Tag Archives: charity

IRS Tells Us What ‘Good Governance’ Means, Part Uno

Photo courtesy of alykat on Flickr.

We hear this language all the time in charity circles:

 

  • governance
  • accountability
  • transparency
  • board responsibilities
  • conflict of interest
  • whistleblower protection
  • executive compensation
  • document retention

… and other words and phrases in the nonprofit lexicon. What do they mean to the federal agency that reviews public charities when they apply for tax-exempt designation and again every year when most file an information return?

The most comprehensive (read “burdensome”) of the returns, form 990, asks lots of questions about whether policies are in place, but doesn’t (and shouldn’t) provide any detail as to what the expectations are around these arcane concepts.

If only we could agree on what the practices mean.

I found this gem on the IRS website, “Governance and Related Topics – 501(c)(3) Organizations,” that makes it pretty clear what the agency is looking for. (It’s from February 2008, but these definitions don’t change much.) The Internal Revenue Code does not require documentation or detailed policies in these areas.

But–big but–IRS believes, “A charity that has . . .a knowledgeable and committed governing body and management team, and sound management practices is more likely to operate effectively and consistent with tax law requirements.”(page 1)

That explains the Service’s opinion of the relationship between good governance and tax code compliance, and their interest in the former. So what do these things mean?

Good Governance. This is the broad category. It means having in place “policies relating to executive compensation, conflicts of interest, investments, fundraising, documenting governance decisions, document retention and destruction, and whistleblower claims.” (page 3)

Executive Compensation. You pay reasonable compensation for services rendered. Pay is determined by people knowledgeable about compensation practices and financially uninterested in the levels set. (page 3)

Conflicts of Interest. The Service “encourages a charity’s board of directors to adopt and regularly evaluate a written conflict of interest policy that requires directors and staff to act solely in the interests of the charity without regard for personal interests . . .” You set up the policy and monitor compliance. (page 4)

There is considerably more detail at the page references I’ve given you. Read the document and consult your legal counsel. Do not construe this post as legal advice. It isn’t.

Over the next few weeks I’ll take on additional governance topics from this informative IRS paper.

There are expert attorneys much more knowledgeable than me in the legal requirements for running your nonprofit. I suggest you pay attention to Carter Ellis and Gene Takagi. Gene and his colleague Emily Chan will be regular legal contributors to Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio starting in July. I’m sure we’ll talk a lot about governance.

Nonprofit Radio for June 17, 2011: Giving USA Data Integrity & Google for Nonprofits

Big Nonprofit Ideas for the Other 95%

You can subscribe on iTunes and listen anytime, anyplace on the device of your choice.

Tony’s Guests:

Features editor for The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Holly talks about her coverage of possible shortcomings in Giving USA’s research methods that led to rosier-than-reality estimates of 2009 giving in last year’s report. She tells us what she and others are looking for in this year’s report on 2010 giving. My interview with her was recorded before the 2010 report was released.
 
 

Scott Koegler, editor, Nonprofit Technology News. Scott, our regular tech contributor and the editor of Nonprofit Technology News tells me what Google for Nonprofits offers, how to qualify and why it saves your office money. But, there are caveats.
 

 

Here is the link to the podcast: 046: Giving USA Data Integrity & Google for Nonprofits


 

