Resources and References
What are the best ways to raise money?
Are there ready-made sources of fundraising plans for nonprofits?
What are some good resources for a new development department?
Where can I learn more about direct mail fundraising?
Where can I find calculations for raising money for our foundation?
What programs do you recommend for a young person to become effective in foundation and corporate fundraising?
Where can I find information on international fundraising?
Are there workshops on teaching writing for direct mail fundraising?
Where can I find a good writer?
Can you refer me to a credible website for someone just beginning with writing grants?
Where can I get help writing a fundraising letter?
Where can I find a book of model fundraising letters?
Do you have books on how to cultivate middle donors?
Where can I find examples of annual appeal letters to board members?
Where can I get help obtaining government grants?
What alternatives to grants do you suggest?
Do you have suggestions on where to look for funding...besides applying for grants with national foundations?
What are the best web sites for making donations?
Do you offer a mentoring system for nonprofits?
Does Mal Warwick & Associates offer online fundraising courses?
How can I get materials from a recent event?
Are there books on fundraising for hospitals?
Are there any books on telephone fundraising?
Where can I find a list of the largest direct mail fundraisers?
Can you tell me where I can research different direct mail fundraising companies?
What's a good resource for university telefundraisers?
Which fundraising conferences are the best?
What is a good source for testing data and market research?
What are the best sources of information for trends in philanthropy?
Where can I find information on benchmarking?
Where can I find a comprehensive collection of fundraising laws and regulations?
Can you provide some information about donor solicitation in quarterly newsletters vs. direct mail packages?
Where can I find funding for children in Serbia?
Is there any research regarding the way people read leaflets?
What's the answer to your pop quiz in your book "Testing, Testing, 1,2,3?"
Do you have a working definition of "Integrated Development?"
What are the best ways to raise money?
I want to raise money for a Catholic Religious Order that is starting to grow and needs to buy a property. They have a project. Which are the best ways to fundraise money?
Mal Answers: I suggest you purchase a book by Joan Flanagan entitled "Successful Fundraising." It's the best introductory overview to the field that I know, and it's readily available through the usual channels. I know it's on Amazon.com, for example.
Are there ready-made sources of fundraising plans for nonprofits?
I need a FR plan / resource for a pregnancy center... any suggestions?
Mal Answers: If you can find any source of ready-made fundraising plans for nonprofit organizations of any type, I wish you all the best in trying to implement them. I doubt very much that any cookie-cutter approach to fundraising will work for any nonprofit.
Instead, I suggest you purchase a copy of Joan Flanagan's excellent introductory book, Successful Fundraising. A second edition is available in paperback, and it's worth every penny and more. You'll easily find it online.
What are some good resources for a new development department?
Mal Answers: This one's easy:
(1) Purchase and read "Hank Rosso's Achieving Excellence in Fund Raising," edited by Eugene Tempel (Jossey-Bass, 2003). It's the best, most up-to-date introduction and overview to the fundraising field. (Disclosure: I confess. I contributed a chapter.)
(2) Check out the Association of Fundraising Professionals, which holds regional as well as a huge international conference. Each year, there's an event called "Fund Raising Day in . . ." held in each of many major cities. The larger local chapters have monthly events, sometimes even more frequent, on specialized topics. They're also great places to network and meet potential hires.
Where can I learn more about direct mail fundraising?
Are there any conferences/seminars designed specifically for direct mail fundraising? I attend the annual NSFRE conference, but would prefer more substance over show-and-tell. Any suggestions? Will you be at the NSFRE conference next year to teach a session?
Mal Answers: Occasionally there are one- or two-day workshops or conferences devoted exclusively to direct mail fundraising. I've done a few myself over the years. But I don't know of anything in the near future.
The nonprofit arm of the Direct Marketing Association -- now called the DMA Nonprofit Federation -- has two educational conferences each year, one in New York (usually August), the other in Washington DC (usually January). These are great opportunities to learn from the experience of some of the most active nonprofit mailers in the country. You may want to consider joining, but you could attend as a non-member for a slightly higher rate. Check the DMA on the Web at www.federationofnonprofits.org for more information.
