can’t help noticing that the categories that are increasing are for the most part those that are making use of social media and new ways of building relationships with donors rather than those who are relying on doing things the way they always have. They should take a look at what happened to the newspaper industry and wake up about updating their approach to donors.

Although I was surprised and happy to see that corporate donations are on the rise, I do have some concerns about corporate giving. Corporations are getting smarter and more strategic about their giving and forming partnerships with large national organizations. There is a move away from small, locally based nonprofits through giving such as matching gift funds.

Small organizations should not get too excited about the increase in corporate giving - I don’t think they will see it in their numbers. Rather than looking to large corporations small organizations should be looking to partner with local businesses – using the same model as large nonprofits but on a smaller scale.

Board Retreats – Part 3: An Sample Board Retreat from Soup to Nuts

2010-06-01T11:58:00.004-04:00

This is the last in a three part series on Board retreats. In the last two posts I discussed the importance of planning, choosing a theme, goals and measure of success and provided a model for working with a facilitator. Each Board is unique and what works best for a Board retreat has to be customized. Today, especially for smaller organizations, the retreats are frequently shorter and they need to be focused to get the most out of them.

A Sample Board Retreat –from Planning to Closing
Background: This is an active Board with broad expertise. However, last year a well respected Executive Director left and there was an Interim Executive Director (ED) for nine months. The new ED does not yet have ties to the community so his ability to attract new Board members is not as robust as it is expected it will be in the future. The Board has lost four members in this time frame and they want to make a special effort to attract new members. It was decided to invite potential new members to a Board retreat as part of the recruitment plan.
Purpose and Goals: The purpose of the retreat is Board Development and Recruitment. It will be a successful retreat if 4 invitees join the Board and all Board members get involved in Board working committees to further the goal of the nonprofit.
Pre-planning: The committee includes the ED, the Board vice president who also chairs the governance committee, another Board member who is on the governance committee and the facilitator.
The committee wants to put its best foot forward for new members while still having the retreat be useful to existing members. The facilitator ensures that a variety of activities are used to keep the participants engaged in the retreat.
Advance work: Each Board member has been asked to bring potential new Board members to the retreat. A list of skills particularly desired has been provided – but invitations do not need to be limited to candidates with these skills. The retreat will be held at a nearby University alumni club.

The Retreat packets for the prospective members include a background brochure on the organization and a Board Application. Board members have been encouraged in advance to discuss why they like being on this Board and joining the board with new members during dinner. The group activity prior to dinner will stimulate the discussion.

Retreat Agenda

The Retreat will begin on Friday at 5 PM with wine and cheese and conclude at 9 PM.

During Reception:
•Welcome – Board President
•Highlights of Recent Accomplishments
-A short video used with funders and service club presentations, etc
Retreat Program
•Presentation of Board Role and Responsibilities with Q&A - Facilitator
•Group Activity – Facilitator
-The facilitator starts the ball rolling by throwing a squishy ball to an experienced Board member and asking him to describe his personal experience with the mission of the organization. She then throws the ball to the next person. Prospective members describe what they hope their involvement may be. (I’m always surprised at the interesting connections some prospective new people have with the organization.)
-The facilitator posts key phrases from each remark on a flip chart and summarizes the many ways people contribute to the mission through Board service. (The facilitator plays an important role in making sure everyone’s comments are appreciated.)
•Dinner
•Goals for Coming Year – ED
•Breakout Group Discussions – facilitated by retreat planning members
-How Board working committees can support the goals
•Boarding of Breakout Group Feedback - Facilitator
•Next Steps – Facilitator
-Assignments made to working committees
•Closing Remarks – Board President or Vice President
-Thank Yous and Encouragement for Next Steps
-Requests prospective members to fill out the Board application
•Retreat Feedback - Facilitator requests forms be completed

Follow-Up
The Executive Director contacts each person that they would like to invite to be on the Board and offers to meet, give a tour, etc. Close the deal and follow by-laws for election to the Board.
Prepare a schedule of working committee reports for Board meetings.

The first two articles in this series:
Board Retreats - Part 1: Why Have One, Themes and Planning

Board Retreats - Part 2: Working with a Facilitator and a Planning Checklist

Board Retreats - Part 2: Working with a Facilitator and a Planning Checklist

2010-05-26T14:49:00.011-04:00

This is Part 2 of a three part series on planning a Board retreat. On Monday, I discussed why you should have one, popular themes for retreats and a planning overview. You can read that article here.

Part 1 of this series has been very well received and garnered comments on the blog, the LinkedIn Boardsource group and facebook. Many of the comments reinforce the importance of:
· Building relationships and a team that works well together
· Planning the retreat program well
· Taking the time to focus on goals and mission
· Having a good facilitator

Today’s post discusses planning with a facilitator and provides a checklist for retreat planning. Check back on Friday for a sample retreat outline for two different retreats.

Planning Your Board Retreat with a Facilitator
Each organization will work differently with a facilitator. I like to form a retreat planning team to work with that includes the Executive Director, Board Retreat Chair and 1 or 2 other people. We start by discussing the retreat theme and goals and go from there. Together we develop the retreat outline and share the pre-planning tasks. We then also share responsibilities during the retreat.

The Board and Staff members often participate in these ways:
· Give opening and closing remarks
· Make presentations
· Lead a recognition segment
· Lead breakout group discussion
· Assist in group activities
· Handle all logistics – (Location, food, equipment)

The services provided by a facilitator will vary. Think about which services you are interested in before interviewing facilitators. Here are some services that facilitators may provide:
-Retreat agenda*
-Program design
-Pre-Retreat planning with organization’s retreat team
-Retreat facilitation
-Choice of presentation topics related to the retreat theme
-Board self assessment
-Strategic planning exercises
-Customized retreat feedback questionnaire and results summary
-Suggested follow-up approaches for action
-Summary of boarded materials in word document

*I always provide two agendas: One just has a title and list of topics for all participants and the “annotated agenda” for the retreat team. This one has time frames and names of each person responsible next to each activity listed. It may also have some “coaching” clues.

Each retreat is unique in its goals, its time frame for the retreat and participation by retreat team and all Board members. The key to a successful retreat is in considering all of this in the planning and having an engaged retreat team.

The Retreat Leadership Team Checklist
In addition to the issues discussed above there are a lot of nitty gritty details that go into having a successful retreat. Responsibilities that need to be completed include:

· Select a comfortable retreat location (e.g. community center, corporate training center, spiritual retreat center, local college)
· Decide on the room layout and size requirements
· Develop detailed retreat schedule with time frames for all segments including meals and socializing)
· Assign responsibility for each segment
· Develop presentation materials
· Develop/select group exercises
· Develop questions and assign facilitators for breakout groups
· Arrange for materials needed (e.g. flipcharts, markers, projector)
· Develop list of action items for follow up
· Create a summary document of all the flip charts. (This is the
permanent record of ideas and follow-up items.)
· Engage the board in committees and projects based on the action items

Define success up front and then make sure that your program is geared toward inspiring action and results once the retreat is long over. Check back on Friday for a couple of examples.

In yesterday's post I provided information about a couple of resources that you could buy. There is also an excellent resource available at BoardSource for free. The e-book, To Go Forward, Retreat! by Sandra Hughes provides a brief, concise overview and worksheets.

If you don't mind a bit of self promotion - I love facilitating Board retreats and the feedback I get suggests that I am very good at it. If you are looking for a facilitator - lets talk.

Marion

Board Retreats - Part 1: Why Have One, Themes and Planning

2010-05-24T15:59:00.007-04:00

This week I plan to make several posts about Planning a Board Retreat. This is Part 1 in the series. It has been a while since I have written about this subject but quite a number of people arrive at this blog because they have searched on the topic. It's time for an update.

