Published July 12, 2016 by

Fundraising 201: Avoiding Traps, Achieving Success

 

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Fundraising is very important to the sustainability of most non-profit organizations. As noted in an earlier series: No money, no mission.  In this post, Leah Lamb offers insight into successfully conducting campaigns.  She explores these in the context of earlier posts in this Your Outcomes Well series.  Going the wrong way, as a fundraiser seeks to raise funds the right way, can block a non-profit’s success.

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Leah Lamb

In this Series I’ve tried to offer some insight into an area I’ve worked in for many years: Fundraising. As important as knowing what to do, to be a successful fundraiser, is also knowing what not to do. Routinely making mistakes or falling into traps are signs of an ineffectual fundraising operation.

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Fundraising Leah Lamb Non-profit organizations Sustainability

Published June 15, 2016 by

Non-profit Marketing: Insights from a Seasoned Pro

With effective marketing and branding, a non-profit organization is better able to accomplish it’s Mission and achieve sustainability.  In this post Leah Lamb shares insights, gained over many years, to help non-profit leaders optimally market and brand their organizations.

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Leah Lamb

While many large non-profits get marketing and branding right, I think that the vast majority of small and mid-sized non-profit organizations don’t. What separates the non-profits that do from the ones that don’t?   It depends, I’ve observed over the years, on these things: Leadership, tapping into their resources, and having an entrepreneurial spirit. Again, many large non-profits do a great job with marketing and branding, in most cases because they’ve budgeted for these things. Some in fact do as good a job as large companies like Coca Cola, Frito-Lay, and other major brands in this area.

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Non-profits: Better Outcomes

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Published May 31, 2016 by

Non-profits: 4 Fundraising Mistakes to Avoid Making

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A mission is a terrible thing to waste. However worthwhile an organization’s mission, without funds a non-profit can’t operate.  In this post Leah Lamb shares four (4) fundraising mistakes a non-profit should strive not to make.  

Effective, successful fundraisers understand the mistake-prone areas she cites and generally avoid falling into the traps they present.

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Leah Lamb

I’ve shared, in my last two posts, the key to thriving as a fundraiser. In this post I thought I’d address the success-blocking mistakes that I’ve observed in my 25+ years working in the non-profit sector. If you make these four (4) mistakes regularly, you’ll likely be surviving – not thriving.

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Published May 28, 2016 by

Series Snapshot / Sofia S. Crisp: My Non-profit Journey

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Sofia Crisp

Executive Director, Housing Consultants Group

“My journey started as a leap of faith and is now my passion! Seeing that box in the corner of my friend’s office moved me to think ‘out of the box’ – and launch, manage, and grow the non-profit organization I lead today . . . I have a great team of employees, contractors, and Board members that have allowed me to grow HCG to what it is today.  This was not a one-woman journey”.

“While I didn’t think the journey would be easy, I had no idea how hard it would be! Do I have any regrets? No, none. The journey has been a mixture joy, pain, successes and failures. Every emotion necessary has been experienced; it’s part of why I believe the organization has been successful.”

Why I Started My Non-Profit (Sofia S Crisp)

Why I Started My Non-Profit (Sofia S Crisp)

Working ‘in your Gift’

Challenges I’ve Faced – Challenges I’ve Faced (Part 2)

Building the Right Board

Successes I’ve Achieved

My Non-profit Journey: Avoiding Mission Creep

Growing Pains

Time Management

Collaborations and Partnerships

Sofia Crisp: Where Do We Go From Here?

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Non-profit Leadership

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Published May 10, 2016 by

Fundraising: The Best Way To Motivate Giving (Non-profits)

 

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Who donates to a Non-profit and who doesn’t?  What moves donors to donate?  Leah Lamb, in the 3rd post in this Series, shares the three things she regularly strives to do to successfully motivate people to give.  

Fundraising should rarely be done by a single person (or department) within a non-profit organization. To put it simply, Lone Rangers rarely flourish.

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Non-profit fundraising Non-profits: Better Outcomes

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Published April 27, 2016 by

5 Habits of Highly-Effective Fundraisers

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A non-profit’s sustainability is greatly benefited when they can fundraise successfully.  

In this post, Leah Lamb shares what allows fundraisers to be highly effective.  Her experience as a seasoned professional allows her to clearly capture what allows fundraisers to go beyond just surviving – and thrive.

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Leah Lamb

What qualities and factors explain the success of the best fundraisers?  I’ve worked in the non-profit sector for over 25 years. I would cite five habits which allow the best fundraisers to flourish.

  1. Connecting with people. In general, fundraising is people driven. As I noted in my last post, people generally give to people, not causes or organizations. A fundraiser who isn’t able to connect well with others isn’t generally going to do too well. In getting an organization’s message across, a good fundraiser is able to compel people to get involved and give.

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Non-profit fundraising

Fundraising Leah Lamb Non-profit organizations

Published April 15, 2016 by

Mission Fulfillment & Fundraising: Leah Lamb’s Non-profit Journey

As we talked with Leah Y. Lamb in mid-March, the Chief Development Officer’s insight into fundraising, nonprofit management, communications, & donor relations was hard to hide.  In her leadership position at the See Forever Foundation & Maya Angelou Schools (Charter) in Washington, D.C. since 2013, Lamb spoke eloquently on several non-profit issues.

  • Our 4th blog Series, which begins today with this post, will strive to capture several of the strategies, views, and thoughts shared by Lamb. This post will help you understand the non-profit journey of this seasoned fundraising professional.

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Published April 12, 2016 by

It Takes a Village: Planning for Community Leaders

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If you have the right people at the table, when you plan new community services, you’ll be much more effective.  In this post, Delquanda Turner shares who should be involved in the early planning phase – those you serve (your constituents) and, ideally, other partner organizations.

  • Taking a broad-based approach to planning is, Turner feels, the way to go.  Choosing a ‘go it alone’ approach isn’t.

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Non-profits: Better Outcomes

Community planning Delquanda Turner Jim Collins Non-profit leadership Non-profit organizations Partnering Planning Robin Morgan

Published March 22, 2016 by

Starting and Sustaining a Non-profit Organization

Non-profits: Better Outcomes Starting a Non-profit

Delquanda Turner Non-profit leadership Non-profit organizations Perseverance Starting a non-profit Sustainability

Published March 4, 2016 by

The 7th Quality of True Leadership: Just Say No

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The decisions which a Leader consciously makes, to not do something, can be quite revealing of his or her leadership talents. In this Series post, Delquanda Turner offers another True Leadership quality; in her last post, the 6 Qualities of True Leadership were explored by her.  In this post, a 7th Quality of such non-profit and community leaders will be shared.

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