At its own annual International Fund Raising Conferences, the NSFRE -- soon to be renamed the Association of Fundraising Professionals -- offers at least a few really worthwhile sessions on direct mail fundraising (definitely not "show-and-tell"). If you attend the coming conference in San Diego (March 2001) and you need help identifying those sessions, check with me in advance. I, too, will be doing a session there, but my topic will be "The Five Strategies for Fundraising Success" (the topic of my most recent book), which is a lot more general than direct mail.
Where can I find calculations for raising money for our foundation?
Could you point me to a resource that would help me calculate the cost to raise a dollar for our Foundation? I was hoping to find sample calculations that provide a standard of what is usually included and excluded in the calculation, if such an animal exists.
Mal answers: Sorry, there's no such animal that I'm aware of. The calculations are straightforward, but each organization decides for itself what to include and what to exclude.
Typically, the cost of fundraising is calculated on the basis of the out-of-pocket costs (such as printing, postage, design, and copywriting). At some organizations, fees paid for contracted management or consulting services are included. At others, they're not.
The biggest variable, of course, are the overhead costs for any fundraising program: staff salaries and benefits, occupancy, depreciation, the works. However, most of the nonprofits with which I've worked have opted to exclude those items from their calculations — for a simple reason. The fundraising ratio, or cost to raise a dollar, is most useful to compare internally the cost-effectiveness of the various components of a fundraising program: special events vs. direct mail, for example. The value of even that information is open to debate, but it can be useful in some circumstances.
What's not useful is to compare your fundraising cost with that of another charity. There are far too many variable factors that determine the cost of fundraising. That measurement is paid far too much attention. It's much more useful to look at such measurements as the Long-Term Value of your donors or the Return on Investment in your fundraising program. Those measures offer far more insight into the true performance of your efforts than simple, one-dimensional cost to raise a dollar.
What are some good resources for getting started in professional fundraising?
I'd like your recommendation on up to 3 resources (websites, books, etc.) where I can get started in professional fundraising. I have decent exposure due to my previous role as an operations executive for a large national not-for-profit service organization. But I'm being considered for an executive position at a similar organization where generating $3-4M/year is one of the responsibilities. I'm most interested in (1) different ideas and methods of thinking about and approaching fundraising, and (2) something practical that might discuss specific systems and management methods. PS: I noticed you previously recommended Successful Fundraising by Joan Flanagan.
Mal Answers: Yes, Joan Flanagan's book, Successful Fundraising, offers a valuable introduction to the field. Its focus, however, is largely on community-based nonprofit organizations that are smaller than the one you're talking to.
As a first step, I suggest you read Hank Rosso's Achieving Excellence in Fund Raising, Second Edition, edited by Eugene Tempel and published by Jossey-Bass this year. (It's the best overall introduction to fundraising that I know. Admittedly, I contributed a chapter.)
I'll be even more immodest and suggest you also read my book, The Five Strategies for Fundraising Success, published by Jossey-Bass in 1999. The approach I take puts fundraising in a new perspective and should help you gain a view of the Big Picture.
There are lots of books about specific aspects of fundraising. A list of recommendations about these specialized areas would be endless. I think you'll find that those two books will help ground you in the state of current thinking.
What programs do you recommend for a young person to become effective in foundation and corporate fundraising?
From your experience, what institutes, training programs, books, etc. do you recommend to help a 25-year old junior fundraising officer begin to develop the sales and communication skills needed to be effective in his role in foundation and corporate fundraising?
Mal answers: I wish I could give you a useful answer. Unfortunately, this question aims outside my area of expertise. I wouldn't know where to start in pointing you toward training programs or materials.
With that said, my own experience suggests that time and experience are the only true answer to your challenge. The core of what you're seeking is maturity — and that's hard to come by in a training program or from reading a book.
Where can I find information on international fundraising?
I am writing a marketing concept for our organization. So far we only have experience with fundraising in Switzerland but hope to expand our efforts gradually to other countries. Your article on "Transposing Direct Marketing Principles from North to South: What works..." is the only one I've found effectively commenting on a specific method applicable on an international scale. Do you have any more information on the above mentioned subject?
Mal Answers: I understand the difficulty you're encountering. There is very, very little in print on the topic of fundraising techniques that work successfully in many countries. In addition to the article you mention, I suggest you visit the website of the Resource Alliance, for whom I wrote it. There are many other articles to be found, and some may be useful for you.