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Here is a link to the podcast: 046: Giving USA Data Integrity & Google for Nonprofits
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Welcome to the show. I’m your aptly named host, and this is tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. I hope you recall last week i had larry sharpe, we were talking about smart sales training strategies to kick start your fund-raising larry is the director of neo-sage, and he transformed corporate sales lessons into savvy and easy non-profit fund-raising ideas for us. This week, a conversation with holly hall she is features editor at the chronicle of philanthropy will talk about e-giving yusa what some shortcomings may have been in their research in the past, and what she’s looking for when new numbers come out that are expected this week and also some predictions forgiving this year, which is looking up also, scott koegler joins me google for non-profits the editor of non-profit technology news and our regular tech contributor explains what’s offered by this program and how it will help you work smarter and save a lot of money. But there are some caveats about working in the google cloud on tony’s take, too. I’ll talk about the irs auto revocation list it’s out and what if you’re on it and want? To get off it, i blogged about it this week, and we’ll talk about it on tony’s. Take two, all of that, this show, we’ll take a break right now. Then i’ll be joined by holly hall. Stay with me. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Are you suffering from aches and pains? Has traditional medicine let you down? Are you tired of taking toxic medications, then come to the double diamond wellness center and learn how our natural methods can help you to hell? Call us now at to one to seven to one eight, one eight three that’s to one to seven to one eight one eight three or find us on the web at www dot double diamond wellness dot com. We look forward to serving you. Is your marriage in trouble? Are you considering divorce? Hello, i’m lawrence bloom, a family law attorney in new york and new jersey. No one is happier than the day their divorce is final. My firm can help you. We take the nasty out of the divorce process and make people happy. Police call us ed to one, two, nine, six, four three five zero two for a free consultation. That’s lawrence h bloom two, one, two, nine, six, four, three five zero two. We make people happy. Hyre xero. Hey, all you crazy listeners looking to boost your business? Why not advertise on talking alternative with very reasonable rates? Interested simply email at info at talking alternative dot com. Welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent with me now is holly hol. Holly is features editor for the chronicle of philanthropy. We’re going to talk about giving us a numbers that are expected this week, just so you understand we are recording on tuesday. You’re going to hear this show on friday, june seventeenth, the numbers are expected to come out actually today, which will be tuesday. So we’re doing a little bit of predicting, but mostly we’re going to be looking at the past and seeing what we expect for the numbers that do come out or certainly are expected to come out this week. Holly hall, welcome, thanks for having me, tony pleasure to have you ah, last year, this time last year, in june of two thousand ten, you were questioning some of the conclusions about two thousand nine fund-raising before we get into those questions about the two thousand nine fund-raising why don’t you just explain what e-giving yusa is for people who may not be aware of the report? E-giving usa is the annual tally of all philanthropic giving from individuals, foundations and corporations to american charities and it’s it’s, conducted by the center on philanthropy at indiana university and commissioned by an organization of fund-raising consultant that’s e-giving yusa. Right, well, the giving e-giving institute, right? Okay. And to be fair, it is an estimate. Isn’t that right? Okay, and then they get further information when iris numbers come out later, but but we’ll get to that. Okay, so this time last year, there were some questions about specifically about the individual giving Numbers in 2009 can you explain what your concerns were? Well, individuals make up the lion’s share of all charitable donations, right? About seventy five percent, right? Correct. And giving us, they found that individuals contributed more than two hundred twenty seven million um in two thousand nine, which was about the same as two thousand eight. And we kind of question that because we’re calling around the country and finding that charities were struggling, and other studies also showed a big drop in giving. Okay? And we’ll shortly. We’ll talk about some of those other studies were but so giving us a showed pretty much flat Numbers from 20082 two thousand nine. But that wasn’t what you were hearing from. The non-profit community and seeing in research, other research. That’s correct. Okay, these numbers are are pretty significant for non-profits. How do how do you hear that? Organisations used the e-giving yusa data. Um, there’s sort of a benchmarking that that some organizations will use teo haserot progress and to set goals for the coming year. Um, the numbers provide a breakdown by caused areas. So education, health, religion, etcetera. Okay. And so non-profits air, you know, looking at those toe evaluate whether there in the in the field where they should be all right. Okay. Actually, i just want to clarify i think you said two hundred twenty seven million from individuals, but that would have been two hundred twenty seven billion. You’re absolutely right. I’m sorry. No problem. No problem. It’s. Easier in print, because then you can you can go back. Okay. Um, the, uh the finding was puzzling to not only you but other people is well, who just we’re not seeing flat giving from away toe nine. Yes, it kind of, you know, we’re oh, nine. Remember was the absolute depths of the recession? So many groups who are feeling the pain and that’s what? You’re hearing and but e-giving yusa wasn’t really reflecting that. Yeah aren’t these also significant numbers because we’re looking at what the resiliency of giving is in recessionary times? Well, giving us has been doing what it does for decades, and they have pointed out repeatedly that charitable donations fluctuate left then the economy does when you’re when we’re in recession. But now we now we suspect that maybe e-giving is not as resilient as have been said in the past that it may fluctuate more dramatically, then giving your has found okay, and it’s not just giving us a i think the conventional wisdom is that people continue to be generous, not as generous, but not as dramatically declining fund-raising or giving as a zsa. The stock market may fall, so that still may be true. Okay, it’s, i think the what’s going to be found out is that this recession was different then previous recessions in our lifetime and that giving was affected more deeply then have been okay. Okay, so we may find something contrary to the conventional wisdom. And i know e-giving yusa has been after been at this some, like fifty years or so they do have a long history, including working with the indiana university center on philanthropy, as you mentioned. Okay, we’re going to take a break. And when we return, holly hall will certainly still be with me. And we’ll get into some of the the details of the other research, including research from people who are advisors to giving us city. This is tony martignetti non-profit radio stay with us. They didn’t think the building getting dink, dink, dink dink. You’re listening to the talking alternative network e-giving. Things. Are you stuck in your business or career trying to take your business to the next level, and it keeps hitting a wall? This is sam liebowitz, the conscious consultant. I will help you get to the root cause of your abundance issues and help move you forward in your life. Call me now and let’s. Create the future you dream of. Two, one, two, seven, two, one, eight, one, eight, three, that’s to one to seven to one, eight one eight three. The conscious consultant helping conscious people. Be better business people. Dahna are you feeling overwhelmed in the current chaos of our changing times? A deeper understanding of authentic astrology can uncover solutions in every area of life. After all, metaphysics is just quantum physics, politically expressed hi and montgomery taylor and i offer lectures, seminars and private consultations. For more information, contact me at monte m o nt y at r l j media. Dot com looking to meet mr and mrs wright, but still haven’t found the one. Want to make your car relationship it’s fulfilling kill, then please join us, starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call as we discuss dating relationship and more. Start your week off with love in the morning with marty allison on talking alternative dot com. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. Dahna welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio with me is holly hall features editor at the chronicle of philanthropy, and we’re talking about giving us a and there the methodology behind that annual survey, holly the chronicle actually did its own spot check, maybe sort of a small crowd sourcing exercise, didn’t you? Yes, we’re doing the same thing right now, okay? And in looking at the two thousand nine numbers, you found what others were finding right? That giving had actually declined dahna a big challenge for most organizations. For example. Um, hospitals follow-up surveyed by the americans association of healthcare philanthropy e-giving the hospital’s decline by eleven percent in o nine uh, the council for advancement in support of education found that giving the colleges and universities plummeted by seventeen point eight percent, adjusted for inflation. So those air doubled it to drop on dh. What about your own small crowd sourcing a survey? What were you finding? Similar, we did a spot check in o nine of fifty seven charities and thirty seven, thirty five of them e-giving had dropped in o nine and we’re doing the same thing for two thousand ten and even looking at two thousand eleven but it’s a little early to say. However, the overall impression is that things are starting to recover, but they’re still not back to pre recession era. Okay, two thousand seven, two thousand eight, right? How do you select the the charities that you spot? Check at the chronicle? We try toe, get a good representation of all different types of groups. So we’ll call several colleges and universities, several religious organizations, several health organizations and on and on okay. And then you also have your is it philanthropy? Four hundred that with its cool way? D’oh? Uh, we have some of those groups report early, so we’re still pulling those numbers for twenty ten and also twenty eleven, the physical twenty eleven. Some groups have already wrapped up this year. Okay, you know what i’d love to see sort of interesting if we had a a really a site where where non-profits could report on their own, maybe have a have a crowd sourcing a real crowd sourcing site where, you know, tens, hundreds of thousands of charity’s ideally could report on maybe it’s, just some simple numbers, you know, reporting into a google doc or something and, uh, then i just i see a lot of value and crowdsourcing. Sorry. That’s. Interesting. Okay, let me talk. Teo. Peter panepento at the kruckel back-up because there’s a lot of i just see a lot of value in crowd sourcing, and then that would be sort of immediate, you know, what’s happening like this month compared tto tthe this time last year. That’d be interesting. So going back, tio, you’re you’re june of two thousand ten coverage. Someone who you are too researchers who actually our advisors to giving yusa we’re finding numbers contrary to giving us a cz numbers for two thousand nine. Can you talk a little about that? Yes, he’s there to economists at dahna boston college. And they look at wealth patterns and philanthropy. So they had wanted to come out with a quarterly index, and they both sit on giving us a committee. And so they tried to come up with a new alternative estimate, and they found a steeper decline more like ten percent for so eight and o nine. One thing that they pointed out and that giving usa has since acknowledge is that giving us a does not capture. What some people call the psychological dimensions of the economy, things like consumer confidence and unemployment, for example, and these two economists tried to factor some of that in i’m not sure how they did it, but that’s one big difference now giving us a to be fair today are taking a second look at their methodology this year, and so when they come out with their numbers later this week, they may have revised their estimates for, oh eight and nine in fact, i’m pretty sure they will have, so it’ll be very interesting to see if they capture more of the downturn that we were seeing, okay and again to explain to listeners. Holly and i are talking on tuesday, the fourteenth of june, and we’re expecting numbers to come out either this afternoon or this week, but you’re going to listening to the show on friday, the seventeenth, and we hope teo, get someone from e-giving yusa too. Come on and talk about the new numbers they declined to be on today because they’re expecting the new numbers very soon and wanted to wait until those new numbers came out, but we did invite them i did. Invite them t to be with me and holly. So i guess maybe giving you say, maybe sees the the disadvantage of having academics on their board because the academics are always questioning and actually ended up contradicting e-giving yusa, you know, what’s kind of interesting. Actually, i can’t wait to see the figures when they come out later this today or this week, okay, the the indiana university center on philanthropy. So they are the they’re the researchers behind the numbers that right what’s what’s the relationship there the way you understand it, between giving us a and the and indiana center on philanthropy, e-giving yusa or the group of consultants behind the organization pyres, the academic at the center on philanthropy to compile e-giving you say each year okay, i see and then the professor’s, we were just talking about cher vision havens. They are advisers to e-giving yusa. They sit on a methodology committee that reviews the data each year and approved. Figures on what? What was the indiana university’s buy-in set? The center’s senator philanthropies reaction when you were questioning the two thousand nine e-giving figures in our first story that went to press in june of twenty ten, they stuck by there estimates, and they pointed out that they had never been off more than two percentage points from the data that finally comes out from the irs that they used to corroborate you finding but, like said i, this recession is is unusually severe, and we suspect there data may not have captured it accurately. Dahna and the again, this is a the giving us a numbers are our estimates to be fair, the indiana university center. So they were saying, basically that it’s been fifty some years, and we’ve we’ve always been pretty much pretty much on the mark, correct, okay? And have you talked to them about what may be coming this week? Well, only once i talked their director of research