Success Strategies for an Online Giving Day
By Mary Hernandez, Petrus Blog Contributor
Online giving days have been growing in popularity and reached compulsory status since the pandemic forced non-profits out of the rhythm of traditional in-person fundraising events. Whether you will participate in #GivingTuesday, her Catholic cousin #iGiveCatholic, or another online giving day that has traction in your region, these strategies can help to guide you in developing a successful online giving day plan.
RECOGNIZE AND BUILD YOUR TEAM
Online giving days are built to capitalize on the power of crowdfunding. First-time giving day participants can get discouraged after a poor showing on a giving day if their strategy consists of harnessing the power of the crowd by sharing a social media post (even a really compelling one) and expecting dollars to flow in. The crowd is a bit of a misnomer here. I rather liken a giving day to teamfunding. You may not know all the folks in a crowd, but you do...
Giving USA Report 2021
By Mary P. Walker, Petrus Blog Contributor & Local Charity Board Member
Latest Information on Giving Trends
Giving USA 2021: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2020 was released in June. This report on the state of philanthropy is LONG and comprehensive, so I picked a few findings that would interest Petrus clients and blog readers. The opinions expressed below are my own. If you would like more detail, summary information is available for free here and you can purchase the full report here.
- 2020 marked an all-time high in philanthropic giving.
More money was given last year than in any previous year studied, and about 5% more than in 2019. There are probably a number of reasons for this: (1) households whose incomes were NOT greatly affected by the pandemic, such as retirees on fixed incomes or those who stayed employed, felt a greater internal motivation; (2) investment value and the stock market recovery was high, which affects the wealth of...
Covid Solutions: Monthly Giving - Interview with Megan O'Brien Crayne on the Petrus Development Show
In this episode, Andrew visits with Megan O'Brien Crayne, Campus Minister at Brown-RISD Catholic Community. In this episode of the "COVID Solutions" series, Andrew and Megan talk about monthly giving and how Megan was able to launch a new donor-matched program for young alumni. They discuss Megan's three-part plan, the hurdles she came up against and how she dealt with them. Through these efforts, they were able to see a large percentage jump in their annual giving.
Show Notes:
Megan O’Brien Crayne is the campus minister at Brown-RISD Catholic Community which serves the students at Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design. Andrew and Megan met at the Oklahoma Petrus Conference, where Megan learned a ton.
They have started a brand-new monthly giving program during quarantine.
Before this summer they had maybe 15 monthly givers. It began with reaching out to the class of 2019 graduating seniors and they got 11 to sign up.
In June of 2020, Megan decided to revamp...
Virtual Summit Week 3 Recap
by Andrew N. Robison, President of Petrus Development
What an amazing three weeks!
On April 3, we wrapped up the COVID-19 Fundraising Virtual Summit by Petrus. Over the course of the Summit, we held 14 days of discussions, shared countless stories, hosted industry leading experts and received serious doses of spiritual nourishment. I was fortunate to serve as the host for all 14 sessions and despite a changing environment (figuratively and literally), countless distractions (new announcements and demanding children) and technical challenges (did anyone else receive a text message reminder about 12 hours too late…), the Summit brought incredible hope for everyone involved (especially me).
Last week I shared Five Takeaways from Week 2. In today's post, I will share takeaways from Week 3.
- This is a tremendous opportunity to transition your donors to online giving and especially recurring giving. What are some of the ways to help your donors? Debra Richmond gave us three...
#iGiveCatholic: Interview with Julie Kenny on The Petrus Development Show
In this episode, Andrew visits with Julie Kenny. Julie is the National Program Director for iGiveCatholic. Julie explains the origins of iGiveCatholic, why it exists, it's partnership with #GivingTuesday, and what it is designed to do for Catholic dioceses, parishes, schools, and ministries. Andrew and Julie discuss how the movement-turned organization began, the mechanics of the iGiveCatholic platform, some basic questions about the platform and certain security concerns that some considering the platform might have. Finally, Julie addresses the future of iGiveCatholic and plans for moving forward. Ultimately, as Andrew notes, the movement is driven by the question - "How can we serve the Church in a way that is responsive to the culture and technology?"
