455: Online Major Giving & Online Adversity – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2

This week: 

Online Major Giving
Do you have web forms for your major donors? Our 19NTC panel hashes the pros and cons of automating major giving and—if you decide to expand to online—how to work around the obstacles. They’re Adam London at Project Donor Love; Carrie Rice from Carrie Rice Consulting; and Anneliese Davis with Rahab’s Sisters.

Online Adversity
How do you maintain personal and organizational values when people are screaming at you in the social networks? Burt Edwards, our panel of one from 19NTC, shares strategies and systems that keep your staff, supporters and social ambassadors safe when they speak out online. He’s from Friends of the Columbia Gorge.

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com 

387: Big Impact – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2Tony’s guest this week:

Vivien Hoexter, co-author of the book “Big Impact: Insights & Stories from America’s Non-Profit Leaders.” 

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com

383: Financial Management Software – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2Tony’s guests this week:

Karen Graham, executive director of Idealware, and Andy Wolber, technology consultant to nonprofits.

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com

344: The Unfinished Social Entrepreneur – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2Tony’s guest this week:

Jonathan Lewis, author of the book, “The Unfinished Social Entrepreneur.”

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com

334: The Agitator’s Donor Retention & Your Content Strategy – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2Tony’s guests this week:

Roger Craver, The Agitator and author of the book “Retention Fundraising.”

Also, Brett Meyer, director of strategy for Think Shout & Katie Carrus, director of online communications at Humane Society Legislative Fund.

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com

249: Walk To Work & Keep Current After Launch – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

tony_martignetti_300x300-itunes_image2Tony’s guests this week:

Beth Kanter, co-author of “The Networked Nonprofit” and “Measuring the Networked Nonprofit,” with Ritu Sharma, co-founder and executive director of Social Media for Nonprofits.

Also, Farra Trompeter, vice president at Big Duck and Kira Marchenese, senior director, digital strategy + platforms for the Environmental Defense Fund.

There’s more at tonymartignetti.com

116: Grow Your Grateful Patient Program & Disaster Relief – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

Tony’s guests this week:

Bill McGinley, president and CEO of The Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP)