I also suggest you contact the European direct marketing firm SAZ, which has successfully applied direct mail fundraising techniques in a great many countries.
Are there workshops on teaching writing for direct mail fundraising?
I am a writer in the early stages of my career in fundraising and I am looking for a workshop that specifically teaches techniques for writing direct mail appeals. It seems that the market is flooded with general direct mail seminars, but nothing focused specifically for the writer's needs. Ideas? Recommendations?
Mal answers: I feel your pain, as a successful politician used to say. It's rare to encounter workshops available to the general public on direct mail fundraising. I used to do a fair number of them, but for some years now I've offered this sort of course only on demand from nonprofit or fundraising associations, usually at conferences. I don't know of anyone else in the field who actively teaches the craft publicly.
Still, from time to time, there are such workshops offered at fundraising conferences. The Association of Fundraising Professionals, both at its International Conference and at many of its chapters' local and regional events, includes such workshops. You can check out the offerings at www.afpnet.org. There may also be such workshops from time to time at conferences held by CASE (Council for the Advancement and Support of Education) and AHP (the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy).
The best I can suggest is along the lines of shameless self-promotion: get a copy of my book, How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters. You can get it online either through my Web site or at Amazon.com.
Where can I find a good writer?
Where are some good places to look for candidates to add to our current writing staff? The nonprofit ministry I work for would like to hire some additional "persuasive writers," but the ads we've run have not turned up any candidates with the skills we need. Any suggestions? Are YOU looking for a new job, Mal?
Mal answers: If you're looking for full-time staff members, I'm not surprised you're having a tough time finding candidates. Writers are an independent lot, and most of them I know are willing to work only on a freelance, project-by-project basis. If you can settle for that arrangement, I suggest you try advertising through the Direct Marketing Fundraisers Association in New York, which accepts employment ads, and/or through the Direct Marketing Association Nonprofit Federation, which may do so also. The DMA Nonprofit Federation is based in Washington, DC. By the way, thanks for the personal offer, but no thanks. I've already got a few things to keep me busy! Best of luck!
Can you refer me to a credible website for someone just beginning with writing grants?
Mal answers: Sorry, I can't help you on this one. It's outside the scope of my knowledge. I suggest you look up The Grantsmanship Center, which may be able to help
Where can I get help writing a fundraising letter?
We would like to approach local businesses to solicit support for our girls' softball team and feel the need to have a letter for the girls and parents to bring along. I need help putting together the right message. Where can I find that help?
Mal answers: Under the circumstances, the only thing I can suggest is to obtain a copy of my book, How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters. You won't find an example in it of a letter that meets exactly that purpose, but it will help you learn the basic rules to follow. The book has sold very widely and is available in many libraries as well as online through either my Web site or Amazon.com.
Where can I find a book of model fundraising letters?
Where would I find a compilation of Fundraising letters for events, annual funds, etc. Many organizations have a book of letters gathered from like organizations re: membership, event letters, etc.
Mal Answers: I'm not a big fan of using books of letters as a guide to writing. Far too often, I've found that what works for one organization may be way off the mark for another. I much prefer helping people learn the fundamentals of writing fundraising letters, so they can do it themselves. My book, How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters, is based on that premise.
However, there is one good book of this sort that's definitely worth a look. It's Roland Kuniholm's "The Complete Book of Model Fundraising Letters." Roland knows his stuff!
Do you have books on how to cultivate middle donors?
I am trying to do research on how to cultivate middle donors. Do any of your books, commentaries, etc. talk about this topic? Thank you!
Mal Answers: Absolutely! That's essentially the topic of my book, "The Mercifully Brief, Real-World Guide to Raising $1,000 Gifts by Mail." You can find it easily online.
Good luck, and thank you for writing.
Where can I find examples of annual appeal letters to board members?
Also, we just completed a campaign with our board asking for pledges over a five-year period. Is it appropriate to ask for an annual gift on top of this, or to ask the board members to consider upping their pledges?
Mal answers: I wish I could help you with samples of annual appeal letters to board members, but I'm drawing a blank. Frankly, unless my organization had a really large board — say, 40 or more — I'd be inclined not to mail an appeal but to solicit them face-to-face.