Why Have a Retreat?
A Board Retreat is the prime opportunity to discuss a matter of importance in-depth and without the normal Board business that gobbles up almost all meetings. Another essential part of board retreats is having the time and structure for building relationships. Boards are teams and people on teams must have respectful and trustful relationships with each other in order to work well together and make effective decisions.

Today many Boards may have reduced economic resources and taking the time to refocus on priorities will be time well spent.

The only thing worse for a Board member than a Board meeting that wastes their time is a Board Retreat that is a waste of time. It is important for a Board Retreat to be well planned for it to be successful. Here are some planning tips to help make your retreat a success.

Choosing the Retreat Theme
What will be the theme for your Board Retreat? Each Board has different needs and each year brings new issues that should be addressed. Decide what is most important for your Board to take the extra time for and then design your retreat around that theme. Some popular themes include:
•Board Development
-Orientation
-Training
-Self-Assessment
-Developing Fundraising Expertise
•Strategic Planning
•Making Changes to Adjust to Economic Conditions
•Planning for a Major/Critical Issue (ex. Next ED, Building Plan)
•Leadership
•Team Development
•Plan for Major Anniversaries
•Develop the Board/Staff Relationship

Planning Questions and Activities
Start the planning for your retreat by asking these questions. What do you hope to accomplish by having the retreat and what will success look like? Later in the week I will provide two sample retreat outlines for very different retreats.

The program should be designed to keep the group’s interest and focus for an extended period of time. Board Members want to contribute to the outcome of a retreat. They do not want to just be talked at or participate in activities without a purpose. Make the most of a variety of techniques and keep them all tied to the theme of your retreat. Recommended techniques include:
•Pre-Retreat Materials - These can spark interest in participating in the retreat but they can also create a bunch of “Regrets.” Think this through before you send 100 pages of pre-retreat reading to Board members.
•Icebreakers – The best ones will have a relationship to the theme or the mission of the organization.
•Group Activities – Activities designed to build teamwork work well.
•Breakout Groups – This is the time for thoughtful discussion. Have retreat committee members facilitate the breakout groups so that the discussion stays on target.
•Presentations - This provides opportunity for learning and knowledge building about the organization, serving on Boards or the “industry” that the organization is in.
•Appreciative Inquiry – AI is a change management model that provides a positive approach to addressing change and has a variety of techniques that can be used. There are lots of books on this subject.
•Facilitation – Facilitated discussion and activities can help your retreat go smoothly.

When designing the activities keep these ideas in mind:
•Focus on your retreat goals
•Seek consensus
•Develop recommendations that will turn into action
•Wrap up should include your Next Steps action plan

How Long Should the Retreat Be Anyway?
It used to be common for nonprofit Board Retreats to be on Friday night and all day Saturday. But on every retreat I have been at in the last several years with this design the feedback always says make it one day. More retreat facilitation requests I get today are for a one day retreat. Another popular format is starting at 1 PM with a light lunch and concluding with dinner at 7 PM. This format works especially if there is a single objective/focus for the retreat. But I truly discourage half day events that do not include a meal as they seem to take on the aura of a “regular” Board meeting and don’t allow for the crucial team building which make Board retreats effective.

Later in the week I will discuss planning your Board retreat with a facilitator, provide a Board Retreat leadership checklist and two sample retreat outlines for very different retreats. Check back on Wednesday for Part 2.

This material may be published as a chapter in a book later this year. I hope you'll provide me some feedback in the comments so that my material is the best it can be.

Here are a couple of resources that you can get at Amazon on this subject.

IRS Crackdown on Nonprofit Organizations that Haven’t Filed 990s Is at Critical Stage

2010-05-10T21:51:00.002-04:00

The IRS is about to implement for the first time revocation of 501(c)3 status for up to 400,000 registered nonprofits. The first round of revocations will begin May 17, 2010. If your tax exemption status is revoked, the only way to reinstate it will be to reapply. This can easily cost over $1000 with application and attorney, accountant or consultant fees.

501(c)3 organizations must file a Form 990 every year with the IRS. The number of registered nonprofits was growing dramatically and many never really became active organizations or filed a 990 with the IRS as required by law. The IRS would like to increase its oversight of nonprofits but first it wanted to rid its roles of what it considered nonexistent organizations. So in 2006 a law was passed which stipulates that if an organization does not file as required for three consecutive years, it automatically loses its tax-exempt status.

The IRS started out with about a million registered charities that could lose their 501c(3) status. Over the last three years they have set up a process to make it simple for small and startup organizations to file and they have aggressively tried to let nonprofits know that they MUST meet this requirement or their 501(c)3 status will be revoked.

Even if you don’t have any income and the organization does not have to pay taxes you do have to file a 990 form with the IRS. For small organizations with gross receipts of less than $25,000 you simply have to file an ePostcard. Organizations with an income of less than $500,000 can file a 990EZ form and those with greater incomes must file the more comprehensive 990 form.

What will happen if you lose your 501(c)3 status:
The organization must file income tax returns and pay income tax, and its contributors will not be able to deduct their donations.

You may not be entitled to other important exemptions including property tax and sales tax in your state.

You may not be eligible for grants from the government and foundations

Guidestar will be updated, as announced, to show your change in tax exempt status

There are a couple of important resources available that you can check where your organization stands right now.

The Urban Institute National Center for Charitable Statistics has developed a simple tool to find out if you may need to file. I tried this database and simply put in a zip code and all of the organizations in jeopardy came up. I was glad to see that an organization I worked with in January had filed their ePostcard and was not on this list.

Urban Institute National Center for Charitable Statistics

The IRS has a clear, concise statement on this issue and all of the information that you need to file the correct form:
Automatic Revocation for Not Filing Annual Return or Notice

A Guidestar news release states that the IRS will give a six month reprieve by not sending out revocation letters until 2011 but I was not able to find that information on the IRS website.

Bottom line: THIS IS IMPORTANT. I checked several zip codes and was surprised at the organizations on the IRS hit list. Most were small, locally based, all volunteer organizations. Whoever is running them may have NO idea about all of this. If you are associated with a local PTA, parents sports boosters association or other small local nonprofit, take these steps NOW:

1.Check the database to see if your organization is on the list.....If it is:

2. Go to the IRS site and based on your organizations gross receipts, figure out which form you must fill out.

3. Fill out and file the correct form now... the clock is ticking fast......!!!

If this article was of help to you, please leave a comment. I’d like to know if my readers are interested in this type of information.

Marion

Happy Mother's Day - A Gift That Will Help a Mother in Need from Charity Water

2010-05-09T12:22:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers and grandmothers out there. I don't usually post on or about Mother's Day on this blog. But I was just scanning through Twitter, commenting on Betty White doing such a great job on SNL last night, and I came across a Tweet from Charity Water with a link to Mother's Day cards.

There is still time to send one of these ecards to the Mother who has everything. For a $20 or $100 donation you can help provide the gift of water to a mother and her family. There are incredibly beautiful cards featuring mothers helped by water that just shout "the gift of life."

Go directly to the page to order your card now.

Marion

Thought Provoking Grantmaking Ideas from the Council on Foundations Annual Conference

2010-04-29T11:01:00.004-04:00

The Council on Foundations has just completed their annual conference in Denver and thanks to Kris Putnam-Walkerly there is an excellent set of articles on the conference at her Philanthropy411 blog. Kris put together this year’s team of bloggers and they are a diverse and distinguished group of “reporter/commentators.” And yes they provide both the objective reporting of what was said and their own commentary on the content. I have been reading all of the blog posts and I find them both informative and thought provoking. I suggest you head over to Philanthrophy411 and check out all the posts too.

Before the conference, Kris asked a LinkedIn group, “What Do You Want To Learn From the Council on Foundations Conference?” and posted some of the responses on her blog including mine:

“Something I’d like to read about is trends in grantmaking. I think that there are two trends in opposite directions…It seems that some foundations are becoming more demanding – more complicated grant applications, increased evaluation requirements and less money to grant. Other foundations seem to be streamlining with less red tape, using the generic online application, allowing staff to make some grants rather than just the Board opening the opportunity for grants throughout the year rather than once or twice. Is there anything to this? I’d like to hear about it.”