Nancy Johnson, senior consultant at Target Analytics

Gene Takagi and Emily Chan of the Nonprofit & Exempt Organizations Law Group

Read and watch more on Tony’s blog: http://tonymartignetti.com

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Dahna hello and welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent, i’m your aptly named host. My thoughts this week, of course, are with everybody affected by sandy up and down the northeast than into western new york, the finger lakes and ohio. My thoughts are with you, i am calling in from north carolina because i couldn’t get back home in time to do the show. So what? We have a show and we’re proceeding, i hope you’re with me last week. Oh, it would hurt me deeply tto learn that you had missed a conversation with janet eggers she’s, a senior vice president of products and marketing for blackbaud at their bb con conference last month, we talked about what’s coming in the non-profit technology market, special considerations for purchasing technology and leadership lessons that she learned from being a triathlete. Also gps global positioning. Scott scott koegler is the editor of non-profit technology news in our technology contributor, we talked about location based services that use the gps technology in your smartphone. Four square, instagram, yelp and facebook places are examples of sites that you can learn from your partner. With to get to know your donors and volunteers better this week grow your grateful patient program bill mcginley, president and ceo of the association for healthcare philanthropy, hp and nancy johnson, senior consultant at target analytics, sat with me at the bb con conference to talk about health care, grateful patient fund-raising why these prospects are critical and very generous privacy concerns and how to start your relationship. Also, disaster relief charities want to help hurricane sandy victims, but in the rush to help, you can’t ignore the rules around private benefit needs assessment and documentation, you’ll be on the right path with our legal contributors, jean takagi and emily chan from the non-profit and exempt organizations law group between the guests on tony’s take two i have a bunch of sandy disaster relief organizations that are doing very good work, and i’ll share some of those. If you’re on twitter, you could be using the hashtag non-profit radio to join the conversation with us. You take a break and when we get back, we’ll go right into grow your grateful patient program stay with me! They didn’t think dick tooting getting dink dink dink dink you’re listening to the talking alternative network waiting to get in. E-giving, you could joined the metaphysical center of new jersey and the association for hyre awareness for two exciting events this fall live just minutes from new york city in pompton plains, new jersey, dr judith orloff will address her bestseller, emotional freedom, and greg brady will discuss his latest book, deep truth living on the edge. Are you ready for twelve twenty one twelve? Save the dates. Judith orloff, october eighteenth and greg brady in november ninth and tenth. For early bird tickets, visit metaphysical center of newjersey dot or or a nj dot net. Hi, i’m donna, and i’m done were certified mediators, and i am a family and couples licensed therapists and author of please don’t buy me ice cream are show new beginnings is about helping you and your family recover financially and emotionally and start the beginning of your life. We’ll answer your questions on divorce, family, court, co, parenting, personal development, new relationships, blending families and more. Dahna and i will bring you to a place of empowerment and belief that even though marriages may end, families are forever. Join us every monday, starting september tenth at ten a m on talking alternative dot com. Dafs you’re listening to the talking alternative network. Yeah. Geever. Durney durney welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of bb khan twenty twelve we’re in maryland, just outside washington, d c my guests are nancy johnson she’s, a senior consultant, target analytics, blackboard company, and bill mcginley, president and ceo association for healthcare philanthropy, both of you. Nancy bill, welcome, thanks for taking time on a busy day. Delighted fundez your seminar topic is best practices for successful healthcare fund-raising strategically grow your grateful patient program. Bill president, ceo of association for health careful answer. I’d like to get the articles right that got you surrounded. Details report. I like the articles. Why is a grateful patient program critical to healthcare? Fund-raising let’s start with basics in health care and our group, particularly those were representing providers, hospitals, medical centers, long term care, hospice and such. The group that is connected that has had an experience that has been touched by the provider is a very important group. They’re very generous, they are involved. They know what the organization is about, what it can provide. So there they are more generous, the average member of the public simply because they’ve had an experience with the institution they know what it’s like they are part of a major part of the family, which is the physicians, the employees, the governance, the executive, the trustees of the hospital, and grateful patients. They represent over fifty five percent of individuals that give healthcare so they’re essential for us and their big givers help me understand why they’re not unapproachable because of privacy laws. Well, they are very approachable, and privacy rules allow the health care provider access to demographic information, so names, addresses of patients are part of what we do internal for our fund-raising is perfectly acceptable. So it’s acceptable for the clinician to share with you development office is that right? Think the physician at the hospital, the nurse, the janitor can refer a name to the foundation for somebody who might be interested to get okay is perfectly acceptable in permissible under the law. And nancy, why don’t we start with some of the tips that you have for growing this very important grateful patient program? Fifty five percent of individual fund-raising to health care’s from these people. How do we get started? Absolutely well, one of the main objectives have to be able to find the people that are. In the hospital immediately so that the foundation can really approach, not approach them for it. I’m coming to say hello, i’m introducing you to the foundation and letting you know that our goal of the foundation is to increase the awareness of what we do to help raise more money. And so what we see is the opportunity to find the best people to make the right gift at the right time, and what we’re doing is identifying with people that are most capable as well as the people that are already connected. How do we start that conversation? Once we’ve identified people, how do we initiate conversation while they’re in the hospital? It’s a quick hello, i want to connect with you now, if you’re already a donor, i’ve been wanting to meet you. You’ve probably been wanting to meet me. We’ve maybe meditate events, we’ve we’re friends, so you would expect me to come by and say hello to you. So these people were starting with the premise that these are people who are already known through the hospital, oftentimes they are ok. Other times you’re a new prospect. A new patient, that’s just came to the hospital and what’s important is to let them understand and know that we have a foundation that will be working with them for the future. Okay, bill, what do you hear from fund-raising professionals in hospitals about making that initial contact? What kinds of responses are our patients willing to talk? Oh, very much so. And when our members are making these visits there rounding and they’re there in the room with a patient, one of the things that are offering to do is they’re they’re our contact for you, anyone that comes into a hospital to have a procedure that is very unique for the individual. It may be a bit routine for some of the providers are member, you know, really steps across that gap, providing for as a resource answering questions, someone they could turn to for communication to make sure that they’re comfortable, what with what they’re receiving and the kinds of things that they’re going to undergo an experience while they’re in the hospital, because it is a foreign land to anybody. Who’s, a patient who’s coming in for russian scary that can be absolutely it’s unknown and while again, it’s very routine for the providers in the sense that they lived there, they worked there. It is a unique experience for any patient is coming. Nancy, i took you on a slight aggression howto make contact once we’ve identified, but what’s your advice around doing the identification. Current patients absolutely. We have a process that is totally automated, so no human hands touching the data way. Use the black boy as blackwater target analytics. Many of our clients use razors edge as their donor management system. So many of their donors are already no one, and we compare they’re the names of the new admits two there database as well as to wealth program, and we’re putting a radio, letting them know the best prospects for major gifts, the best prospects for annual e-giving and that allows them then to make a decision if they should go visit okay, and or put them into an annual solicitation lorts joining and something even better. Yet, if we’re visiting someone that we know that is a major gift donor. And maintaining their interest in the programs and their opportunity to support activities that are beneficial for others in their this is an opportunity for the foundation to reach out to people with them in the hospital. So i look at it is they’re coming to visit you there, there if you don’t reach out and say hello to them after you’ve had a relationship for years, not really good. I want to say at least a hello it’s not going to be a long visit, but i’m reaching out to you. What if it is someone who’s who’s due to the hospital? Not part of the family, not someone you’ve known for years still appropriate, too. Greet them while they’re in the hospital? Absolutely, i believe that most people when they’re in the hospital, they’re experiencing something unique buy-in it may be the first time they’ve known about the hospital, they become part of the health care family there and by reaching out to them they expect it’s, a buffalo here here’s i discount for gift shop or maybe i’m goingto leave the newspaper behind for you. I come in with a friendly face, i’m not bringing in needles. And i’m not taking blood from you and it’s. A quick high. Okay, okay. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. Joined the metaphysical center of new jersey and the association for hyre. Awareness for two exciting events this fall live just minutes from new york city. In pompton plains, new jersey, dr judith orloff will address her bestseller, emotional freedom, and greg brady will discuss his latest book, deep truth living on the edge. Are you ready for twelve twenty one twelve? Save the dates. Judith orloff, october eighteenth and greg brady in november ninth and tenth. For early bird tickets, visit metaphysical center of newjersey dot, or or a h a n j dot net. 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. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Oppcoll durney i found that interesting. What nancy said in the session earlier today was that these people are coming to your home. They’re coming to the hospital are home, they’re coming into our facility. Ten there are any experience you have in the hospital there are there five, ten, fifteen people that air in and out that air touching your life during that process and tohave one focal point that could be helpful that, you know, you could turn to if you’ve got questions or a spot that you can go to a person, you could go to facilitate communication and make sure it’s clear among all these services that are being provided is very much appreciated by patients. That’s what we find so you’re encouraging the fundraiser to ask, act as a resource? Yes, from times they do on dh it’s quite appreciated, as you know. All right. So then, after we’ve identified we’ve initiated contact bill what’s what’s another strategy for growing this program. Well, that’s part of what we were talking about today, there are different levels of grateful freight patient programs at the very basic level, you find that contact that call being made that introduction and it may be sixty or ninety days later where we’re looking at that individual and deciding is this someone we wantto make an appeal to our reach out to bout some program or service that we’re offering where their donation can help someone else? Is it someone who’s contributed in the past or who has the capacity to do more? Do we want to put them way want to put an effort in front of them or an opportunity in front of them as a major donor, where they can make a significant difference because of their contribution to the community and, you know, that’s very basic there others where you’re doing the analysis in the analytics, if you will, you’re assessing wealth management capacity so that when you talk with someone, you develop a relationship, you clarify their interests and also the level of what you believe they can support a particular activity in helping others. Now, nancy, you’ll have to forgive me because i’m going to ask bill about what some advice for hospital may not have reasonscall so there are some way to walk away. I don’t want to have a conversation, but i’m just thinking of our audience is small and midsize charities, and there might be smaller hospital. It doesn’t have reasons aid xero identifying you wanna do it right? Well, i will tell you. Okay, identifying grateful patients. We often look we’ve compared to their database no matter what it is, and so doesn’t have they don’t have to be a razors that juicer. The ideas were helping them identify grateful patients and look into the patients that air there so that they’re contributing to their experience. So it’s a step just that they would have to be a mechanism for sharing the information from from no, i don’t know if it’s missions exclusions. It comes from admissions. Typically it kind of sermon ambitions. And then it’s submitted and and no one really has to touch it. It’s, elektronik lee done. We screen it, and then the results are back within ninety minutes so that the foundation can decide. Okay, who’s the best person to go visit this oversignt bilich and our members are clearly using razors, edges of tools. And one of the best advantages of this as a tool is simply that expands our members capability beyond it. Maybe multiple be able. To multiply the impact, one person can have two, twice a ce much three times as much because it is some of it’s automated but it’s more instantaneous than than operating off of written records comparisons that you’re making relative to wealth management to an individuals in the hospital or who has been discharged is instantaneous, as opposed to trying to make all those connections in your head. So this truly, really expands our members capacity, forgetting to more donors this right on that’s, that’s, invaluable. Okay, well, do you have specific advice for smaller hospitals, health care facilities that whether they’re using razor’s edge or not isn’t an advantage to be a smaller, maybe community hospital? Well, you know, it’s it’s so much like any everything you’ve heard around the world all fund-raising is local, and it is individual in many respects and again razors age is a tool enables that capacity if you don’t have razors, eggs, there are some other alternatives and things you could do all the way back to when i started, when it was, you know, index cards in a shoebox, but it’s, that kind of approach, so there are things in between certainly. Razor’s edge is sophisticated, and really, the value is really an expanding capability. But there are other ways you could do that. Part of it is more manpower, which is hard to get in smaller organizations. Part of it is a process and dedication to that process every day, no matter what the elements are that you put in place so you can make it work. That may not be quite as effective without some of these tools, but it’s still gonna work. Okay, so the smaller community, when i’m familiar with a smaller community hospital, shouldn’t avoid grateful patient program. No, not it all so quickly. If your foundation executive this fund-raising is part of your obligation, your purpose and it’s within the health care community. These are institutionally related foundations to the hospital, right? They’re not out raising money for the you know something else in the community focusedbuyer hospital? Absolutely. Okay, honey. Another area that we all thought blackbaud way want to be able to help all sizes of none. So we eat. Tapestry is a wonderful solution. That is many times used for the smaller community hospital. See tapestries at a cloud based. Is it ok? And so i don’t think we know history tells us we’ve worked together for many, many years that many of the hospitals use razors edge that it like you say some of the smaller, newer hospitals, maybe they don’t need the sophistication, and they have way have a wonderful opportunity for them to use a tapestry let’s talk about some other advice around building back to building this grateful patient program. Nancy what what, what, what what further advice did you give him? Your seven? Well, each hospital is unique. And when they started looking at what makes the program different, it’s getting buy-in from the whole health care community from the top all the way to the to the janitor that’s in the room with someone the foundation needs to be more than the organization of the part of the organization that says, hey, do you want to be, how much are you going to give to the employee program this year? We want to make sure that the foundation is connecting with the nurse is the people that are front line with patients and making sure that we’re hearing you need to stop in and have a visit. Kayman we need to make sure that we’re introducing grateful patient programs that can enhance all the different areas of the hospital so that everyone’s understanding those programs and bringing the community together because really it’s all about the services that were providing to these cubine what’s your advice about getting getting clinicians involved in fund-raising first, they’re busy, my my what i hear and my experience in doing some plant e-giving consulting for hospitals is docks are typically well, i don’t know a good number of doc’s doctors are not willing to partner really with fund-raising with development office for the foundation, what’s your advice for sort of breaking down those walls, i think when you really start involving the whole team and you have a new approach and it may be a totally new approach, you have to think outside of what you have done in the past, health care is we’re having to raise more dollars every year, and when you’re asked to raise more dollars with less, you’ve got to use the right tech what’s what’s into approach help us help the audience understand what what’s one new approach they go to their their doctors by implementing this information so that i can focus within ninety minutes and be able to be next to someone and introducing all the good work we do that makes it takes the guesswork out of it. It allows me to be more focus, and then it also allows doctors to have opportunity to refer people to us and a system in place so that they know as a team we’re working together. Will you have you have advice for breaking down those walls, getting into those characters who are often unwilling it’s, not just the doctors you’re talking about building a culture of philanthropy and awareness throughout throughout the community, right? You do that, you do that. You do that with the orientation, with new and ongoing employees that you have. You do that in the training opportunities with the nurses and with practitioners and such that you’re talking about philanthropy or letting know about the foundation with the physicians, they’re human beings, too. You need to embrace them the way you do others, and there are programs and activities that could be very supportive of areas that they are interested in, either in their specialty orin pieces of equipment. Or things that are going to make their delivery of care much hyre to their patients, so sometimes it has to be very specific for helping them to see what the foundation could do for them if they’re willing. Tto partner and i mentioned that family of donors, the physicians are large portion of that, right it’s not every physician, but it’s, the ones that turn on to see the fact that getting involved this way, and even being philanthropic myself, which, if i do it through plan giving or some other vehicles, can benefit me and directly, you know, that has a meaningful impact on my patients and that’s where doctors focus it’s all about them and their patients seems to me so if we could bring it down to the patient care level, the benefits of working with the foundation, making those clear and one one other element that struck me is that in that culture of philanthropy, what you want to get it too is a point in the overall institution that this isn’t something that’s nice to have. This is something that’s essential that needs to be elevated to the strategic level, the planning of the whole so that the executives on the hospital side are learning to plan for and depend upon and demand that philanthropy be a major part, their business, and what they’re trying to do with it has to come from leadership, right, creating a culture and and we see in our benchmarking service that we do with the standards where you have the ceo of the hospital involved in active way in, you know, signing letters in being president, making some of the calls with you as appropriate, you’re getting a much better result in a much better return on the dollars that are being raised, because donors want to know that there have any impact, and the important people in this business are aware of what they’re doing. And bill, i think we’ve seen that change over the years. The two of us sitting in these seats have watched healthcare philanthropy changed enormously. Wey have to leave it there. Thank you. Nancy johnson, senior consultant with target analytics and bill mcginley, president, ceo association for healthcare philanthropy, thanks very much for being guest. Thank you. You don’t know what you want. Tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of become twenty twelve. We’ll be back with additional guests. I, you’re here further seconds, stay with us, my thanks to nancy johnson and bill mcginley and all the people at bebe con. It was a pleasure to be there, and i have more interviews from b become twenty twelve coming for you. Right now. We take a break when we return. It’s, tony, take two, and then gene and emily disaster relief. Stay with me. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. 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 lebowitz, 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. Are you fed up with talking points, rhetoric everywhere you turn left or right? Spin ideology, no reality, in fact, its ideology over intellect, no more it’s, time for action. Join me, larry shot a neo-sage tuesday nights nine to eleven easter for the ivory tower radio in the ivory tower. We’ll discuss what you’re born, teo you society, politics, business and family. It’s, provocative talk for the realist and the skeptic who want to go what’s really going on. What does it mean? What can be done about it? So gain special access to the ivory tower. Listen to me very sharp, your neo-sage tuesday nights nine to eleven new york time go to ivory tower radio dot com for details. That’s, ivory tower, radio, dot com every time i was a great place to visit both entertainment and education listening. Tuesday nights nine to eleven, it will make you smarter. 