If you're asking for multi-year pledges, I would assume that you're seeking the largest possible gift from each individual. If that's the case, I wouldn't favor asking for an annual gift in addition.
Where can I get help obtaining government grants?
Can you, or better, will you be so kind as to provide us with the name and address of one or two firms who specialize in getting government grants?
Mal answers: I thank you for writing, and I wish I could answer your question directly. But government grants are far outside my circle of knowledge. I suggest you contact the National Society of Fund Raising Executives (NSFRE). They're on the Web at www.nsfre.org. Their phone number (in Alexandria VA) is 1-800-666-FUND. One of their directories should contain the information you're looking for. Good luck!
What alternatives to grants do you suggest?
As small non-profits such as ours receive less and less money from United Way etc. what Grantraising ideas do you suggest?
Mal answers: I suggest you find ways other than grants to secure the funds you need. Start by considering whether there is some sort of for-profit activity your group could operate successfully. Also, look into raising money from individuals. Grant funding from any source is not a reliable long-term foundation for any nonprofit.
Do you have suggestions on where to look for funding...besides applying for grants with national foundations?
I work for a nonprofit whose mission is to educate people about foreign policy issues and raise awareness about world cultures, languages, and traditions. We are a membership organization and we make little profit through our programs and annual membership renewals. But the last two years have been hard, due to tight economic times and senior management changes, and there are very few sources (foundations etc.) in this city that raise funds for our mission. Could you suggest areas where we could be looking to raise money, beside applying for grants with foundations located outside Missouri and Kansas? Any ideas would be helpful. We are kicking off our capital campaign next year to raise close to $4 million, and I am beginning to worry that there may not be good prospects to raise so much money from 2004 - 2007.
Mal answers: As a certain former U.S. President was fond of saying, "I feel your pain." Clearly, you're facing a big challenge.
For starters, I strongly suspect you're right in doubting the feasibility of proceeding with a capital campaign next year. First, it's clear that your leadership isn't settled firmly in place. I would never recommend that you move ahead with a capital campaign unless your leadership's vision is clear and clearly stated. Second, judging from what you've written, you don't appear to have a broad or strong enough funding base on which you could establish a capital campaign. Leadership gifts in a capital campaign rarely come out of the blue: they come from committed donors.
On the other hand, it's clear that the U.S. public has begun to take a much greater interest in international affairs since 9-11. International charities are receiving greater support from the public. I don't know for sure that foundations are moving in that direction too, but I suspect that's the case. The money is out there.
The first thought that occurs to me is that you might turn to the Kauffman foundation there in Kansas City. Judging from what I've read, their agenda has broadened considerably under new leadership in recent years. But I suspect you've already checked them out. If not, they may have suggestions as to where else you might go, even if they're unwilling to help you directly.
I take it that your focus is on public education in your region. If that's the case, then you're in no way competitive with similar organizations in other areas, and you might turn to them for advice. For example, the World Affairs Council, which is located in many cities around the country, might be able to give you a hand.
What are the best web sites for making donations?
Who has the best site for us to connect to to receive gifts over the internet? Who has the best planned giving info pages and calculations for us to use or connect to through our internet site?
Mal answers: The following information is from my colleague, Ginger Lubkowitz of our affiliated company, donordigital.com.
"If it's a small nonprofit that doesn't want to set up their own merchant account and customized giving pages, I'd recommend helping.org. There's no set up charge, they can have a link from their site to a unique URL, and funds are transferred to the organization by check or EFT.
"If they want very customized giving pages (which of course is preferable) I've been quite impressed by eContributor.com, which also has no set-up fee, charges 8% per transaction, designs a template that looks like your site and allows you to modify your own giving page once the first page is up.
"Planned giving: I've heard www.giftlegacy.com is good. If you go to their site they have links to organizations using their online services."
Do you offer a mentoring system for nonprofits?
Also, I would like to know how to continuely raise funds and keep the funds coming in each financial year. We conduct direct mail appeals, street appeals, and corporate appeals. Could you please suggest other ways of raising funds? My role here covers public relations, organising the fundraising activites, sponsorships, grants, sending all thank yous, etc.