The three themes for the conference were: Social Innovation, Social Change, and Social Justice. And there was a lot of discussion touching on the topics I raised. Here are some highlights:

-Speakers challenging grantmakers to make longer term commitments to social change which takes a lot longer than a 3 year grant cycle
-Discussion about commitment to and value of advocacy and not just service delivery
-Speakers encouraging grantmakers to take more risk and not be so enamored with “safe, easy to measure” projects

Rebecca Arno reported this about evaluation at a panel on social justice:

“The crowd revved up as conversation turned to the current philanthropic fascination with metrics. Naidoo fanned the flames with observations about philanthropy’s “cultural infection with business values”…but Deepak Bhargava of the Center for Community Change reminded us that a lot of well-intentioned mediocrity passes itself off as social justice, so some kinds of metrics are needed. One of my favorite observations on the metrics front came from Eboo Patel of Interfaith Youth Core, who said that they envision their outcomes “not as Monets, but as detailed Polaroids.” Rice noted that if philanthropists would put up the kind of money needed to accomplish the appropriate strategies, she could provide metrics. But in the absence of a large enough investment, metrics can be a distraction.”

There you have it - There is a wide spectrum of opinions about evaluation - even among foundations.

Paul Connolly noted that in the “change versus charity” debate discussion a popular theme was that “too many philanthropic dollars were devoted to transactional direct service delivery and not enough were for advocacy to support transformative change.” I agree with Paul's assessment that its charity AND change that is most effectve. They are not in conflict – each works best in concert with the other.

Geoffrey Canada from Harlem Children’s Zone was the speaker at the closing plenary and I’m sure that his remarks encouraging foundations to take risks with innovative ideas was an excellent topper for the conference.

Thanks, Kris - and all the bloggers - for bringing us this great coverage.

Marion

Come Join Me in St. Pete's - Great Conference, Beach and Golf - What More Could You Want!

2010-04-25T20:11:00.005-04:00

I have been away for most of April and just returned home last night. I have a bunch of things I want to blog about and I plan to get a more detailed blog post out later this week. But I just have to share this...

My proposal to present at the Joint Charity Channel and American Association of Grant Professionals has been accepted and I will be presenting a session entitled "The Social Networking Challenge and Opportunity for Nonprofits" on November 5th in St. Petersburg, Florida.

I last attended a Charity Channel conference in 2003 when I was still fairly new to nonprofit consulting. I learned a great deal and met in person for the first time many people I knew from the wonderful Charity Channel forums. I am excited and looking forward to presenting at this conference sooooo much.

In the next two months I will be leading two more workshops on this subject and so you can expect a few blog posts as I continue to make constant updates to my material. There is always something new happening with social media and nonprofits.

Marion

Marketing, The Networked Nonprofit, Online Training – Kivi LeRoux Miller, Beth Kanter, Allison Fine and Nancy Schwartz – All in This NTC Post!

2010-04-17T18:58:00.010-04:00

This is my second article about 10 NTC – the 10th Annual Nonprofit Technology Conference held in Atlanta earlier this month.

On the first day I attended a Marketing Meet and Greet hosted by Nancy Schwartz and Kivi LeRoux Miller. They are two of the top nonprofit marketing gurus around and they make it all seem so simple and so much fun. Even as they smoothly facilitated over 100 people in discussion, I learned about email list segmentation, using humor, and the value of using case studies to inform boards.

That evening I saw Kivi LeRoux Miller give one of the best presentations I have ever seen. And she did it at the Ignite series where each speaker has only 5 minutes and 20 slides. Kivi’s topic sounded serious “A Content Creation Strategy for a Busy Nonprofit”, but she got her message across with a hilarious and playful set of slides. The simple message was create something really good, share it in lots of pieces and remix it into something new. As you are doing this - Be Genuine, Be Generous and Be Grateful. She got all of that in – and very effectively in 5 minutes. You can see Kivi’s slides at:

http://tinyurl.com/y8ea6vh

Kivi’s book, “The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build Support for Your Good Cause” is due out soon and you can link to it on Amazon at the link below.

I attended two sessions with Beth Kanter and in one she was paired with Allison Fine and the other with Kivi. Allison and Kivi are both relaxed and chatty and Beth seems like you can see her brain going a 100 miles a minute while she is talking. She is engaging and engaged at the same time. Actually, Allison and Beth opened the session – The Networked Nonprofit by discussing their different styles and how they collaborated on their new book. It was fun to watch them work together and see how well it all came together from two different angles. They both have strong collaborative skills and it showed in how this session flowed so well.

This session had three themes: Social culture, transparency and simplicity. They defined having a social culture as: Using social media to engage people inside/outside to improve programs, services or reach communication goals. They used the Red Cross as the example and their journey with engaging social media on many levels. For transparency they used the Indianapolis Museum of Art and its presentation of statistical data in an excellent visual slide. There were several examples under simplicity where Beth implored us to do what we are good at and use the network for the rest. What I especially like about this book is that it addresses how nonprofits can use social media on many levels and not just for fundraising. That is such an important point for nonprofits to get. You can also pre-order this book. See the link below. Beth participated in three sessions and you can see her slides at her blog and at Slideshare.net/Kanter. As usual they are rich in content.

I also attended “How to Design and Present Online Training People Will Love” by Kivi and Beth. Laura Quinn of Idealware also joined in. Amongst the three of them they have a lot of experience with online training including using different systems. I learned a lot about what to consider and plan for and since I have been thinking about offering webinars I found this session to be very useful. But I think I will postpone webinar planning for now. Maybe – next year.

Kivi brought wine to this session which was from 3:30 – 5 PM on Saturday afternoon. The room was overflowing because it was Kivi and Beth – not because of the wine. The very last thing I did at NTC10 was win a Nonprofit Marketing Guide t-shirt that Kivi gave away at the end of the session. Thank you, Kivi – I’ll wear it proudly.

What a way to top off the conference! It was the best conference I’ve ever been to and all of the sessions were outstanding. I’m already planning to attend in 2011 in Washington, DC.

Highlights from NTC 10 -Nonprofit Technology Conference #1 - Peace, Justice and Video Games

2010-04-12T21:34:00.006-04:00

Last week I had the privilege of attending the most incredible NTEN Nonprofit Technology Conference (NTC) with almost 1500 people who are interested in and knowledgeable about technology for nonprofits. I experienced an explosion of learning and connecting and I am eager to share lots with you.

My husband and I travelled by car from New Jersey to Atlanta and the day before the conference we visited the Jimmy Carter Presidential Museum. It was a perfect way to start this trip. We have been visiting presidential museums and it is fascinating. They are each so different and besides recording biographical events and accomplishments in the president’s life they each reflect his personality. I am old enough to remember Jimmy Carter as an adult and I have read his biography so I didn’t spend too much time reading the panels outlining historical events. What struck me was the emphasis – rightly so, I admit – on Jimmy Carter’s commitment to human rights and peace. This is his legacy and he is proud of it. It was a good way to spend the day in reflection before the NTC conference. I had no idea that three days later I'd connect so vividly with this visit.

I almost missed one of the highlights of NTC and I am so grateful that I didn’t let tiredness rule on Saturday morning. After two solid days of morning to night NTC events the 8:30 AM plenary on Saturday morning seemed - well, “optional.” However, I am so glad that I went. The speaker was Asi Burak, co-founder of ImpactGames and executive producer of Games for Change. I had heard about Games for Change but with no real interest in video games - I did not know much. Asi changed that forever.