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 lively conversation, top trends and sound advice. That’s, tony martignetti non-profit radio and i’m janna agger’s, senior vice president, products and marketing from blackbaud. Time now for tony’s steak, too. I have a lot of ways that you can help hurricane sandy victims throughout the country because, of course it was not only the northeast, not only new york, that was that was hurt, but the hurricane then you know, from new york city went into western new york and upstate, into the finger lakes region and then into ohio. So nationally there’s the american red cross. Um, you can donate at red cross dot or gq, or you can text red cross two, nine zero, nine nine, nine, and you’ll be giving ten dollars, to their disaster relief fund, including sandy. Red cross is also looking for volunteers, so if you’re able to volunteer red cross dot or ge is the place feeding, feeding america, they have a lot of food and emergency supplies. Water uh, that they’re e-giving throughout the disaster zone and to donate to them, go to feeding america. Dot org’s save the children is also working to provide relief to families and their children metoo they are at save the children dot or ge craig newmark, who has been a guest on the show twice uh he’s, the founder of craigslist and craigconnects and he’s uh, he’s matching donations up to twenty five thousand dollars for sandy victims and he’s doing that through crowd rise. So to give to that fund-raising dot com flash sandy relief. And when you go there, a picture of craig pops up. If you want to be more local in in new york, there are a lot of blood drives. I read hundreds of blood drives that were canceled because of the hurricane throughout new york state. So now we need blood. And if you want to donate blood in the new york city area it’s, new york sorry. And why blood center dot or ge? If you happen to be a techie in new york, you have tech skills. Um, new york tech meet up and new work city are organizing volunteers that have technology skills to help with relief efforts to help new york area businesses and non-profits get their technology back up and running. For that, you can go to bitterly dot slash hurricane tech volunteers. So that’s, uh, which place is that you can give time or money too, in support of people that are really in need throughout the northeast and a pinto, i said, north northern new york state and ohio, and on my block this week is a post called researcher bias in smelters planned e-giving study. Delta company did a a survey of potential planned e-giving donors. These people, they believe, are potential plan giving donors, but i detail in my in my block that still, the company also makes its money in large part bye selling print materials, direct mail materials, no website and consulting services for for outreach. So to me, it’s in there, broad corporate interests to have a bigger base of, of playing, giving prospects than we traditionally have had, and that, to me, creates conflict. They want to sell their services, and they’re encouraging charities to look beyond the what’s. Been the traditional prospect pools in terms of age and boiled e-giving history, and that i detail at on the block again. The post is called researcher bias in altars. Planned e-giving survey and my blog’s is that tony martignetti dot com that is tony, take two for friday, november two forty six show of the year with me now jean and emily. Jean emily, are you there? Hi, tony. This is jean and least beside me, but it’s going to be me alone today. And we hope that you and your family and all your loved ones are doing well. Our thoughts and prayers for everybody affected by the hurricane. Thank thank you very much, jane. I know you’re familiar with natural disasters being in the san francisco area. Yeah, we certainly did. Emily is there she’s just holding your hand or what? You’re not going to die. She pretty much is holding my hand and promising, tell me what to say. Okay, of course. Jean takagi and emily chan, they’re firm is the non-profit and exempt organizations law group neo-sage which you’ll find at attorney for non-profits dot com and jean jean’s blawg is gene. I don’t have it in front of me because i’m remote right now. Remind people what you’re what you’re bloggers, please. Sure. It’s just the non-profit lob log non-profit law blawg dot com and emily is the contributor to that as well. Um, so we’re talking about disaster relief, obviously timely. If a charity wants to do something, they’re so moved, maybe they’re in of a neighborhood that was that’s affected or whether they are or not. Can they just start, eh? Sandy disaster relief fund that’s a great question, tony, and, you know, charities are often the centres of their communities, especially in small communities and it’s really great to see communities pull together and non-profits wanting to help, but sometimes the non-profits mission is not aligned, oh are consistent with providing disaster relief. They might be in existence for doing some others types of services, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t help, but it does mean that they may have to take some steps before they help, and one of the things that they need to do is they need to change their mission. So they’ve got to make sure that on their website, on their marketing materials, and particularly if they’ve got a mission statement in their articles of incorporation or their by-laws to change that, to expand it, to be being able to provide those disaster relief services that they want to provide for pete’s sake. So if i want to do something, i can’t just do it the next morning, i have to look at my articles of incorporation first, yeah, you’ve got to get that board together and take a in an emergency action txtgive that that mission statement to the extent that it is constrained by your articles, so you’ve gotta operate consistent with your governing documents. So you’ve got to change those if there is that statement in there, that’s one of the reasons why we like to make sure that the articles purpose statement, they called a certificate of inc in new york, it’s not so specific that you can’t uh, uh, let your organization of all take on things like this in the future and then a tip for revisiting your mission statement for all non-profits so is there a phrase that is safe that is brought enough that you recommend it doesn’t have to say hurricane relief, right? Absolutely. So you can say we’re providing charitable services in whatever area you want to focus on on dh leave, it is broadly is that in your articles, and then you could define it more specifically on your website and on marketing materials like grant applications, but when you decide to engage in a new activity like disaster relief, and that really goes outside of what you’re doing. Perhaps you were providing music education, you know, when you really go outside of that pounds, you’ve got to make sure that you don’t use prior donors funds, which were dedicated towards music education in our example. But you’re using nufer funds once you’ve changed your mission statement to engage in that disaster relief activity. Okay, onda of course, once you start collecting funds for a certain purpose, then you have to use them for that purpose. That’s correct. You can’t then if if the if the disaster is is overcome, you can’t switch your funds back to music, right? So the money that you resent you raised for disaster relief, you’ve gotta make sure that they’re focused on that. And we had some issues with that after nine eleven. And so are some other duvette actors where organizations felt that they had expended enough money in that area and wanted divert the rest of the money into other areas beyond that could be a real danger. All right. Is emily passing you notes right now? She always passes me notice. Okay. Okay. Stop it, emily. Genes genes good on his own. He knows what he’s doing. Okay, so once you then expand the mission statement, if you need to, you also have to inform the irs. Is that right? Yeah, although you don’t have to do that right away. So you can engage in the disaster relief activities, which usually you’ve got to do pretty quickly. But you can report the change in your activities and the change in your mission to the irs when you finally form nine, ninety for the year in which you changed those activities. So for example, you wouldn’t have to file if you were going, you know, finally for two thousand twelve until may two thousand thirteen. Okay, okay. That doesn’t have to be immediate. I just realized i neglected to send live listener love during tony. Take two. And we have a lot of listeners abroad. Tokyo, taipei in taiwan and yung yung in korea and send gen china welcome live listening love to all those foreign countries and also to philadelphia, which is not quite as far into me. I live in new york, but philadelphia’s not quite as far in as those other. Cities, um, pardon me for that, but jean but i have to send my listeners love. Sorry, uh, that’s great. All right, so once so, then once you have expanded your mission statement, if necessary, then is there any limit to what kinds of relief you can provide? Well, there are so you’re still restricted by what we described on our last couple shows private benefit issues. Oh, man, private benefit again? Yeah. You know, charities exists to provide a public benefit, and they can’t be operated to promote private interests. So you’ve got to be careful. So we can’t give a million bucks away. Teo, somebody who was barely hurt by the hurricane that would that would not be appropriate. You’ve also got to be worried about conflicts of interest so forgiving to board members or toe officers of the organization and not in an objective matter, not as part of a charitable class of individuals affected or with preferential treatment to those insiders. That would be wrong, but we certainly can provide funds, services or good ensure that victims have basic necessities like food and clothing and housing and medical assistance and things like that. What can you define a class of people that you want to help. Yeah, i mean that’s, something you should do. So you should say, you know, this is good for business and not only legal reasons, but are we just going to help anybody affected by the hurricane? Are we goingto, you know, really look at financial need? Are we going toe not look a financial need, and we don’t have to. We learned after nine eleven that we can even help communities that don’t have financial disadvantages, but that were hurt badly by the hurricane and or any disaster and weaken give emergency relief so emergency relief services can be given without a needs assessment. Otherwise we want to determine what type of needs we’re looking for. Is it financial need? Is it medical? Need it, you know, for disabled individuals within a given area? Are we goingto limited geographically all sorts of things that we need to target our mission towards? And then when we get this whole pool of charitable class members that want our attention, we have to figure out what type of resources we have and how we decide who to give it to the needs assessment. Is something that’s required or it’s just very smart to do well, it’s it’s really required if you’re going to be required to go the scorning assistance yeah, it’s not so required if you’re just providing emergency assistance. So for giving out blankets and food and shelter in the next couple weeks for the hurricane victims. There’s no needs assessment required for that, you know, it’s pretty obvious who’s in need. Okay, but if we’re gonna be e-giving ongoing, you know, rental assistance payments and that’s going to last for several, several months past the hurricane, then we’re going to think about why are we just giving it to a select few individuals? And how did we choose them? We’ve got has some objective in good faith criteria there. What about helping businesses? We’ve been talking about people. Yeah, that’s actually possible, and some people, you know, don’t realize that that’s possible, but sometimes business owners are financially needy, and that would be okay to provide businesses in that case and otherwise they might be distressed or or to come back community deterioration or lessen the burden of government. And we’ve seen, you know, from the west coast we’ve seen the photos of some of the the impact of the hurricane on the seaboard, especially, and those air communities where, you know they’re not going to recover unless their businesses recover their small businesses. And the small business owners need assistance to get back in there. Otherwise, the community is not going to get back. And so that’s a case where non-profits can actually provide assistance, the businesses as well. Okay, but go and going back to people. We can’t define a class of people that, uh, illegal in or, you know, impermissible in other circumstances just because we happen to know that they were particularly burdened by whatever the, whatever, whatever the disaster is. Oppcoll well, i mean, you could certainly define your class how you want it. But it’s got to be again, pretty objective. So that you’re not, you know, favoring people who either don’t really have a need or favoring insiders of the charity over others. Okay. We can’t target this too specific individuals, but we can certainly say community’s, though, right? Yeah, and it could be a small neighbourhood community that you’re targeting that was especially impacted or where the charity is an existence and it’s kind of the hub of that community, or or we could have more expansive criteria. Okay? Bonem now, so the people need to fit into the the people you’re helping need to fit into that terrible class. As he said, um, a little more about conflict, potential, conflicts of interest? Sure, well, you know, if you’ve got a board of directors of a charity of charities should have and they’re determining who’s going to get aid from the charity, we certainly don’t want them to benefit themselves, though there others, even if they’ve been affected by the disaster, they might be able, teo, be eligible to be considered among the charitable class of individuals and so they might get some benefit, but it would be incidental, and they should certainly not be making decisions on benefiting themselves. They would have to abstain if they’re part of that charitable class on who to pick that will receive help. I mean it. Would be nice if charity’s could give help everybody, but obviously resource is air limited, so they’ve got a decide who’s most impacted or who they want to help the most in line with their mission. And board members and officers of the organization have to really be careful because they’re in power positions of making those types of decisions that that’s the conflict of interest issue. And sometimes when you have outsiders who are part of the selection committee, you know that can create more trust if you get community leaders who are not on the board but involved in selecting who might be able to receive relief that might give some, you know, assurance to the community that they’re not going to only benefit themselves the board of the charity, that is, but it also creates additional conflicts of interest so that we make sure that those people aren’t benefiting themselves, thie outside selection committee members or their families or their business partners or route, you know, and, you know, business relations. So we just have to be careful about those things i see and that’s consistent what we’ve talked about in the past. That’s absolutely right, we have just a minute before break gene it. Would it be permissible for a charity to say that the charitable class they want to help volunteers to that charity? People who have been volunteering with them in the past? Yes, longest that’s a signature una, significantly large enough and indefinite class of individuals it’s going to be okay. So if we’ve got, you know, one hundred volunteers and we’re open to taking more volunteers and we’re going to help our volunteers that’s going to be okay, especially if they if they, you know again, not preferentially board members and officers of the organizations who are volunteers. Okay, but if it’s too small a classic like five people who are volunteers, we can’t sir, you know that just those five people is a charitable class that would be impermissible private benefit. All right, we’re going to take a break team takagi stays with us. We’ll keep talking about disaster relief, and i hope you do, too. Talking. Hi, this is nancy taito from speaks been radio speaks been radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. Have you ever considered consulting a road map when you feel you need help getting to your destination when the normal path seems blocked? A little help can come in handy when choosing an alternate route. Your natal chart is a map of your potentials. It addresses relationships, finance, business, health and, above all, creativity. Current planetary cycles can either support or challenge your objectives. I’m montgomery taylor. If you would like to explore the help of a private astrological reading, please contact me at monte at monty taylor dot com let’s monte m o nt y at monty taylor dot com how’s your game want to improve your performance, focus and motivation? Than you need. Aspire, athletic, consulting, stop second guessing yourself. Move your game to the next level, bring back the fun of the sport, help your child build confidence and self esteem through sports. Contact dale it aspire, athletic consulting for a free fifteen minute power session to get unstuck. Today, your greatest athletic performance is just a phone call away at eight a one six zero four zero two nine four or visit aspire consulting. Dot vp web motivational coaching for athletic excellence aspire to greatness. 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. Got more live listener love to salt lake city and moscow and dallas, texas also south bend, indiana thanks for joining us live listener love to all those cities, jean what if you collect more money than there is need? Now you’ve you’ve said, you’re specifically collecting it for this purpose. It’s not needed anymore. What do you do? Yeah, that’s really tricky tony so one of the things that’s kinda boyd that situation. So you want to be careful when you read to find your mission? The only way that happens is usually when you defined your charitable class so small that you know you, you raised enough money to help them out through the air. Emergencies on dh you’ve decided you’ve got extra money left at that point, you’ve gotta operate as close as you can t to the charitable purpose for which those monies were collected, donors typically don’t have a right to get that money back, so, you know, you could go to court, and we figure out what to do with that extra money and people could bring you into court, too, to decide what to do with that. That happened with nine eleven i don’t want that to happen, so be very careful of that. You can usually find your way around it as long as you haven’t made your mission and your charitable class so so tiny and specific that that that it becomes a knish you later? Okay, but what do you do with the money? Well, you’re going to use it for close to that mission is possible, and if it’s if it’s really outside of that, then you’re gonna have to go to court and get them tio follow through an approved where that money is going to go and it’s called a sight prey issue. But i didn’t want to get into jargon jail, but i suppose they just have so i pray i like i like how that spell right? See why pr ess, isn’t it? That’s your sigh, pray okay, go ahead, go ahead, tell us, what’s, i pray is show off. Well, i pray it is, of course, latin and lawyers like to use it to impress other people on dh when i literally mean like you’re doing right now, james, i think it is near it’s possible or as near as i may be possible. And i think it’s latin. It may also actually be french coming from the old french language. So it’s often used where people have designated their gifts their charitable gift to certain purposes, and that purpose is no longer required or becomes impossible to fulfill. So that might be, for example, the eradication of polio which the march of dimes had encountered early on. And they needed to change their mission. Later they decided to otherwise polio had, you know, essentially been eradicated with jonas salk back scene on dh. They changed to birth defects. So i pray, is a very common doctrine used when charitable purposes have been completed or impossible to complete further. That sounds like a lot of trouble. Could we give the money that’s excess to another charity that does the type of work that we had raised the money for? Yes, certainly. If they can, if they can, if they khun do those type of activities and we no longer can then that that certainly is permissible. So long, focal donor’s intent and what the charity had said the money would be used for is still used for those purposes, you know. Okay, so there’s a dozen easier way out than going to court. All right, right. So long it again. You didn’t pick such a fine mission that nobody nobody else could do it either. Yeah. All right. We have just about two minutes before we have to go. Uh, let’s say a little more about documentation. We talked about the articles of incorporation amending those and we talked about the nine, ninety in that year. What else is required? Well, you know, what you should be requiring is the type of assistance that you provided, whether it be financial assistance or in-kind good blankets, food, housing, whatever the costs associated to the charity with providing that assistance, the purpose of why you’re giving that assistance and why you’re giving it to those individuals that are receiving the assistance over others. If the board was not making those determinations about who gets and who doesn’t get on dh, there was some selection committee. How did you choose that selection committee? On what criteria did they use for dispersing the aid you want? Also document the names and the addresses of the river citians of the financial aid that you’ve given or significant non financial. Aid given again, this wouldn’t be necessary for emergency relief, or you’re just giving food and shelter and blankets and things. But if it’s ongoing gauge, you wanted to make sure you know who those recipients are and you want to disclose that either there was no relationship between the recipients of aids and an insider, a director officer or substantial contributor to the organization our thirty document that i have one last thing, tony, make sure donors don’t hey don’t earmark their donations towards specific individuals that’s not allowed, so i can’t give a gift and say give it to my uncle, who got affected by the hurricane that we’re not allowed fifteen seconds. Where do we document all this is just inboard mitts you khun documented in board minutes or any sort of organizational document that you you hold and that the organization can attest it is the policy or the practice of the organization. Jean takagi, his firm is non-profit and exempt organizations law group in san francisco and you’ll find him at non-profit law blawg. Thank you very much, jane. Thanks, tony. My thanks. Also to regina walton, live listener love going tow her in san francisco and she also very helpful in compiling the list of agencies that i had for tony’s take to regina, thank you very much. I have a new fund-raising fundamentals podcast out with the chronicle of philanthropy, it is how to recruit and motivate volunteers for your events. You’ll find it on the chronicle website, and you’ll also find fund-raising fundamentals on itunes next week. Career advice for your entry level and junior employees jonathan lewis produces career advice videos with leaders in non-profit social change uh, he his video interviews are free and they’re short, and i think they’re valuable as you lied and mentor twentysomethings who want to make a difference in the world, he and i are going to listen to, and he’ll comment on a couple of clips. One is called mentoring for dummies, and another one is called shut the hell up and also next week, maria semple returns our prospect research contributor and the prospect finder has resource is for researching privately held companies. You know, she always has a ton of free and low cost sites and ideas, and next week will be no exception. You can find us on linkedin reveling in group you can offer ideas for the shows and continue the conversation with guests on linkedin. We’re on facebook, you know that i haven’t said it recently, but that’s because you already know it. You can listen to non-profit radio, live or archives. The archive is on itunes at non-profit radio dot net on twitter you can follow me, use the show’s hashtag non-profit radio and you can also follow me on foursquare we can connect there wishing you good luck the way performers do around the world. We have left estonia, estonia is behind us so from estonia go west across the baltic sea and you land in sweden where they lightly kick performers in the bud before they go onstage. No hands allowed on ly a kick, please and when they’re doing it, they will say, breathe at the bend freak at ben, which means break a bone so i guess sweet don’t have femurs and to be his invidious, so just break any bone in your body is fine. You don’t have to be specific to the leg, so i’m wishing you breed at ben. Our creative producer is claire meyerhoff. I’m leaving, which is our line. Producer assistant producer janice taylor is sending me text telling me when the time is coming up. Thank you very much, general shows social media’s, by regina walton, of organic social media and the remote producer of tony martignetti non-profit radio is john federico of the new rules. Oh, i hope you’ll be with me next week. Friday one to two p, m eastern on talking alternative broadcasting at talking alternative dot com. I didn’t think that shooting. Good ending. You’re listening to the talking, alternate network, waiting to get anything. Hi, this is nancy taito from speaks been radio speaks been radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought. Join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on so speaks been radio. 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 lebowitz, 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 you’re listening to talking alternative network at www dot talking alternative dot com, now broadcasting twenty four hours a day. This is tony martignetti athlete 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 are you concerned about the future of your business for career? Would you like it all to just be better? Well, the way to do that is to better communication. And the best way to do that is training from the team at improving communications. This is larry sharp, host of the ivory tower radio program and director at improving communications. Does your office needs better leadership? Customer service sales or maybe better writing are speaking skills. Could they be better at dealing with confrontation conflicts, touchy subjects all are covered here at improving communications. If you’re in the new york city area, stop by one of our public classes or get your human resource is in touch with us. The website is improving communications, dot com that’s improving communications, dot com improve your professional environment. Be more effective, be happier. And make more money. Improving communications. That’s. The answer. Talking dot com.