Mal answers: My agency's clients tend to work with us year-round on an ongoing basis. We conceive, write, design, produce, and mail solicitations for them, then analyze the results — all under their supervision and with their approval. The closest we come to the "mentoring" arrangement you suggest is when we work as consultants. However, that would be a bit difficult for us to do, given the distance between California and Western Australia.
Rather than look for additional fundraising techniques, I suggest that you gain some perspective on your agency's fundraising strategy, which will point the way toward specific fundraising opportunities. In all immodesty, I think you'd be well-served by reading my book, The Five Strategies for Fundraising Success, as a starting point.
Does Mal Warwick & Associates offer online fundraising courses?
Does Mal Warwick & Associates, Inc., offer online fundraising courses that students can register and pay for? If so what would be some titles and where would they be located on your site?
Mal answers: You're not the first person to ask this question. Unfortunately, though, we haven't gotten into the online education business. It's an intriguing thought, but we're stretched thin working with clients, teaching at conferences, writing, books and newsletters, and all the rest.
How can I get materials from a recent event?
Hi Mal - I attended your Gift Works semionar and was wondering I could get a copy of your presentation to share with my coworkers. (It would also make more sense out of my notes!) Thanks!
Mal answers: The presentation is online now at http://www.malwarwick.com/learning-resources/
materials-from-recent-events.html -- along with tons of other free material.
Are there books on fundraising for hospitals?
Are there any books that deal with just direct mail appeals and how to write letters for direct mail appeals for hospitals?
Mal answers: There are several books dedicated to the topic of writing fundraising appeals, most of which you can probably find in any Foundation Center Library, if not in your public library. I've written one myself, "How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters," and it's pretty good, if I do say so myself! You can find it on my Web site at www.malwarwick.com/publications.html.
However, I know of no book exclusively on the topic of writing appeals for hospitals. The Association for Healthcare Philanthropy will know of it, if it's been published. Or perhaps they distribute a booklet or pamphlet on the subject. I suggest you check with them.
Good luck and thanks for writing!
Are books on fundraising available in Chinese?
I like those books you wrote very much. How do you think of translating some of them into Chinese? For fundraising is just beginning in China.
Mal Answers: Thank you very much for your kind words. I'm glad you found my books useful. I am told that one of my books — How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters, I believe — will be translated into Chinese and published there. When I visited Beijing early last year, Prof. Wang Ming of Tsinghua University inquired about that possibility and someone acting on his behalf later arranged with my publisher in the United States to purchase the rights. I don't know when the book is to be released, and I don't know if there are plans to publish any of the other books in China.
Are there any books on telephone fundraising?
Do you have any books that have sample telemarketing scripts for fundraising that you can recommend? I'm looking for something similar to your "How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters" only on telemarketing fundraising.
Mal Answers: Sorry. I wish I could point you to something, but, unfortunately, I'm not aware of any good book in this area. Some years ago I did an article on this topic for CASE Currents, the magazine for university development officers -- but even that may be too far a field for you (assuming you could even track down the piece). I've made a couple of attempts to persuade my colleagues in the telemarketing business to write on this subject, but I guess they're all too busy talking on the phone.
Where can I find a list of the largest direct mail fundraisers?
I am searching for a list of the largest fundraisers/charities that solicit donations through direct mail. Would you know where I can find such a list? Thank you for your help.
Mal answers: If you find such a list, please let me know. I'd like one, too.
Unfortunately, I know of no one who compiles this information. My own knowledge of the field comes from anecdotal evidence, which is, of course, notably unreliable. I've never seen any of the trade publications attempt to develop such a list.
Can you tell me where I can research different direct mail fundraising companies?
We send out our new member mailings each spring and fall. We have used one direct mail fundraising company for some time and just don't seem to get that many new members. We want to look into different companies and explore getting better lists. Do you have any suggestions for us?
Mal Answers: I suggest you contact the Association of Direct Response Fundraising Counsel (ADRFCO) in Washington, DC. Ask for a copy of their membership directory. You'll find several dozen direct mail fundraising companies listed there, all of them adhering to ADRFCO's stringent code of ethics. Call Bob Tigner, Chief Counsel, at (202) 293-9640, or email him at ADRFCO@aol.com.
What's a good resource for university telefundraisers?
