Giving days are growing in number (and contributions) around the country. Minnesota’s “Give to the Max” Day raised $24 million from 80,000 people in 2009 and 2010. Last year, the Colorado Gives Day raised $8.7 million for 530 charities, far exceeding its goal of $1 million.

Giving days maximize the fundraising tools and strategies that every campaign should employ: urgency (“today is THE day to give”), leverage (“your donation will go farther”), visibility (multi-modal approaches and community-wide messaging), and ease of giving (in this case, online giving).

The Seattle Foundation has provided a toolkit to nonprofits to help them encourage giving via communications and social media strategies (http://www.seattlefoundation.org/nonprofits /GiveBIG/).

Given this amazing opportunity, I hope participating nonprofits are giving the same thought and planning to how they will steward their donors and first-time donors who invest in their missions during giving day. Don’t forget to “ThankBIG”!

Here are some ideas:

• Use all the same communications and social media channels as GiveBIG used to thank your donors and announce the results of GiveBIG giving for your mission
• Don’t stop there! Put these dollars in the context of the impact they will have in the community and share personal stories that illustrate how donor investments are making a real difference
• Continue to follow-up with donors regularly with impact updates and stories, using technology to find engaging ways to do this: videos, blogs, and social media channels
• Consider a casual event to bring together donors to celebrate success. Find a mission-relevant opportunity or space, or ask well-known supporters host such a gathering
• Follow-up with donors through phone calls or surveys to thank them for support and find out how they’d like to hear from you and other ways they might wish to support your organization

We’d love to hear from you. How will you make the most of GiveBIG?

The Children’s Museum of Tacoma’s construction kick-off was featured on recently on Pierce County News. In addition to the new museum, they have announced that admission will now be FREE. All children, regardless of the family’s ability to pay, are welcome at CMT. We’ll keep you updated as to their progress!

Last week Guidestar shared encouraging results from its November 2010 Fundraising Survey.  The survey shows more organizations are reporting increased contributions for the first three quarters of 2010 compared with the same time period in 2009. However, as the graph below shows, nearly the same percentage of organizations reported that giving was up as those that reported giving was down. Larger organizations (those with annual expenses of $1 million or greater) were more likely to report increased contributions.

The study also shares that organizations are feeling cautiously optimistic about giving for the end of 2010 and starting into 2011. Of the organizations who receive the bulk of contributions in the last quarter of the year, 36 percent predict that contributions received during the fourth quarter of 2010 will exceed those from the last quarter of 2009 and 43 percent expect end-of-year contributions to be about the same as last year. Only 22 percent anticipate that end-of-year contributions will be lower. Additionally, most organizations were hopeful about 2011. About 47 percent planned budget increases and only 20 percent anticipated a lower budget for 2011.

At The Collins Group, we know that overall charitable giving is influenced by major campaigns – whether for capital, program expansion, or endowment fundraising. In 2009, few major campaigns were launched and there was a significant decrease in the number of campaign feasibility studies being conducted in our region and around the country.

Our firm’s experience this year also holds promise for increased giving in our region for 2011. We have conducted more feasibility studies in the fall of 2010 than in all of 2009, and many have come back with positive results. Several of our clients will launch campaigns next year – donors are ready and invested in their visions and strategic initiatives.

It may be slow-going, but I am hopeful that philanthropy will help signal confidence that economic recovery is underway. The results of these investments will undoubtedly help our communities bounce back.

What has your organization experienced this year? Are you hopeful about this giving season, or 2011? We’d love to hear from you.

I attended for the purpose of presenting with Sarah Brooks, Associate Director of the Methow Conservancy, on how a successful capital campaign – beyond the dollars raised and acres protected – can transform organizations and build community. We focused on the “non-negotiable principles” to follow in creating transformational campaigns and shared how the Methow Conservancy applied these principles based on their own vision, goals, and community. Our intent was to inspire people to think broadly about how to bring their organizations’ visions to life through the process and structure of a campaign.

The day after our presentation, I attended an incredible field trip with a cohort of Rally attendees from all over the country. Together we explored local museums, a colonial homestead, and hiked a mountain preserve in the area. I gained new perspective not only by touring this part of New England, but also by talking with diverse people engaged in conservation efforts in several different contexts.

Reflecting on both our presentation and the enjoyable field trip, I am reminded once again that our experiences and successes are so often defined by relationships. Our presentation did not focus on the numbers of donors, prospects, and gifts, but on how the Conservancy was able to foster genuine connections with people about their own values and vision for the Methow Valley. The Methow Conservancy’s campaign was made successful by bringing people together and helping them collectively discover what they could make possible, not by laying out maps and reciting data points.