and he told me that they had hired are retained buy-in economists to review their methodology with an eye toward i mean, if they needed to change it, and i don’t know if they will. But i suspect strongly suspect that they’re going to revise their method and that we may i see a big drop from two thousand eight, two thousand nine and possibly into twenty ten do you know if if they’re revision, would include some of those psychic e-giving factors that you’re talking about or i don’t know, i don’t know what they’re going to come out with, not like i said, i’m very interested to see we are seeing in our own reporting and other surveys that we track that there is some improvement, but it still continues to be a struggle, for example, after after reporting and nearly twenty percent drop hyre educations is reporting and twenty ten less than one percent decline. So it’s still declining, but things are improving okay, less than one percent decline from last year from from two thousand nine to ten or correct of nine to ten okay, okay, so the the irs now way we’re we’ve been alluding to this let’s, let’s get to the details of it e-giving yusa revise is its numbers when irs comes out with actual data because, as i’ve said a couple times, if we’ve said e-giving you’re saying numbers or an estimate, how does that all work? Well, the irs track how much money individuals claim on their tax returns for charitable donations so these itemizers itemizers heir estimated donate about seventy five percent of all individual gifts. We don’t know what the anonymous letters, non itemizers give buy-in we suspect it’s left and not as big a factor is the itemizers. So the data has come out now for both two thousand eight and two thousand nine, the first two years of the recession, and the irs data suggests more like twenty percent decline for those two years, which would be comparable to what we saw in these other surveys by pompel for advancement in support of education and the association of health care philanthropy is that twenty percent combined over the two years about? Yeah, and we’re talking about two thousand nine two thousand ten’s that right? Okay. Okay. Desires attempt tow estimate what non itemizers do. No, they don’t all right, but e-giving usa does. It does. Do you know how they go about that? I don’t know how they come up with the non itemizers. Uh, figure. Okay, just it is only twenty. Five percent, but still that’s a quarter. But it’s, not it’s, not the minimus. Okay, well, we’ll know more. Um, probably by the time this show has heard anything else, anything you’re gonna be specifically looking for when the number well, i think i’m having kind of a lot of fun, looking at some of the recession survival strategies that charities have undertaken and it’s really fascinating to see some of the creative effort. Arts groups, in particular, have been hard hit in the recession, and they come up with some of the most creative fund-raising and survival strategies. For example, in baltimore, the symphony there allows people who are amateur musicians, too. Sit in with the orchestra, if you will. And they pay for, of course, that they take with members of the company um other arts groups. They’re doing more to bring in donors and to focus less on fancy gallows and more on really bringing people back stage and helping them understand what go goes into the arts. So it’s interesting to see all these creative approaches. Yeah, especially the while sitting in that’s, that’s really clever, but the backstage, you know, that just it’s sort of going back to sort of grassroots fund-raising ideas, which is, you know, expose people to the work you’re doing. If people are giving even at low levels, you know, they may have a greater interest in learning more than they know. And, you know, they only ever see the the the arts group from the front of the house and it’s, not just the arts, you know, seattle children’s hospital, for example, how to really need, uh, five years ago, they created a separate research facility to study children’s diseases. And just last year, you know, amid the economic downturn, they got the idea to bring in what they call research champions these air donors to give a certain minimal amount. I can’t remember what it is, but they started out with a goal of recruiting one hundred people who will come in for what they called science tops, and these are meetings with individual researchers who explained their studies on what they’re learning and the benefits of it. And they, as i said, they started out with a goal of recruiting one hundred members, and they ended up with over four hundred, so it shows that just really getting close to the charitable mission than the work sometimes makes all the difference. Another organization decided to replace its auctions instead of having an auction where they, you know, put up for bidding trips and vacations and other glitzy packages. They decided instead to have an auction for their work. So helping needy kids, you know, let’s auction off summer camp who wants to pay for that? So oh, excellent, yeah, that was very successful. So it’s, just gratifying to see that in hard times latto charitable organizations can become really creative and effective in the press cleverness born of necessity. Yeah, excellent workflows last month, holly, you had a piece that predicted two thousand eleven and you alluded to it. Earlier, two thousand seven, giving what what did what you’re seeing so far about this year, that study was about seventeen thousand five hundred donors, and i’m always a little suspicious of studies that ask people what they intend to give, or d’oh it’s much better to have studies based on what was actually donated. But this study showed that most donors expected to give at least as much, if not more, foreign. Five donors, um, plan to give as much, but if not more, than they did in twenty ten. So that’s, a sign that charitable giving is real, rebounding somewhat. But what was interesting about that study is. But even as people say they intend to give more, they seem to be having less patient for being oversell. Iss it’d four given token gift, you know. Oh, yeah, what were you hearing in that respect? A lot of charities will give tokens. Like, for example, public broadcasting is big. If you give a pledge of one hundred dollars, you get a free cd. Um, donors just aren’t that interested in getting those kinds of perks. They feel that they cut into the contribution, you know, security spending money to buy coffee mugs that eats into the money they’re raising from the donors. And i think a lot of donors through that is this something that you had your first seeing and you suspect it’s because of the recession, i think it’s something that’s all that’s been. The case is just that that sort of annoyance people became less patient with that and more annoyed, the survey found a higher degree of impatient with that type of fund-raising. Excellent. Okay. All right. Well, we’ll see if if those intentions of giving bear bear out in the rest of this year, we sure will. Holly hall is features editor at the chronicle of philanthropy. Holly, thank you very much for being with me has been a real pleasure to look forward to having you back. Maybe to talk about the numbers once they are released. Okay, thank you very much. My pleasure. Thank you. We’ll take a break after this break. Tony’s take to the irs auto revocation list is out, and you want to get off it. Stay with me. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Are you feeling overwhelmed in the current chaos of our changing times? A deeper understanding of authentic astrology can uncover solutions in every area of life. After all, metaphysics is just quantum physics, politically expressed, i and montgomery taylor and i offer lectures, seminars and private consultations. For more information, contact me at monte m o nt y at r l j media. Dot com are you stuck in your business or career trying to take your business to the next level, and it keeps hitting a wall? This is sam liebowitz, the conscious consultant. I will help you get to the root cause of your abundance issues and help move you forward in your life. Call me now and let’s. Create the future you dream of. Two, one, two, seven, two, one, eight, one, eight, three, that’s to one to seven to one, eight one eight three. The conscious consultant helping huntress people be better business people. Oppcoll hey, all you crazy listeners looking to boost your business? Why not advertise on talking alternative with very reasonable rates? Interested simply email at info at talking alternative dot com welcome back to the show, it’s time for tony’s take to the irs auto revocation list is out this is a list that irs published, and we’ll be keeping up to date monthly, i believe, of about two hundred seventy five thousand non-profits that have automatically had their tax exempt status revoked that’s because they failed to file with iris the required reports for three consecutive years tell you ended up on the list now what if you wantto get off it because way think that a lot of the charity’s on there are defunct out of business on just never reported that, but suppose you’re still in business and you don’t want to be on the list. That’s what i blogged about my blog’s at mpg a dv dot com um, you start on the irs website and there’s a link teo to the explanation page in my blogged, and you’ll see that there’s a streamlined procedure for small non-profits that’s those air for this purpose of getting off the auto revocation list. Small is defined as having gross receipts under fifty thousand dollars in the previous year, so there’s a streamlined procedure and reduced fee for those organisations. That fit that criteria and then if you’re not a small organization, there’s also a procedure for getting off the list. But it’s not streamlined, and there isn’t a reduced fee you’re gonna pay, i think it’s eight hundred fifty dollars instead of one hundred dollars for the small non-profits so the details are on my blogged mpg a dv dot com, and that is tony’s. Take two for friday, june seventeenth with me now a regular tech contributor, the editor of non-profit technology news. Scott koegler scotty, welcome, tony, how you today? I’m doing well, how are you? I’m doing great, thanks. I know we’re going to talk about google for non-profits and what what’s being offered by the program and how it can save some some money on and help you work efficiently. But i first want people to know that you’re calling from a camper in charlottesville, virginia. Is that right? That’s exactly right. Why are you there in a camper? Well, we’re vacationing, so we’re okay. Excellent. Hyre but we have a great connection. So and how is the weather in charlottesville? It’s? Beautiful it’s not going to get above eighty today. Very nice. All right. From your camper, what is google for? Non-profits you know, google non-profits is really an extension of the google app, and google has done a great job of just kind of open up their entire repertoire of stations functions to not provoc i think it’s their way of doing good, so if you’re free with gmail that’s out of the entry point to all this, so do you have to have a gmail account in orderto find out about google for non-profits not to find out to find out about it. Still, teo, google dot com flash on, okay, and you’ll find all the information there, but if you don’t have a email account, probably stood free, and so are so many of the other things that included with the package. Like one of the things is microsoft office compatibility? How does that work that’s one of the things that which made google documents kruckel apple take general very well accepted in the world, they have the ability to read and write pretty much any kind of microsoft document word document on excel, spreadsheet, even a power point presentation. So you’re not using office. You’re not using microsoft office, you’re not you’re using google doc’s, right? Exactly, but you can save in a format that is readable by microsoft office, right? You could figure dot end of a dock next, which is the current microsoft that flower for for documents and then but i have either google document for mike stopped officer, he will open that read it whatever. So you’re working in your if you’re working in google docks and you’re working in the cloud, right? Exactly. Okay, we you and i have talked about that before, but when we explain what the cloud is, what is that? Does that mean if you’re working in google docks in the cloud? The cloud is ah, a computer in the sky, it’s you know, you need an internet connection to get to it and to use it, but they’ll be on that it’s really pretty much like working on microsoft office on your desktop there’s a function where you could actually have the documents saved locally and the best top, so that at some point, if you are disconnected from the internet, still can access the doctors. So it’s really great solution in fact, firstly, i’ve i’ve changed, i don’t think that i’d actually used microsoft office for about a year and a half now converted completely by my corporate account by documents, email everything else is now part of google google documents and on a website, right? And we’re going to talk in a few minutes about security and privacy concerns around that, but very interesting that you’ve, you’ve converted your office. So so if people understand you don’t have to pay for microsoft office, which could be a pretty pricey software offering, especially for non-profits right and there’s a bunch of other peters that air enabled with google back, such as having multiple people edit and share revisions of a document without actually having to move the document back and forth between computers. But those were all kind of just part parcel of the google documents and the whole google enterprise function. The fact that that that those things are free, uh, is really not particular to non-profits i use them for free, and i’m not a non-profits but there are other functions that are specifically for non-profit i just like to just kind of quick lift some of those things nukus there really, really incredible one of them. Is just google applications gmail account under documents and support the thing that’s added with with google for non-profits is the support because generally my account, which is free, does not get twentyfourseven customer support, and that is one thing it included with the google non-profit does that mean telephone support or it’s it’s chatting or its email? Or what? Phone and really phone support twenty four seven for non-profits right now, it’s the third state for critical issues that’s probably not. Now how do i form at the spreadsheet? But it’s probably more like how come i can’t connect? And why are my users able? T used system? Probably some limitations. Okay, but still significant that its phone support twenty four seven? Absolutely. Okay, yeah. What? So what other features are there specifically for non-profits let’s be here. Engagement there they have a hold. They have a whole set of features that air specifically for non-profits once called google grants and that would be really appealing for non-profits because it allows you to put a an ad in google ads. Duitz and, you know, donate now and i don’t know exactly what the limitations are there but the fact that they allow you to put anything at all and google ads without paying so it’s grantspace for free uh, edwards, right. Okay, then they also have something