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Strategic Planning: It Can be Taught

When is the Right Time to Do a Capital Campaign? By Alex Comfort, CFRE

  Starting a capital campaign is one of the hardest decisions a non-profit can make.  Back when I began directing them in 1986, we used to say it was a “once in a lifetime project”.  Well, as any ...

Well, This was Awkward!

The Constant Ask: A Cold Shower for Donors

In my last article I talked about the National World War II Museum and how to keep donors engaged. In this post we will touch on things that lead to donor fatigue and "turned off" donors. First and...

5 Easy Ways to Become a Public Speaking Star by Alex Comfort, CFRE

I’m pretty humble about a lot of things, but not about my public speaking.  I have few peers.  Some of that is because I’m a natural ham, I have always loved public speaking, and I have done as muc...

Case Study: A Nonprofit Keeping Customers Engaged

Case Study: A Nonprofit Keeping Donors EngagedAs a member of the team here at KFA, I’d like to chime in on a practice I see being done well. I hope no one will get offended if I name names, but her...

5 New Years Resolutions for Nonprofit Success

  5 New Year’s Resolutions for Nonprofit Success Think Strategically. Aim for the Target. Communicate with Purpose. Mobilize the Village. Strive for Excellence. Think Strategically. Thin...

THOUGHTS ON BOARDS OF DIRECTORS

Author: Alex Comfort, CFRE   One of my latest passions is watching boards of directors in non-profit agencies.  Everywhere I look some organization or another is offering training for board members...

Volunteer Hours: The Best Kept Secret for In-Kind Matching

Following up on my recent post about volunteer recruitment, I'd like to remind our loyal readers of something very important that I cover in every grant training, volunteer hours. It is extremely i...

WHAT TO DO WHEN THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HATES FUNDRAISING

Almost all executive directors hate to do fundraising. It’s a fact of nonprofit life. Frankly, there are good reasons for this and we shouldn’t get too annoyed with them: 1. Most executive director...

Changes to Grants.gov

Our loyal readers know that our weekly Grant Round Up is the best source for the latest federal grant opportunities without all of the extra clutter that comes in the daily notifications from Grant...

Volunteer Recruitment

In a recent interview with a prospective client, we were asked about our approach to volunteer recruitment. Our response was fairly straightforward. Network with high schools, particularly those th...

WHAT TO DO FOR YOUR NEW BOARD MEMBER ORIENTATION

Alex Comfort, CFRE Yay!  We have new board of directors members.  Let’s presume we did a 21st century process to acquire them.  (WE DID NOT JUST HAVE OUTGOING MEMBERS NOMINATE THEM!)   We created...

Fundraising Partnerships: Working with Retailers

We are currently working with a great grassroots organization on a half-million dollar capital campaign for the renovation of a facility. The project is going great and the group is an absolute bla...

Nominate Your Donors and Volunteers

A great way to cultivate major donors is to nominate them for as many awards or recognition as you can.  The accolades might be given by your organization, but usually, your community will have lot...

OUCH! A Sad Case of What NOT to Do...

It is a challenge to share some stories gracefully, but it is worth noting that when things go awry, we can learn from the mistakes of others before we make our own. Unfortunately, we have a story ...

In light of recent events...Thank You

We normally provide grant and fundraising tips and insights every other week. We are due to share a blog post to provide such tips and insights this week. However, as every nonprofit and public-ser...

Keeping the 5 in Mind

I am currently having a lot of fun doing a consultancy for a great community college. My 11 years at UNC Asheville are very beneficial – college campuses share a lot of the same politics and challe...

What a Wild Ride!

The first quarter of 2017 was a wild ride to say the least. We were expecting a major grant competition to open any minute, one that only comes around every 3 years. I essentially built my professi...

Compensation

By: Alex Comfort, CFRE “I Could Make More Money Doing Something Else” One of my current clients is a community college that has a wonderful program. I spoke to an “Interim Dean” today and he said t...