We are looking to compare (benchmark) fulfillment on our last telefundraising campaign with other large universities. Do you have some statistics on how well colleges/universities redeem pledges they get on the phone?
Mal answers: I suggest that you contact CASE in Washington, DC -- the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. I'm sure you know of the organization. If your university is a member, you should be able to get the information you want. If not, you might want to consider membership. CASE is a clearinghouse for information of this sort and produces lots of material valuable to fundraisers in higher education.
How do I choose the right telemarketing firm?
We are renewing a telemarketing contract with a for-profit organization this January. Right now we net about $160,000 a year from this contract. The contract has not been very well defined in the past, and I want to know what are some things we need to have in this contract in order to maximize profit and our ability to capture new donors?
Mal answers: There's a chapter on telephone fundraising in my latest book, the second edition of Revolution in the Mailbox, which includes a list of suggestions about how to choose a suitable telemarketing firm. That may be of help to you. However, if you're using the telephone to recruit new donors, I suspect you won't be happy with my recommendations. I'm no fan of that practice. In my experience, telephone-recruited donors are of questionable future value, because they tend to resist renewing their support through channels other than the telephone, which is an extremely expensive way to communicate with donors and is unsuitable for routine communications. Even worse, telephone prospecting is the source of massive complaints from the public. Using that approach puts you in the same category as those bogus police and firefighter "charities" that cause so much paperwork at the State Attorney General's office.
Where can I find a fundraising consultant?
How do you recommend finding good fundraising and management consultants?
Mal answers: As a starting point, I suggest you seek out professional organizations that have strong codes of ethics.
For example, the Association of Fundraising Professionals in Alexandria, VA, which places very strong emphasis on ethical professional and fundraising practices. AFP can refer you to a list of consultants in your area or in a specialized field. Contact them online at www.afpnet.org.
If you're looking specifically for a consultant in direct mail fundraising, turn to ADRFCO, the Association of Direct Response Fundraising Counsel, in Washington, DC. Call them for a directory of members at (202) 293-9640.
There are other, similar organizations with which I'm not nearly so familiar. I'm sure you can do a little searching on the Web and come up with several possibilities.
Which fundraising conferences are the best?
Could you comment on which fundraising conferences you think are most worth attending, both in the U.S. and around the world?
Mal answers: While I'm least involved in workshops regarding grants, I can tell you about the more general fundraising conferences:
* For starters, the very best conference in the world for fundraisers with at least 5 years of experience is the International Fundraising Congress, held annually in The Netherlands in October by the Resource Alliance.
* For the Global South generally, the Resource Alliance holds an International Fund Raising Workshop each year, alternating among Bangkok, Agra, and South or East Africa. Next year the IFRW will take place in Johannesburg at the end of March.
* In the U.S., the yearly AFP International Conference is the best bet for those coming from outside the United States who are looking for a general conference. To be held next March in Seattle.
* The AFP also holds several large regional conferences under the name "Fund Raising Day In . . ." New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, and many other cities. New York Washington, and San Francisco all attract 1000-2000 people each year. Check AFP for information. So does the annual Canadian Fundraising Congress, usually held in November by the AFP Chapter in Toronto.
* If you're interested in direct marketing, the best conferences are those held by the Direct Marketing Association Nonprofit Federation. There are annual conferences in New York (August), Washington DC (February), and San Francisco (June). The biggest one is in New York.
* For those in hospital fundraising, the Association of Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP) holds both national and regional conferences all over the U.S.
* For those in higher education, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) is the group to contact. They, too, hold both national regional conferences, many of which are quite large and diverse.
* If you are engaged in legacy fundraising, check out the national conference held each fall by the National Committee on Planned Giving (NCPG). This, too, is very well attended, I'm told, and it offers strong educational opportunities.
What is a good source for testing data and market research?
I am currently writing my thesis on how people are affected by different types of appeal letters, how they respond, what makes them open the envelope, whether asking for a specific amount impacts their giving, etc. Throughout my research, I have quickly learned that there are many published opinions on how to conduct a direct mailing, but few include supporting data. Do you have any recommendations? Reports you might share with me? Locations where I might be able to find proven documentation and studies on direct mail campaigns?