104: Working With Your Small Organization Board & See The Right CRM System – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

Tony’s guests this week:

Terry Billie, assistant director of advancement at the Hudson River Museum

Wendy Nadel, executive director of Yonkers Partners in Education

Lisa Robb, executive director of the New York State Council on the Arts

Maria Semple, The Prospect Finder, consultant in prospect research and author of “Panning for Gold: Find Your Best Donor Prospects Now”

Read and watch more on Tony’s blog: http://tonymartignetti.com

View Full Transcript
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Durney hello and welcome to the show, it’s tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent i’m your aptly named host. I’m excited to be back in the studio. It’s been a couple of weeks. Oh, do i hope you were with me last week? Of course i do. I’d be devastated to hear that you had missed last week’s show it was audit week, you’re hr audit. Karen bradunas is a human resources consultant. There may be things hiding in your hr closet that you need to bring out and dust off to avoid problems later on, we talked about your benefits plan immigration, paperwork and that’s not only for immigrant laborers and what to do if you get audited by federal or state regulators and your social media audit, scott koegler continued our discussion from the one hundred show on sites that help you assess how you’re doing in social media. Hoot suite marketsmart radiant six on a couple of others scott is the editor of non-profit technology news on our regular tech contributor this week, working with your small organization board what’s special about working with small shop boards we’ll talk about setting expectations recruiting, training fund-raising and assessing your boards capabilities my guests from fund-raising day this past june are terry billy from the hudson river museum, wendy no adele from yonkers, partners in education and lisa rob, executive director of the new york council on the arts also today, see the smart cr m system, constituent relationship management you’ve got constituents, employees, donors, volunteers, vendors, clients how do you manage your relationships with them and what’s the impact on your prospect management? Maria simple will be with me, she’s, the prospect finder and our prospect research contributor between the guests on tony’s take to my block this week charity corporatization reduction three i’ve talked about this before the blurring of the line between corporations and charities. I’ve got a couple of new data points they’re on my block and i’ll talk about them on tony’s, take two use non-profit radio the hashtag to join the conversation on twitter hashtag non-profit radio right now we take a break and when we return all intro my pre recorded interview from fund-raising day on working with your small organization board, stay with us e-giving didn’t think dick tooting good ending things you’re listening to the talking alternative network. Getting anything. Dahna cubine joined the metaphysical center of new jersey and the association for hyre. Awareness for two exciting events this fall live just minutes from new york city. In pompton plains, new jersey, dr judith orloff will address her bestseller, emotional freedom, and greg brady will discuss his latest book, deep truth living on the edge. Are you ready for twelve twenty one twelve, save the dates. Judith orloff, october eighteenth and greg brady in november ninth and tenth. For early bird tickets, visit metaphysical center of newjersey dot order or a nj dot net. Hi, i’m donna, and i’m done were certified mediators, and i am a family and couples licensed therapists and author of please don’t buy me ice cream. Our show, new beginnings is about helping you and your family recover financially and emotionally and start the beginning of your life. We’ll answer your questions on divorce, family court, co, parenting, personal development, new relationships, blending families and more. Dahna and i will bring you to a place of empowerment and belief that even though marriages may end, families are forever. Join us every monday starting soon. Number ten, ten a m on talking alternative dot com. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Dahna hi there, and welcome back. I want to send some live listener love got listeners newport, north carolina. I miss you, north carolina. I own a home there, and i haven’t been there in a few months, but i’ll be going back next month. Missing north carolina st louis, missouri live listener love out to st louis right now. We have pre recorded interview from fund-raising day here in new york city this past june on working with your small organization board. Welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of fund-raising day conference two thousand twelve in new york city were in midtown manhattan at the marriott marquis hotel on the subject we’re talking about right now is working with your board. My guests are terry billy, assistant director of advancement at the hudson river museum. Wendy adele, executive director of yonkers partners in education, and lisa rob, executive director, the new york council on the arts ladies welcome. Thank you. Thank you. You have all three of you and thank you for taking time on a busy conference day right before lunch on we’re going to get youto lunch. Don’t worry, you won’t be late for lunch. Your subject is working with, uh, boards of small organizations. Lisa, why are boards of small organizations different than boards of larger organizations? Well, normally boards at large organizations that do a fair amount of fund-raising it’s a given and planning and very kind of instrumental involvement with the board, but less so on a volunteer basis or operational basis. Smaller organizations tend to have closer relationships to boards in terms of really what they’re doing for you and it’s also more difficult for them than at large organizations to get some of those things done. So you sometimes encounter at a good small, a good board in a small organization, tremendous work ethics and tremendous alignment with the mission because it is more of a struggle to get to some of the resource is that the larger organization board sort of inherently have. Wendy, why don’t you just set some context? Explain what youngers, partners and education is about what’s your work. We are a public education fund that supports the yonkers public school district for an independent organization that works to increase the number of students in yonkers who graduate from high school and completed postsecondary program. Okay, and now terry what’s, the specific mission of the hudson river museum, the hudson river museum is a history, science and art museum, providing opportunities to brought in the artistic and cultural experiences for people in the hudson river region. Okay, lisa wanted to explain what your work is with counsel in the arts. I’m the new york state counts on the arts is an agency of new york state government, and we work for the governor and receive our money through the budget. Process from the budget enacted every year by the governor and legislature. And we distribute thirty five million dollars of public funds to about fifteen hundred organizations, of which eighty percent have budgets of under seven hundred thousand small organizations. Tony let’s, dispel a myth that you have to be with just a few minutes ago. Boards of small organizations are not necessarily small board know they can range anywhere from thirty five to seventeen or fifteen, usually not less than that. And do we find the same type of diversity on a small organization board that will find in a larger organization board? Yes and no. Sometimes you may have a larger organization may have more corporate people that have connections to larger, mainstream corporations. Then you may have some people that have more connections to private foundations community board sent have a lot more community leaders, people who are connected politically, people who have businesses in the area on dh. Then, of course, you do have people that live in the area that may work for a corporation in a, you know, another capacity. And you also may have some folks that are government based. Okay, so you’ll have that local commitment, as lisa was describing, right? You have a little bit more local commitment. You’re your group may live in the area where your organization is, where a larger organization your your trustees may live elsewhere, right? So so so why don’t we stay with that, terry? What? How can we leverage that? That local nature of the board? Well, you’re trying to first off people become members of your board because they’re interested in what you do, and they want to help it serve your community, the community that they live in. So the urge to be part of something bigger than they are is one of the things that you want to work on. And so then you just need to work and find out what their capacities are, who their contacts are and see whether where their strengths are, too. Have them help you. Okay, twenty let’s start with sort of the chronology of board members life cycle, uh, recruitment. What? What are the challenges and that a small organization faces in recruiting successful boardmember we liked it really? Just talk from how we do it in my organization, but we typically try to identify specific areas of need that we have on our board and some of the gaps of skillsets connections, how people are connected on and we try teo, identify people who can fill those gaps on the board. Sure, and typically, the way we recruit them is through personal relationships. Typically somebody on our board might know of somebody or i might have met somebody, or in some cases, people have even approached us with an interest in the work that we d’oh. And now, since you are a local organization, you’re drawing from a smaller pool of potential talent. That’s correct, but you have the advantage of it being local and again, the commitment that at least talked about that’s. Correct? Okay, okay. Back-up lisa, special challenges of other special challenges around recruitment of boards for small charities that we should talk about. Well, i think one of the things we talked about in our workshop earlier, wass the wendy spoke to it. Well, that sort of a lining, the at a small local level. You may you want to make sure you know really what you want their role to be because they really is a commitment level. And interest level that is often not there. In the larger organizations. People may actually want to do tacit work for you. They may want to make real connections in real time for you, it’s, really not a so, you know, they’re not doing it for source social reasons. So i think, a lining that, you know, the individual in what they want to contribute, and then what the organization needs is even more interesting with smaller organizations. Because there’s more opportunity, i think, to really work with the boards one on one with real goals, that they want it, you know, complete with you, because you’re a small organization, you can actually do that. The goal isn’t a, you know, twenty five million dollars capital campaign, it’s a. You know of of two hundred fifty thousand dollars scholarship campaign, where numbers that become more achievable. So i think that is a challenge. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. Hi, i’m donna and i’m done were certified mediators, and i am a family and couples licensed therapists and author of please don’t buy me ice cream are show new beginnings is about helping you and your family recover financially and emotionally and start the beginning of your life will answer your questions on divorce, family court, co parenting, personal development, new relationships, blending families and more dahna and i will bring you to a place of empowerment and belief that even though marriages may end, families are forever join us every monday, starting september tenth at ten a m on talking alternative dot com are you fed up with talking points, rhetoric everywhere you turn left or right? Spin ideology no reality, in fact, its ideology over intellect, no more it’s time for action. Join me, larry shock a neo-sage tuesday nights nine to eleven easter for the isaac tower radio in the ivory tower will discuss what’s important to you society, politics, business and family. 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The people of creation nation listened to norah simpson’s creation nation. Fridays at twelve noon eastern on talking alternative dot com. 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. I’ve had a guest on not too long ago. Melanie schnoll begun. Her work is with very ultra high net worth clients in the bank. I apologize. Either j p morgan or morgan stanley. Apologies, melanie. But her her one of the point that she made was that very wealthy people shouldn’t be ignored by small organizations. Potential boardmember because it could be bigger. They could be bigger players on a smaller board, of course. Plus you want their expertise, but they could be very interested in a small charity. Good when we actually have a few board members who have been on major major boards, like in new york city. Um who i think have a more gratifying experience. Kind of working on the more local level, rolling up their sleeves, having a direct impact on a cause rather than sitting on a fancy board and going tio three or four meetings a year and about feeling expected to write a check and doing nothing. So i think, that’s, that that’s really the just the distinction, right? Same thing here. My organization has a wide variety of folks in both wealthy and not so wealthy. But people who were really involved and and the smaller organization that’s that’s the reason why they become a member of the of the of the board is to get involved because they have a passion. So, terry, since fund-raising is so important for board members, how do we set the appropriate level of e-giving four boards at small organizations what’s your place there? Some places just give one level of giving for everyone saying, okay, everyone needs to give five thousand dollars or three thousand dollars or ten thousand dollars or whatever it is, but it has to relate to the size of the board’s budget. So for example, my organization does not have a specific geever get, but we expect everyone to participate in the annual fund everyone to give to the gala in some way, shape or form and everyone to give an additional gift of some sort. So you may have some folks that can give twenty five thousand dollars to the gala and then ten thousand to the annual fund and then an additional gift from their private foundation and then other people will, through their company or through there, and a combination of company and the personal money. Give five thousand to the gala, you know, one thousand to the annual fund and, you know, some other money, so it has to be a willingness to accept so it’s a willingness to accept what they khun dio right? Because it’s their capacity so it’s about having a conversation with the boardmember when they’re coming on to understand, to have them understand that there is a responsibility to see support the organization, and then to talk about what level that they’re comfortable giving it. So is that how you assess their capacity? And you’re just really you need to have a conversation what they’re comfortable with, right? Well, i mean, you’ve done the research, you’ve done the research before you brought him in as a trustee to kind of know what they’re pass it e issue done the the prospect research to say, ok, well, this person, you know, has given here there and what have you so you kind of have an idea of what they’re financial level is so then it’s a matter of having a careful conversation with them too say, you know, what is it that you feel comfortable with? And it is, of course. It’s important to set those expectations at the recruitment stage, right. Exactly together. Normally written down. I mean, this is not it’s not uncommon to have written documents that say your contribution will be two hundred fifty dollars. You know that that’s? Not an uncommon. Okay, where you’ll be expected to go to an event or you’ll be expected to cultivate whatever. It’s not uncommon to have those things even written down. It’s. Not like these air secret or uncomfortable conversations. You know, they’re just that’s just part of the business relationship. Most bored people understand they will be a set of contributions they have to make some of which include financial time. Whatever would you would you go so far as to recommend that they be a document that the boardmember signs? Yes. In most cases, there is a is a a a a board agreement. Okay, because liability means you normal. Ok, wendy, partners in education, we don’t have a written agreement, but we haven’t explicit verbal commitment that in most cases has been honored without a problem. Okay, it is not in a contract. All right. How about communications with with a small organization board is that? Is it any i’m guessing easier because most of the people are local? Terry, go ahead. Well, we my ceo communicates with the board on a regular basis. Individually, we have meetings every month, so every other, every was every other know every other month is an executive board meeting. And every other month on the other side is our full board meeting. And then we do not have a board meeting in august. So there’s that then there’s also committee. So we have committees, there’s, a finance committee and development committee, a program committee and nomine nominating committee. And so they usually meet every other month or every two months, three months or something like that. And then we all like i communicate with staff with the board members that i’m working with for a specific project or the, you know, different staff would work directly with the boardmember so it’s, more informal words again, a larger organization with larger, more high level board members, you may not have as much communication access access to them and communication through all your staff with them. It may just be a point to point from your ceo to the board or maybe your ceo, your cfo and your development person, the only people that talk to your board when they were going to say something on communicating for us. I’ve really have kind of individual relationships that the board members. And for the most part, i’d say seventy five percent of them. I have. I’m in communication with on a very regular basis, and you’re the executive director. S, right. Ok, which is, i guess. They’re more accessible to the charity. Also, the board members make themselves more accessible than a larger organization might find. Well, i find ways email, and i mean, i think communication is really easy, you know, whether wherever you live, you could just shoot and email and get a response, but because the board’s pretty active everybody’s working on something so there’s always i mean, it’s not the communication is not for the purpose. So much of updating as it is to kind of do the work, and we work together as you know, collaboratively on you, no specific issues and projects that puts me into direct communication with the board members on a fairly regular basis. So what about switching topics? Labbate hyre assessing the capacity of your board in different capability, different areas, maybe it’s fund-raising maybe it’s love assessing whether you have gaps in expertise? What what’s important? I think, wendy, we’ve all talked about nominating committee’s and what we do, we’re in all the organizations i’ve worked for is the nominating committee is one of the most important committees on any board or the nominating people, and we we do it very almost like database oriented. You know, here the five or six strands of talent that we need, you know, social talent, business, talent, political talent, you know what, marketing, whatever it is, you know, here’s the slots where that is filled now, here’s, what? We’re going to have gaps, we spend a lot of time looking at the term limits, and when people are coming up for renewal too, you know, because gaps will then because you really want to call today, you know, minimally, a year in advance, you want to start your cultivation efforts because you make no assumptions and and also things come up for people, you know, they were interested last year, but this year someone is ill in their family, they’ve gotten a promotion, they’re moving, etcetera, so the nominating committee is very important and to be very strategic about on the goals. I mean, you could have a goal that you have celebrities that’s fine, but, you know, you have to just make sure it’s all you’ve gotten what’s it called a pipeline, you know? So you’re constantly putting names into that pipeline, and your board is very active in that process. Well, they are on their on the nominee they are, the nominating committee rarely includes people from staff in anything other than, like a, you know, did that’s really very much the work of a board there also engaging the full board. Oh, christ, as they identify needs. Oh, you know that it’s talked about usually nominating and issues of bored recruitment are are usually part of certain board meetings. You know, it’ll come up as an agenda item and then there’s the nominating committee, which has, like, you were saying this most of the time, i talked to our board members when i was at pelham art center because they were working board. Wendy so a lot of the communication had to do a task oriented project management, things you were doing together, military. Anything you want to know about assessing the capacity of the board. Okay, what about board training? Any any differences in when a new boardmember comes on any differences that you’ve identified you, emmanuelle for smaller organizations that okay, please go ahead. We have aboard manual that we’ve been evolving our organization’s not quite five years old yet sweeping, evolving that and new board members that come on, get an orientation. They are given emmanuel. And each year we, you know, have ah, two three hour orientation for our new members and that’s how we train them. And there is no big formal training program but it’s more of an orientation to the organization. Ok? And most of them have been to something that we, you know, most of them know us and not where they joined the board. Someone in the other workshop had an interesting idea. She spoke about on their board. They actually had, like, a, you know, in high school or college, the key club where you came in new and someone was aligned to you. They had a senior boardmember each new boardmember that came on, there was a relationship. They were the mentor to that new boardmember i thought that was a really good idea. I thought that was a great idea. What we do is we have a retreat every year once a year. It’s ah, saturday afternoon. And so we are doing both role playing or discussions talking about topics that are of interest, reviewing our strategic plan. So last year at our board retreat, we went through some role playing in how tio make an ask good. Okay, excellent. That kind of leads me to something interesting. I think i hope hyre what about board members who aren’t comfortable asking directly, but maybe can be engaged in other activities around fund-raising why did you continue, terry? Well, some people are very they they feel uncomfortable asking their friends, their family or going to to even business colleagues to set up a meeting for something. Um, and so you need to find different ways for them to to support whether they can host a party of their friends at their home. We’ve done that. Where then you have your museum staff and their friends. They’re so the museum staff could do the cultivation because we’re that’s what we do. S o or you can have them come with you on a site, is it with a funder or a lunch? And they just need to be the intro person and the ask and the program description and all of that comes from the staff people, so they are observing their participating in some way, but they’re also they’re shadowing. They’re learning through it by going through this, you know, site visit or you? Know, observing the ask at a cocktail party or what have you do you find that they become the ones who are reluctant in the beginning? Tio actually ask become more comfortable. Have you seen that? Well, a little bit, yeah, i mean that’s the goal and sometimes it may take a little longer depends on everyone’s personalities different and some people are more comfortable in the limelight and others are not. So you have to kind of work with what they’re willing to do, what their comfort level is and you can’t force someone into something that i want dio that will be a disaster. Forget wendy’s. I don’t think i think something terry set is is really key, and that is, you know, in addition to asking people for money equally is important is is just opening up doors, making introductions and that’s i mean, even for people that don’t like to ask for money making introductions is really important because, you know, particularly if you really believe in the mission of the organization, the organization khun sell itself that’s themselves, that pipeline that lisa mention constantly introducing new people. I know we have a boardmember and you know, one of things i like to do is just kind of focus when i have my board members do. And we have one boardmember who has some really key foundation contacts and his what i asked him to do every years you get me into two foundations and that’s it that’s it that’s your job and that’s huge. That could be hundreds of thousands of dollars. So anything you want and what i do think that friendraising and fund-raising are all part of that same resource development. And as long as you can make sure there’s enough prongs and what you think of resource development there’s no, boardmember that can’t help you if we have to leave it there, ladies. Thank you very much, wendy. Tell you. Thank you. Lisa. Rob is executive director of the new york council on the arts. Wendy liddell. Adele is executive director of yonkers partners and education. And terry billy is assistant director for advancement at the hudson river museum. Ladies, thank you very much. Thank you. This is tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of fund-raising day two thousand twelve at the marriott marquis in midtown manhattan. My thanks to the three ladies. Some live listener love out tio st louis, missouri, hello, jersey city, new jersey. Welcome back. My dad was born there, i told you, used to live on mcadoo of reston, virginia. Hello, live listener love, and then we go further east vietnam. Welcome. I wish i knew the city. I’m sorry, our software doesn’t tell us what city. Right now we take a break, and when we returned tony’s, take two, and then maria simple will join me to see the smart cr m system. So i hope you stay with me. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. Joined the metaphysical center of new jersey and the association for hyre. Awareness for two exciting events this fall live just minutes from new york city. In pompton plains, new jersey, dr judith orloff will address her bestseller, emotional freedom, and greg brady will discuss his latest book, deep truth living on the edge. Are you ready for twelve twenty one twelve? Save the dates. Judith orloff, october eighteenth and greg brady in november ninth and tenth. For early bird tickets, visit metaphysical center of newjersey dot or or a nj dot net. 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. You’re listening to the talking alternative network. Oppcoll i’m christine cronin, president of n y charities dot orc. You’re listening to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. That live listener loved that i sent to vietnam is joined by love going out to korea, and if you’re listening, if in a foreign country i’d love for you. Teo, tell us what city you’re in because our software doesn’t tell us so you could tell me on the linked in group or the facebook page or tweet me. Let me know what cities you’re in vietnam and korea tony’s take to roughly thirty two minutes into the hour. My block this week is charity corporatization re ducks three i’ve blocked this before, as you can tell from the title, and i’m still concerned about blurring lines between charities and corporations. More cities, for instance, are collecting what they call pilots payments in lieu of taxes from charities or they’re considering getting these payments from charities pittsburgh in memphis for most recently and there’s in my block there’s a link to a chronicle of philanthropy article talks about pittsburgh and memphis and a number of other cities that are either collecting those or looking at it. Also, we have corporations starting to look like charity’s, taking some in some of those charity attributes there’s the b corp in california. That’s ah, a form of organisation be corp. For an organization that gives some public benefit as well as having a profit motive. And in a lot of states there are low profit, limited liability corporations also called l three c’s on dh does i put this together with some other data points and just concerns me that the charity start to look like corporations and start getting treated like corporations in terms of those taxes. On that corporations start to look like charities. It’s on my block. The name of the post is charity corporatization re ducks three. My block is tony martignetti dot com. And that is tony’s take two for friday, the tenth of august thirty fourth show of the year. Joining me now, as she does once a month, is maria simple. Maria is the prospect finder she’s, an experienced trainer and speaker on prospect research. Her website is the prospect finder dot com. Her book is panning for gold. Find your best donor prospects now with an exclamation mark at the end. And she is at maria simple a si m pl e on twitter. Maria, welcome back. Hi there, tony. How are you today? I’m terrific. Very well, good to have you back. Thank you. We’re talking today about c r m constituent relationship management. Why is this important? Well, you know, it’s very important for non-profits to track relationships that they have especially fund-raising purposes, in my opinion, you know, i’m talking more about fund-raising side there as a prospect researcher that you want to be able to see, you know, where our people interconnected you want to be ableto have a certain data point certainly noted in a system that’s going to be able to capture the relevant points of information that are important for your organization and a broader cr m really goes beyond even the donor database. It would be able to track relationships that you have with volunteers with perhaps people that are coming in, uh, to use your organization’s services on a daily basis so it can give you a really broad picture. And, you know, i any any time you can have any type of a tool that shows sort of relationship management for a mapping tool, you know, i’m all for that, okay? And you and i have talked about too, that prospects don’t only come from donors and fund-raising quote fund-raising prospects. But could be employees or vendor’s vendors to the organization or consultants. Right? Right, right. So these are all the types of relationships that you can manage in a system, you know, ideally, you know, a picture scenario where you are a ah non-profit executive at a small commit sides non-profit and you get a phone call and somebody says, you know, hi, this is, you know, tony martignetti i’m looking to talk to you a little bit more and expand on our last conversation. If it’s me calling, you probably should hang up, but it’s using some other example? Yes. You know, you would want to be able to instantly trying to recall well, gee, what? Tony and i last talk about what were the talking points? You know what? What was his area of interest? Right? So ideally, if you’re, you know, at your computer, will you be able to just, you know, put tony’s name in there and pull up some sort of a data sheet on tony said that you’d be able to track what what were our last conversations? And, of course, you know, this is really important. There’s a lot of turnover right at non-profits so, you know, you want to be able to have that that that long term relationship tracked a donor doesn’t care, right? They don’t care that there’s while they developed relationships with key personnel at the non-profit but in terms of the overall longevity and their commitment to that non-profit organization, whomever that executive director development director is, um, he’s probably not as important as the overarching mission and trying to make sure that that there’s that continuity that people will continue to understand what that donor’s intent is what donors specific interest are. Yeah, it becomes quite embarrassing to say, you know, someone who’s new in the position, you know? I don’t i don’t really know what what conversations were before me, you know, it all just needs to be documented. You’re right for the institutional knowledge and continuity, yeah, absolutely, really critical and donorsearch budget organizations are really just using some sort of a spreadsheet right now to manage this, you know, there are systems out there that are fabulous, and they really range in price. Do you want me to talk about a particular guide that can that can help them kind of identify this. And i can actually put some information on on your paige is well about it. Yeah, in just a moment. Let me just get to one of the survey questions that we had about what? What systems people are using now to manage constituent data. Fifty percent of using razor’s edge. And about seventeen percent are using donor perfect and about a third of using other other software systems. But nobody said one of the choices was it’s on paper or in our heads. And so, thankfully, nobody nobody said that. And nobody said excel spreadsheets. Good thing. So all right, so people are past the index cards, at least. Listeners. Well, this is sophisticated audience, so you’re not going to get your average executive director ceo fundraiser listening to this is a sophisticated show, so the sample is skewed. So we’ll presume that there are some who would say it’s on paper in our heads, but they’re not our listeners. They could be were welcomed them, because then after today’s show, they could choose a different answer. Find value. This’s a that’s. Right? Of course. S oh, please. Why don’t you, uh you have an idea if we had just a couple minutes before break, you have ah, a place where people can sort of compare software, is that what you have? Yeah, absolutely. June twenty eleven idealware dot org’s, uh, terrific website for all types of things having to do with technologies for non-profits they came out with a free downloadable guide that’s called the consumer’s guide to low cost donor-centric and they reviewed lots of systems, and then they go into in depth and review sort of their top ten systems and across all kinds of different, uh, data points, you know, they’re reviewing them, of course, for price. And by the way, all assistance they reviewed technically felling under the four thousand dollars range. Okay, so these are not going to be like razors edge is not going to included, right? Razor’s edge is a very high entry cost. Yeah, so i thought, well, with, you know, your your listener audience of the smaller to midsize non-profit that some of their recommendations might actually fit very well for the non-profits they’re looking at, you know, how well can you manage the donor information? The reporting, tracking events, some of the systems khun do that? Well, yeah, because event event attendees that’s another constituency, right? That’s, right? They might attend an event, but they’re not. They’re not donors in the strict out of pocket sense without any other, any participation. So event attendees another important constituency that’s, right? And they are also some of the systems will do male merging very well. Others are not as great at it. Email. How well can the system email out or play? Well with an outside system, for example, i know that there are certain databases that played very well with donorsearch software, like tapestry in constant contact or constant contact in sales force. Dot com they are two systems that integrate very well together. So integration actually is another data point that they looked at. So, you know, i recommend everybody take a look at that particular guide because it’s free it’s downloadable um and idealware is actually having ah, replay on their webinar that they have on that particular topic as well. And i happen to have received an email. Just tweak that they’re having a sale on their recorded webinars. So for this month, only august it appears that they are nine dollars to download the past recorded webinar. Okay, but and the the survey sounds like sort of a consumer reports of of c r e m now does idealware this is important to know his idealware create today of their own software package or now that they’re not in that business there just a value. They’re reviewing it, right? They will value you don’t. Okay, so we’ll put the idealware dot com. But what? What we put oh, dot org’s. Thank you. But why don’t we put the link to the this document? Go on the facebook page and in the linked in group? Sure, i can do that. Okay. Thank you, maria. You’re always very good. And maria is maria doesn’t only say she’s going to do it actually doesn’t. So the show ends at two p m eastern. I would expect now putting round spot. No, but i’ll just say very quickly. Maria will have the stuff up. I’ll just leave it there. She always does. You always. You always have been. Um okay. What? You had a conversation with a ceo of, of of of a newer, newer offering in this field right recently? Well, actually. That’s what prompted me to kind of take a look at their whole cr m area? There’s there’s a very new, interesting software out there. And it’s called unify o you and i f y o dot com. And by the way, it works best on google chrome. So i know that was one of the questions that i made sure that we are listeners answering on since you’re right, but since you just mentioned it, let sze get that question out. It was which internet browser or using it work fifty percent explorer. Fifty percent are chrome, and then a handful of people, i guess, have to and the about a third of those said fire fox so a third of the yeah, about a third of the half what the hell am i talking? About? Fifty percent said explorer, fifty percent said chrome and about seventeen percent said firefox. So obviously summer using multiple systems. That’s what i was trying to convey in the past minute and a half. Okay, so way. Just have a minute before break. So say a little bit more and then we’ll come back. Okay? Sure. So what it is is a technically they call it a browser extension, and if you go to their website, they have a really cool little video. And i can post, uh, on your page is, well, a link to a specific video that talks about how confused for prospect research and that’s what really caught my attention, but basically what they say is that it bridges the gap between you and your c r m so and we’ll give you a little bit more information on that. But it really completes your customer profiles toe all of your cloud applications, so it integrates with several systems already sales force dot com high rise, which is another cr m system that i’m actually not as familiar with, um, and so, since sales force dotcom does have a non-profit maria, we have to take a break hold. That thought you were just saying, since salesforce dot com does have a non-profit when we return, we’ll let you finish that sentence. Stay with us. Talking. Hi, this is nancy taito from speaks been radio speaks been radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. 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Today, your greatest athletic performance is just a phone call away at eight a one six zero four zero two nine four or visit aspire consulting. Dot vp web motivational coaching for athletic excellence aspire to greatness. 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. Altum welcome back, maria. Simple it’s. Your turn. Teo, finish that sentence on thing about sales force dot com they do have a non-profit related cr m so eyes that free budges. Do you know if that’s free? I believe it is. Yeah, i have. Yes, i was approached, i think. But it wasn’t recently by a salesforce dot com representative. I think it is free. The dover street version for charities. Yeah, i believe it is so what’s kind of cool about it is, you know, it had caught my attention was the fact that if i’m assuming now that the sales force dot com tool that non-profits air using would indeed integrate with unify oh, so if we’ve got any sales forthe users out there, i’d love some feedback. You know, through my page or tony’s page to see if it’s working well for you, but basically once you load this unify o icon up into your tool bar so let’s say then you are looking at somebody’s profile in sales force dot com you can click on the little unify. Oh, uh, icon and it will show you other other interactions that have happened with that person, so if that person has been tweeting about your organization or any email communications that have happened, you can manually put in specific notes about a person, so i’m thinking for a really small to midsize non-profit this could be a very interesting solution. Now, this is brand new. Tony okay, yeah, this is brand new, this is you launched may twenty twelve um, i had an opportunity to skype twice with the ceo of this company in recent weeks so i could get a better handle on understanding it and they love feedback. So, maria, it sze pulling in the whole web when you when you identify somebody that you’re you’re interested in? Yeah, well, it integrates best with certain platforms, but yeah, i mean, if you’re browsing and google chrome, so i was right, it has to be it only works in google chrome so far right far only google chrome, but they are looking to develop it for the other platforms as well. And, you know, i just think, it’s something really need to take a look at if if any of our listeners have an opportunity to do so and provide some feedback, they hadn’t created this. For the not non-profit sector originally, so to know that there could be this applique ability because you can have teams of people so let’s say you’ve got the executive director, the development director, maybe a program director and maybe a couple of board members be considered a team. All this data can be shared. So if you and i are on a team, tony and i want to try and figure out what? When were the last communications, it would pull an information about your last email communications okay, and are you testing this unify? Oh, maria, you know, i’ve been playing around with it a little bit, but i don’t have sales force dot com loaded here so that’s, why? I’d love to know somebody who does have it to see how that how, how that could integrate but it pulled in lengthen dad a twitter feed and i think it’s gonna have a lot of applicability it’s free right now, and it won’t stay free forever, so there will be a fee attached to this at some point. But i’ve been told by the ceo they’re going to keep it very affordable for the nonprofit sector. More broadly, when you’re looking at your your cr m software it’s important to know what, what your goals are from your from your system. Yeah, yeah, absolutely, you know, is it’s a system that is only going to be turning out donorsearch ports is this system, as i mentioned earlier, that might have to do mail merges and email marketing? Um, is this a system that is going to be able to help you track, um, interactions, right with those air critical for prospect freak prospect research? Oh, absolutely, absolutely. I mean, you think about all the points on the continuum on the development cycle. So you’ve got the prospect identification and research think about how will it play into cultivation? Solicitation the thank you, the follow-up and the stewardship i c c r m being invaluable not only for me, it’s, a prospect researcher, but certainly in stewarding donor forward. So it should have really flexibility to be able to provide additional notes. I love cloud based systems personally and don’t put me in george in jail. Now, i think the audience knows club. I think scott and i have talked about cloudgood other other other guests have, okay? I think people should know the cloud by now, i’m clear to talk. Wait, we just have about a minute and a half, though. Okay? So any cloud based system, for example, will enable any board members that you give access to the system, say they are very active and cultivating and solicited, soliciting people and meeting with people outside the office. Then they can certainly go ahead and type in notes about those particular meetings. And that again for that continuity is very, very important. Maria simple is the prospect finder. Her book is panning for gold. Find your best donor prospects now. And her website is the prospect finder dot com maria. Such a pleasure. Thanks very much. Thanks. Always tony on dh something occurred to me as i was talking to maria, you know, wanna make sure that i’m not sounding hypocritical because i blogged and talked about on tony’s take two. My concern about charities being too much like corporations. And now here we are talking about with marie about salesforce, dot com and unify. Oh, a system that wasn’t developed for charities was developed for companies. I do think there are good practices, great practices. In the in the for-profit corporation sector that charity’s can learn from and vice versa. I think corporations could soften themselves in some ways and learn a lot from charities. It’s the it’s, the so learning from each other, that’s to me, that’s distinct from starting to, um b organized by be regulated by by the other by state and federal overseers as one that you’re really not as as as b corp to start to look like r l three sees the limit for-profit limited liability corporations, i think start toe look at so that’s the start to look like charities that’s the distinction for me between what maria and i were talking about when i blogged about this week my thanks, tio terry, billy, wendy nadella, lisa, rob, of course, and the organizer’s of fund-raising day twenty twelve as well as maria next week grow your grassroots. Michael o’brien is a consultant and a grassroots organizer. Why this might be good for your organization and how do you get started? We’re talking about bringing new people to your cause and how to keep them excited about your work through the grassroots. Also, scott koegler returns. He’s the editor of non-profit technology news in our tech contributor you know i’m gonna be talking about devices, laptops, desktops, mobile we’re all over. Social networks checked out are linked in group facebook page maria will have the resource is up there? Follow me on twitter and use our hashtag non-profit radio. Also, i host a podcast for the chronicle of philanthropy it’s called fund-raising fundamentals. If you like this show, you might like fund-raising fundamentals it’s on itunes, it’s, a ten minute monthly podcast devoted to fund-raising continuing to wish you good luck in the way that performers do around the world. I want to keep this up because it’s fun and and i can do whatever i want on this so house with buy-in bruv house won’t buy-in bro that’s german for break your neck and your leg like we would say in the u s break a leg. Germans want you to go further because they have a large orthopaedic surgeon constituency, so they weren’t broken necks and legs and my thanks to janice taylor for these language lessons and contributions. Do you have one away that foreigners greet performers that are just about to go on stage and what they wish them how they wish them luck. Share it with me, let me know, and be sure and tell me how to say it. Our creative producer is claire meyerhoff. Janice taylor is our line producer. The show’s social media is by regina walton of organic social media and the remote producer of tony martignetti non-profit radio is john federico of the new rules. I hope you’ll be with me next friday, one to two p m eastern on talking alternative broadcasting, which you will always find at talking alternative dot com. I didn’t even think that shooting. Good ending. You’re listening to the talking alternate network. You get anything. Dahna cubine hi, this is nancy taito from speaks been radio speaks been radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought. Join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. 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 you’re listening to talking alternative network at www dot talking alternative dot com, now broadcasting 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 friday’s one to two eastern on talking alternative broadcast are you concerned about the future of your business for career? Would you like it all to just be better? Well, the way to do that is to better communication. And the best way to do that is training from the team at improving communications. This is larry sharp, host of the ivory tower radio program and director at improving communications. Does your office need better leadership? Customer service sales or maybe better writing are speaking skills? Could they be better at dealing with confrontation conflicts, touchy subjects all are covered here at improving communications. If you’re in the new york city area, stopped by one of our public classes or get your human resource is in touch with us. The website is improving communications, dot com that’s improving communications, dot com improve your professional environment. Be more effective, be happier. And make more money. Improving communications. That’s. The answer. Talking. Hyre