about co-branded email. Right? The brand of the mail is essentially what i mean, it’s a perversion of google suite and you you get to put your logo on it. It’s, your domain name like mine is at kay koegler dot net. So that’s my own it’s, not a google male. Gmail. Okay, so so i’m sorry. So the branded email is not particular to non-profits right? They’re just kind of bundling of these features together for not-for-profits okay, what about youtube? They had they had some offering free on youtube, since they own youtube for non bright, their limitations in youtube, of content that normal people and upload or paid for companies can upload and they lighten up that limitation for non-profit cerini able stuff flowed longer. Video is longer than the ten minutes, and you also can put a donate but on your video, which is something that nobody else gets to do so again, it’s another opportunity to interact with your constituents, ask them to donate and give them a video in orderto, you know, state because and tell them why they should be excellent. All right, so so the google aps google grants for edwards, the youtube enhancements you had said that go to google dot com slash non-profits. And how do you how do you qualify as it does every non-profit qualified? And how do you prove that you are one, uh, it’s? Pretty simple. Actually, you need to be a five. A one c three, which you know a lot more about than i do. Most yl charities are all tax exempt charities are so you probably have to give your a copy of your irs tax determination letter. I would imagine. Well, there their explanation. Is that your arika notification of the status? Your e i n need to appear in the irises online database. Okay. All right. So that they see there were more sufficient. They don’t mean more efficient. They don’t want to deal with copies of documents. Attachments? Theyjust they’re using the irs list, right? They just looked up. Yes or no? Okay, on. There are some predictions. For instance, you can’t be doing any commercial services. No car, boat or real. Estate donation okay, get the focus websites with a primary focus on selling good products. Services don’t qualify. Consumer credit counseling doesn’t qualify, so they’re special impatient, but they will they look to be to me at least like they’re trying to weed out those things that could be marginally non-profit oriented and to clarify, i think ifyou’re non-profit is let’s, say, doing car donations or yacht donations some like that, you could still continue that. You just you can’t use google for non-profits to support that kind of work, right? Okay, i love the donate button on the youtube videos. That’s really extraordinary. You know, video has really taken off in the last uh oh, gosh, here in half. In terms of a way to get a message to folks video, you said right work or some kind of video. And i saw study just recently staying at sixty five percent of latto visitors just in general. You a video? Some kind at least two times a week. Uh, that’s. Pretty significant. Kind of traffic to video. Good. Good reason toe get into that. Oh, it’s. So interactive. I think you and i have talked about that when we when we talked about the ideal website, you could just show so much more, you know, you can show your work on site and it doesn’t have to be high production values, right? And if you look at a lot of videos being used now, they’re very personal. It’s uh, you know, a head shot of somebody stating their cause, i’m talking directly to the viewer. So it’s, not some kind of a zoo just said, hi production, just sitting down in front of your flip cam or or your webcam on your computer and just stating your cause doesn’t have to be something you know, heavily produced, although i do have to say that, uh, pre scripting your your talk, those make a lot of difference. You don’t want to be fumbling your words of course, alright, so video, very valuable and you can use google for non-profits to take advantage of what google’s offering on youtube with scott koegler, our regular tech contributor, the editor of non-profit technology news. When we return after this break, we’ll talk about some of the security and privacy concerns about working in the cloud stay with us. You didn’t even think that. Shooting. Getting, thinking. You’re listening to the talking alternate network. E-giving. Thank you. Good. Buy-in looking to meet mr and mrs wright, but still haven’t found the one. Want to make your car relationship as fulfilling as possible? Then please join us, starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call. We discuss dating relationship and more. Start your week off with love in the morning with marnie alison on talking alternative dot com. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. This is tony martignetti aptly named host of tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent technology fund-raising compliance, social media, small and medium non-profits have needs in all these areas. My guests are expert in all these areas and mohr. Tony martignetti non-profit radio fridays, one to two eastern on talking alternative broadcasting do you want to enhance your company’s web presence with an eye catching and unique website design? Would you like to incorporate professional video marketing or mobile marketing into your organization’s marketing campaign? Mission one on one media offers a unique marketing experience that will set you apart from your competitors, magnify your brand exposure and enhancer current marketing efforts. Their services include video production and editing, web design, graphic design photography, social media management and now introducing mobile marketing. Their motto is. We do whatever it takes to make our clients happy. Contact them today. Admission one one media dot com talking. No. Kayman welcome back home with scott koegler, editor of non-profit technology news, which you’ll find it in peace. The tech news dot com and we’re talking about google for non-profits. Scott, you have your business, you said so many of your business documents in the cloud. And there, there are concerns about security mint just within the past. Well, by the time this show has aired, it will be within the past two weeks or so, citigroup hacked thie international monetary fund packed. So if your if your data isn’t resident on your computer, which which has its own risks, i’m not saying that’s risk. There are risks. Sure. Tony there’s always risk. And i should say that the imf was not a cloud based application. It was actually within their own servers. Okay, so there’s always there’s always something there’s, always somebody wanting to get in and cause mayhem. Of course, if you’re a bigger target, you’re going to be more likely to be to the attack. But i was looking at the security of cloud based systems like this if i have it on el computer from my own network of my own servers, and i’m responsible for that for the security of that, and i can install security applications like instead of firewalls, do all those things that are necessary. But you know what? I am not an expert in that stuff. On the other hand, cloudgood based applications service providers allow you to put your application’s up in their services. They have their entire businesses going on the line and there’s an adage that i’ve heard a couple of times if they the service provider, cloud service provider or sas provider? Yes, it one time it’s a public relations problem. If they get him twice, they have, they’re gonna lose customers. If they get hit three times essentially out of business, so if you look at it from their perspective, it’s not just something that they do it’s, something they have to do in order to stay in business, let me keep you in a lot more at stake as my security than i do. Okay, interesting perspective. Thank you. Let me keep you out of jargon jail you mentioned sas. Now we have talked about sass in the past, but for someone who maybe didn’t listen to that show, which is hard to believe anybody if it is a theoretical possibility that somebody might not have listened to that previous show. So just for that hypothetical, what is what is sass to remind us, please. Zaps and cloud are very related. They both are especially computers in the sky there by the internet so fast actually stands for not where as a tea service google application or google maps qualify as software is the service. They also increasing your private people in our interchange. The thie acronyms, either sas or cloud they really warm or referring to exactly. The technically i would classify it differently. But provoc most intents and purposes you can say sat cloudgood alright, well and technically, that’s. Why you’re the editor of non-profit technology news to make those make those nuanced distinctions and and explain them to us. What? Why would you say they’re a little bit there? Technically different sashes specifically application. So if you look at okay, like fundez counting software, you and i talked a few, many shows ago. Probably now about fund accounting software. That was sas. Correct. Okay. And cloud could be anything. There are their websites, servers that are available where you can actually create your own application here. Things like amazon has three, which is there basically, they’re described in the sky where you could just take all of your files. Documents, pictures, videos, blow them up onto their disk drive up there. That’s a cloud based service. Not really an application. Okay, i understand that the technical difference between right and since you mentioned amazon has three, i’ll give them a little plug. I use them for the video in-kind and audio content for this show. It’s. How i transfer it between the people who are editing it, working on it or the end user who produced it for uploaded to amazon has three and give them a whirl and they can download it. Yeah, many good things about that one. Is that it’s really? Really? Yes. It’s the right all of the people can get to it without files. One place? Yeah, it’s a couple of dollars a month on paying for many gig of storage. Right? One more concerned we have just about two minutes left around working in the cloud and that is privacy. Who questions about who owns the data? There are some lawsuits out there now where google is claiming that they own data that’s stored in their cloud. Now, i don’t know the nuances of the fact patterns around that. I just know that let’s just talk about the issue generally about who owns the data that you store in someone else’s cloud there, there are no rules, it will be up to the perfect provider and i although i haven’t seen the lawsuit with cool, i have to imagine that it’s around some very specific data or, you know, it’s like facebook, facebook essentially owns whatever you put up. On your facebook account, we’ve talked about that that could be, uh, last, but either as a sass or as cloud if you’re putting miles up there, like, uh, use a car photos, facebook owns it and that’s right in their terms of service, and it only gets to be an issue. I think when in terms of google, when they want to do something like delete or give away the data that you provided, i think that the qualification there is going to be very, very narrow for google eyes. They don’t want to get trouble with many persons or companies, proprietary data. So again, i haven’t looked lost otherwise that would discourage the use of their cloud. Yeah, considerably. Yeah. Ah, what about local back-up if oh, you know what, scott? I just realized we’ve we’ve we’ve come. We have to come to the end. We’re at the end. I’m sorry. I want to ask you about local back-up scott koegler, the editor of non-profit technology news at ten p tech news dot com scott, thank you very much. Enjoy your vacation in charlottesville, virginia. Thanks. My pleasure. Good to talk to you. Thank you. I wanna thank scott and holly hall features editor for the chronicle of philanthropy. For being with me today next week, a show from the archive and this time i do know which one it’s going to be the past couple weeks i’ve said, i don’t know what it’s going to be it’s going to fire up your board fund-raising gail perry, the author of fired-up fund-raising turned board passion into action, joins me for the hour next week. You can keep up with what’s coming up on tony martignetti non-profit radio. Sign up for our insider email alerts on the facebook page. Just go to facebook and go to the natives search for the name of this show while you’re there you can, like us become a fan of the show. Those who did i had the chance to win one of two ipads we gave away two ipads last week, two fans of a facebook page itunes were on itunes at non-profit radio dot net subscribed there. Listen any time on the device of your choice non-profit radio dot net twenty martignetti non-profit radios creative producer is claire meyerhoff, our line producer and the owner of talking alternative broadcasting is sam. Liebowitz and the show’s social media is by regina walton of organic social media. I hope you’ll be with me next friday, one p m eastern time. That’ll again will be fired-up. You’re bored, fund-raising you always find us at talking alternative dot com, which is the home of talking alternative broadcasting. Thanks for listening. Think, think, think, shooting, getting, thinking thing. You’re listening to the talking, alternate network, waiting to get into thinking. Duitz e-giving cubine duitz looking to meet mr and mrs wright but still haven’t found the one. Want to make your current relationship as fulfilling as possible? Then please join us starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call as we discuss dating relationship and more start your week off with love in the morning with marty allison on talking alternative dot com. Are you suffering from aches and pains? Has traditional medicine let you down? Are you tired of taking toxic medications, then come to the double diamond wellness center and learn how our natural methods can help you to hell? Call us now at to one to seven to one eight one eight three that’s two one two seven to one eight one eight three or find us on the web at www dot double diamond wellness dot com way look forward to serving you. You’re listening to talking on their network at www dot talking alternative dot com now broadcasting twenty four hours a day. Do you want to enhance your company’s web presence with an eye catching and unique website design? Would you like to incorporate professional video marketing mobile marketing into your organization’s marketing campaign? Mission one on one media offers a unique marketing experience that will set you apart from your competitors, magnify your brand exposure and enhance your current marketing effort. Their services include video production and editing, web design, graphic design photography, social media management and now introducing mobile marketing. Their motto is we do whatever it takes to make our clients happy contact them today. Admission one one media dot com. Is your marriage in trouble? Are you considering divorce? Hello, i’m lawrence bloom, a family law attorney in new york and new jersey. No one is happier than the day their divorce is final. My firm can help you. We take the nasty out of the divorce process and make people happy. Police crawl are said to want to nine six four three five zero two for a free consultation. That’s lawrence h bloom, too. One, two, nine, six, four, three five zero two. We make people happy. Durney talking all calm.