Mal answers: Most of the information you're looking for is, at best, hard to find. There are really two different types of data you're looking for:
(1) TEST RESULTS. Some of the questions you're posing can be answered by testing. However, for reasons I don't fully understand, most nonprofits that conduct direct mail tests closely guard the results information (even though it's not really applicable to any other organization's direct mail program). The only publication anywhere I know of that relates the results of the sorts of tests you're referring to is my own recent book, Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3: Raise More Money with Direct Mail Tests. The book includes results of more than 300 tests.
(2) MARKETING RESEARCH. There is one book, and only one, as far as I'm aware, that comes to grips with the questions about readers' behavior when they receive direct mail: it's called the Handbook of Direct Mail, by Siegfried Voegele (translated from German). Unfortunately, it seems to be out of print. It's not even listed on Amazon. Maybe you can find a copy in a library or on the Web through used book sites.
You've taken up a challenging topic. Lots of luck!
What are the best sources of information for trends in philanthropy?
I am looking for information on future trends in philanthropy and membership, forecasts of anticipated changes in giving behavior as well as technology, changes in institutional giving, etc.
Mal answers: There are three primary sources of the sort of information you're looking for.
* The Washington, D.C.-based organization Independent Sector tracks much of this information and periodically publishes reports on its findings.
* The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University is the country's leading academic center on philanthropy and now edits the annual Giving USA, which contains most of the information you seek. That book is widely cited in the field and is readily available.
* At Johns Hopkins University Lester Salamon heads a study center that is the acknowledged source of the most reliable research on global philanthropy.
You might also find help at the Foundation Center, which is based in New York City.
Where can I find information on benchmarking?
I am looking for information on "benchmarking" and standards, and outcomes measurements for development/advancement. Do you have information you could send, or, know of someone I could contact who is or has been working in this area?
Mal answers: Benchmarking is a touchy subject in fundraising, as you know very well. Fundraising projects or programs may be deemed "successful" rather than "unsuccessful," depending on who's talking. Still, there have been several efforts over the years to get to the bottom of this matter.
Among the top practitioners, James Greenfield stands out for his work on evaluating fundraising programs. He's written a number of books, some of which deal straightforwardly with evaluation. I suggest you check out his thinking.
AFP, then NSFRE, formed a task force some years ago to search for benchmarks. There was a preliminary report a few years ago, but, to the best of my knowledge, no final report ever saw the light of day. I don't know the reason for this. But you may be able to dig out some of their work somewhere at AFP. I suggest trying the AFP Resource Center.
In the mid-1990s, I wrote a workbook called "Hands On Guide to Fundraising Strategy and Evaluation." I featured ten benchmarks and developed worksheets to measure them. The book was published by Aspen Publishers and is now out of print. I believe I have a few copies left, though. If you're interested, please contact sheila@malwarwick.com. Please note, however, that I didn't write about the levels a successful organization should strive for — merely provided the tools to determine those levels, in the interest of developing quarter-to-quarter and year-to-year comparisons.
Where can I find a comprehensive collection of fundraising laws and regulations?
Is there a publication that lists all of the pertinent fundraising regulations and tax laws? We are looking for a booklet or binder of materials that are easily accessible for ready reference.
Mal answers: I'm stumped. I doubt that there's a comprehensive collection of these laws and regs. But if there is one, I'm not familiar with it. Frankly, I assume that there are far too many such provisions to compile easily in one binder. However, you might try contacting one of the several attorneys who specialize in nonprofit registration law: for example, Errol Copilevitz in Kansas City, or Seth Perlman in New York City. They're both experts in the field and would know if anyone does.
For many years now, the AAFRC Trust for Philanthropy, which collaborates with the Center for Philanthropy at Indiana University to publish Giving USA, has issued a brief annual state-by-state summary of such provisions. You could contact either of them for a copy.
Can you provide some information about donor solicitation in quarterly newsletters vs. direct mail packages?
Mal answers: Unfortunately, the straight answer is no. I've observed direct mail fundraising programs in which a quarterly (or bimonthly) newsletter was the centerpiece, pulling significant response rates and yielding the lion's share of the revenue. More frequently, I've seen programs in which a newsletter breaks even or yields a modest profit. And I've seen others which fell in-between.
The ultimate answer to your question, then, is my Universal Law of Fundraising: It depends.
