2 min read
Discipline is Freedom
There is a big banner that drapes down from the ceiling in the gym I go to every day. It says, “Discipline is Freedom.” I think about this concept often and this statement has been our guiding...
1 min read
Don’t Cut Your Budget… Delight Your Donors!
If you are non-profit leader or manager who is concerned with managing expenses and is considering cutting or downsizing your relational fundraising program… think again. Recently, I was reading Seth...
3 min read
It’s Not Enough to Say Thanks
You know that when a donor gives a gift, your first job is to say thank you, as quickly as possible. Amazingly, colleagues in our industry (including Richard and myself) have written, conferenced,...
3 min read
You Can Have More Major Donors in 2025
We are absolutely living in strange times. Many have coined it the second “Gilded Age.” We see power in the hands of extremely wealthy billionaires and the gulf between the wealthiest and the poorest...
1 min read
Are You Reluctant to Ask for a Year-End Gift?
You have roughly 5-6 weeks left in the year to have face-to-face conversations with your donors and to ask for gifts. I say that because all of your donor meetings really should be wrapped up by...
3 min read
Why Do You Need a Coach?
If you are a frontline fundraiser, you need a coach. It’s doesn’t matter if you are brand new to the profession or you have over 20 years of experience. I have seen first-hand, over and over again,...
2 min read
You’re Using Campaigns as a Crutch!
If your non-profit has done more than two capital campaigns in its history, it’s most likely because you don’t have a strong major gift program and/or you’re using it as a crutch not to develop...
2 min read
Question of the Month: What are the guiding principles of The Veritus Way of fundraising?
No matter how long you’ve been following Veritus Group, you’ve probably heard us encourage you to adopt “The Veritus Way” of major gift fundraising. But what exactly does that mean?
3 min read
How to Make Time for Major Gifts When You’re a Small Shop
Part 2 in a 3-Part Series for Small Non-Profit Organizations: How Do You Get Started in Major Gifts? In my last blog post, I outlined three areas you need to address before starting a major gift...
4 min read
The Insights I Have Gleaned by Analyzing over 1,000 Donor Files
One of the privileges I have in my work is that I get to review every donor assessment that we do. Over the last 15 years, I’ve reviewed well over a 1,000 of them. I love reviewing them because it...
1 min read
You’re Going to Be Okay: A Year-End Reminder
Okay, you’re in it. This is probably the most stressful time of the year with your work. Well, I guess if you add on all the holidays and all that goes with it, it feels like piling on.
3 min read
Are You Focused on the Right Donors?
Many years ago, I was working with an MGO to help create her donor portfolio. We were going through a process called the “gut check” to separate which donors were actually qualified from those that...