He talked about his background growing up in Israel and serving in intelligence in the army for five years. I wasn’t yet connecting with him…….Then he moved to Pittsburgh and studied computer gaming under Randy Pauch, author of The Last Lecture…I had a sip of coffee and perked up a little bit. And then he started to talk about his graduate project of developing The PeaceMaker video game as his graduate project…..and before I knew it I was captivated by every word he said.

Avi engaged experts on both Israeli and Palestinian policies and State Department expertise to develop content. His objective was a new kind of video game where winning didn’t mean there was a winner and a loser. He asked an audience member to come to the stage to play the game and game frames appeared on two giant screens. I wasn’t the only one up early on Saturday – over a 1000 people had shown up for this. The player first got to choose if he wanted to be the Israeli or Palestinian leader. The next setup is do you want to play in a calm, tense or violent environment – each becoming more difficult. You then are confronted with various scenarios and have response options. With some options you gave and got nothing, others might solicit a response with some potential for discussion. If you asked for too much you got nothing. On the bottom of the screen there is a measurement of your increasing or decreasing popularity with Hamas, Israelis and the rest of the world. The policy choices and impact of those choices are sophisticated and real. The room was silent as the volunteer made his way through PeaceMaker.

This PeaceMaker video game has been downloaded millions of times and is used across the world including in Israel and Palestine. It causes you to see the other side of an argument and the result of your approach. Pretty powerful.

Asi Burak also discussed the video games being developed with Sandra Day O’Connor to teach kids civic lessons in a much more engaging way than we currently do. Go SDO!

This presentation stretched my brain early on a Saturday morning and made me discover a whole new way of learning. Check the NTEN.org and soon they will have this presentation on their website available as a download. I highly recommend it.

My husband and I have continued south to Florida for some vacation. I will be blogging more about NTC but the schedule is weather and sunburn dependent.

Check back soon.

Marion

New Workshop - Marketing with Social Media for Nonprofit and Civic Organizations

2010-03-18T18:05:00.000-04:00

Next Wednesday, March 24th, I am offering the second in a two part series of Socia Media workshops sponsored by the Partnership in Philanthropy. The first one had such a great group of attendees and many of them are coming back for the Marketing workshop. I hope you will consider joining us.
Social media and online marketing offer a wealth of low-cost opportunities using tools such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube. Whether you are an arts or social services nonprofit, marketing is essential for success. What are the trends? What works best for small nonprofits on a small budget? How to get started, develop a strategy, measure success and more. Tips and resources that can make the difference in getting off to a good start and being successfull

Wednesday, March 24, 2010
5-8 PM
$30
HSBC- 407 Main Street
Chatham, NJ

Contact: Joyce Wackenhut

973-701-9810
jwackenhut@pipnj.org
Partnership in Philanthropy website: pipnj.org

Meet Barbara Talisman - My Nonprofit Blog Exchange Virtual Event Friend

2010-03-15T15:28:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite blogs is the Nonprofit Blog Exchange. This simple, unassuming blog written by Emily Weinberg provides a huge list of resources for nonprofits. Nonprofits and nonprofit consultants list their blogs here in the most extensive list of nonprofit blogs on the web. In looking at the google analytics of my blog last year I was surprised to see that very quietly The Nonprofit Blog Exchange had become the second largest referrer to my blog. I ALWAYS list this site in my list of resources for any nonprofit workshop I offer.

Emily runs the “Nonprofit Blog Exchange Virtual Event” where bloggers sign up to write about another blog and someone writes about them. Emily tries to match people in some magical way so it makes sense for them to write about them. Through earlier events I was matched with now well established bloggers Rosetta Thurman and Heather Carpenter. Heather even later named me to her top 50 nonprofit leaders to watch list which was incredibly flattering.

Heather Carpenter's Incredible List I Was So Proud to be Part Of

For the current round of the virtual event I am happy to be writing about Barbara Talisman’s blog Talisman Thinking Out Loud. I follow Barbara on Twitter @BTalisman – so I was already familiar with her when Emily assigned me to write about her.

Barbara is a very experienced development expert and she blogs frequently with brief, crisp, thought provoking posts. You’ll get the AHA’s reading Barbara’s posts. Most posts are about fundraising issues or social media and nonprofits.

I highly recommend you take a look at Barbara’s blog. Thank you Emily for introducing me to yet another engaging nonprofit blogger.

2009 Nonprofit Board Governance Trends - Highlights of Grant Thornton Survey and My Commentary

2010-02-27T17:52:00.001-05:00

One of my most popular posts has been a summary report of the 2007 Boardsource Governance Index, but 2007 is a long time ago and a lot has changed since then. I haven’t seen a Boardsource update, but Grant Thornton has been publishing an annual Nonprofit Board Governance Report and this post provides a summary of the highlights along with my own commentary. (You knew you had to get that too.)
There are two big items that have influenced and put a spotlight on governance findings in this year’s report: The revised IRS 990 and the bad economy. I have written about their impact on nonprofits many times on this blog and I don’t plan to expound on either in this post.

This survey of 459 top level nonprofit executives and board members was taken in October – November 2009. 71% of respondent organizations had annual revenues less than $50 million. There was no lower breakdown. This blog usually tends to focus on smaller organizations and sometimes the statistics are different for smaller organizations so keep that in mind as you review the results. Also I am not reporting on data in the report that tends not to be a major issue for smaller organizations such as scrutiny of executive compensation and investment trends.

Respondents answers to the issues they addressed because of the recession were not different than several major studies conducted earlier in the year. This is a no brainer. Respondents essentially said, “We had less income so we made tough choices and reduced, staff, programs and other expenses.” It is sobering though that 51% reduced staff even as demand was rising.

          Issues Addressed in 2009 due to the Recession
          Reduce Expenses                                          87%
          Reduce Staff                                                   51%
          Reduce or Eliminate Noncore Programs    40%
          Other                                                                28%

Role and Structure of the Board
78% of the Boards have between six and thirty members. There does not seem to be much change in board size from year to year. There is, however, a change in the percent of boards with term limits - increasing from 74% last year to 78% this year. Clearly this issue is being looked at because the new 990 asks about it even though there is no right or wrong answer.

Of particular interest to me, is this breakdown of committees versus what respondents said was the primary focus for their Board today. 30% said that strategic planning was their primary focus followed by Fundraising at 21% and ensuring effective programs at 19%. Even though strategic planning was listed as the top area of focus for the board, substantially more boards have a fundraising and program committee than a strategic planning committee.

          Types of Committees Board Have
          Executive                 88%
          Finance                    83%
          Audit                         65%
          Nominating               58%
          Fundraising              55%
          Program                   39%
          Strategic Planning   32%
          Governance              30%

One startling change over the last 3 years is the composition of the audit committee. In 2006 only 24% of respondents said there was a CPA on the audit committee and today 74% do. There is also a substantial increase in interaction between the audit committee and auditor as clearly Board members are taking this responsibility more seriously. I have also seen in my work with small organizations more interest in having a CPA on the Board. Everyone used to want lawyers and people with experience in fundraising, but having a CPA on the Board is the new must have.

Training
In contrast to actual committees respondents reporting board training was quite impressive. I was surprised at how far down the list fundraising was. And just to give a little self plug - I do Governance and Strategic Planning training.
          Areas of Board Training
          Governance              72%
          Financial                   70%
          Strategic Planning   60%
          Programatic              56%
          Fundraising               51%

Evaluation, Evaluation, EvaluationThe numbers are up in every form of governance evaluation you can think of – board assessment, CEO/CFO/Development Officer evaluation, compensation and other policy reviews and of course review and sometimes change for everything asked about on the 990. 78% of respondents said that their Board or audit committee have reviewed their 990. As little as three years ago when I mentioned a 990 to a Board, most people had no idea what I was talking about and someone usually said, “I thought as a nonprofit we did not have to pay taxes.” Well, even if you don’t pay taxes you do report to the IRS. In 2009 most Board members have heard of the 990 and see it as an important document they need to know about. Although every accountant I have heard talk about the new 990 sees it as evil, I think it is driving an incredible improvement in governance by Boards. There is definitely a new sense of responsibility among Board members.