Where can I find funding for children in Serbia?
Do you know of any foudations or organizations that would be willing to grant funds for work with extremely underprivileged Roma (gypsies) in Serbia and other children that experience the prejudices of society?
Mal answers: By coincidence, I was in Budapest very recently to teach at the 9th Central and Eastern European Fundraising Workshop. There I met a number of people from Serbia and nearby countries, some of whom are engaged in the sort of work you describe.
My impression is that most international funders have been pulling out of the states of the former Yugoslavia and turning their attention farther east, to Central Asia. Foundations are, after all, fickle. Fads predominate.
However, I suggest you contact the folks who organized that workshop — the Civil Society Development Foundation in Budapest. They have as good a command of knowledge about funding in that part of the world as anyone. Write to sator.balazs@ctf.hu. Balazs Sator is the Executive Director of the Foundation. I think he can point you in the right direction.
Is there any research regarding the way people read leaflets?
Do you know of any research into the way people read leaflets? i.e. are there some key influencing points? In particular we are interested in a tri-fold DLE and wonder if one configuration of folding is any better than another. Our database numbers are too small to do any meaningful testing.
Mal answers: There is one book — currently out of print, but soon to be republished in Australia — that deals, in part, with how people read leaflets. It's Type & Layout, by Colin Wheildon, with some contributions by yours truly. However, it focuses on typography and page layout and doesn't touch on the impact of folding.
Based on what I learned from the experience of editing Wheildon's book, and on what I've seen over the years in direct mail fundraising, I'd say that it's important that the first surface to meet the reader's eye be, well, eye-catching. It would be an obvious mistake, of course, for that panel to feature nothing but "gray" type. I suspect that the greatest impact would come from having the top panel face-forward, assuming that that panel is designed in a way to guide the eye directly into the copy.
What's the answer to your pop quiz in your book "Testing, Testing, 1,2,3?"
I'm a production coordinator at a fundraising consulting firm in Toronto and I'm reading your book Testing, Testing, 1,2,3 (and enjoying it, by the way). So I just got to the part with the pop quiz (p. 32) asking which of three test packages should be used as a roll-out. I would opt for package C because I'm guessing that the higher response rate is valuable enough to put it in the lead. It's difficult to tell which one to choose, though, not knowing what the differences are between the packages, but I would guess that changes could be made to package C to boost the gift amounts without hurting the response rate. At least, that's what I would aim for. But I'm just a production person so I'm not really sure. I'm very interested in knowing what your analysis is.
Mal answers: This is a trick quiz (of course!).
First of all, there is a statistically significant difference in response rates only between packages C and B. Package C outpulled B with a confidence level of 95% (which you could ascertain by yourself by using the Confidence Level Calculator on the home page of my Web site). The difference in response between packages A and B is less decisive (with a confidence level of only 85%, which is below my threshold). And there is no meaningful difference between packages A and C. Under those circumstances, I would be strongly inclined to retest packages A and C. In a larger program with an ample budget, I'd also re-test B, for that matter! However, if funds were very limited, I would be likely to make either A or C the control and back-test the other.
Second, I didn't really give you enough information to decide which of those two packages should be the control and which the test. Everything depends on the goals of your acquisition program — which I didn't relate. If your goal is to maximize the number of new donors, I'd be inclined to go with C, which appears to have a higher response rate. But if your goal is to minimize the investment in new donors and to bring in donors at a higher level, I'd go with A, because the average gift is higher.
Now you know my thinking about this. Someone else might tell you something entirely different!
Do you have a working definition of "Integrated Development?"
Mal answers: I don't think I've ever used the phrase "integrated development." However, I frequently speak about "integrated fundraising," which is, presumably, the same thing.
To my mind, integrated fundraising requires the use of several communications channels in a coordinated fashion to accommodate the preferences of individual donors — and to reinforce the message of a campaign or organization by employing a multichannel approach.
As we've learned over the years, some donors are highly mail-responsive. Others aren't. Some people hate telephone calls. Others crave them. And nowadays many people are turning to email as their primary (if not sole) means of regular communication. In integrated fundraising, we make the best of these fractured preferences while also gaining the benefit of the reinforcement lent by the simultaneous (or serial) use of several communications media.
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