NextGen 2011 at Fundraising Day 2011

I interviewed Ari Teman, co-founder of NextGen:Charity conference for which Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio is a media sponsor, while we were media sponsoring Fundraising Day, hosted by the Greater NYC chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

Ari was accompanied by the NextGen red men, who took a break from terrorizing professional fundraisers on the exhibit hall floor.

He and I talked about the NextGen format and inspirational 2011 speakers, and he offered $100 off registration for the November 17-18 conference. Watch the video to get the discount code.

The IRS List Is Out, And You Want to Get Off It

Please Pay Here by stevendepolo from Flickr
The Internal Revenue Service released its list of 275,000 organizations that have lost federal tax-exempt status because they failed to file with the Service for three consecutive years.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported it yesterday. The New York Times reports it today.

I’d like to go deeper. What do you do to get tax-exempt status back if you’re listed and still operating?

Start on the IRS website.

Small Organizations
You’ll get preferential treatment if your organization “normally has annual gross receipts of not more than $50,000 in its most recently completed taxable year.” That’s from Notice 2011-43 which will guide you through the reinstatement process. If you fit that criteria, you’re a “small organization” for purposes of reinstating tax-exempt status.

If a small organization submits an application for reinstatement (Form 1023 for 501(c)(3) charities; Form 1024 for others) by December 31 of next year, and meets the criteria on page 3 of Notice 2011-43, IRS will reinstate tax-exempt status retroactive to the date of revocation.

As if that weren’t enough. Small organizations get a substantially reduced fee of $100, down from $850 for others. That’s an 88% discount. Where you gonna find that kind of bargain?

Plus, there are three phone numbers at the bottom of the notice for “further information.” I wonder how many calls Ms. Rosenbaum and Messrs. Quesenberry and Giuliano will get this week. (It’s nice to see an italian in the bunch.)

Be sure to write “Notice 2011-43” on top of your application and on your envelope.

Non-small Organizations
Your guidance is in Notice 2011-44 and the news isn’t as good as the small folks’.

You submit Form 1023 or 1024, but the standard for award of retroactive reinstatement is more stringent. It includes “a detailed description of all the facts and circumstances that led to each failure and the continuous failure [to file annually], the discovery of the failures, and the steps taken to avoid or mitigate the failures” along with evidence to substantiate.

I love this, too. Government can be burdensome when it puts a mind to it: “. . . showing reasonable cause for failing to file a required return or notice for the first of the three years by the date it was due would be insufficient; an organization also would have to show reasonable cause for not filing that return or notice at any later time during the three-year period, and for not filing required returns or notices for the second and third years . . .” (Notice 2011-44, page 8). Again, that’s the standard for retroactive reinstatement, not for regaining current tax-exempt status.

As if that weren’t enough: you’ll pay the full $850 application fee.

But, you get the same three nice people to call.

This post is not legal advice. Do not construe it as legal advice. Seek the counsel of an attorney. This is my interpretation of IRS methodology without the benefit of technical explanations, court opinions, revenue procedures and other official guidance.

Nonprofit Radio for June 10, 2011: Smart Sales Training Strategies to Kick-Start Your Fundraising


Big Nonprofit Ideas for the Other 95%

You can subscribe on iTunes and listen anytime, anyplace on the device of your choice.

This is a repeat of Episode 14 of Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio for October 22, 2010.

Tony’s Guest:

Larry Sharpe, Director of Neo-Sage: Smart Sales Training Strategies to Kick-Start Your Fundraising

The director of Neo-Sage transforms corporate sales lessons into exciting, sensible and easy nonprofit fundraising ideas.”
 
Top Trends. Sound Advice. Lively Conversation.

You’re on the air and on target as I delve into the big issues facing your nonprofit—and your career.

If you have big dreams but an average budget, tune in to Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio.

I interview the best in the business on every topic from board relations, fundraising, social media and compliance, to technology, accounting, volunteer management, finance, marketing and beyond. Always with you in mind.