099: Automated Accounting & Online Engagement To Action – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

Tony’s guests this week:

Aaron Schmid, chief product officer at Bill Highway

Jay Frost, CEO of FundraisingInfo.com

Read and watch more on Tony’s blog: http://tonymartignetti.com

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Hello and welcome to the show, it’s tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. I’m your aptly named host. I very much hope that you were with me last week. It would cause me pain if i learned that you had missed your more effective board. Gail gifford is the author of how to make your board dramatically more effective. Starting today, she helped you make sure your charities mission is relevant. Your ceo is supported and your board is strong. Also, a conversation with paul clolery he’s, the editor in chief of non-profit times he and i talked about a trend that he sees happening in events that they’re ramping up and what he’s concerned about in the future for charities this week. Automated accounting. Aaron schmidt is chief product officer at billhighway and he thinks a lot about accounting, so you don’t have to we’ll talk about increasing visibility, improving, reporting, standardizing if you have more than one office automate and increasing sorry and integrating with your bank and automate that’s re automating the gerund form that should be automating. I need i need an intern, so i have somebody to blame. For these mistakes, automating will be part of our discussion. Also, online engagement toe action from fund-raising day two thousand twelve. Jake frost, ceo of fund-raising info dot com, talks with me about moving people from engagement online to giving online how to convert your social media friends into donors. On tony’s, take two between the guests non-profit radios. One hundredth show it’s next week. Use non-profit radio that’s, our hashtag on twitter, use that hashtag to join the conversation there. Right now, we take a break and when we return, it’s automated accounting with aaron schmid, stay with me duitz thing getting dink, dink, dink dink. You’re listening to the talking alternative network waiting to get in. Don’t. You could. Hi, i’m carol ward from the body mind wellness program. Listen to my show for ideas and information to help you live a healthier life in body, mind and spirit. You hear from terrific guests who are experts in the areas of health, wellness and creativity. So join me every thursday at eleven a, m eastern standard time on talking alternative dot com professionals serving community. 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. Buy-in dafs you’re listening to the talking alternative network. Welcome back to tony martignetti non-profit radio big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent arika schmidt is with me now. He’s, the chief product officer for billhighway and he leads the product and technical development of that financial technology platform. He’s a c p a. Aaron was previously a management consultant for deloitte consulting. Where’s clients included american express, bear stearns and borgwarner and i’m very pleased to have his expertise on the show. Aaron schmid welcome. Good morning. Thanks, tony. What’s wrong in accounting in small and midsize charities, you know, there there’s quite a bit of a few come to mind, you know immediately. And you know, one is just the lack of standardization across organisations and it really doesn’t matter if if your organization consists of one entity o r one hundred fifty different ways of doing the same thing. It’s just really not a healthy way to run a business, and it caused several problems related to, you know, operational inefficiencies. It could be very hard to educate and enforce again when you have fifty different ways of doing things, and it becomes even harder to get any type of consistent or meaningful reporting. So, organizations, you really need to focus on creating consistency. You know, both with prophecies and tools. You need one financial system of record one process to find. Oh, and that’s going to increase the level of visibility and accountability across the organization. Okay, these processes were talking about this is all around your money, money coming in money coming out. Absolutely no money coming in and out specifically around reporting, you know, i see. Ah, latto inconsistency. You know, just recently, way had a simple example where volunteers were running. Ah, client organization of ours. And those volunteers were were using different versions of the organization chart of account. And when you looked at it, i’m sorry. Different versions of the organization’s what chart of accounts? Chart of accounts. Okay, but it’s really what? What? To find your financial statements. It was really obvious when you look across the reports that were produced in the organization that the counter being misused and they were being duplicated and again, it was just really, really made it difficult to accurately report from a budget standpoint and then tracking actually to that. And we really just went in and did a very simple review of that chart of accounts and ended up finding one version of the truth. I did a little education, you know, on the volunteers, you know how to use that and just that simple change. You really just changed the meaningfulness of the reported that the report there were being generated. Tony martignetti non-profit radio has drug in jail. You you’re really been talking for less than two minutes, you’re already skirting very close. Of course, i’m the warden of jargon jail, so the probation early probation is a possibility a chart of accounts is that something that every charity is supposed to have? What, first of all, what are these accounts? What is on this chart? Absolutely every organization non-profit for-profit goingto have a chart of accounts and it’s really a very simple concept, nothing more than a list of reporting buckets of how you’re going to track your information, you know, over the course of the year, and that information is going to allow you to make better, better business decisions and really, in the end, that’s all a financial statement is kind of a running total to find on that list of reporting bucket that you’ve defined is meaningful to your organization again to be able teo, accumulate that information at the end of the year and make again better business. What are some examples of these reporting buckets that we on this chart of reports that sort of accounts, revenues and expensive? So you would think of you your piano again? However, your cash is coming into your organization, you’re gonna break that down to whatever’s meaningful. So you know, one example would be to break down reports they don product lines. You know, if you know that one hundred thousand dollars came in over the course of the year that’s important, but if you know that that hundred thousand dollars was ninety thousand dollars came from product number one and ten thousand came from product number two, that lower level granularity again is good, it is meaningful and it’s going to allow you to make decisions based on it, as opposed to just having that one lump sum amount of one hundred thousand dollars. So defining those reporting buckets, that chart of accounts is critical to understanding the health of your organization, okay, those are examples of revenues that may be coming in. So one might be fund-raising and one might be fees for services, and maybe one is you have a little thrift shop or something like that or a little sale of product or something. What are some examples? Okay, what are some examples of money going out these reporting buckets? That would be in this chart of accounts, you need to think of your expense structure and how your money is flowing out of the organization. So, again, whatever it is meaningful to you could be a simple, as, you know, the rent in the space that that that you’re releasing it could be a symbol of the utilities or again, anything that makes sense to your organization, and we need to be accounting for these items all separately. This is the point, right? That’s the point exactly that that lower level of granularity is so critical and you got it achieve a balance because there’s effort into creating that, you know, amount of detail and you don’t want to get excessive where it’s taking too much time to, you know, separate all those things out, but you definitely want to spend enough time, tio, where you’re getting enough meaningful. Information tio r mu to be able to make make those good business decisions. All right? And now, in just a minute, we have left before a break. What is the the value of tracking these this’s this flow of money in and out in the same way each time for small and midsize charities that that probably don’t even have a cfo? Yeah, that that consistent is so critical because without it, you know, it’s really hard to enforce accountability across the organization, because if things are track inconsistently, you just you don’t know what’s going on and if you don’t know what’s going on again, it’s hard to hold people accountable throughout your organization latto finding that that one version of truth and then using it in a very assistant manner is going to be critical free to be able to execute you’re on your wayto financial health. I’m thinking of a small organization that may get one hundred, checks a year or so or something like that, and maybe different people are accounting for those checks each time they come in, not out and about a hundred different people, but maybe two or three different people are doing it two or three different ways. That’s, your point right, that’s, my point, that’s all it takes again that you don’t need to be a thousand entity organization like you mentioned one. Any organization with no more than two people can do things in consistently, and that can create all kinds of wasted time, time and energy where you can get that consistent, whether you’re two people or one hundred again, what’s coming out on the back end in the financial statements are gonna be so much more meaningful. If that khun assistance, he was fine from the beginning and then executed well throughout the process, we have to take a break. You’ll stay with me, of course, and we’ll continue talking about automated accounting. Everybody else stays with us, too. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. How’s your game. Want to improve your performance, focus and motivation? Then you need a spire athletic consulting stop second guessing yourself. Move your game to the next level. Bring back the fun of the sport, help your child build confidence and self esteem through sports. Contact dale it aspire athletic consulting for a free fifteen minute power session to get unstuck today, your greatest athletic performance is just a phone call away at eight a one six zero four zero two nine four or visit aspire consulting. Dot vp web motivational coaching for athletic excellence aspire to greatness. Are you fed up with talking points? Rhetoric everywhere you turn left or right? Spin ideology no reality. In fact, its ideology over intellect no more it’s time for action. Join me. Larry shot a neo-sage tuesday nights nine to eleven easter for isaac tower radio burghdoff in the ivory tower will discuss what’s important to you society, politics, business and family. It’s provocative talk for the realist and the skeptic who want to go what’s really going on? What does it mean? What can be done about it? So gain special access to the ivory tower. Listen to me. Very. Sharp your neo-sage tuesday nights nine to eleven new york time go to ivory tower radio dot com for details. That’s ivory tower radio dot com every tower is a great place to visit for both entertainment and education. Listening. Tuesday nights nine to eleven it will make you smarter money time, happiness, success, where’s, your breakthrough. Join me, nora simpson, as i bring you real world tools for combining financial smarts with spiritual purpose. As a consultant to ceos, i’ve helped produce clear, measurable financial results while expanding integrity, passion and joy share my journey as we apply the science of achievement and the art of fulfillment to create breakthroughs for people across the world. The people of creation nation listened to norah simpson’s creation nation fridays at twelve noon eastern on talking alternative dot com. 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 hello and welcome back. Aaron let’s, talk about the value of this reporting. What now? Our report is going to be more specific when we know that we’re having consistent processes each time check comes in or some money goes out. But what we’re going to do with these now maur clear reports. Well, now we can use them, right? And before, when things are not consistent. You spent so much time in the accident knows of finance that it’s very hard to work in any proactive manner, and now that you have this consistency, you can start using it to become better and use financial statements, you know, again for what they’re there for teo again, increase the financial health of your organization aboard would certainly be interested in clearer, more precise reporting, right? Your your board, your finance committee or the office or the school board and it’s a huge problem right now and a lot of organization. That’s one of the core purpose is generating these financial statements for the different types of groups, and you can lose sight of and why you exist is an organization and again that’s for your constituents and that’s for your mission and you don’t exist is an organization. Teo, keep up and keep your head above water from a finance back-up okay, so we can automate thes tasks. Is that right? That’s that’s a key part of this key part of it? I mean, key part of it really centers around, you know, trying to work smarter and not harder on dh a great way to to work smarter, not harder, harder is to use technology as in the neighbor enabler and, you know, you want to reduce manual task, you want to get rid of duplicates. Dafs and as i just mentioned, you want try to free up resources from those accident o’s of financial management every day and get back to focusing on your constituent, thinking about recruitment, thinking about retention and obviously, you know, ultimately your mission, yeah, i think the you call him the x’s and o’s mean thiss numerical accounting and and just everything around the numbers is pretty daunting to a lot of small and midsize shops. They’re not really sure how to do it. They’re passionate about their work, obviously, because they wouldn’t be there, but then the business side, the financial management side is kind of, you know, burdensome and scary. Absolutely. All right, organizations really get caught up a lot. Just how things have always been done. And regardless of how painful it is, you can get caught keeping your head down and not not thinking about taking a step back and thinking, you know, how can we do this better? How can we do this? Smarter on dh that’s where, you know, technology could come in to get rid of a lot of that waste of time and energy and get you back focused on what makes? All right, we’ve talked on this show a few times about software as a service which is synonymous with cloud computing. That’s where a lot of the help exists right in the cloud? Absolutely, absolutely. And they make a lot of sense, you know, in today’s, day and age, especially for smaller groups. The leverage of the cloud. You know, in my opinion, it’s just it’s very difficult today to be good at everything and technology. It’s just it’s changing at an ever increasing pace and, you know, to be great at it, you need to focus on it. And you need to focus really exclusively on it? Um, not not profit organizations, they’re not technology companies again. They exist for their missions for their purpose. Um, and again, in my opinion, you think you need to let the experts focused on technology. Um, security security of your constituent data, it’s just it’s, paramount, and you really need to make sure that you do your homework and select a provider that understands that on that protects that again so you can leverage the power of the club duitz you talk about the pace of change, of technology and how hard it is for for people to keep up, so if they’re using a cloud computing solution, then they don’t have to keep up right? The company that manages that software, they’re the ones who are upgrading their product all the time, exactly and that’s, the real benefit is you have companies that are focused exclusively on it, that they do it very well, you know, they’re they’re constantly thinking about, you know, back-up systems, disaster recovery plans, you know, they’re building their facilities and earthquake proof fireproof, you know, places they’re they’re constantly focussed on data encryption. These are skills that they’re not. Simple on and they’re only getting harder and, you know, there’s so many times where, you know, i’ll go into a client and you see the server that sitting in a closet on air conditioned, right cem cem closet where there may be water bottles over it or something like that? Absolutely, you know, and all it takes is a simple air conditioning malfunction and, you know, you could be out of business because there’s pipes and risers in there, a pipe bomb accident literally walked into, you know, a server rooms where there’s water dripping and, you know, they put the makeshift things up, directing water. We are men and that’s just the risk is just too high and there’s really help. Ten years ago, fifteen years ago, you didn’t have that choice. He kind of had to live with that risk, but in today’s, day and age, you don’t have to live with that risk again. You can leverage software, the service cloud computing for what? It’s good at on dh. Just vastly different than just a few years ago. Those those closets, server rooms, that’s when people get creative with plastic sheets and duct tape. Yeah, have seen it all year and you’re hyping, maybe like a hose or rubber number. A garden hose cut from somebody’s home and that’s it. You got it. You got it. And that’s the problem with one simple thing. And you can have ah, catastrophes. So you can sleep a lot easier at night, knowing that organizations are going to the level they are to protect what’s so important to your organization again, back to that constituent data and the related financial data. Right. Okay, so all this important data now you. You you mentioned security, but let’s spend a couple of minutes with it. How do we know that the off site storage of our precious data, the stuff you just mentioned is is safer than being on our computers that we can see that i can control and have physical, physical security over the great question. And that’s where i mentioned early really need toe do your homework when when you’re looking at organizations you want to look for under organizations that really, truly understand, you know what they’re doing, you know, some of the industry standards out there that you want to look at you? Have they done? Enough the sixteen hold on jargon jail twice in ten minutes, six homes for seventy and it’s just really about, you know, i mean, auditing. Obviously, most folks are familiar with financial audit on dh these audits were created for the purpose of systems and making sure that the day to day operation of those systems are in line with best practices. All right, so now, what is what is seventeen at the end of a sixteen again? Just that it’s a set of rules, basically that organizations need to follow and you have it have an independent auditor come in and look at the controls are are in place and actually test those controls to make sure that again, you’re back-up there are happening regularly that you have a disaster recovery plan that you’ve actually executed that disaster recovery plan. They’re going to spend a lot of time in your databases and make sure that your data’s encrypted and make sure there’s no sensitive credit card information or different things, you know that that are in there that regular folks within your organization should not have access to. All right, so these are a set of audit standards. You got it? I got it. Okay, look at that. If they’re dealing again with any payment related information, you want to make sure i’m gonna get in trouble with the jargon police here, but that their pc i compliant and again that’s the exact same concept. It’s just centers around credit card information. What argast that of standards that the different networks out there, like visa and mastercard have outlined to make sure that anybody that is processing credit card payments are following the standards and make sure that everyone’s data is protected. Okay, this is all critical. Mean credit card processing. So your executive director has a credit card for the for the organization. You may very well get credit card gift either online or by paper when people fill out replied devices. This is all part of that level of that needed security, right? And now what’s pc i what is pc? I stand for payments, compliance industry. And i forget the actually what the acronym it means, but again, it’s all about that that set of standards that you need to comply by ifyou’re goingto all be involved in credit card transactions. Okay, which are pretty common. I think absolutely all right, so if we’re going to move to ah cloud solution, how do we then make the transfer that from or the conversion from our manual system or whatever we’re using to something that’s off site in cloud based sure, you want to focus on that during implementation, and you want to talk about that plan that you know, with your new private provider front from the beginning? Um, most things today can be automated and, you know, just with the web itself just integration of systems there’s just so much easier than it is today. So in most instances, you’ll look to some sort of programmatic way to get your key data from your legacy systems into your new systems, you know, having toe rechy that information, you know it most times you don’t need teo, but again, if the data set a small enough, you know, sometimes that doesn’t make sense. And because it’s just a one time transfer of information, there are times where from a budget standpoint where that makes the most sense you mean manual manual king makes the most sense, exactly, exactly for the kids to think about it from the beginning of the process, you don’t want to get too far down the path and then start bringing up the topic and then realize that there is going to be some investment in terms of some programmatic interchange. So, you know, having those discussions upfront, understanding the implications and then being able to make the best decision based on what makes sense for your organization is aaron schmidt is chief product officer at billhighway, which you’ll find it billhighway dot com, how are these services typically paid for what? How are the fees work? That’s one of the great things about cloudy as well as, you know, in the past, he typically installing, you know, large systems on your different client server based systems ten again, twenty years ago with a significant capital investment upfront and then ongoing maintenance and licensing xero and the cloud, you know, move to a much more subscription based, you know, pricing model, and you really don’t have to make those significant capital investments up front and it’s more of ah, pay as you go model, which can be very attractive to smaller organizations that, you know, just historically haven’t had the funding the ability to make those up from capital investments for the large systems there? What do you really just kind of changes the playing field and allows any organization tio have the power of ah, very what do you paying for as you go? Is it per transaction or it’s a monthly retainer based female? How does pay as you go work it’s all different? You know, some organizations will charge you more of ah, per user fee. Some organizations, we’ll charge you more of a transactional based model, especially if they’re involved at all in the processing of online payments or donations. So it’s really gonna depend on on the provider and what the specific functionality is, you know, that they’re providing, but the beauty is that pay as you go model, getting rid of that that up front investment what’s interesting about cloudgood puting is it’s it’s, analogous to where we were thirty years ago twenty five, thirty years, roughly in computing, where it was mainframes and people had, you know, dumb terminals and you had to go to a terminal room, of course, because he asked, and it wasn’t just tom it’s exactly how to think of it. Is all you need is that dumb, you know, internet browser and another one of the beauties you could be anywhere in the world longs you have that intercut internet connection, you know, tying back to again that that mainframe like environment you got, everything you need is a great difference is being, of course, now it’s all desktop, you don’t go to terminal room, and your organization doesn’t maintain that mainframe. You’re just paying for access to it up in the cloud exactly. And in the sharing of that, that cost across all the organizations customers is what’s so critical where before an organization had to absorb that completely by themselves, you know, again in an industry that they’re not experts in and spreading that cost out across all of ah, cloud providers, clients, you know, just really benefits everybody way have just a couple of minutes before we have to wrap up. Erin, we’ve been talking about your internal processes accounting, but this can be these processes can be integrated with the external your bank. How does that work? Absolutely. And today again, we talk about the differences the back in the client server days, you know, into the true, you know, web based world and it isn’t general systems have been they’ve gotten better and better at integration, and you need to look for solutions that embrace integration, you know, as part of our culture, a lot of systems today that kind of claim to be good at everything and that’s just not the case, you know billhighway for example, a great financial management tool, but we’re not a great cms toole were not a great here, and you’ll see a memory with hold on hold on crn when i was customer relationship management, what cms concept management comes and think about your front end if a lot of your revenue comes in from from donations, you think about the the website that your donors are used to going teo make those donations, we have just like forty five seconds before i have to wrap up, so my charity has a relationship with td bank can you’re saying that i can integrate my accounting system using cloud computing and be integrated with my account or accounts at td bank after the limit? The counting systems are get embracing this integration and you see examples really across the board where payment processing and online banking are becoming more and more fully integrated with your accounting system and that’s really kind of were billhighway hang a hat is we’ve actually built in accounting system that sits on top of banking platforms from the beginning of tiny that your bank over here and you’re counting system over here. And and it was it was a batch process to put the two of them together every night or something batch process, and yet people involved reconcile ing those things, and really one of the reasons accounting systems in-kind departments exist is making sure that those two things they’re in synch and you’re expending a lot of time and money making sure that that’s happening and organizations like billhighway have asked the question you do, these things need to be separate, and we believe, you know, very strongly that they don’t, and we believe in, you know, five, ten years, you’re not gonna have ah system doing payment processing and in online bank to log into and then in accounting system, log into your have one user interface to log into that is allowing you to execute all three of those and then be able to leverage the operational efficiency that that that could create. All right, erin, we have to leave it there. Chief product officer at billhighway, which you’ll find a billhighway dot com arika schmidt, thank you very much for being on the show. Great. Thank you. Doing my pleasure. Right now, we take a break, and when we returned to tony’s, take two bonem talking alternative radio, twenty four hours a day. Hi, this is nancy taito from speaks. Been radio speaks. Been. Radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought. Join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. Hi, i’m carol ward from the body mind wellness program. Listen to my show for ideas and information to help you live a healthier life in body, mind and spirit. You hear from terrific guests who are experts in the areas of health, wellness and creativity. So join me every thursday at eleven a, m eastern standard time on talking alternative dot com professionals serving community. Money, time, happiness, success, where’s, your breakthrough. Join me, nora simpson, as i bring you real world tools for combining financial smarts with spiritual purpose. As a consultant to ceos, i’ve helped produce clear, measurable financial results while expanding integrity, passion and joy. Share my journey as we apply the science of achievement and the art of fulfillment. To create breakthroughs for people across the world. The people of creation nation listened to norah simpson’s creation nation. Fridays, twelve noon eastern on talking alternative dot com buy-in. 