Like most of my formal and informal learning experiences, my exploration of Farmington, CT, Ragged Mountain, and the New Britain Museum of American Art was insightful because I was able to share it, and learn from, those around me willing to share their own experiences and knowledge.

On my flight home, I stumbled upon a few lines from Margaret Wheatley’s Leadership and the New Science, which seemed to crystallize my ruminations: “I have learned in this exquisitely connected world, it’s never a question of ‘critical mass.’ It’s always about critical connections.”

One of the interview questions we always ask donors is whether they feel satisfied with the way in which our client organization solicits, acknowledges, and recognizes their gifts. Responses vary – from people who feel well connected and appreciated to those who only hear from the organization when they are asked for money once a year.

The Montana donors we interviewed each answered the question the same way, and it was an answer we don’t expect these days. The collective response went like this: “We don’t wait to be asked. The need is so great and the organization is so important, we just give as much as we can, as often as we can.”

Back to Anne Frank’s tree. This past week, wind, rain and disease felled this venerable tree that comforted a young girl hiding from the Nazis. Eleven prized cuttings from its branches were sent around the world. The news reminded me of a quote from young Anne that has captured pure generosity for generations: “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”

Today more than ever, nonprofit organizations need to build relationships through which they communicate with their donors frequently and meaningfully. What a wonderful thing when those dialogues inspire giving that doesn’t “wait a single moment,” and is offered with the joy Anne Frank felt when she looked out her window.

As you begin a new season of fundraising, what inspiring donor stories do you have to share? Let us know. We’d love to be able to share your stories with a wider audience.

For further information, please contact:

Lisa Sholley, Capital Campaign Officer, 206.548.3260

Ager’s approach to a “mini-feasibility study” would indeed be less costly and less time-consuming than a traditional feasibility study. Problem is, it’s not a feasibility study. It’s a glorified focus group. A fun setting, tasty food, and questionnaires are not the hallmarks of a successful feasibility study. What Ager suggests is a good recipe for a cultivation event, but falls far short of yielding the quality of opinions and data you get by employing a distinct methodology which would include an analysis of your organization’s internal readiness for a major campaign, in addition to focus groups and targeted one-on-one interviews. In the “mini” method, you’ve gathered opinions and can write up findings, but you haven’t studied anything.

A campaign feasibility study has two main outcomes: 1) it tests your organization’s preparation for and ability to carry out a significant fundraising campaign and 2) it evaluates the community’s potential leadership and financial investment in your project. No matter where your organization is located or what size it is, a “mini” study won’t get you where you need to be.

The Collins Group knows that well-executed feasibility studies help organizations find the best path forward for fulfilling their missions by strengthening donor and volunteer relationships and by finding creative approaches for meeting community needs. This requires a strong partnership between an organization and its consultants and a rigorous approach to assessment of potential, with solid research supporting every conclusion.

Feasibility studies are not a luxury that just some can afford; for a well-researched and well-run major fundraising campaign, they are a necessity. As many nonprofits will affirm, spending $35,000-55,000 on a professional feasibility study up-front to determine a realistic goal is money well-spent. If you are asking your donors, your board and staff, and your community to invest in your organization and your project, you owe them a thoroughly researched study and a plan to move forward.

The Collins Group is honored to continue as campaign counsel with the Tateuchi Center and congratulates the staff and board for their tremendous accomplishments.

Read The Seattle Times’ generous coverage of this gift and check out the new Tateuchi Center website for more details and news!

What once seemed like an audacious goal has become a reality, as diverse community members came together to protect a rare and beautiful place, and the rural character and way of life that it affords. We’re so proud of our hard-working client and look forward to celebrating their success this weekend!

Below are some fun campaign facts pulled from the Conservancy’s newsletter:

* There have been more than 1,500 donations made to the campaign.

* Donors from 31 states gave to this campaign.

* More than 500 people gave to the Methow Conservancy for the first time through this campaign.

* Of all the money raised, 55 percent comes from private sources (people, foundations, businesses). These private gifts have helped leverage more than $8 million in public funds.

* Every private dollar they’ve spent has leveraged $100 in public funds for farmland protection projects.

* The campaign has already protected 23 new conservation easements and there are 25 more in progress.

* Campaign funds will continue to fund conservation projects for the next four+ years.

* Fifteen percent of the campaign funds will be put into three long-term funds – Stewardship, Land, & Organizational – to ensure conservation work continues forever.

* More than 40 volunteers worked actively to raise campaign funds.

* To date, the campaign has raised $19,720,408 (98.6% towards goal). These funds are in the form of cash, pledges, public funds, and the value of donated conservation easements.

Discover more at www.imaginethemethow.org