Rapport. That wonderful – and productive – state between two or more people when everything just seems to align. The right words, and empowering body language, bring the conversation and its results to unexpectedly high levels. Some gift officers are able to naturally bring rapport to their relationships with their donors and prospects. This in turn lays the foundation ...

Master Gift Officer. Just the words alone conjure up confidence, optimism, energy, and success. And the phrase embodies what we all strive for: demonstrating the highest level of ability, talent, and dedication within the development profession. Today, the job title isn’t on the tip of the tongue of most nonprofit fundraising professionals or organizations, and hasn’t been spotted on a ...

Did you know that the word “news” actually comes from the terms north, east, west, and south? … meaning that information - positive and negative - truly does come from all over. And, in a way, advancement officers, CFOs, and consultants in the development world are newscasters, constantly delivering updates on the state of affairs in their organizations. A ...

According to author and well known life coach Shakti Gawain, “You create your opportunities by asking for them.” And the same certainly holds true for those of us in the fundraising profession. It is usually crystal clear when the time is right to ask for a gift… but equally murky on exactly how much to request. In my three ...

Money. It’s probably safe to say that this is the key topic that keeps most advancement professionals up at night. For better or worse, it allows our organizations to fulfill on our missions, keep the lights on, and pay our salaries. NPOs that are consistently meeting or exceeding their advancement goals have at least one thing in common: a palpable ...

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Aristotle
A colleague here at Copley Raff constantly reminds me, and our clients, to “fish where the fish are.” By that she means to focus on the areas with the greatest potential payback and ROI. In terms of advancement “fishing,” for many NPOs, ...