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 lively conversation. Top trends, sound advice, that’s, tony martignetti non-profit radio and i’m samantha cohen from the american civil liberties union. Time now for tony’s, take two my one hundredth show is next week, friday, july thirteenth. Amy sample ward is going to be my guest she’s, a blogger for stanford social innovation review, and she’s, an officer at men and ten the non-profit technology network. I’m opening this one hundred show up to you because i’m so grateful that you listen and support the show, the question’s going to be yours she’s ready to take on your social media questions? You can send them to us to me. Use the linked in group comment on my blog’s use facebook used twitter. Send your questions in advance for amy sample ward anything around social media any of those platforms i just mentioned or any of the other social networks if you’re struggling or if you’re not struggling, but you just have ah, little question to try to get you to the next level, send it and amy sample ward will take it on next friday on the one hundred show, we also have some and ten books and swag teo giveaway for both live and archive listeners were not forgetting the archive listeners in the contests ah, plus all the regular contributors is going to be there, maria and scott and jean and emily all four talking about social media is social networking, and you’ll find all this my blogged at tony martignetti dot com that is tony’s take two for friday, july sixth, twenty seventh show of the year and my ninety ninth show. Right now, i have for you a pre recorded interview with j frost from fund-raising day two thousand twelve, he and i talked about moving people from online engagement to online donor on here is that interview. Welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of fund-raising day two thousand twelve were hosted by the association of fund-raising professionals, the greater new york city chapter, and we’re in midtown manhattan at the marriott marquis. My guest right now is jay frost. He is ceo of fund-raising info dot com, and his seminar topic is a little provocative, not too provocative, curious, popping the question moving from engagement to action online. J frost welcome, thank you very much. Nice to be here, it’s a pleasure to have you on and to meet. Finally, we’ve we’ve been connected through social social networks through for quite some time, a long time a couple of years, i think, but now meeting face to face. And i’m really not too impressed. So you look better than i imagine. He’s gracious, and i’m obnoxious. Um, let’s. See? Okay, so we wanna engage. People are already engaged with our non-profit but with our charity. But we want to move them into giving online. Oh, yeah, we’re gonna have some time, but generally, what is our process for doing that? Asking, asking them to give go to the next level and okay, so when we talk about engagement, what level are they engaged? Hypothetical? Well, that does really range, right? Okay, organizations are our messaging all the time. They’re out there talking to people about the good that they do, and they do that in different ways. According to this scope and scale and their marketing plan, sometimes it’s is really a nice, rigorous plan. And sometimes it’s haphazard, but fundamentally were engaging with organizations because we we find something that they do appealing here’s, thie even stronger than appealing. I mean, they they move it, they move us. We love their work for some reason. Well, yes, i mean, hopefully radio and and we’re right, especially in social media. Be talking about that kind of passion all the time, so i’m all for passion. But at some point we’ve got to be like the session title implies at some point we got to be willing to say okay, well, i love you too. But now it’s time to get together and compare notes and work on something together. So it’s about asking people to make a commitment. Okay, how do we begin? Teo asked, how do we approach them? Well, i think it’s not dissimilar from all the other things we do in fund-raising it’s just that a lot of social has been about marketing rather than sales. And so it’s a matter of merging those two pieces instead of building a wall between them that i work with the number of organizations where they will build very large followings of people, and talk about a lot of really important things that work, that they do every day, or they share scriptural quotes. Or they will go in and look at a specific program in detail, share images from it all these things are great. They really engage people. Then they failed to just take that one additional step and say, come on over to thiss page here’s a link, and then you can support this next year, next month tomorrow, so what’s the reluctance why aren’t we doing it more? Well, i think part of it is because we’ve been given ah the wrong message for the last couple years about what social media’s should be and how far it can go, right? And in fact, there have been a lot of people that i like to call the gurus and ninjas because they often refer to themselves as good, wasn’t it? Who will say you really have to build that passion? First, we have to build the passion first, and i understand the emotion behind that here’s here’s, the fundamental challenge if we began every organization like that, none with survive every every organization needs to have today’s equivalent of the sustaining gift of the major grant of the the money given at the door of some kind of purchase. If we failed to do that, we lose the ability to sustain our mission, and social is really no different from anything else in that regard, except that the audience is far larger and the acquisition cost is far lower, right? Right. Okay, so we say thie advices asked, but we’re accustomed to doing very different work related but leading up to but were afraid to make the ask right to convert someone into a donor that’s who we’re talking about, right, even and even a modest donor, maybe a fifty dollars, a year donor. What’s what’s your advice? I mean, well, let me ask you this way, does your advice vary based on whether we’re asking through facebook or we’re asking our twitter followers? Well, i don’t know that would vary that much by the channel. Specifically, it might be by the kind of content we’re sharing or the event itself or the ask itself. I guess what i’m saying is that we need to be willing to marry the different parts of the program so instead of them operating in silos, we gotta find a way to, for example, have the e mail campaign fed by social. So a part of this is organizational structure. It’s absolutely, or you don’t want marketing communications not to not be talking to development and institutional advance, right? Absolutely. And in fact, i think a lot of times we we’ve given the social aspect to people in it because we saw two somehow alien and complicated, or we’ve given it to the marketing department because we saw it as a channel for broadcasting. And while those the people in those in those skill areas are terrific, they have terrific skillsets great contributions, they make two organizations, we need to have somebody who’s willing to actually say, okay, glad you love us now would you be willing to support this activity? They need to be involved in all the messaging, all those components, okay, so who should be saying it? Well, in that case, what we really need to do is have a social media department, which is made up of people were fund-raising including fund-raising all right, so we need to break down the organizational silos and also the conceptual silos about what social networks are for and how far we can go with them. And and i’ve seen this pretty consistently. I went to a conference last year where it was a room full of people going to a session on social media that i was conducting, and we did it kind of. A show of hands afterwards, how many people had a fundraiser in the team that was responsible for a social media messaging and it was less than ten percent? And i saw something happened just recently it another conference in very similar result. So i think that we we have to we have to find a way to marry these concepts very early in the program, and then we will use that technologies as the bridges between them so that if, for example, we won’t go to facebook and to say, will you give today? We would say there there’s here’s, the program that we’ve been talking about? It’s really important, we need your support for it where you click this link and come over here and do so so that’s it. Then we’re going to use another platform to collect the information, to collect the donation in the same way that we do now through email or our website. So it’s a process of moving from one place to another using the correct messaging within that context of that channel. Okay, so let’s talk a little more, even in more detail, so that people can start to activate themselves. Two break down their own pre conceptions. Misconceptions about this limitation around around social media. What? What is what is a preferred method of doing that let’s say on with your with twitter followers? How might we start to get them? We’re putting out bursts, they’re very engaged. We’ve got a good number, let’s say we’ve got a couple of thousand followers, but that’s as far as we’ve gone and we don’t really know much about them other than that they’re following us on twitter way don’t know, we don’t know who they are beyond that, right? How do we start to message while they’re there? There are a whole bunch of elements there there, really interesting. Okay, one is the task, interesting questions all the time i had to, but they’re running on you to get in there. Open ended. So interesting answers. Where do i start? Which apple do i pick first? Well, one part is about knowing who the donors are. Okay, let’s, focus on how do we get more information about who are two thousand? Twitter followers aren’t right exactly. Well, there were a couple ends to that one is, of course, when we go in, we when we have an existing following, we could start researching those people by simply looking their profiles and then connecting that to other kinds of profiles for example, their web pages there, they’re linked in pages and that we’re gonna learn quite a good deal about them. A bigger challenge right now is finding information on people already in our file who are on these social channels, but we don’t know that they are there, and there are some tools now to do that there. Is there a couple of companies unfortunate don’t think they’re in the hall here today, but they’re a couple of company named them it’s. Ok, well, i know one is small act, for example, small act small act, which what they do is they will take a file of email addresses, and they will then upend the social handles so instead of wonderful. So instead of just trying to figure out who might be on facebook and then say, well, you post something for us, you find out the people who had the greatest influence and then you reach out to them directly. Now can we give listeners another another company that does that just to give them a choice? Don’t i want? Or i would, but i’m forgetting. The name right now and there are only two. But if i’m happy to tell anybody if they contact me after, ok, if it occurs to you in the next fifteen minutes so shattered i mean, i shout out random phones right time i’ll do that. So you’re invited to do that as well. Listeners know that it’s mostly randomized. Okay. What? What other advice? I mean, you see now, it’s? Not really channel specific. But you said i might question opened up a whole bunch of interesting topics are now we know more about who the people are, right? What else? What else was interesting? Well, another piece of that is how our people actually raising money. I mean, are they raising money by direct if they are raising money at all? Are they doing it by direct, ask or by empowering people to ask on their behalf? Clearly, the answer is number two. Eso an example. That’s very easy now is charity water charity water has been very successful in having people donate their birthdays where a person will say i would like tio instead giving me birthday presents this year will you go to my form, make a gift for charity water to bring potable water to people who don’t have any. And that’s that’s been very successful, they’ve raised. I understand over forty five million dollars to date there are now embarking a one billion dollar campaign. So i think fundamentally, what they’re doing right, and it’s been done by other organizations, is by empowering their donors to use some tools off line and use the social environment to go out and spread that message with those links to their pages. Charity water also happens to be very good about showing impact. Yes, absolutely. I think that’s a big that’s. A big piece, obviously on the programmatic side, they’re showing that your dollars could make a direct impact. Its but even when it’s not quite as tangible, i think organizations have done very well in these ways. Another example that i used today is something like humane society, the humane society, united states. What are they doing? That’s right in this context, they again have causes page, you know, so people can make a donation that way. They have their own contribution pages, etcetera. So they’re driving traffic to these places so people could make a donation. But really, what they’re doing is they’re fostering that relationship and empowering the donor. And one really basic level is to go and react and respond and engage with every single person who posts something. So if you were to go right now and send a tweet to somebody, the commission society, you’re going to get a response, you know? And i don’t know of any other charity in america that does that. 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 are you suffering from aches and pains? Has traditional medicine let you down? 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And for small and midsize shops, that could be very challenging, but i just don’t have the do they. Well, let me push back on that we’ve had that conversation for a long time in fund-raising about the thank you call and ah lot of us know jerry panis, who talks about this stuff, and i’ve done some sessions with him at the institute for charitable giving this last year, a lot of fun because he has so much history and so much experience with different organizations, and he often tells the story listeners who don’t know his last name is spelled p a n a s yes, and you’ll see it either is jerry are usually jerrold with a j that’s, right? Yeah. Okay, please. Lots of books to his to his credit center, etcetera. But he talks about these organizations that that decide to thank their donors by phone. And this is a long before social media. So just one levels you pick up the phone and just say thank you. And so he was talking with a few organizations about this and the importance of making i think he said ah, thank you. Phone call to everybody who gives that leased a thousand dollars and one person said while we do it for everybody who gives one hundred, and he thought that was great, of course, s o he said, well, how how do you do it? And that’s that’s terrific. And and they said, well, actually, we do. And i think they said about fifty six thousand like this a year fifty six thousand phone calling organization it’s a big organization, but here’s the question, why are they big? I would argue that the reason why they’re large is because they built that level of engagement because they thank everyone because there because the most important thing is the person had told jerry and the rest of group, what is there that’s more important than saying thank you? And but and the reason i mention this in social media context is because in social media that’s, exactly the currency if you say something great, i retweet it, and that means that i think it has value and i care and you probably care that i that i’ve done that, but institutionally, we have failed at that we will often broadcast really good content that we think it’s in the interest of our of our constituents, but we haven’t been very good about saying, wow, thank you for sharing this content or that was a really great thing that you said we really appreciate your carrying our baton it’s very easy to dio i’ve been mystery shopping at non-profits on twitter, okay, couple years, yes, we’re all going all post content about them, oftentimes with their handle to see what they’ll say, and this is various things they have a job opening at a gift that’s been made to them there posted some terrific content, and then i’ll wait to see what they say. Now i’ve done this organizations i know nothing about. I don’t know anyone there, i’ve done it with organizations i know but haven’t given teo and i’ve done it with organizations where i give including a couple, whether in my will and they know it, and i would have to say that at least ninety nine percent that time there is xero response to anything that i posted about them and and really that’s just like the thank you. What? Why? Why not decide to make a mental shift and simply say that while we don’t have all day to subic, sit around, say thank you, we can take ten percent of our day on social to say we’re going to talk with people in a way that tells them that we care and that’s that’s actually an outstanding example, including especially, i think, the ones that you have in your will and they know it, but there isn’t a closer relationship, and they’re not monitoring their social networks. Two see that you’re you’re commenting on the relationship, and they should be commenting back. And part of that, of course, is is roger that the person who’s working on that social account is now pushing housing and pushing and and not looking and you know it’s not their fault. It’s their job to create content, but not to monitor what what’s coming back or to monitor the relationships with donors because their job is all about the content. It’s not about the dahna relationships, but no donors, you know, no bucks, no buck rogers, yeah, that’s my philosophy on fund-raising all right, ah, look, i’m just going to open up the sort of generally mean other advice the charity’s khun can execute. For me, that’s a that’s a pretty simple one monitor your channel, monitor your name across all the networks that you’re on that’s right and respond when the name is someone that’s should be recognizable to me, so cross check what other simple advice like that? Well, you can use the same philosophy to try and gather new donors knew or at least knew constituents, knew interested parties, so it goes beyond the kind of follow the followers or follow the followers followers thing to looking for people. We’re talking about the things that matter to you. So in the case of the kind things that way, there is our currency, maybe it’s philanthropy or if i’m in a cancer organization to look att at, people were mentioning cancer, and then to reach up into the to them directly and talk about what is of interest to them. Tio applaud the kinds of things they’re posting and that’s going to drive traffic back to you. I mean, i think it has a direct economic effect, but it also has a has a way of showing them that were really authentic and what we’re doing, we’re not just selling something, which i think should be appealing to the people right now who are monitoring our channels, that the folks who are largely managing our social media right now have their heart in the right place, which is to say they care that that we’re having an honest and authentic conversation. The problem is that there aren’t necessarily in a position to have it with the people who are the most invested with our causes, so if we can improve that, that and then e-giving some incentive direction, encouragement to go out and try to find more people who care about the same things, we could really broaden our audience. Another piece that’s of great interest to me is about global amglobal fund-raising organizations, the united states have been largely focused on domestic fund-raising forever and that’s been in for very practical reasons. If you live in new york, there’s a lot of opportunity in new york, so maybe you’d go outside to the tri state area. If you live in california, you have a national charity. Maybe you’ll reach out to new york and perhaps texas in chicago and d c in a couple places florida, but you’re going to stop. In the places that, you know, we have a critical mass of donors, and a lot of that is driven by where you can travel and who you have addresses for here’s. The thing about global social media is that if i post something now, not a person in beirut could read is easily a za person in boston or tokyo as well as texas. So if we start trying to send messages out in a way that says, we’re welcoming not just the people here who care about this stuff, but we’re really welcoming everyone. We have the opportunity to completely expand our audience for our work and because that we aren’t inhibited by those addresses because the mail weii there’s really nothing, nothing inhibiting us from continuing to stuart these donors once we activate them, empower them and that’s again. Why we need to have stewardship and solicitation is always a piece of this fabric because otherwise we’ll never have the opportunity to say great glad you liked us. Can you come over here and support us? And the same thing is true. Domestically, we for a long time been focused on donors who kind of looked like our boards, the past and that’s been a pretty homogeneous place. But today, because the nature of social media and its audience it’s so widely diverse, especially the audiences that are going to become more mohr, the biggest part of the american fabric in the next few years that we have an opportunity to talk to them right now in a way that we never could’ve with our list. Ten years ago, you wouldn’t have had the access right right here, we have to leave it there. Great j frost, a pleasure. He is ceo of fund-raising info dot com pleasure to have you as a guest. It’s, great speaker. Thanks, tony. Martignetti oh, my pleasure. Thank you, tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of the fund-raising day conference two thousand twelve in new york city. Our host is the association of fund-raising professionals create a new york city chapter that interview from fund-raising day just a few weeks ago. My thanks to aaron schmid and also, of course, to j frost and the organizer’s of fund-raising day twenty twelve. Next week, as i said, the one hundred show. Get your social media questions in for amy sample ward. Use any of the networks that that i’m on linked in the blogged facebook twitter plus scott koegler maria simple jean takagi and emily chan will also be with us all talking about social media all next week. We’re all over social media. You can’t make a click without smacking your head into tony martignetti non-profit radio you know all the places we are, you know you can listen live or archive on itunes itunes that non-profit radio dot net on twitter you can follow me, use the show’s hashtag which is non-profit radio i’m also on four square if you want, if you’re there let’s connect on foursquare, our creative producer is claire miree off sam liebowitz is our line producer shows social media is by regina walton of organic social media, who doesn’t have standing job and the remote producer of tony martignetti non-profit radio is john federico of the new rules. I very much hope that you will be with me next week for the one hundredth tony martignetti non-profit radio that’s. Next friday one to two p m eastern on talking alternative broadcasting, which is always at talking alternative dot com i didn’t think that shooting. Good ending. You’re listening to the talking, alternate network, waiting to get into anything. Hyre cubine hi, this is nancy taito from speaks been radio speaks been radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought. Join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. 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 you’re listening to talking alternative network at www dot talking alternative dot com, now broadcasting 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 two to eastern on talking alternative broadcasting are you concerned about the future of your business for career? 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096: Motivate Your Board For Major Giving & Revisiting Your 2012 Prospect Plan – Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio

Tony’s guests this week:

Jennifer Herring, president & CEO of The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk.