The percentage of Boards with a Whistleblower’s policy has increased dramatically from 60% in 2007 to 84 percent in 2009 but I am surprised it isn’t even higher and concerned that smaller nonprofits are lagging far behind in adopting this important policy. It is one of the few provisions of the Sarbanes Oxley Act that nonprofits are not exempt from.

This is an excellent report by Grant Thornton and you can download it for free from their website.
Grant Thornton 2009 National Board Governance Survey for Not-for-Profit Organizations

Social Media for Nonprofits Workshops in March

2010-02-20T14:20:00.003-05:00

In March I will be presenting two workshops on Social Media and Nonprofits sponsored by the Partnership in Philanthropy. I am designing these workshops to be informative, helpful and fun. They are low cost at $30 each or $50 for both. You get a three hour long workshop with me in person. Most one hour webinairs cost more for goodness sake. Register today - I'd love to meet you in person.

Part 1: Social Media for Nonprofit and Civic Organizations 101
This workshop provides an overview of how nonprofits can use online social networking including Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube. Learn how to “listen online” and use what you learn to become more effective in your online strategies. Learn how to increase traffic to you website and get more mileage out of your website. What tools are right for you? What are reasonable goals for your online presence? How do you measure success?

Wednesday, March 3, 2010
5-8 P
$30
HSBC- 407 Main Street
Chatham, NJ
Series Cost: $50

Who should attend:
Anyone interested in learning about the new technology and how to set it up. This is open to nonprofits, civic organizations or anyone who volunteers and would like to jump on board!
Light refreshments will be provided courtesy of HSBC.

Part 2: Marketing with Social Media for Nonprofit and Civic Organizations
Social Media is an exciting platform that presents new marketing opportunities for nonprofits. Social media and online marketing offer a wealth of low-cost opportunities using tools such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube. Whether you are an arts or social services nonprofit, marketing your services is essential for success. What are the trends? What works best for small nonprofits on a small budget? How to get started, develop a strategy, measure success and more.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010
5-8 PM
$30
HSBC- 407 Main Street
Chatham, NJ

Who should attend:
Anyone interested in or responsible for creating public awareness of an organization; Board, staff, volunteers. This is open to nonprofits, civic organizations or anyone who volunteers and would like to jump on board!

Sign up for both and get a $10 discount.
Series Cost: $50

Contact: Joyce Wackenhut
973-701-9810
jwackenhut@pipnj.org
Partnership in Philanthropy website: pipnj.org

Idealist.org Needs Your Help

2010-02-04T16:59:00.004-05:00

If you are reading this blog you must be interested in the nonprofit – or if you prefer – community benefit sector. And then you MUST have heard about and probably have visited Idealist.org. In my work I sometimes help nonprofits with an executive search including developing a job description, advertising the job and working through the selection/hiring process. It has been the case 100% of the time that well qualified and the most candidates respond through Idealist.org.

For anyone who has looked for a job or needed to fill a job in this sector Idealist is the go to website. Idealist also runs nonprofit job and volunteer fairs in cities throughout the country and provides a huge nonprofit resource database. I was proud to contribute two of my blog articles to Idealist’s project in October - a daily blog for Nonprofit Career Month.

Well it turns out that 70% of the funding for Idealist came from charging a mere $60 to post a job ad on their site. And as we all know there was a lot less of that in 2009. Idealist has done the kind of cost cutting which has become commonplace for all of us but still was running about $100K in the hole every month in 2009.

They were about to hit the wall, when Ami Dar, founder and Executive Director, decided to bring his cause directly to us – the people who benefit from Idealist. Idealist has 70,000 visits a day just to put it in perspective. It is a 501c(3) but they have not really reached out for individual donations before this. Now they need our help.

The goal is to raise $500K so that they will have some breathing room as they rework their earned income model. If you have ever used Idealist, you know how valuable it is to the nonprofit community. I encourage you to contribute now to keep this nonprofit resource jewel alive and well. None of us want to see it disappear. You can read more about the appeal and Donate Now here:

Visit the Idealist website to see the appeal update and to Donate Now

Lessons to Learn
There are a couple of lessons to be learned by this real life example.

Lesson #1: Even a big organization can get in trouble by putting too many eggs in one basket. 70% from job ads? None from individual donors? Ami – What were you thinking – You probably have personally advised nonprofits against such a model.

Lesson #2: Idealist had a deep email list, a strong social networking presence and outstanding website development skills. They launched their first ever individual giving campaign using all of these in concert with each other and within a week 4383 people have donated over $146,000. Can social networking work for nonprofits? You bet it can but you have to have your ducks in a row and be prepared before you make a serious launch. And, oh, please note they are NOT using Causes on Facebook.

I KNOW that Idealist will survive and recover but lets all do our part to make it happen.

Marion

Bill Gates Second Annual Letter for the Gates Foundation - A Must Read Again

2010-01-25T12:02:00.004-05:00

The focus of this year’s annual letter from Bill Gates is innovation and how it can make the difference between a bleak future and a bright one.

Bill sets the tone upfront with this, “Melinda and I see our foundation’s key role as investing in innovations that would not otherwise be funded. This draws not only on our backgrounds in technology but also on the foundation’s size and ability to take a long-term view and take large risks on new approaches. Warren Buffett put it well in 2006 when he told us, “Don’t just go for safe projects. You can bat a thousand in this game if you want to by doing nothing important."

The Gates Foundation may be huge but it also is a family affair. Bill, Melinda and Bill’s father are hands on leaders of the foundation. Warren Buffett is a co-trustee but he really is a member of their extended family. Although the Gates Foundation is professionally managed as a big business of which Bill is very proud, it also has the personal touch of the corner store. Bill discusses how he and Melinda champion separate projects but work together as a team and learn from each other. He mentions advice that Warren has given him and his father’s grounding. The letter doesn’t have the sound of something written by corporate PR, rather it is much more Warren Buffett like – addressing results, hopes, and dreams in a down to earth way.

I was very impressed in the way Bill presented a summary of some of their innovation projects and all nonprofits can learn from this. A grid with projects in global health, global development, and the United States provides a summary of each of these items:
• Description of the innovation
• Time frame for the project
• Who will benefit
• What is the benefit
• Constraints
• Risk – High, Medium, Low
• Partners

It is an excellent snapshot of their work, its importance and the risk level of success they associate with it. I particularly like that they included partners for each project in this summary.

Although the sections of the letter are somewhat different than last year, Bill again discusses the status – improvements and remaining challenges in global health care – especially childhood deaths, malaria and polio. Bill summarizes the accomplishments extremely well and then frames clearly the challenges remaining for each one. Bill’ section on AIDS/HIV doesn’t offer the encouragement of almost total eradication that his section on polio does but it does outline the foundation’s efforts.

When Bill shifts to the US projects the focus shifts from health to education. Bill explains, “The foundation works on health in poor countries because we think it’s the best way to improve lives globally. In the United States, we believe the best way to improve lives is to improve public education.” Bill talks about the importance of using more than student achievement tests and their partnership with schools and unions together in innovative projects to improve teacher performance. Bill also talks about online learning and using technology in an interactive way and with teachers working cooperatively to increase learning. I learned a little bit about this myself last year when I worked with the New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning and I was very impressed.

Near the end of the letter there is a striking section and chart “Rich Countries’ Aid Generosity. Wow – the US gives the most in absolute terms but is far down the list in percent of GDP – very eye opening.

Bill ends with the “Looking Ahead" section and addresses head-on an area that the foundation has been criticized for – not funding climate change projects. He says “Because the foundation invests in areas where there is not a big market, I have not yet seen a way that we can play a unique role here, but I am investing in several ideas outside the foundation. Bill announces his new website www.gatesnotes.com where he’ll report on his trips and activities throughout the year.