When and where: Talking Alternative Radio, Fridays, 1-2PM Eastern

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Here is a link to the podcast: 010: Sales-Based Fundraising Strategies
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Cerini welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent, i’m your aptly named host tony martignetti what a coincidence i found this show if you think you’re non-profit is left out left out of consulting conversations left out in terms of fees that get charged press and media if you generally feel that you don’t get the attention that your small and midsize non-profit deserves, you have a home here at tony martignetti non-profit radio last week was an archive edition because i was at the national conference for philanthropic planning, doing interviews and talk later about that on tony’s take two, but last week we had regina walton, or from organic social media, and she explained and shared with us why you should be online. How to get started online on how to manage your non-profits reputation online also in last week’s edition John murcott from karma 4:1 one he shared how smart and simple online fund-raising khun build your relationships and unlock dollars for your non-profit this week, smart sales training strategies to kick start your fund-raising my guest is larry sharp, director of neo-sage, and he is going to share with us corporate sales lessons to help your non-profits fund-raising it’s a full we’re for a full hour of fund-raising this show with larry sharp and around the half hour on tony’s take, too, which is exactly at one thirty two. I’m going to share some notes from the national conference on philanthropic planning and a lot of exciting, interesting interviews at that conference last week, which is in florida, and they’ll be coming up on shows in the future, and i’ll talk a little about those on tony’s. Take two and also, ah, conference that i have coming up next-gen charity conference in november. All that on tony’s, take two after this break, larry sharp for a full hour of fund-raising stay with me. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Are you suffering from aches and pains? Has traditional medicine let you down? Are you tired of taking toxic medications, then come to the double diamond wellness center and learn how our natural methods can help you to hell? Call us now at to one to seven to one eight, one eight three that’s to one to seven to one eight one eight three or find us on the web at www dot double diamond wellness dot com way. Look forward to serving you. Is your marriage in trouble? Are you considering divorce? Hello, i’m lawrence bloom, a family law attorney in new york and new jersey. No one is happier than the day their divorce is final. My firm can help you. We take the nasty out of the divorce process and make people happy. Police call a set two one, two nine six, four, three, five zero two for a free consultation. That’s lawrence h bloom two, one two, nine, six, four, three five zero two. We make people happy. Dahna hey, all you crazy listeners looking to boost your business? Why not advertise on talking alternative with very reasonable rates? Interested simply email at info at talking alternative dot com dafs no welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. I’m joined now by larry sharp, larry’s director of neo-sage on the web that’s n e o hyphen s a g dot com and he’s going to share smart sales training strategies to kickstart your fund-raising ah, full hour of fund-raising text tips from larry stage larry is director of neo-sage, an influence training center in new york. His clients learn how to sell fund-raising network and influence effectively he’s, the director of special projects for the world energy forum and a guest instructor at columbia’s graduate school of business. And i’m very glad that larry’s practice brings him to the show today into the studio. Welcome, larry. Thank you very much, madam. Thank you, larry. Sales for non-profits sales has sales and sometimes marketing have sort of ah pejorative connotation. The negative connotation should should non-profits be thinking about salesmanship. That’s ah that’s a great question and the reality is you’re right most people who work in the not non-profit world there are their helpers there healers they’re crusaders there, find the right word. They went to the right thing and save the world that’s great, but the problem with that is that’s, often directly in directly against the idea of making money in business. So while you absolutely need these people there’s no non-profit world without them, you’ve gotta have them. You also have to have the money part. You’ve gotta have the business guy or the money guy somewhere in there and that’s, the sales and marketing guy, which often is a problem, you’re right, they’re not profit world worries about that, so their answer usually is well, i’m so passionate about this problem is issue this concern, i’m going to try to somehow infuse the person on the of the phone or in front of me or through my letter with that same passion, and please, please, please give me money, please give me money because we’re all passionate about this cause that’s correct? The problem is that is traditional begging for money, which, if you’re very well known, i have a large marketing budget or big footprint that may be okay when you’re small not-for-profits nobody cares. As sad as it is, if it isn’t my issue, i don’t care, and if i have enough mind to give i probably already have a larger not-for-profits e-giving tio so you as ah not non-profit have to change the way you think this is very hard. Let me try to get this out so that the non-profit people here don’t don’t have a heart attack what stands in their way, they have to stop thinking that they are begging for money. They have to stop thinking that they are enforcing the agenda of their donors. They’re enforcing the agenda of the people who want this issue will concern dealt with if you’re trying to take take kids to art if that’s your charity for trying tio save a certain type of animal if you’re trying to move energy in a certain direction, whatever it is you have to act like hey, i’m out there doing this you want it done someone’s gonna pay for it, it’s gotta be you. I’m enforcing your agenda, i’m enforcing you’re well, i’m doing what you want me to do. I’m actually not non-profit i’m not a charity, i’m an association. I’m like a lobbyist, i’m in association trying to get your agenda push trying to get your will move forward now i’m gonna have to change the name of the show now to what tony martignetti associate association of ah, radio i don’t love it, they don’t know i can’t do that, you’re invested in this all right? I’m not saying you won’t use those words. Of course, you want to still keep the culture of your organization, but your thought process should be we are serving our donor base versus we are serving the actual people that we’re giving the money to or providing a service too. It is an entirely different mindset we’re doing this for you sort of on your behalf? Yes, exactly, it’s a whole different way. If they do that, all the sudden will happen is their language will change the language would change from things like please give us money to save the kids to hey, you want the kids saved? So we to do that we need x dollars brought us a check so we can do this. You wanted to and of course they’ll use their own language. But that feeling all of a sudden makes me feel like i am part of team, right? You wanted to, we’re in this together we’re doing the work for you because i already said on your behalf and you hope that this will get the actual dilgence too, not just write the check and walk away what you really want the donor to do is write the check and feel part of the team, so of course, when they do that, they start talking about it, they suck any of the people they volunteer it’s such a better way of moving your your non-profit forward, and i’m glad we’ve got a full hour to explore this because absolutely you spend so much time getting a donor’s your you don’t want to have to spend that time again to replace them when they write you just one check or come to just one event and then you didn’t you never hear from them again or hopefully this doesn’t happen, they don’t hear from you again. Ah, yes, the tight right, the time invested in getting a brand new donor extraordinary. Why i do that multiple times when you don’t need to and the second part is if if they really become part of the team, you don’t have to spend so much time getting the second donor zoho pew and you don’t have to spend so much time getting volunteers because they’ll help you. My guest is larry sharp, director of neo-sage, and we’re talking a full hour of fund-raising. Larry, of course, is staying with me after this break. I hope you do, too, getting anything ending, good ending. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Duitz e-giving duitz. Good. Duitz are you stuck in your business or career trying to take your business to the next level, and it keeps hitting a wall? This is sam liebowitz, the conscious consultant. I will help you get to the root cause of your abundance issues and help move you forward in your life. Call me now and let’s. Create the future you dream of. Two, one, two, seven, two, one, eight, one, eight, three, that’s to one to seven to one, eight one eight three. The conscious consultant helping conscious people. Be better business people. Dahna are you feeling overwhelmed in the current chaos of our changing times? A deeper understanding of authentic astrology can uncover solutions in every area of life. After all, metaphysics is just quantum physics, politically expressed, i and montgomery taylor and i offer lectures, seminars and private consultations. For more information, contact me at monte m o nt y at r l j media. Dot com looking to meet mr and mrs wright, but still haven’t found the one. Want to make your car relationship as fulfilling as possible? Then please join us, starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call as we discuss dating relationship and more. Start your week off with love in the morning with marnie alison on talking alternative dot com. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. No. I’m joined by larry sharp, director of neo-sage ennio hyphen s a g e dot com we’re here to find out whether larry really is is he? Is he a new sage? Has he brought sagacious nous to the studio? We’re finding out this hour around fund-raising and he’s already shared. Sort of the wayto reorient your thinking around fund-raising let’s get into some of the details, larry, how can non-profits start too implement a different way of thinking. Let’s just start with they’re just conversations conversation face to face conversations that might have with a donor on the phone let’s not do telemarketing yet, but just on the phone or in an event, how do we re orient the thinking to our conversations? The most important thing we want to talk about? And this is the sad what we don’t do what most not-for-profits there was discussed the need they spent a lot of time talking about the need. This is a problem. Oh, my god! This is a problem. The world is ending. These kids were dying, the fissure dying, the animal’s dyeing the every whatever is dying and bad things are happening while that’s not bad to start, you always wanna end on a positive piece and that’s what isn’t done? What happens is they say, the world’s ending oh my god, we have to do something you should help us versus saying the world’s, anybody blah, blah, blah and here’s a success story. There’s the critical piece that’s often missing people don’t wanna be part of a problem. They would be part of a solution. So expresses a need to problem kids were sick, animals are dying. Yeah economy’s being destroyed, the environment being destroyed whatever is your issue. But you know what? Here’s some success we’ve had here’s how we’ve made things better. There is a bright side right here, and that gets someone to say really how really? Well, that seems awesome that draws the person in. The problem is we’re so busy trying to show people the need will not give him the positive side of, but we’re doing something great. We begin to feel like this is an interesting concept if you’re always around, you know, poverty and you find some aid workers, sometimes you come back from africa or south east asia, some very depressed economy, they come back, and they’ll tell you the world’s ending the world’s full of pain everything’s horrible. No must be around them. Yeah, but they should come back and say the world’s terrible things. But you look what we did. We save twenty five kids or we save twenty five animals or we, you know, low with the carbon emissions or whatever is your charity, and then everyone goes, wow, that sounds great. So the critical piece and a conversation is discussed the issue. But then talk about the positive things that are happening. Should the success stories show the light that makes me want to come to you? Yeah, and i think that second part you’re right is not emphasized. A lot of fundraisers will say that the hook the need is the hook, right, and it sounds like years indeed it is. But go a step further and be positive. How you’re helping toe solved that mean, yes, the issue, as people think and this is a big problem. They think that donors give because they want to save the x no, always give for very different reasons. All different types of reasons, most of them very selfish. Most of them are very selfish what people give and people don’t get that they want to feel powerful, they want to feel good, they want to they want to feel they’re doing something they want to get recognition things of that sort that’s a very big reason why people give it’s not just because they want to save the whales will save the kids are saying the environment, it could be because they want to feel good, you know, an interesting story i was excuse me, i work for a couple non-profits and one of them was doing a training course for smaller non-profits and doing a training course, one person was upset and the person said because when i do this event, this person wants to come and have a booth at my event and sell his book, and i said, okay, while you upset well, you know, he don’t makes twelve thousand dollars, but you know what? I don’t want him doing this and making money, blah, blah i said, ok, he gives you twelve thousand dollars, right? Yes. Why do you care? What do you do at twelve thousand dollars? We do a lot with kids. So why do you care? In fact, you know what you should do tell him if he wants to be exclusive he’s gotta pay you twenty two more people next to him selling books. That’s what you d’oh and let three people sell books there and get thirty six thousand dollars and save your kids. We’ll give one guy twenty and save your kids stop thinking the person who gives has to be his passion as you they don’t, they have to write the check. They obviously value your organization if that guy selling books every single year, you do this event, he’ll give you twelve thousand dollars every year without complaining. Why you mad? Yeah, right. So we have to worry about when it comes to kayman our donor base is caring about our donor base, not caring about the people or animals or environment. We’re trying to save kayman dahna base making about them. You will see all of a sudden all shoot up the money will just stop coming, right? Well, while you’re thinking about fund-raising i mean, of course, of course against the need and the work is paramount, but fund-raising is a very, very close second to executing our program. Whatever. Yes. Um, silent be very clear about that. Absolutely. This is on ly we talking about fund-raising of course, we don’t want to sacrifice the value of the action of a profit just to make money. Baizman tio no, you’re absolutely right. Let’s so let’s dive in a little into some detail about direct mail that maybe a piece that’s devoted to fund-raising or it could be a newsletter. Direct mail. What advice do you have around? Absolutely generally speaking, you do not want to ask for that random amount of money more than once a year. So now you’re talking about a direct mail deal, you personalized letter hopefully doesn’t say, dear friend, i mean, i think you’d want the fund-raising pieces to be personalized absolutely that’s that’s the mail that you’re talking about right now, that individualized plans correct, okay? And i really would hope that today’s market there’s printers out there who can easily personalize everything if if you’re listening, you’re seeing yourself. I don’t i don’t have a database like that. Trust me, there are tons of people can personalize your mailing. If you do that, you get the mailing out there. You want your your plea to be generally yearly almost like a membership. You don’t have to use that word if you don’t want to depend upon the culture of your charity. If you are a membership type. Charlie used that. What if not? Who cares? Whatever, but you want to ask for the big hit yearly? Well, that’s the five hundred dollars a thousand dollars ten thousand dollars whatever that is that’s the one big hit yearly to want from the person the person should feel like i wrote my big check. I’m set i’m part of team. Not now. Next year’s. Next have to write my bait again. There’s. An exception. Here you can now begin to ask for more money throughout the year. But not the quarterly. You know fund-raising that is really impersonal, really unknowing and has turned many people off. And it’s it’s on the it’s on the non-profits schedule. Yes, exactly. Well, that’s exactly right, tony. Perfect. Let me just remind people my guest is larry sharp, director of neo-sage and we’re spending a full hour with your fund-raising sales training techniques to kickstart your fund-raising. Larry, i’m sorry. Go ahead. No, you’re totally right. Tony it’s. The issue here is non-profits or again thinking about themselves, so they want to raise money every quarter nice, but instead, think about the donor do the once a year you owe me a big hit because you’re part of my members should be part of a team got it. No problem. Whenever that’s a should be done, i don’t know, depends upon the calendar of the non-profit, but then quarterly you want to do targeted specifically to that individual, for example, let’s say your your charity deals with i’m gonna make up kids with cancer, right? Whatever. So maybe you decide that these people you figure out through the surveying or asking or internet surveying or check boxes on your mailer, however you decide to get that data, what are they specifically interested in? They’re interested in this piece that piece, this piece. So