Show Notes:
Julie Kenny National Program Director for iGiveCatholic
Four Proven Steps To Achieving A Giving Day “Win”
By Julie Kenny, National Program Director for iGiveCatholic
Participation in a giving day by nonprofit organizations is becoming more popular with every passing #GivingTuesday. I like to think of giving days as the evolution of telethons! Thinking back to the Jerry Lewis telethon every Labor Day to raise funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), our family tuned in every fall to watch. Having classmates with the disease, my siblings and I, as well as seemingly our entire school, volunteered to wash cars, bake goods, and staff a table at our parish rummage sale donating all proceeds for the cause. We couldn’t wait to see what the grand total raised would be to help our friends!
As National Program Director for #iGiveCatholic, I recognize this same excitement and engagement as thousands of Catholic organizations prepare for the annual giving day held on #GivingTuesday, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. And, I see how participation in...
Lessons From Online Consumer Behavior: Interview with Chris Hanzeli on The Petrus Development Show
In this episode Andrew visits with Chris Hanzeli about two of his different roles in development and his masters research. Executive Director of Institutional Advancement for the Western Dominican Province, Chris Hanzeli has a Masters of Philanthropy and Development through St. Mary’s University in Winona, Minnesota. His masters research, entitled, Lessons from online consumer behavior: How non profit organizations can enhance trust-building strategies for online donors, explores how non-profits can utilize the example of online retailers to establish trust with potential online donors.
Show Notes:
Graduate of University of Washington in Seattle. Bachelors in Speech Communications. Didn’t know what development/fundraising was. After graduation, worked in politics, then in a start up company, but that wasn’t successful. Unemployed and his wife was expecting. Dominicans called and asked if he wanted to be the development director at the campus ministry at...
Selling the Sizzle: Interview with Frank Shannon on The Petrus Development Show
Frank Shannon, Executive Director of Development at St. Mary’s Catholic Center at Texas A&M University
In this episode, Andrew visits with Frank Shannon, Executive Director of Development at St. Mary’s Catholic Center at Texas A&M University. Frank and Andrew covered a variety of topics, including Frank’s career before St. Mary’s, how he transitioned from 25 years in higher ed to a Catholic ministry and how the current campaign at St. Mary’s is going.
Show Notes:
- Frank’s first job out of college was as a loan officer for the Stephenville Savings and Loan but left the S&L business to became a development officer at Texas A&M after a call from Bob Walker, Vice President for Development at the Texas A&M Foundation.
- Frank’s training at Texas A&M mostly came from going on donor calls with Bob Walker and other senior development officers. It was during a meeting with Pat Zachry, long-time donor for A&M,...
10 Strategies to Capture and Re-engage Alumni
By Andrew Robison, President of Petrus Development
Ministries and nonprofit organizations are always trying to grow their database of donors. For organizations who have students or program participants, alumni will typically be the largest and most connected segment of their donor population. Many of our campus ministry and Newman Center partners have hundreds or even thousands of new alumni every year but struggle with how to get them into their database and then engage them in meaningful way. Many ministries also struggle with a mailing list full of older alumni who have no connection to the ministry because nobody has communicated with them regularly for some time.
These are challenges that many Catholic ministries, and especially Newman Centers face. In order to help organizations overcome this problem, we’ve created a list of 10 ideas and initiatives that can help you capture and re-engage alumni. This list is by no means complete because I am constantly hearing of...
A Year-End Fundraising Checklist
By Mark Randall, CFRE, Executive Director of Pontifical North American College (Rome)
As we approach the end of the calendar year, development teams are in full swing. With estimates of 30% of all annual giving taking place in December (and 12% in the last three days of the year!), we have reason to be active. But no matter how things are going, don’t relax just yet. Here are ten donor-centric ideas you should consider to maximize revenue and relationships.
- Know when your major donors give to your organization. Run reports, check your data. Why wait to contact lapsed donors until January? Get in touch now and invite their renewal before 12/31. Many donors are busy and appreciate the reminder. Remember to let them know what you will do with their gift (mission impact!).
- Don’t rely solely on your year-end direct mail appeal. People give to people – not paper. Even major donors set aside appeal packages and wait for a personal ask. Never assume the check will...