In summary, the Gates are very focused and you can not help but be impressed by their dedication, determination, and disciplined approach to their goals. Visit the Gates Foundation website now and read the whole letter. Just as it was last year – it is a must read.

Martin Luther King Day 2010 – Plan Now to Get Involved

2010-01-09T17:01:00.003-05:00

Martin Luther King day has been a designated day of service for 15 years. But in 2009 inspired by President Obama’s inauguration, the number of recorded service projects increased to 13000 from 8000 in 2008. And it is estimated that 1 million people participated in a volunteer project that day. On one level – Wow! On another level – only 1 million – surely we can do better than that.

It is incredibly easy to find a volunteer opportunity for MLK Day. You can even do it from your iPhone or Blackberry. The MLK Day website has everything you need to know about Martin Luther King day and you can link to Serve.gov to find the type of project you are interested in close to work or home.

Some Easy ideas for Service on MLK Day – No Excuses
If MLKDay is a work day for you why not see if your employer is willing to sponsor an early quit for a group who volunteers at a local charity or lead a food or winter coat drive at your workplace. It is a good day for group activities and lots of nonprofits are prepared with one day or short timeframe projects.

Nonprofits Take Action – Now!! Today!! – MLK Day is January 18th!!!
If you are a nonprofit - right now – not tomorrow – register your projects available for MLKDay at serve.gov and at any local databases collecting projects such as your local Volunteer Center or United Way. This is a perfect opportunity to introduce your organization to new volunteers and supporters. The projects do not have to be elaborate. Onsite projects like painting a room, cleaning out and organizing closets are popular projects. Don’t pass up opporunities for after work groups to come for an hour or sponsor food or clothing drives at their workplace. Are you an arts group? Do you need some help working on making sets – a great after work project.

Why not have a “Need Professional Skills” project and ask for help with your website, marketing materials or social media launch. Or how about resume writing and interview coaching at homeless shelters.

It is free and easy to register your projects. You never know - the perfect person may show up on a cold winter morning and begin a lasting relationship. This opportunity is to good to pass up.

Ready for a Little Inspiration?
But this all sounds so mechanical and practical – If you need a little inspiration to get moving with setting up projects and volunteering visit the King center website and you’ll be greeted by an inspirational message in Dr. King’s own words.
King Center website

This video on YouTube provides a kalidescope of last year’s projects – view it to get inspired about what ideas may work for you.
2009 King Day of Service: Realizing the Dream

Stimulating Ideas for the Times... Resolutions for Nonprofits in 2010

2010-01-09T14:41:00.015-05:00

For the last two years I have asked my LinkedIn network to contribute to a list of suggested New Year’s resolutions for nonprofits. Experts - diverse in their expertise and recommendations - have again responded with a stimulating list of suggested resolutions. Some are nationally recognized, some work for nonprofits and some are consultants. Two CEOs of leading nonprofits offer their advice. Read on....and take notes...resolve that some of these resolutions will appear on your own list.

Last year the tone of the recommendations had to do with facing a difficult year ahead. This year we all seem to realize that we are facing a paradigm shift and the resolutions have more of a “Lets straighten up and face the future squarely and show them we’re ready” panache.

I thank all of the nonprofit professionals who contributed to this post making this such a rich set of stimulating ideas that all of us can use as we develop our goals for this year. I’ve grouped them by topic for easy reference.

Community Building
Hildy Gottlieb and Jane Garthson both have recommendations focusing on building community. Hildy is the Founder of the Community Driven Institute (CDI) in Tucson, Arizona and Jane, an ethics and leadership consultant who hails from Toronto, Canada is working with the CDI (I bet especially in the winter).

Hildy recommends that “we focus on what is possible, rather than what is wrong. Aim at creating the future you DO want for your community, rather than focusing all your energy on what you do NOT want (poverty, hunger, disease). The very best we can do by eliminating a negative is to get to zero. Aim at the positive future you DO want to create, and you will solve your community's problems (and your organization's problems) on the way to creating that positive future.” Hildy's approach always leaves me with a new sense of energy and can do anything spirit.
Hildy Gottlieb's blog

The Pollyanna Principles - Hildy's newest book

Jane also builds on Hildy’s Pollyanna Principles suggesting “a focus on making your community better, in the ways that matter most to your community. Focus all resources on action areas that create a better future. Govern for what matters, which is all external to the organization. Focus on effectiveness in achieving desirable outcomes for community; internal efficiencies and oversight only matter if the community benefits. And remember that many other organizations in your community also exist to make the community better. Plan and collaborate with those organizations.”
Jane Garthson's website

Strategic Planning
Susan Bari, Kim Pawlak and Terrie Temkin were on the same wavelength with their resolutions reinforcing mission, vision and value.

Susan Bari, president and CEO of the Leader to Leader Institute encourages that we “ask Peter Drucker's Five Most Important Questions. It is important to continuously ask ourselves: What is our mission? Who is our customer? What does our customer value? What are our results? and What is our plan? This strategic planning self-assessment process will keep us true to our selves, our donors and our clients.” As a side note, I am trained in the Drucker self assessment process and use these strategic planning principles with my own clients.
Leader to Leader website

Leader to Leader blog

Kim Pawlak, Associate Executive Director, Text and Academic Authors Association advises: “To develop a solid strategic plan with actionable steps to ensure that you stay on track with your mission and vision and use your limited resources in a way that maximizes the impact you can have on your constituents.”
Text and Academic Authors Association

Terrie Temkin, Principal in CoreStrategies for Nonprofits recommends that “nonprofits keep their eyes on their vision and value. While hardly a new resolution, it's a resolution similar to the perennial diet and exercise - critical for a healthy existence, but somehow hard to maintain. If organizations want to survive in this environment, though, it's never been more important.”
Terrie Temkin's blog

Communication, Networking and Social Networking
John Haydon, Maria Semple and Gayle Thorsen all touch on these subjects – each with their own unique vision.
John Haydon, a leading social media and marketing strategist for nonprofits recommends that “non-profits have "implement mobile giving" as a goal for 2010", especially if the average age of their donors are less than 50 years old.” John did us a favor to hit this straight on with clarity - this is going to be a big, big topic in 2010. I’ll be writing about it in the next few months.
John Haydon's blog

Maria Semple, a nonprofit prospect research consultant, provides this advice for nonprofit executives: “Do more networking -- both in-person and in the social media world. Join networking groups outside the nonprofit sector where business owners, corporate executives and philanthropists congregate.” This is something we all know we should do but so many of us just don’t get around to it. Maria is right – make it a resolution - this can really be valuable to your organization and to you personally.
Maria Semple's website

Gayle Thorsen,a nonprofit communications consultant, also addresses mobile giving as part of a larger communications strategy. Gayle offers, “My advice would be to simplify...to do less better. Many of the nonprofits I talk with have too many communication balls in the air. Make the hard choices that streamline and focus communications. Be brutally honest about capacity issues--especially with social media. Don't do anything without understanding exactly how it supports your strategy and to what degree. Take projects off the plate rather than add more. This simplification advice applies to every aspect of communications--from messaging (strip the fat) to website/email design (think mobile).” Galye also pointed out that this is especially important with pared down staffs.
Gayle Thorsen's blog

Advocacy and Building Relationships
Elizabeth Clawson, a prospect researcher, recommends that nonprofits resolve to attend a lobby day at their state capitol this year. She says, “These events allow nonprofits of all sizes and missions to advocate for their sector and build relationships with state legislators. In addition to state-specific issues, there are many federal ones to mobilize around, such as the charitable mileage rate.” I am so happy that Elizabeth contributed to this list. She is a young nonprofit professional and participates in the online nonprofit community very actively on Twitter and at her blog.
Elizabeth Clawson
Elizabeth Clawson's blog

Susan Detwiler, a nonprofit and philanthropic consultant, offers good advice for improving executive staff board relationships: “Resolve to recognize that even people you can't stand probably have the best motives behind their actions. So instead of focusing on how they're impeding you, figure out where they're coming from. e.g., that loud mouth board member; or the donor that wants to tell you how to run the organization. Acknowledging a positive motive helps move the conversation in a good direction. Make sure all your board members feel useful! Just saying thanks is nice but even more powerful is letting people know just how helpful they are. People want to know they've really done something with their time and their life.