you say, you know what, what? This year we’re taking the kids who have cancer to disneyworld, whatever that is. And if the raise money for that, send it to those people who checked, you know, make a wish for cancer. Whoever check that one, those people get that specific mailing saying, please give us money for this specific trip for this specific issue. You want us to segment exact perfect word. Yes. Segment. Beautiful. I want you to segment on mr hayward. I want you to segment. We have george in jail on twenty martignetti non-profit radio. But i don’t think this is georgina segment. I think everybody understands segmenting. So there is a reprieve if anybody was wondering, especially since i’m the one who brought the word up. So i never put myself in jargon jail if it doesn’t happen, so keep listening. But that won’t happen. There won’t. Go ahead, please, larry. Second, once we do that now what happens is i’m giving because i see a result. I now see what’s happening. I’m due. I’m making a difference on what i’m specifically interested in. Yes, i want to see happy kids, you know, before they pass. We can maybe it’s in my family may be someone i know it’s close to me. Maybe i didn’t get something when i was a kid. Whatever it affect me that’s why i care about that. So now i’m going to drop my thousand dollars provoc woobox whatever that is to help these kids go to disney world now here’s a critical piece when when the next quarter you asked me for more money that betty pictures of that trip, the better the details of that trip. I need to see what i did. Outcomes absolutely. I want to see those happy kids. I want to see smiling kids. I want to see him hug and mickey mouse. I want all those things to make me feel good because the next court, when you asked me for the next trip, i’ll write another check again and again again. And we are seeing within the past, say, four, five years or so, a much greater emphasis on donors learning the outcomes yes and charity’s being accountable and some charities do it quantitatively i often use example of charity water. They have a very good website where you can see on a global map where your money was spent and how deep the will is well is in the community in south africa that they that they drilled and what the outcome was, how many people in that community we’re help, i mean that’s one example, but it’s a great example, outcomes krauz yes, and we also then the next piece in this whole concept is we do not want to do what so many charities do and make it broadbased. There are fourteen million children with this problem. Ten thousand kids every day have this ninety thousand whales every year do so. And so whatever. That’s. Nice to maybe start the juices flowing. Right? But you have to make it in an individual. Yeah. Where did my money go? Yes. Ninety thousand whales. Which one did mine? One hundred fifty thousand dollars. Help? Yes, absolutely. They want to know it was emma. That whale right there. That’s the one. You know, we tagged her and saved her calf. Yes. Thanks to you helping pay for the boat that went out there, did it? Yes. I want to feel that i want to say yeah, that’s my boat. I’d put money on my boat. I better keep paying off. My boat won’t go out there and help the embers of the world. Of course, we’re talking about this critical segmentation, larry and i just want to remind people that several shows ago we had tim cannon on from mcvicar and higginbotham, which is a print shop on better shop and they do that type of work and print shops and letter shops generally, as larry said, are sophisticated enough to help you segment your database. Once you’ve gotten the data collected to segment it and that’s really where i’d like to go let’s spend a few minutes. How do we talk about how we collect this data in order to do the segmentation that you’re recommending? Actually, the print company can assist you? They’re also because maybe if you have a yearly ask or whatever the case may be within your yearly, ask on the sheet where they fill out far from the box a thousand bucks, two hundred bucks, whatever they’re filling out you also say, and you were interested in check all that apply and just that right there will help you do it. There’s also something called and ah, i hope it’s not it’s a pearl, a personal earl and out of print shops khun do that also where they send it out and you go to a specific website just for them, you know, x charity slash tony m yes, i’ve seen those in direct mail pieces that i’ve gotten there we go. Click there and you feel your survey out right there. You know, i’m interested in emmett a whale and bobby the fish and jimmy to shark. Alright, that’s, what i care about and whatever the case may be, so you care about as an example, maybe you care about the shark fin soup issue, right? Everyone’s cutting the shark fins off, killing sharks, right? That’s, what you care about, okay, great. So the next time we do a campaign to help stop that, i can’t guarantee you’re getting a letter and i want twenty bucks, but maybe you don’t care about emily whale may be care about the sharks. It doesn’t matter. What i’m worried about is what you care about, not what i care about. So a personalized earl on dh. Really? Just aside from knowing what that specific donors interested in the charity now knows that that donor is interested enough to go from the mail piece or the email to click through to the personal you are also there. We’ve got them. We know we have that donor at least at the threshold. Yes, absolutely. And he is the next piece. You also find out what pieces? Are important t to your your donor base let’s say you find that nobody cares about shark fin soup. I’m making it up, right? I have no idea anyone cares but let’s say that you don’t abase you send out your letters b get a thousand back. We hope you haven’t made donorsearch hope so. Right? And out of the thousand ten k about the sharks, maybe either you shouldn’t publicize him so much. Well, maybe the reverse. Maybe you need a better campaign and get people to care. This gives you some insight in what you’re doing, right? Maybe you should say, you know what? I should stop doing this. I should take take this part of my charity away, give it to a specialized charity because my people don’t care about it all the reverse. No one cares what i do and outreach program to get people to understand this is an important issue. This data is very, very valuable, especially thie example, you just mentioned it’s it’s so small. But there’s another challenge that does this work so well, yeah, maybe and especially in the midst of a recession which i hope is ending soon. But we’re still in it? Maybe not technically, but everybody is not an economist thinks we’re still in the recession when non-profits have to be more efficient? Yeah, maybe one of their tasks one of their programs isn’t isn’t one that they’re doing the best and isn’t one that their constituents are that interested in, and they can they can shift that program elsewhere? Absolutely, and maybe even swap donors, maybe even do a joint, you know, event who knows how you can do this so there’s an important piece. So i hope that’s clear on the on the direct mailing side let’s, talk a little more about what you might, including a reply device. I mean, i’ll always telling our clients that every direct mail piece should come with some kind of reply device for someone, for the recipient to ask for more information, tell them that they’ve already included the organization in their state plan, which is a type of fund-raising consulting that we do, what else can we include? A direct mail piece to get people to share information with us? There are several things. The first thing you want to do is you want to make sure you give them something some type of gift in a certain way that i get could be like a church key could be that could be, you know, a pin pins, believe or not are very powerthru early. So you liked a little get pins or so because pin’s tell people i’m part of the part of crew. I’m part of a team, little lapel pins and that kind of thing, very power for the great or really detailed, specific information in southern information that no one else knows. These two things are very powerful. They feel to gift oh, i want to give back. So maybe an insider newsletter if it’s a newsletter, it can’t just be here’s what’s going on at the charity, nobody reads that you’re fooling yourself. Nobody reads that if it’s here something you don’t know, here’s something nobody but our members know here’s something happening in the secret, you know, you know, volts of power, something like that. Yes, people read that if it’s that time of insider information great, or if it’s something that could be ah story directed towards them, like the story of the kid’s going to see mickey mouse that’s a positive stories like that. But if it’s, just his was happening on a charity, nobody reads that and has also very consistent with sort of traditional fund-raising wisdom, which can often be wrong. But in this case, it’s, consistent with what you’re saying and that is sharing more detailed information with your your better donors. Yeah, eso. How to induce someone from giving five hundred dollars a year to a thousand dollars a year. Part of that will be that you’ll get our insider newsletter or our president’s circle. Yeah, email alerts on breaking events around are our issue perfect. My guest is larry sharpies, the director of neo-sage. We’re going to take a break, and, of course, larry joins us after this break, and also after this break, tony’s, take two. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Are you feeling overwhelmed in the current chaos of our changing times? A deeper understanding of authentic astrology can uncover solutions in every area of life. After all, metaphysics is just quantum physics politically expressed. I am montgomery taylor, and i offer lectures, seminars and private consultations. For more information, contact me at monte m o nt y at r l j media. Dot com oppcoll are you stuck in your business or career trying to take your business to the next level, and it keeps hitting a wall? This is sam liebowitz, the conscious consultant. I will help you get to the root cause of your abundance issues and help move you forward in your life. Call me now and let’s. Create the future you dream of. Two, one, two, seven, two, one, eight, one, eight, three, that’s to one to seven to one, eight one eight three. The conscious consultant helping conscious people. Be better business people. Dahna hey, all you crazy listeners looking to boost your business? Why not advertise on talking alternative with very reasonable rates? Interested simply email at info at talking alternative dot com welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent were right around thirty two minutes after it’s roughly one thirty two eastern time. So it’s time for tony’s take two. Last week i couldn’t do the show because i was doing a podcast interviews at the national conference on philanthropic planning that’s where we had an archive edition of the show last week did six interview’s in conjunction with the chronicle of philanthropy, thes air interviews that will be coming up on upcoming shows. But just to give you a little sense of some of the people we talked to, one of the subjects was red flags in planned giving that was aviva bed occur what to look out for in planned e-giving we all know i’m a plan giving fund-raising consultant so i’m the first to say plan giving khun b an outstanding way to build endowment or in other ways, just help your non-profit long term, but there are some technical sides to plan giving, and you do need to be careful, and aviva benwikere raised some of those red flags for us in that interview endowment management strategies, my interviewee there, along with the chronicle of philanthropy, was catherine miree, sharing methods and techniques for keeping your endowment safe. We had to washington, d c insiders and attorney in a lobbyist, emily lamb and perry wasserman perry. Washington is actually the lobbyist for the host organization for that conference, which is the partnership for philanthropic planning. He’s their lobbyist, emily lamb, is an attorney in washington with skadden, arps and used to before that was with the treasury department working on in the in the tax in the tax area and are subject with emily and perry was how legislation and regulate the regulatory environment is going to be affecting fund-raising and non-profits generally, especially with the elections coming up in just a couple of weeks had a cripple your career in five easy steps. That was robert sharpe of the sharp group crippling your career in five easy steps. That was really very interesting, sort of. Ah ah, hook a way of getting you to pay attention to your career. I also had an melvin from harvard university. She was talking about motivating and marketing to your plant e-giving donors. You can see my blogger post on each of these interviews at my block, which is m p g a d v dot com, and you could also keep listening to the show for full interviews with each of these guests cause we’ll have the full interviews broadcast. If you don’t know when those air coming up, you wouldn’t know because i don’t know yet, but when they do come up, you confined out by getting our insider weekly email alerts, go to the facebook page for the show and get those alerts, of course, facebook, dot com and then it’s tony martignetti non-profit radio and you can sign up there for our insider email alerts in november. I’m going to be speaking at the next-gen charity conference that’s here in new york city, but we’re also going to be doing a podcast interviews of mohr speakers from that conference that’s november eighteenth will be doing the podcast interviews, and they’ll be for broadcast on later shows, and then on the nineteenth, i’ll be leading a workshop pg and so me planned giving in social media using social media, too. Reach out to your fund, your your plan giving donors and that has special considerations because plan giving donors are typically sixty and over, but we know where they’re where they’re going. Social media wise, is it? Facebook is a twitter we know and i’ll be sharing that in the conference. Also, i’m very pleased that i can offer with you offer you twenty percent off that next-gen charity conference for listeners of the show to get that twenty percent discount to the ah next-gen charity conference, which is on november eighteen and nineteen in new york city, you could go to the blogged or the facebook page and look for that twenty percent off discount. My guest this week is larry sharp, and i’m really glad that we’re spending the full hour talking about fund-raising sales training strategies to kick start your fund-raising larry is a corporate sales trainer, andi director of neo-sage, which is a consultancy that trains clients, had a cell fund-raising network and influence effectively. Larry, we we had been talking about direct mail and newsletters and direct mail pieces. How about the telephone? How can we shift? Are thinking about fund-raising in the way that you suggested and do this, if if if we’re doing telephone outreach? Sure, just generally speaking when you’re doing the telephone you’re talking to people who donated before now with the do not call list it’s difficult to do cold calling for for for not-for-profits an exception might be say, if you’re doing your ah your list for a college, maybe call me alumni that might be cold sometimes, but the exception of that generally speaking, people who’ve done any before the tactic here has to be as soon as you call you want to start giving them information right away. It’s ah, hey, tony, how you it’s latto from x y z charity? This call is because you don’t want to just call in just seeing it sounds apologetic. Yes, sorry to be calling, but you’re not saying that, but it sounds like you’re apologizing and really should be calling straightforward got important news to share you don’t want to train your donor base into thinking i call just cause you want your dahna metoo think i call because there’s a reason so as soon as you pick up the phone hey tony’s latto x y z charity here’s why i’m calling, you should know x y z you should be aware of bump up up, up, up here’s what’s happening where you care boom boom, boom ba boom whatever that is, then go into a specific reason why you want the money. A specific reason such as and because of this we have a new initiative, tony. And the new initiative is we’re going to now take the kids to you know, niagara falls because we know that’s going to help them out. And the doctors were saying, what is what we should do? Blah, blah look to really help us out to make this really happen. We need you to do now what’s that is at least double what you gave last time. So if you gave to earn fifty it’s at least five hundred, you may want to shoot four thousand whatever it is. But you want to go for a very high number for your first ask realizing most of the time you’re going to know. Okay? The reason why you do the high ask at first is to call the law of contrast the influence love contract states. I will measure everything by the first thing i see. So my first one thousand now to fifty seems cheap. Ah, vice oversea to fifty. Thousand expensive. So you’re measuring the second number, which will get to yes, in contrast with the first law of contrast, are so so two fifty seems like a cz you said a little compare two thousand, so i’m gonna ask for i must say, you know, to make this really happen. Tony, we really need tto help us out with a thousand dollars. Can you do that, tony? Now odds are you’re going to say no. Wow, but not like that. You said, wow, it’s, a lot of money, because i’m a two hundred dollar donor. Zack clean under fifty dollars don’t i’m a toothy donors? A lot of money for me. I’d love to. I can’t right now. Time to tough. Whatever you’re going to say, then you go and do you go to low and then medium so close, high, low, medium and listen to my language in doing this, i’m going to ensure that you do not go lower than last year. That’s the first time would ensure savannah. What? I’m still getting to fifty out of you, so i start with a thousand bucks you say can’t do it. You know what, tony, honest and completely. You know, you could if you want to go back to what you did last year, which is two, fifty here’s what most people doing for us that most people don’t really help us? A lot would be if you go five hundred. Can you do five hundred? Okay? He said, i just did. You could go down into that fifty, but most people are but most people doing doing five hundred most will gave me last year doing five hundred. Most people are will help us tremendously or ah, common