What Do Women See When They Look At Your Organization?
Imagine the following scenario: A woman just heard about your organization for the first time. Perhaps a friend mentioned your work to her, or a piece from your recent marketing campaign made an impression. Your mission intrigues her. She wants to know more and – maybe – get involved. Like most of us these days, […]
AFP Reports on Engaging Women Donors
To unlock the full potential of women’s philanthropy, fundraisers must understand how gender shapes giving behavior. Women and men give differently, and the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) has developed research that explores unique questions about the factors that shape gender-based giving patterns – including age, religion, income, marital status, and more. “Fundraisers who adapt their practices to […]
How To Change The Unconscious Stories You Are Telling About Women in Philanthropy
In my last post, we unpacked the story that “women are harder” to fundraise from. Working with women donors can feel hard because our fundraising best practices don’t always work. Why? Because these approaches were created in the male-centric fundraising landscape of the 1950s and 1960s. Women aren’t harder, just different in how they prefer […]
Is It Harder to Fundraise from Women?
I recently asked a leader of advancement at a state college if she used different approaches in working with women versus men donors on her campus. This was not meant to be a trick question. I was very curious, as she had been a leader in sorority fundraising and had demonstrated an understanding of how […]
It’s Time to Question Fundraising “Best Practices”
When you started your nonprofit career, you probably heard things like: “If you want a major gift, make sure you mention who else is giving what.” “Competition and recognition work; identify who wants to lead the campaign and give the top gift.” “Access to leadership will incentivize donors.” “This is how you ask for an […]
Four Key Takeaways from the DonorSearch Flash Class: “Gender Matters: A Practical Approach to Grow Women’s Philanthropy”
I was delighted to lead a recent class for DonorSearch. 150 people joined; all asking great questions. I can see the commitment to women’s philanthropy growing! You can watch the full class below. To break it down, here are four key takeaways, including how to start: Four Key Takeaways from the “Gender Matters: A […]
The “Traditional” Donor Life Cycle May Not Apply to Women
In your work as a fundraiser, you may use the term “donor life cycle.” This model charts the path of a donor through several sequential phases of engagement and giving to causes they care about: first gift, occasional gifts, consistent annual gifts, major or stretch gifts, leadership role and accompanying giving, and finally, a planned […]
The Engagement Trap: Moving from Meaningful Connection to Meaningful Gift
The research on women’s philanthropy highlights again and again that women want to be engaged before they are asked for a gift. For example, in their 2015 report, “Where Do Men and Women Give?,” the Women’s Philanthropy Institute found: Women report that they are motivated to give because they are on the board or volunteer […]
We Won’t Raise More Money Unless We Stop Acting Like All Donors Are White Men
Worrisome trends are emerging in U.S. philanthropy. Although overall charitable giving is growing, the share of Americans who give is declining, and the incidence of giving is down in most every age group. This giving gap opened because of complex reasons, but one thing is clear: We are seeing fewer Americans give because we are applying the […]