Maria Semple, The Prospect Finder, consultant in prospect research and
author of “Panning for Gold: Find Your Best Donor Prospects Now.”

Read and watch more on Tony’s blog: http://tonymartignetti.com

View Full Transcript
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Zoho hello and welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio for friday, june fifteenth twenty twelve we’re talking about big ideas, big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent of your aptly named host it’s good to be back in the studio have been away for a couple of weeks. Last week i was at fund-raising day got about ten interviews for the show, one of which we’re goingto listen to very shortly today, but great fun meeting everybody on the exhibit floor got some sponsorship enquiries good to see everybody there about fifteen hundred people at the conference and good busy booth we had on the exhibit floor this week it is motivate your board for major e-giving and revisiting your twenty twelve prospect plan from last week’s fund-raising day conference. Jennifer herring has advice on motivating, working with and supporting your board to help them step up to their fund-raising duties she’s president and ceo of the maritime aquarium at norwalk in connecticut and also revisiting your twenty twelve prospect plan. Maria simple, our prospect research contributor and the prospect finder those a midyear checkin of her new year’s ideas on your twenty twelve prospect plan that was back. On our january sixth show have you hosted those cultivation events that she recommended and used them as prospect research tools? Do you have your free google lorts set up? We’ll recap a few of those ideas from january and between the guests. Antony’s take two nearly one thousand new york city charities lose their tax exemption. I’ll explain what happened to their exempt status and that’s not limited to new york. You can use the hashtag non-profit radio to join the conversation on twitter. Andi i very much hope that you were with me last week when it was got women donors from last year’s fund-raising conference and also maria semple was on last week sharing strategies for using linked in. Right now we take a break, and when we return, i’ll have the first of my interviews from fund-raising day this year. Stay with me. They couldn’t do anything, including getting ding, ding, ding ding. You’re listening to the talking alternative network, waiting to get you thinking. E-giving cubine money, time, happiness, success, where’s, your breakthrough join me, nora simpson, as i bring you real world tools for combining financial smarts with spiritual purpose. As a consultant to ceos, i’ve helped produce clear, measurable financial results while expanding integrity, passion and joy share my journey as we apply the science of achievement and the art of fulfillment to create breakthroughs for people across the world. The people of creation nation listened to norah simpson’s creation nation fridays at twelve noon eastern on talking alternative 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 you’re listening to the talking alternative network. Welcome back, it’s time to motivate your board for major giving. This is the first of my interviews from the fund-raising day conference hosted by association friendraising professionals new york city chapter just last friday. So this is the first of the ten that i got years. Motivate your board for major e-giving with jennifer herring, welcome to tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of fund-raising day two thousand twelve, we’re in the heart of new york city in times square at the marriott marquis. My guest right now is jennifer herring. Jennifer is president and ceo of the maritime aquarium at norwalk, and her topic is major gifts two point oh, straight talk for your board, jennifer. Welcome to the show. Thank you very much, tony. I’m glad to have you on dh. Thank you for taking time in a busy conference day. A pleasure. Why don’t you acquaint listeners with the work of the maritime? Aquarius. Ah, the maritime aquarium is a regional aquarium located in fairfield county, connecticut, that serves primarily connecticut in westchester. But the whole tri state region it’s focused on long island sound. In fact, it’s, the only aquarium focused on long island sound our mission is to inspire people of all ages to appreciate long island sound and protect it for future generations. We have a wonderful collection of long island sound animals and a lot of ability to touch and directly experience animals. It’s a very intimate aquarium. Okay, we also have a very large education program that reaches out primarily to underserved students around the tri state area. And how long have you been there? I’ve been there for going on eight years now as the ceo. Okay, let’s, get into your seminar topic. Major gifts two point oh, straight talk for your board. You’re encouraging gift officers to be change agents around board fund-raising way. We’ll have plenty of time for detail, but generally what’s what’s the problem that you see, i think that the challenge with boards is to keep them engaged. Getting them on the board is on ly step one all fund-raising especially major gifts. Fund-raising is about personal relationships. And just like any friendship, personal relationship needs to be cultivated and maintained on a continuous basis so you can get getting people on the board is the first challenge and talk a little bit. We want we want talk? A little about recruitment will get sacked, right? But once they’re on the board keeping them engaged, challenging them with meaningful ways to be connected with your organization, it’s an ongoing challenge and the strategy behind that is something that the development officers can and should play a significant role in. Okay, let’s, let’s talk a little about the recruitment of board members. How do we make plane? What the fund-raising expectations are at the recruitment stage? I’ve done that for many, many years, no there’s always a conversation, you know, once you’ve i met, the person cultivated the person enough so that your at a position to have a conversation about whether they want to join your board. And of course, that person has to be somebody who’s passionate about your mission and somebody who is going to bring something either some expertise or capacity or preferably or a network of contacts are preferably all three two the nexus of issues that the organization feeling you have ensured that the person you’re recruiting is bringing something, what one one to a little three of those? Absolutely because, of course, the ideal boardmember brings wealth, wisdom and work. And we want to engage all three. So you’re having the conversation and it’s almost always conversation, at least in my current job between me, sometimes with another trustee and the perspective person and i just lay the expectations out on the table. Now we have kind of a sliding scale of expectations, depending on the capacity of the person the board has voted. This is a small organization, it’s, about a ten and a half million dollar budget and how many trustees are there there at the moment? Thirty one that’s large could be that’s a lot that’s. A lot of trustees, partly because in a cultural institution, being on the board or on a committee of the board is the only way you have a connection there. No grateful patients. There are no alumni. You have to create a connection and keep it going. Okay, and the board is a very important way to do that. So getting back to the recruitment conversation, i always put a specific number on the table. Um, and it can be as little as the minimum annual gift that the board has voted. Should be the minimum, which is twenty, five hundred. Dollars uh huh. Often i will say site a larger annual gift if i know the person has more capacity plus either giving ah, e-giving or selling a table to the gala. And then we’ve been in a campaign mullet for the last five years. I usually say, you know, once you’ve gotten involved in and been a member and really gotten connected, we will be coming to talk to you about a major giff ok? And the first number that’s an annual number that’s an annual number. Okay, so you’re very clear about the expectations, do you? Do you do this in writing and let the person take it home to take it to the office and considerate or this is really all verbal well, what we give them in writing, we don’t give them the expectation and writing, okay, we give them the role of the board. You know what? What our expectations of them are in terms of their responsibilities and what they can expect of us in terms of response. Civilities, we give them a lot of background material about the organization would let them see who they’re colleagues on the board would baby give them. Aboard list, but we don’t have, you know, a pledge form that they have to sign beforehand. We figured that the verbal conversation is enough, and then we solicit them ah, at the at year end or calendar, you’re a fiscal year, and we have a june thirtieth fiscal year for what we’ve talked about. All right, now you have a new boardmember they’ve they’ve accepted based on the expectations, what is ah, board training look like for brand new board members around? Fund-raising well, we don’t have a really formal training for us it’s on the job, maybe they go on other calls, outgoing calls with others or what we mostly do. We have a pretty elaborate committee structure, one of which is this is a campaign committee, but a marketing committee of finance committee, education committee and exhibits committee, so we use those committees to get them connected with the meat and the program of the organization we use the gala committee very actively to engage people in soliciting tables for the gala. That’s in some ways, the easiest kind of fund-raising to do because it’s very transactional, then there’s a a certain small kadre of leadership volunteers. Who have made major gif ts and who are in powerful positions in the board that i work with personally to develop specific ask strategies that they participate in to go on called fund-raising calls with terrorism that’s sort of on the job it’s on me. Okay, so it’s on the job training because i’ve i’ve found i’ve worked it now for non-profits and i in none of them has there ever been, you know, you get the whole board together and you have a little fund-raising training thing. We tried to do that, actually on a retreat in two thousand eight, the week that the stock market was falling apart when we were about to launch our campaign and had a little role playing about how you ask, but that contrived, right? So everybody knew everybody knew was staged its quite trust, and i found that it’s much better to work directly with the person who’s agreed to go on a call with you, and what i do is write a script for that person, and i do it for myself too about you know what the objective is, how much we’re going to ask for what the background. Is the, you know, the background, research, the relationship with the person to the organization, and then what each of us is going to say, e-giving lending, e-giving e-giving, ding, ding, ding, ding! You’re listening to the talking alternate network, get him. Cubine money, time, happiness, success, where’s your breakthrough join me, nora simpson, as i bring you real world tools for combining financial smarts with spiritual purpose. As a consultant to ceos, i’ve helped produce clear, measurable financial results while expanding integrity, passion and joy share my journey as we apply the science of achievement and the art of fulfillment to create breakthroughs for people across the world. The people of creation nation listened to norah simpson’s creation nation fridays at twelve noon eastern on talking alternative 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 conscious people be better business people. Oppcoll you’re listening to the talking alternative network. Treyz i’m ken berger of charity navigator. And you’re listening to tony martignetti non-profit radio. Big non-profit ideas for the other ninety five percent. Yeah, so you actually rehearse since you have a school to do, you practise the meeting in advance? Well, i practice myself. I mean, i sit in my office and speak the script, and i often will have a telephone call with the person who’s going with nato to go over it, and they used these scripts. They work really well to shape the the conversation and, you know, it’s sort of various whose mouth, the actual ask is going to come out of it most often comes out of my mouth even if we’re going with a peer, but it doesn’t matter, really, because the presence of the pier there makes all the difference. And why don’t you say a word about that? For people who may not recognise what what’s the value of having is someone someone alongside with you, who’s a a peer of the of the person you’re soliciting. So having somebody who’s involved who’s already made a major her gift who’s giving their time and and treasure to the organization validates the organization for the person that you’re asking the money for and sets a bar down four for what they’re doing, especially if it’s a trustee because the trustees are supposed to be the ones who care the most were the most invested and therefore need to be the biggest investors in the organization. That somebody on the outside of the organization is always looking. Two how much trustees were doing and how much in particular that trustee who’s asking has done to help scale their level of gift thinking. So so here’s an example. Actually, this isn’t a trustee is somebody whose son is a trustee. And who i’ve tried to get a trust to be a trustee for years has taken on the project of raising money for a new research vessel, which is a two and a half million dollar project. He’s in the shipping industry. He’s. Very passionate about it. He cochairs the committee he brought in the person who’s. Um, project managing the project. Who’s built many boats. He helped move us to the decision away from retrofitting an old boat to building a new boat from scratch. He agreed to raise the money. He gave a half million dollars lead gift. And i took him to see ah, prospect that’s been in our family at about the ten. Thousand dollar level for a number of years. Who we honored it, our gala, who we’ve cultivated pretty thoroughly and whose connection to the aquarium was around our existing research vessel. So we went and sat with him right before christmas in their kitchen. Sam uh, the gentleman who’s leading this project talked about it very passionately talked about what he’s done, and that is instance, the actual ask came out of my mouth. We left them with materials. But then the leader that the head of this effort played golf with the prospect in florida continue to cultivate him on his own separately from anything that the institution was doing. And this gentleman stepped up with a half million dollar gift, matching the lead gift for matching the lead gift. So it was a long cultivation effort, probably going on for five years before we got to the critical moment where we found the right project that connected to this person’s passion. And i’m sure that the fact that he was being solicited by somebody else who had made a gift at that level was one of the things that determined no, his i mean, this is somebody with a lot of capacity. Who’s named things all over town. This also speaks to the value of the long term relationships that you mentioned now that may not have been a long term relationship, but it was the beginning of it was the beginning of a relationship between those between those two between those two. Absolutely and and there is the long term relationship with the institution. Find this gentleman the person who made the five hundred thousand dollar gift had been involved with the institution for at least five years. But between these two people, right, a developing relationship, correct? See each other’s piers on dh makes it tougher for the person solicited to refuse. The other thing usually is that when you’re going to have a solicitation call, the person that you’re soliciting knows why you’re coming to see that it’s not a surprise way don’t want toby blindsiding people you want them to know, right? I mean, you basically set up the meeting in a way that says, i want to come and talk to about this project for this campaign or so that they know what it is and if they don’t want to be solicited. They won’t take the meeting mostly right? Let’s talk about the role of the professional fundraiser in supporting lord fund-raising what do you see as the the role? Well acquaint people with the structure at the aquarium? Do you have? Ah, vice president, director development? Yes, there are some gift officers or we have it, but we have a very small development, as we have in highly experienced director development who’s been doing university development, heading university development departments for thirty years. We have a person who does foundations and ah latto the patron program and various other many aspects of fund-raising is sort of the director of the annual fund, but he’s also doing major gift so it’s not very good at everything that it is typical of a small shop. We have a person who does the gallas and corporate fund-raising we have a person who does membership and the acknowledgment of gif ts and some fulfillment of patron level gift, which is a thousand dollars for us, we don’t have very many patrons and and that person has an assistant so it’s basically five, five people in there, other things that are being done out of this. Opponent who eyes the liaison to the board for fund-raising assume it’s, the it’s, the director of development and to some degree that the person who manages the gala because the board is so involved in the gala so and and also the personal i would say that there are three of our gift officers that that have relationships, not with every boardmember but with some board members, and then since you’re giving your your topic is major gift, right, what’s, the what’s, the support that the director development probably is the one providing to the to the board around around major, gifted director, director of development it’s mostly providing support to me around major gift activities and that’s possibly because i have such a strong fund-raising background was the ceo. I mean, that’s what i’ve been my career has been for thirty years, so we talk about strategy. He identifies prospects, does the research. He does a lot of personal cultivation with these people, too. So he makes friends with them. He talks about his travels there, travels. He fixed us up with theater tickets. He does things that just brings them closer to the organization. He’s very active. In working with the board on small, intimate cultivation dinners, that’s something you ask board members to do? We asked members events and not in the way host them right in front of our biggest exhibit, which is a shark tank. So you’re you’re having dinner with the sharks swimming around in this elegant table. There’s, you know, a maximum of twenty of you there’s, some interesting intellectual guest, either professor from yale or the principle of our partner school that’s closing the achievement gap or somebody like that, you’re there with a bunch of peers that the board members bring to the table and that’s part of the cultivation effort that’s proven very successful and really important in moving people into major gift relationships with us. What do we do with or four board members who have a reluctance to do fund-raising now, even at the so even going back to the er, teo bringing them on, bring them on the board, the recruitment if they express our reluctance, they have skills that you need and they’re willing to do their own giving maybe a maybe a much higher level than the twenty five dollar minimum, but they have a reluctance to do to be asking people for money, what can they be doing around fund-raising we just don’t bother with them because we don’t have time, frankly, so you wouldn’t accept that kind of a boardmember no, no, we just leave them alone to what they’re doing, okay? And don’t try to make them do something they can’t d’oh. But even if they can’t ask there not comfortable asking, they could, for instance, host the hosting events so that’s were constantly, uh, trying to get people to bring their friends to our events to our friends of his are exhibit openings introduced people to us, and every year when we have aboard retreat, they all the people there pledged that they will do that and every year on ly a few of them do it word definitely working very hard to get boardmember sze to agree to host or co host thies, small dinners are shark tank dinners and bring with its great they’re called struck thank dinner. Yes. Oh, isn’t that great? I just read something online that if there was one drop of blood in one million drops of blood or something like that, sort of sense that consensus was that on npr’s website or something it could be but that’s something that that one of our education programs that demonstrates two kids very interesting how they do it with a little drop of tomato juice, being deluded and deluded and deluded, and and they figure out when they can taste it and okay, yeah, so your shark tank dinners so we’re constantly trying to get boardmember is to bring their peers to shark tank dinners, which is very difficult to do, and only a few of them are really able tto leverage those kinds of relationships. It’s, you know, we have in some ways a naive for this is not new york city, and this is not new york city fund-raising with the kind of power boards that i’ve worked with at the new york public library and the wildlife conservation society it’s a very different kind of bored, maybe many of these people are being our board members for the first time, some of them are, you know, business people may be in the upper middle management of the bank, and there they don’t have that kind of reach into rich people community that um, that is common in new york. On the other hand, fairfield county has a huge amount of hedge fund wealth and a huge amount of maritime wealth, although in this economy, that’s less than it, wass. And we’re getting more and more of those kinds of people on our board who do have a network and are able to to bring us at least to get this us in a room with them. Okay, then the challenge becomes how two convince the sector. That is more and more about venture philanthropy that has measurable impact. That there’s something for them at the maritime aquarium? Yeah, on dh. Well, we want to stick to the board fund-raising topic, but i know that impact and outcome assessment is very here for lots of charities. And yes, it is a struggle for cultural institutions to do that. Although it sounds like maybe around your education in this job we do. We are able to do that around our education on shifts and initiatives in some very interesting ways about closing the achievement gap, and one of our trustees made a very strategic a gift to us that allowed us to do a case study about a partner school that we’re working with and what impact our partnership has had in their achievement there. Rising achievement of school that’s almost all inner city kids. Jennifer way have just about a minute left. And i want to talk a little about the case for support on dh analyzing that case for support again in just a minute. So what’s your advice around scrutinising that you need a strong case for support. You need your board to be able to deliver it in an elevator speech s so that they can be great ambassadors for you. The case for support is what’s going to make people give? They have to understand that you have to teach them through your case for support that you are an institution that can help them change the world, that they can change the world through your institution, and get the joy and satisfaction of doing that through their philanthropy. The the elevator speech for board members, do you help them write it? First? Talk about what we have definitely done that, and we’ve done it in various ways. The elevator speech should have a certain set of statistics, and i’ve actually gone so far as to take a business card and write him out that they can keep in their pocket this citizen. But the elevator speech also has to connect to the passions of the boardmember so that they can talk about the institution in a way that that communicates the passion that they bring to it. So every boardmember doesn’t have the same elevators, no every boardmember doesn’t and shouldn’t have the same elevator speech. Excellent advice. Ok, it goes to what? What? What moves them the most. What moves down, right? We have to leave it there, but thank you so much, tony. My pleasure. Jennifer herring is president and ceo of the maritime aquarium at norwalk in norwalk, connecticut. Pleasure. Thank you very much for joining me, jennifer. My pleasure. Thank you, toni. This is tony martignetti non-profit radio coverage of fund-raising day two thousand twelve marriott marquis, hosted by association of fund-raising professionals, new york city chapter. My thanks again to the folks at fund-raising day and jennifer herring. Right now, we take a break, and when we returned, tony’s take two, and then it’ll be maria semple revisiting your two thousand twelve prospect plan. So hang around. 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 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 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. 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, it’s. Time for tony’s, take two on tony martignetti non-profit radio my block this week is nearly one thousand new york city charities lose tax exemption the new york city department of finance ah revoked the property tax exemption from nine hundred twenty five city based charities because they failed to demonstrate a legitimate charitable purpose. They lost their property exemption for what? For property that they owned. And, as i say in the blogged, something similar to that was reported in the new york times last year and and the block post has a link to that coverage, i think the lessons for charities are you need to stay true to the charitable mission that got you. The irs is designation of tax exempt however, many years ago that was and in the case of one of the charity’s sighted, but you’ll see in the blogged from new york city, that was nineteen, thirty four and but now, obviously, new york city is challenging that. So you need to stay true to that charitable mission that got you that original tax exempt designation and i think, also need to stay in compliance with state and local regulations. And laws because i could see compliance being linked to keeping your tax advantage at the state and local level. And that’s all we’re talking about. We’re not talking about federal tax exemption. These were ah, this is all state and local tax advantages also want to remind you well, that’s on the block and my blog’s is that tony martignetti dot com and that’s, this week’s post. I also want you to remember that we have a linked in group and on the linked in group. You can tell me what you ah, i have as ideas for future shows. Or give me feedback on previous guests. When if you’d like to say, please check us out on linkedin. And that is tony’s. Take two for friday, june fifteenth the twenty fourth show of the year. The year is almost half over. How is that possible, maria? Simple. I know your air right in here. Hello, maria. Simple. How are you? I’m doing well. Maria is the prospect finder she’s, an experienced trainer and speaker on prospect research. Her website is the prospect finder dot com. Her book is panning for gold. Find your best donor prospects now and most importantly, she’s, our regular prospect research contributor, and this month we’re revisiting the twenty twelve prospect plan maria from the january sixth show. You had some ideas back then, i did absolutely so i came up with kind of a list of things that people could do, and i thought i’d be a good idea to revisit it now that we are hard to believe midpoint in the year of twenty twelve already, i know, um, so not to revisit the entire show, but some of the tips that we had, we brought to the table at that point we were talking about, you know, prospecting from within your database in-kind of mining that database and tips for how you can keep up with some of your top prospects. But we also talked about proactively identifying people outside the database and bringing them into your organization to learn more about your missions and by hosting by hosting some cultivation events, right? Right. So we did, you know, talk about cultivation events. My suggestion had been to in the first three months of the year, really trying to identify people from within the database and proactively identified people outside your database that you might invite some cultivation events and then try and hold those events in second quarter. So let let’s assume that people may have taken our advice hosted one or two cultivation events, but if not, we have some lessons or we have some ideas to get started. The year’s not over and it’s only half. So you can still, you know, implement all of these and just think about shifting the tips into the second half of the year. That’s even we have even more than half. This is only the twenty fourth. So twenty four, twenty four, fifty seconds have passed. So what is that? Twelve. Twenty six and then it goes down even further. Teo six, six, eighth goes from all right. Well, you have more than half the year left. Yeah, just a little over half the year. So all is not lost. But anyway, let’s, let’s talk about some of those. Those tips that we talked about, we mentioned identifying maybe the within your database. Who were those top ten to twenty gifts that you’d received in the past year. And also your top ten prospects in terms of lifetime giving to your organization and, you know, inviting those people to attend a cultivation event. Now, you know, sometimes people refer to these parlor event. You know, whatever terminology want to use, the event can be held at your facility. If you have a facility you want to showcase or outside in somebody’s home. So in particular, if you have somebody you’re affiliated with with your board or another volunteer who’s willing to open up their home, particularly if they have a lovely home. And really, the setting would work very nicely for us. A small, intimate gathering. The key to remember here, there’s no. Ask at that. You know, that could also be on site. You might have. You might have a very interesting place for people to gather on site i in the interview that everybody heard earlier in the show. Jennifer herring is president of the maritime aquarium at norwalk in connecticut. And they like to host things in front of the shark tank. Right? So it could be a small gathering. If you have a small shark or maybe have a gecko or, you know a hamster, you could host a small group in front of a little aquarium. With, you know, eight or twelve people watching the hamster go around in a wheel, i mean, that could be compelling. Yeah, certainly if you have a facility that lend itself well to that type of gathering that’s great. I attended something recently at the liberty science center here in jersey city in new jersey, and it was a fabulous event, and so, you know, just get creative and think about what would draw people in. Is it the space? Is that this person’s home on dh? The key is to really be able teo stick to the time frame that you tell people it will be, particularly if you’re going to do it around some sort of a breakfast event, people need to get on with their day, be a little bit more lax if it’s an end of the day event, but from a prospecting or prospect research point of view you want to think about while you’re attending that event, listening for, you know, some of the general interests now, you know, i’m assuming that a lot of the people that are listening to this show may be from a smaller to midsize non-profit so the person taking on the role of prospect researcher is either the executive director is the development director, maybe a communications director. Whoever that person is that also does some prospect research at the organization should be in attendance at this event with the so purpose, really, to do a little bit of intelligence gathering. Yeah, you want to be you want to be making sure that people are that staff, if you do have multiple staff, you don’t want them huddled together over in the sort of the room, even if it’s just two or three of you, you know, huddled in a corner, chatting or all seated at the same table if there are multiple tables, that’s, a that’s, a big mistake, you’re not you’re not going to be out talking to people as much as you could be, right? So this is an opportunity for you to showcase your non-profit but also to elicit a lot of wonderful information that, quite frankly, a lot of instances you may just not be able to find this information online. So so what type of information might that be that you’d want to elicit as wearing your prospect? Just general interest just engaged the person in conversation on and be a good listener that is just so very keys just to really put your listening ears on. And we’ve talked about we have talked about that in the past. Thie radical listening, which came from a previous guest. Melanie schnoll begun. And then you picked up on radical listening and recommended it as prospect research vehicle. Right? Total cultivation event is a great place for you to become a radical listener. So gent general interests that they have any family information that you khun gather sometimes there might be information about children, ages of children just to get kind of get an idea of where they are, what point in their lives that they’re at. Um, are they you know, more of a plan giving prospect for you? Are they really just starting out in their lives, their careers, and have very young children? Just you want to be genuinely interested in in their lives? S and and what? What it is about your work that appeals to them, right? And one way to find out about that is, well, obviously to directly ask them. But it’s also interesting to try and gather where else? They’re volunteering their time. You know what other charities air they particularly interested in so that you can try and figure out? Well, gee, just, you know, the programming and then services that we offer does it a line at all with what this family has in terms of their general charitable interest. So in the case of the maritime museum, they might be thinking about, you know, china, find out what you nowhere else these people are are spending their time. Are they interested in other maybe water conservation efforts, other charities that really address water quality in the long island sound? You know, things of that nature, and so for sure, you’ll know that you’re on the right track and engaging this person in additional conversation. So, you know, that might be a great way to find out where they and their spouse volunteered their time also vacationing. You know, this is a great opportunity for you to say so, you know, do you have any exciting vacation plans for this summer? Uh, so, you know, be listening for responses like, yeah, we’ll be spending, you know, the entire month of august in our home. In the hamptons, you know, they say that nature good to know just just generally find out what type if they say no, we’re doing this stay cation thing this year, you know, pick up on that cue, um, and then really, really important the circles back to something we talked about in the january show is to be able to really create some sort of contact reports on capturing critical information that you’ve been able to glean from the, uh, from the cultivation events. Right now, we have a great dahna database right now, back in january, we talked about we encouraged i think it was the eleven percent that didn’t have a computer database to look at the clouds packages that available, and you went into detail and on that in the january six show, so hopefully some of those people have converted teo computer databases, right? And if they’re still in there, sort of in the shopping phase, i’ll just remind them real quickly that the two websites that that might be something for them to check out that might give them some additional info on what’s available out there. Idealware dot or ge talked had a kn article about how to select a database and tech soup dot or ge is a good place to find some low cost and free tech advice. So, you know, check those out if you’re still in shopping mode. Andi, i you know, i truly believe that cloud based is the way to go it’s just going to give your staff and your board the most flexibility on dh then your point about saving that valuable information that you that you learn at a cultivation event in that computer database or if you’re not computerized yet, i guess you know, you you print up a contact report and put it in a person’s folder, right? Exactly and, you know, it’s really important, like, just just like you don’t want that staff to be all congregating together in the corner, it’s going to be very important after the event post event very quickly thereafter within a day or two to have a debriefing if it’s not a meeting, get a conference call going, you know, there’s free conference services out there there’s no reason why you can’t just say, you know, knowing in advance the date of the event, let’s say it’s a thursday evening by by friday midday, you could be having a conference call in have that scheduled way in advance that you’re going to have a debriefing call, you know what were the important point? Somebody found out from speaking with some of the people, and you may want to actually pre-tax fine people, right? So if we know in advance that mr big bucks is going to be there, why not do a little pre advanced research on him and find out a little bit of information? And so that a boardmember can be assigned to perhaps be the person to you know, just have a discussion and you can even try and figure out who the best four person would be, that you’d want to make sure cultivating that individual during the way we’re going to take a break. I want to emphasize before we do one thing that you said, which is in terms of inviting people, look a tte donors who have give been giving for the lifetime large donors over their lifetime, so individual gifts may not be so large, but they’re giving history over the life over their lifetime with your organization. Is quite large. Those air also good people to invite. We’re going take a break, and maria simple will still be with me after that break. And i hope you will, too. Talking alternative radio twenty four hours a day. Hi, this is psychic medium. Betsy cohen, host of the show. The power of intuition. Join me at talking alternative dot com mondays at eleven a. M call in for a free psychic readings. Learn how to tune into your intuition, to feel better and to create your optimum life. I’m here to guide you and to assist you in creating life that you deserve. Listen every monday at eleven a, m on talking alternative dot com. Hi, i’m carol ward from the body mind wellness program. Listen to my show for ideas and information to help you live a healthier life in body, mind and spirit, you’ll hear from terrific guests who are experts in the areas of health, wellness and creativity. So join me every thursday at eleven a, m eastern standard time on talking alternative dot com professionals serving community. Hi, this is nancy taito from speaks. Been radio speaks. Been. Radio is an exploration of the world of communication, how it happens in how to make it better, because the quality of your communication has a direct impact on the quality of your life. Tune in monday’s at two pm on talking alternative dot com, where i’ll be interviewing experts from business, academia, the arts and new thought. Join me mondays at two p m and get all your communications questions answered on speaks been radio. 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. Talking. Hi there and welcome back we’re revisiting your twenty twelve prospect plan with maria simple maria just teo wrap up that topic on cultivation events. Was there anything more you wanted to say about that before we get to one of the other topics from from january? I would say in terms of pre imposed cultivation event, there are a couple of websites that you might want a bookmark to be able to do some of that general research on an individual that might be attending or might have attended anay event. I outlined some of these in the going beyond google article that i have on my website, and maybe what i ll do, tony is at after the show go ahead into your lincoln page as well as your lincoln group as well as your facebook group on dh post there about what where they confine that exactly, but it’s a suspect finder, dot com and it’s on the resource is paige, so some of those things that you can do is obviously run the person’s name through google. Now the big tip with google is that you want to put quotation marks around a person’s name, so that you’re finding their name as a phrase in google if is so, certainly you could do that. You can set up a google alerts again on the top ten donors we had recommended back in january that you look at the top donors that you have in your database and set up an alert on their name that’s free google will push the information to you so you could find out if something new is happening, especially in somebody’s business career. Now, last time we talked about alerts, i think you had set one on me or we talk about something and you used me as an example. I was lousy results was a wealth indicator. Was that that wealth indicator? What? What, you know, what’s interesting about setting up. Stop using me as an example, right? Google and google alerts is if you google plus now is actually influencing, and we talked about that on one of your shows it’s influencing your search results. So if you are on google plus and you are logged into google, the results are actually going to be skewed more toward social results. So if you’re doing this purely as a prospect researcher. You may want to actually log out of google. Um, your google plus account before commencing your prospect research. Just a tip. I think you might get a little bit more of objective results, if you will. It’s not gonna be so much skewed toward just social sector social media here. And you had you had examples on of other alerts that that people could set beyond the free google lorts, which are which are outstanding. I use them a lot for for my work, right? But you had some examples of others specific newspaper alerts. A lot of the newspapers out there permit used to set up alerts on specific phrases. If you and also the news sources in your state here i track in new jersey, i track and jay is, uh, they send me daily alert just generally what’s going on in the business community. I get those alerts twice a day here in new jersey. So that’s, something you want to consider looking into. What is that publication that covers your state? It might present from interesting opportunities for you because they tend to not only highlight, you know, negative news that’s going on, but also some real positive news and then one of the fee based services that some of your listeners maybe currently scribed, too, for doing foundation research is called foundation search dot com and as paid subscriber, one of the things that you have access to is a new foundation alert service. So if you are subscribed to that service, definitely set up the alert for yourself. They’ll let you know anytime a new foundation is formed on registered with the irs in your state or whatever states you decide to set up, as you know, the alert service and you will be pushed the information through email, then you can check it out a little bit further waken set these alerts up not only for individuals but companies and foundations. That’s, right? Yeah, you can definitely do that as well. Cos and foundations, you want to set up those alert so, you know, whatever it is that you’re looking to track for certain, you want to set up the alert there? Um, lincoln is a great place to research. Somebody pretty opposed an event. Also, they have free alerts that you can set up within lincoln. So let’s say you’re always, you know, prospecting for somebody who holds specific in a certain industry. Let’s say the accounting industry or something like that. Ah, and you want to always be notified anytime somebody new joins lincoln who’s in the accounting field and also happens to be within a certain radius of your zip code, you can set those types of alerts up up to three of them, actually under a free lengthen account to take advantage of that. And have lincoln pushed the information to you, maria, is that using the advanced search? Yeah, yeah. You can do with the advanced search page just to do the search initially and then? Ah, once you set those, you see the search results, you can actually save that search and you’re allowed to save up to three searches. Particularly useful. Okay. Okay, so the cultivation events, the alerts i’ve calculated now the year is six thirteen ths of the way through. So you have you have seven thirteenth remaining to take advantage of these ideas that maria originally recommended back in january. But don’t feel bad, maria. We have just about thirty seconds left. What do you want to leave people with in? This mid year checking this revisiting of the prospect plan i think it’s really just the idea of getting proactive on dh getting their delve into your database proactively trying mine it proactively look for people who are outside of the database that you need to bring in and learn about your organization and really help them stored them along said that they will feed knew names into your organization and be willing to host their own cultivation event. Maria simple you’ll find her at the prospect finder dot com our regular contributor, maria pleasure talking to you, thank you very much. We’ll catch you next month and my thanks again, of course, to jennifer herring and the folks at a f p for ah, letting me be on the exhibit floor last week at fund-raising day in new york city next week, what happened in two thousand eleven? Well recap the years fund-raising with bob evans of giving yusa and returning rob mitchell, the ceo of atlas, of giving we’ll compare and contrast they’re two methods and what their findings are for last year’s fund-raising also scott koegler, the editor of non-profit technology news, returns with going mobile he and i will talk about mobile aps and your mobile website a few weeks ago on tony’s take two i talked about my core beliefs that charity’s need to do better and that they deserve the help that they need. Lynette singleton, from singleton consulting group, is a good friend to the show and she’s, a frequent re tweeter of the show on twitter and she’s offering to help the charity’s need she’s hosting a ninety minute webinar on marketing on thursday, june twenty first, you’ll learn what marketing really is and how it can help your non-profit had a position you’re non-profit conduct a marketing and communications audit and develop a marketing plan to achieve your goals. I have talked to lynette and she’s, a smart lady, and you’ll learn a lot from this webinar non-profit radio listeners get twenty five dollars off registration used discount code non-profit radio that’s two words it’s on thursday, june twenty first at two thirty eastern and you register at s c g the number four non-profits dot net cg four non-profits dot net to register for lynette singleton’s marketing webinar you can keep up with us on the facebook page like us. On that page, you know where to find us live. An archive non-profit radio dot net is for the archive. That’s. Our apple page are apple, itunes, paige. The show’s hashtag is non-profit radio on twitter. Use it often. Our creative producer is clear, meyerhoff sam liebowitz is the line producer, shows social media is by regina walton of organic social media, and the remote producer of tony martignetti non-profit radio is john federico of the new rules. I hope you’ll be with me next friday went to two p m eastern at talking alternative dot com. You couldn’t do anything to get good ending. You’re listening to the talking alternative network, get anything. Thank you, cubine how’s your game. Want to improve your performance, focus and motivation than you need. 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