amount. Some word that invokes law of social proof social proof means if other people are doing it, i should be doing it. So you know, your language should invoke social of others are doing it. What we’re expecting, what we’re seeing, what people are doing, the most common amount, any language you could be part of the trends are the trend exactly in the different word, but we have to because each cherry has their own culture, so the words i’m using may not function in your charity specifically, but use the language that your culture, the culture, that chap you can use that says that that says other people are doing is a trend it’s common and you could be part of that trend. Exactly correct your your strategy, you’re offering people the ability to stay in the same at the same level. You haven’t minimized what they’ve done for you in the past saying you could stay there, but what most people are doing who are involved in this issue is going much hyre without your saying much hyre exactly exactly right so that’s, why you do so at a minimum, you’re going to say, look, larry, i love the charity i love you guys. Let me stay at two fifty okay, great, thanks, tony. Let’s two, two, fifty. So no matter what, you’re not going below that, i’m getting something out of you and you’re not going lower. But with this tactic, the odds are if you can afford it, you go hyre now, if you can’t afford, you can’t afford it, i got it that time stuff some people can’t, you know, put the money out. But if you can afford it, you’re going to go hyre if he can’t, you go to fifty and hopefully next you you keep it going keep it going keep it going until eventually hope every donors over a thousand over ten thousand, over a hundred thousand we hope whatever we can get, the reality of it is they’re not going to give more than they can afford anyway. But if they’re out to fifty from last year, they probably can get to fifty again. So that’s going to we don’t want to say, you know, last you gave to fifty because then they say, well, you know this shit can i just do one twenty five times a Job just 2:100 and over some before you know what the given ten dollars? So we start with the high number so if you want, you could stay there. But here’s that most people are doing here is a trend. And hopefully more of them will go towards the raising two two. Fifty two, five hundred that’s. What? We have seen that you see that little clients? Absolutely. Yes. Should these calls be scripted? Of course. How do we prepare? Absolutely a hundred percent. The people you want to use can be any. You can use anybody you want to do your fund-raising it’s. Generally best if the people are part the charity sometimes they don’t do it sometimes they hyre outsiders part not necessarily employees, right? Could be volunteers motivated bones here. Somehow part of the chinese doesn’t happen of us have to be an actual employees. Could be other donors could be donors. Kids could be anyone someone who somehow part of that team. This way. If the person begins to ask questions, they can say some they can say yes. I am part of this team, you know, my mother donates and, you know, on the weekends, i sometimes go with the kids out to, you know, the orchestra or whatever’s your charity, right? So i went there last year. The summer camp. So that means okay. We’re all together. It’s instant report. What part? The same things as we have something in common. Absolutely. Better chance again. You could hire outsiders, but that has to go down a little bit. You don’t gain that same report. So it’s best that people who are somehow connected to part the charity? Yes, that’s the who? You have to do it. How do we prepare these? We literally want them to have a one sheet. Er a page, that is eggs exact script of what you want them to say in that order. In addition want tohave at a minimum a second sheet of paper, which is your rebuttal script, which is where you go when people tell, you know where you go when people give excuses and often this is not even used. But having those scripts there make the telemarketer feel it ever safety blanket. See, people think we have to have the script there in rebuttal sheep so that the person can use it they can, but it’s not necessarily used it’s there so they can feel more confident if they have a problem. I’ve got someplace to go if they’re just up in the air, becomes yeah, well and she and what we would like becomes that if they have a script, they can look at it, go through it, and if they don’t need it, they can ignore it. But they know it’s there it gives them confidence. The robot a script should be there and the most important thing the wrap up once that person says yes, there should be a script the wrap up it’s be great. Ok, is that? Going to be via our online or you are going a lot. Great. Please go to blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Are you near a computer right now? Great. Could you log on to that’s? All right there to do if it’s via ah it’s. A pleasure going, you know, male it how to mail it, what to do with their with their she too. Should they send them something? If it’s a credit card form, how do you feel that out? Whatever the wrap up is. And then of course, in the end, you’re going to hear is the most important thing at the end. You want to provide benefits? This is so anti non-profit, okay, what we do instead is we thank them twenty five times instead of thanking them twenty five times. Say something like this. Tony, this is so great. You given the five thousand dollars you know what’s gonna happen. These kids are going to get this. That this that this and from last year we know this this and this is going to happen. This is really great. You know what tony will say? I feel fabulous about mike that’s. Exactly. Correct. Only wish. I could have given more. Yeah. Can i get two checks? It’s? Awesome. Now fund-raising nirvana. Absolutely. Against the outcome. Yes. You want to share the outcome? Even before it’s it’s occurred. This’s what your gift is going to do for us one hundred percent. This is the benefit you want to show. Then you can thank them. Then you can thank them. You are not allowed not-for-profits listen to me. You are no longer allowed to thank them until you first give them the benefit. Once they get the benefit and they go wow, that’s! Great. You’re going to say thankyou, tony. Actually great. After not before otherwise they start to think sheryl e-giving hundred bucks thanking him early bleed or not increases buyer’s remorse. Thanking them early actually lowers the chance they actually go through with the give you will find just by changing that the people who pooh promise and then don’t deliver that gap gets smaller just by doing that. Thanking someone before you give benefit. Thanking someone early actually increases buyer’s remorse. Doing your favor. Maybe i should have gone to fifty. I’m not really sure that begins. Come to play hesitation, hesitation this economy means no, or it means i just write two hundred bucks on it instead of my five hundred pledged. So all of us, when you get a lower number, something that happens, so thanking them early literally lowers even of money getting in, changing just that you will see a difference but share the outcome. Of course, please assume assume that the person commits yes and you’ve, you’ve given them the pertinent information. Okay, i’m with larry sharp he’s, the director of neo-sage, and we’re talking smart sales training strategies to kick start your fund-raising. We’re going to take a break, and after the break, we’ll come back, talk about email and maybe some goal setting. Also, how do you set your fund-raising and your fund-raising goals? All with larry’s advice from sales training strategies? I’m tony martignetti, host of tony martignetti non-profit radio stay with us getting anything, the ending, the ending, you’re listening to the talking alternative network e-giving. I think. Cubine xero looking to meet mr and mrs wright, but still haven’t found the one i want to make your current relationship as fulfilling as possible. Then please join us, starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call as we discuss dating relationship and more. Start your week off with love in the morning with marnie alison on talking alternative dot com. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. This is tony martignetti aptly named host of tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent technology fund-raising compliance, social media, small and medium non-profits have needs in all these areas. My guests are expert in all these areas and mohr. Tony martignetti non-profit radio fridays, one to two eastern on talking alternative broadcasting do you want to enhance your company’s web presence with an eye catching and unique website design? Would you like to incorporate professional video marketing mobile marketing into your organization’s marketing campaign? Mission one on one media offers a unique marketing experience that will set you apart from your competitors, magnify your brand exposure and enhance your current marketing efforts. Their services include video production and editing, web design, graphic design photography, social media management and now introducing mobile marketing. Their motto is. We do whatever it takes to make our clients happy. Contact them today at mission one one media dot com talking. Durney welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio my guest is larry sharp. We’re talking fund-raising for the full hour. I think that was very interesting information about buyer’s remorse and saying thank you to quickly and too often in the telemarketing calls. Larry. Excellent. Thank you very much. Of course. Let’s switch teo, email. What advice do you have around email emails? Ah, great tool there’s some issues, though, that the ideas people often send emails out weekly or monthly and think they’re giving updates, and they think they’re helping their actually knowing their donor base. The reality of it is what emails you want to do, two types of emails, the one is maybe an ask and that’s. Okay, but if we do the ask the rules off the mailing, we talked about earlier of the same rules once a year, and then maybe once a quarter or so for specific issue. Any other e mails you send have to you have to be one of two things. One some really big issue that someone is going to care about specifically, like again, i care about sammy the shark and not em of the whale you’re going to send. Me the note about sammy the shark, not about emma the whale, not about what’s going on in the field, not about what’s happening. My charity. In reality, i get too much email, i’m not going to read it it’s going to begin to annoy me, delete, delete, delete, delete and when the important e mail comes in, i’m not going to read it. I’m going to another one of these e mails delete so either it’s about sammy the shark or it’s that same idea on ly a recorder on lee once a year, same rules. The last thing is, if i have something very special that no one else you know, that’s really going to affect everything, like all of a sudden, you know, bill gates joins our charity, you know, something huge like that send the email, but a monthly or weekly email just cause will on ly annoy you don’t abase and they’ll begin to become immune to it and they just shut off your your advice goes back to the importance of segmentation. You need to know what your donors are interested in so that you can push that information and that’s ah that’s a web term, you know, push, push information out to them that they’ve expressed an interest in absolutely think were in two thousand ten approach fast approaching two thousand eleven were past the days of here’s what’s new writers what’s happening where it’s not specifically targeted to the person’s interest. Absolute sure, yes, those rules on email events. But what about using events for fund-raising events believed or not, are really, really important more important than people think, and they don’t have to be huge gall events, they could be very small if you have a good donor base asked them to support the event in one of their buildings, one of their facilities, their home, their office, one of the case. Maybe the reason why events are important are several number one is it creates camaraderie amongst the people in the charity they feel like they’re part of team when you can bring your donor base in and say, hey, look, these are the people who are going out there and, you know, cleaning off the seals or, you know, save this person actually saved emma, right he’s a captain of the boat and again showing people that they’re part of their part of something bigger. We talked about the trend, you know, here’s the trend in giving around when we talk about telemarketing, but you can see that you’re part of a trend you’re part of something in here is palpable evidence you’re surrounded by all your a ll the people who are sympathetic to the same issue. Yes, absolutely. So you want to do events for that reason, but the second reason is you want to share special information. This is when you want to do the corporate video that comes out before anyone else sees it. This is when you talk about the special plan, a program you’re gonna put in place next year that no one else knows about this is when you’re going to share these atoms insider information that on ly we know that’s when you share there’s another reason why i do it. You want the donors to begin to see value in networking if the donor base our business owners or sales wraps, or people who want to do business and being relationships to their world to the firm’s toe other toe, other charities they may support if they start seeing value. And donating then they want to be part of the process. They want to be part of this organization. Is he additional value? Now? This turns off a lot of non-profits they can’t stand the idea of having an event and people doing business there that turns some people off well, time to turn back on because it’s a very important reason why people get together. And if all of a sudden i start seeing that when i go to your events, there are some heavy hitter donors there that i could somehow benefit you to my personal family, my personal fortune, my my emotional i have ah, vendors i can use somehow i can benefit from being around these people. I’m gonna keep donating. What’s interesting there is. That is exactly what non-profits do recognize around boardmember ship. Yeah, we’re always recruiting people who can do business together and the more powerful their board, the more powerful people they’ll be able to recruit to the board hundred percent. But why is that limited to the board? Absolutely. He totally right. In fact, if you get bored members to show up in a tweet, twist their arms and get them to show up at the events, you get more people who just want to get boardmember sze. Yes, that is what i see. The boardmember so even that mohr people showing up more camaraderie. Mohr mohr almost. I’m part of this team and more loyal donors who will keep donating every year and assist you volunteering, allowing you to use the facilities there, their homes except for et cetera where we have just about ninety seconds or so left together, we’re about goal setting fund fund-raising goal setting. Can you give us just a couple of tips on how we can? We can do that what you want to do? This is the difficult thing. You have, you individual fundraisers. You actually want them to come up with their own goals. This is what’s. Odd people use it from the top down. I saved you from the bottom up. Who are the people who are in charge of fund-raising? Are they have a fund-raising director? Do you have actual tele call telemarketer people? Do you have, you know, print shops who you using? Ask them what they think they can dio and then give him a nudge. What if we do better. What if we do better? What can be a good goal? While we do that? We want the people at the bottom to take ownership of the goal themselves again. I wouldn’t do it. I’m part of this. I’m a volunteer. Make twenty five phone calls. I’m gonna call it for forty five as make this goal. Get the people the bottom to start to give you the idea and from that, build your goal. All right, top up about sorry. Bottom up yet my guest has been larry sharp. He is the director of neo-sage again. That’s. Any oh, hyphen s a g dot com on influence training center in new york. Want to thank larry very much for being on the show and coming to studio. Thank you. Thank you. Pleasure having you, larry something on larry’s website from dale carnegie, i found were not people of logic were people of emotion. That’s sort of a paraphrase of a dale carnegie quote, but i think it sums up what larry’s talking about the reason people give and how you can motivate that emotion in them next week. I don’t know. Who’s going to be next week. We’re not confirmed so that’s. Why you should get the insider alerts from the facebook page. Go to the facebook page, sign up for our alerts and you’ll find out the moment i find out who next week’s guest is going to be and that’s a facebook dot com, tony martignetti non-profit radio. You also see my live appearances there. The creative producer of tony martignetti non-profit radio is claire meyerhoff, always grateful for her help in directing the show and giving advice around creative ideas and timing of the show. Thank you very much. Claire, our line producer and the owner of tony of talking alternative broadcasting is sam liebowitz and our facebook and social media for the show is done by gina walton of organic social media. I’m tony martignetti, the host of tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent, even though we don’t know who the guest will be next week. Join us next week, friday, one p m eastern on talking alternative broadcasting right where you are right now at talking alternative dot com. Hyre i didn’t think that shooting. Good ending. You’re listening to the talking, alternate network, waiting to get you thinking. E-giving good. Duitz looking to meet mr and mrs wright but still haven’t found the one. Want to make your car relationship as fulfilling as possible? Then please join us starting monday, may second at ten am for love in the morning with morning alison as a professional matchmaker, i’ve seen it all. Please tune in and call as we discuss dating relationship and more start your week off with love in the morning with marnie alison on talking alternative dot com are you suffering from aches and pains? Has traditional medicine let you down? Are you tired of taking toxic medications? Then come to the double diamond wellness center and learn how our natural methods can help you, too? 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