Operations
Michael Keats, business process improvement consultant for nonprofits offers this practical advice: Update operational procedures. Mike lists the benefits as:
•Establish a standard for the method and quality of operations;
•Provide a means of training and helping new staff be more productive sooner;
•Increase efficiency and flexibility by enabling staff to be cross-trained
•Minimize disruptions when a key person is suddenly lost to the organization.
Michael Keats website

And finally, the resolutions offered by Ken Berger, CEO Charity Navigator, defy categorization:
-We will not tell stories about individuals we have helped without data that shows meaningful change in communities and peoples lives to back it up
-We will strive to develop an outcome driven culture within our organization from top to bottom.
-We will start by going through a theory of change process and not rest until everyone in the organization knows our desired outcomes and how each one of them will help us get to them!
-We will also seek and listen to our constituent’s feedback on our efforts.
-Whenever possible, we will seek funding for research to prove that our interventions are causing meaningful change in people’s lives. We will then share this evidence based research with our peers to further all of our efforts to improve our world.
Ken Berger's Blog

Thanks again to each of the contributors to this list - you have provided us with a stimulating list of ideas on which to build our 2010 resolutions. I hope you will visit their blogs for ongoing stimulating commentary throughout the year – I know I do. Do you have ideas you would like to add to this list - we'd love to know what they are. Please share your ideas by posting a comment to this post.

Marion

My Blog in 2009 Laid Naked and Dissected - The Analytic Results

2010-01-04T07:49:00.005-05:00

One of the basic tenets of using social media is to listen. I learned this concept from the chief nonprofit social media guru herself – Beth Kanter – at a Kellogg College of Consultants conference I attended in 2008. There are many tools available and one of the ways to listen and learn is with online analytic tools.

I’ve done an analysis of my blog for 2009 and I highly recommend that you do one of your web presences also. Using Google Analytics, bit.ly, and Post Rank I think I have the best picture yet of what my readers are interested in. I’ve also reviewed the posts with comments so I know which ones attracted the most interaction. I announce each post on Twitter and LinkedIn and they have been major reasons for the increase in traffic this year – directly and even moreso indirectly.

If I were a major business this would be confidential marketing intelligence. But since I am a one person consultancy and in the nonprofit sector we want to be all about transparency I am about to reveal some – only some - of the intelligence I have gathered from my blog this year. Here are some quick facts:

• The traffic to my blog increased by 30% in 2009 over 2008

• Being mentioned in Philanthropy.com’s Give and Take, and several well read blogs contributed to some surprising spikes in readership.

• I developed new relationships with online collaboration this year. Beginning with mentioning others and being mentioned I have made wonderful new friends in the nonprofit world. I even got to meet some of them at various events throughout 2009.

• Rather than just the most popular posts, here are the most popular topics:
-My series of articles about nonprofits and social networking
-Several articles about nonprofits and the economic downturn. My thanks to Todd Polyniak, of Sax Macy for much of this material.
-Two posts with reading lists were retweeted and garnered lots of comments with additional recommendations on the blog and on LinkedIn. They were not only well read but being well commented on puts them in an even more coveted category. Comments on your blog indicate a higher level of engagement than just reading your posts.
-Posts about working for and hiring trends in nonprofits

• Only 20 percent of the traffic to my blog came directly to the blog. 34% came via search and 46% came from other referring sites.

• The most popular search keywords driving traffic to my blog included nonprofit, twitter, linkedin, facebook, giving USA, strategic planning, board, consulting, conway, leadership and visionary. I was surprised at how far down the list conway was.

• The most popular referring site by far is LinkedIn where I always update my status when I have a new blog post and I am active in a number of nonprofit groups. The big surprise is that the second biggest referrer to my blog is the Nonprofit Blog Exchange where Emily Weinberg has featured some of my posts in her roundups. Thanks Emily – I always check out the posts you include in your eclectic roundups and apparently so do other people. People visit my blog via Twitter and my website. A fair amount of traffic comes from the Nonprofit Good Practice Guide and BoardSource where my blog is listed as a resource. The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s Give and Take column always causes a big spike in traffic. There are numerous other referring sites but these were the major ones.

• Many people were repeat visitors and read more than one page and believe it or not 5% of my visitors are still using dial-up internet service.

So what do I plan to do with all this information?
I plan to write more about nonprofits faciing a paradigm shift with economic change – This will be tied to themes including board leadership, vision, and strategic planning.

I will be attending the NTEN conference in April and I will write more about technology issues for nonprofits with what I learn at this conference. Understanding how popular the technology topics I wrote about this year were influenced my decision to attend the 2010 NTEN conference.

I certainly plan to continue the collaborative spirit of sharing information about the wonderful nonprofit community out there – these collaborative posts were among the richest in content and the most popular.

I am planning to attend two national conferences in 2010 and I am looking forward to meeting people who I have only known on the Internet.

In 2009 I also had more business from people who learned about me on the Internet – that may be via a search leading to my blog or knowing me through a LinkedIn group. I want to explore connecting my Internet participation with the nonprofit community with more business. I would especially like to do more speaking in 2010 – so just to let you know – I am available and I am willing to travel. Any pointers? Please let me know.

I hope I have piqued your interest in listening on the Internet and finding out more about your own Internet presence. It can provide a good starting point for planning both your web and non-web priorities for the new year.

Marion

Books to Add to Your Reading List in 2010 – The Well Known and a Few Discoveries

2009-12-28T11:54:00.004-05:00

In November I posted a list of books that would be good holiday gifts for nonprofit friends. To develop the list I posted a question asking for recommendations in two LinkedIn groups - Chronicle of Philanthropy and Web 2.0 for Nonprofit Organizations and of course I had my own wish list. The resulting post has been very popular and links to it have been retweeted and referenced in other blogs. When I posted notice of the blog posts on LinkedIn groups they became popular discussions and since then both as comments on my blog and LinkedIn groups people have added a treasure trove of recommended books.

So this is an encore list of additional books recommended by and for friends in the nonprofit sector. I have chosen some by well known authors and some that you might not otherwise hear of but for these generous recommendations. The hardest part is deciding which to read first.

Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits (J-B US non-Franchise Leadership) by Leslie Crutchfield was recommended by Holly Ross, William Hull and Paul Cwynar. Paul said, “It is an innovative guide to how great nonprofits achieve extraordinary social impact.”

Joanne Fritz and Beth Kanter recommend Twitterville: How Businesses Can Thrive in the New Global Neighborhoods by Shel Israel. Joanne included this book on her list -
The Charitable Reader: Books to Give and to Read for the Holidays at about.com
Beth Kanter contributed to Twitterville and had a 15 copy giveaway of this book on her blog

At first I was going to pass over Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference
by Warren St. John recommended by James Barrows because it didn’t seem to fit. But after I read the full description at the Outcasts United website it jumped to the top of my personal reading list. It's a book about resilience in the face of extraordinary hardship, the power of one person to make a difference and the daunting challenge of creating community in a place where people seem to have so little in common. Resilience is a theme of mine for 2010 and so how can I resist this book.

Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior by Ori and Rom Brafman was recommended by several people and has great reviews on Amazon. Rick Schwartz commented in his recommendation “If nonprofits are ever to understand their donors, their prospective donors, their clients, and their inner workings, they have to read this book.” Laura Deaton says “fascinating book about real forces that impact our daily lives”

One category I missed entirely was philanthropic books for children. But here are two excellent books in this category:

One Hen - How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference (CitizenKid) by Katie Smith Milway, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes(a favorite of mine)from Kids Can Press - This beautifully illustrated book inspired by true events tells the story of Kojo a small boy from Ghana who turns a small loan into a thriving farm for many and is able to return to school. I learned about this book when Steve Jennings, @zyOzyfounder tweeted the link to his reading list of poverty books

Three Cups by Mark St. Germain and illustrated by April Willy tells of life lessons that come from learning how to save, spend and give our money. This inexpensive but richly illustrated book is an excellent place to start developing philanthropy values in children. My thanks to Tony Townsley for this recommendation.

And added to my own list... BoardSource is having a spectacular year end sale that ends 12/31. Be sure to visit today!

Thanks to everyone who contributed to this great list of books. Some of them are currently on Amazon at great discounts. If you click on a title above, you will go to Amazon and you can find out more about each selection.

Wishing You Joy, Pride and Resilience

2009-12-22T09:50:00.006-05:00

Dear Friends,

I wish all of you a joyous holiday season and a blessed New Year. This holiday letter is being posted both at Marion Conway – Nonprofit Consultant and The Grandma Chronicles. Later this week I will offer my Christmas prayers at the Christmas Vigil for all of you who work with nonprofits, those I have worked with, all whose lives you touch and grandparents everywhere.

The snow blanketed us over the weekend and we will have a white Christmas in our neighborhood. It is dazzling albeit cold. This is my grandson Zach’s first Christmas and the whole family is enjoying watching him look at the lights on the tree and the various preparations going on. He really wanted a Christmas cookie on cookie baking day but its not quite on his diet yet. He got to play with some Christmas toys still in their cardboard holders before they were wrapped on wrapping day.

For me Christmas is a time of reflection and of joy. This has been a difficult year and 2010 will hopefully be better but it certainly will also be full of challenges. I have seen resilience this year both in my work and at home and so I plan to not only reflect but to relax and enjoy this holiday time and take the time to refresh the resilience we will all need for 2010.

Having a baby around (Zach is six months old) does seem to give you the extra oomph that keeps everything moving along. We bask in the wonder we see in his eyes and wonder ourselves what he is thinking and noticing. We take care of our health and enjoy Christmas shopping in a new way. We cherish every moment family is together. I can’t help thinking about families in homeless shelters or troubled homes and I know that some of the most generous people I have come across this year are those on the front lines of social service organizations.

At the lighting of the National Christmas Tree earlier this month President Obama said “this tradition that has come to represent more than any one holiday or religion, but a season of brotherhood and generosity to our fellow citizens.” How true.

When I think of how many lives have been impacted by the nonprofit community that I know both in person and online I realize how privileged I have been to work among this group. This year I wish you joy, pride for all you have done this past year and resilience to do even more next year.

Here is the picture of my husband and I with our grandson, Zach that we sent with our Christmas cards.

And here is my favorite picture of the zillions we took for Christmas pictures with us. This one now greets me on my computer desktop.

May You Have a Blessed and Joyous Holiday,

Marion

This Holiday Season Is a Good Time to Begin the Path to Philanthropy with Your Children

2009-12-03T16:00:00.005-05:00

I love blogging – so much in fact that I have two very different blogs – Marion Conway Nonprofit Consultant where I blog about topics of interest to the nonprofit community and The Grandma Chronicles where I blog about grandparenting. I never thought that I would have the same post on both blogs but here it is. I started to put my thoughts together on this topic for my consulting blog and then, it came to me...This topic works for both blogs!

The topic of teaching children to be philanthropic is an important one to me and I believe it is something that starts young. The word Philanthropy is derived from Ancient Greek and means "to love people". Philanthropy is the act of donating money, goods, services, time and/or effort to support a socially beneficial cause. Webster’s definition resonates with the holiday season: “goodwill to fellowmen”

I started to do some research for this post on the web and was happy to see that there are wonderful resources and ideas available. There was even a blog post from Beth Kanter a year ago that I contributed to on this subject.
Kids and Philanthropy: Teaching Your Children To Be Charitable by Beth Kanter

We should be thinking about philanthropy as a core value to teach children. It is an important part of wholeness in adult life and it should be something that just comes naturally. That is my basic philosophy. So just as we teach the importance of education to our children by helping with homework, providing enjoyable educational experiences, encouraging and rewarding working hard in school there is the parallel in philanthropy.

Children learn about philanthropy by example, by doing things themselves and by being taught about it. We start with the very young by teaching and practicing caring and sharing. Older children participate in community service and contribute their time, talent and treasure as we say in church. There are so many things that we can do with children to develop a spirit of community service. Whether it be volunteering at a local food bank or raking leaves for an elderly neighbor there are opportunities everywhere in our everyday lives.

If you want your children to be enthusiastic about participating in philanthropy then it has to be something that is of interest to them. It may be in helping poor children or the environment. It may be supporting children who are very sick. You may have your own interests – I know I have mine – but it is a good idea to explore with children how they would like to help others and then for them to have as much of a hands-on experience as possible.

At our church all ages participate in our holiday giving program. Young children decorate Christmas cards and small trees for the elderly. Older children help stuff Christmas stockings with a variety of supplies for men at a homeless shelter. The teens participate in cooking a special meal for the homeless shelter that is served with tablecloths, flowers and a festive theme. The hands-on experience with philanthropy is an important part of their development.

The hands-on experience I remember most with my son is that for his Eagle Scout project he collected sleeping bags for children in Newark to use for summer camp. He also collected money and arranged a big discount with Coleman to buy sleeping bags. The day he and fellow scouts went to Newark to unload the sleeping bags from the delivery truck some teens were getting sleeping bags for a trip that weekend. I think my son has always appreciated his own sleeping bag a lot more since then.

Sometimes our children have set the example for us. When my son was a freshman in high school he came home and TOLD us he was going on a trip to help re-build a burned Black church in the South during his Spring vacation. My husband decided to take a week of his vacation and go with him and several years later my husband and I went together. My daughter has a caring spirit and when she works with young children she is particularly thoughtful of a child that needs a little extra personal attention that can make a difference. She is much more the touchy feely type than I am and I know she touches the lives of children she works with in an important way.

Teaching the concepts – Many people in my generation were brought up not knowing anything about family finances or giving. Looking back my parents were generous with their time, talent and treasure. I was oblivious to the treasure part but I could see the time and talent part. We have taken a different tack with our children. They know about our giving patterns and that it is spread across local, national and international causes. They know the local organizations where we are involved very well. They know that we have priorities for our giving and that charities are named in our will. When our children were young we made matching gifts to charities that they gave to and this encouraged them to give even more. They know our “philanthropy philosophy” and as adults are forming their own. When my son started working he immediately made a commitment to make a contribution to KIVA with every paycheck. He has his own philanthropy philosophy and it developed as he was growing up.

Our philanthropy manifests itself differently at different stages in our lives but it is important at every stage. For children and young adults it can be bursting with energy and innocence and a spirit true to the origins of the word. There is no time like the holiday season to start. Kayta Andresen from Network for Good offered a fantastic idea last holiday season in Beth Kanter’s post: "Give with your kids day. "She suggests giving a child $25 to donate to a charity. You can help them research the type of charities they are interested in online.

Resources
Learning to Give - offers lesson plans, activities and resources to educate youth about the power of philanthropy

Foundation Center - Youth in Philanthropy – An extensive list of online resources is available

Games for Change - Lots of video games are avaiable for teaching children about philanthropy on topics ranging from serving the poor to the environment

A favorite book of mine on this topic is Raising Charitable Children by Carol Wiseman.

A special note to grandparents: One of the things that grandparents do is fill in some blanks as parents have busy schedules. This is an excellent responsibility for grandparents to take a leadership role in and find things you can do together with your grandchildren than enrich your lives and that of others.

Enjoy the Holidays and Live Philanthropically,

Marion