Fundraising Bright Spots

As I’m sure you’re all too aware, events have been postponed and cancelled as the UK and many other countries have gone into lockdown. This is a huge threat to charity fundraising income, given how much some organisations rely on sponsored events. If you’re a professional event fundraiser for a charity and you wrestling with how to approach your various challenges at the moment, I hope you’re goin...

Clearly one implication of the virtual lockdown is that you can’t meet your supporters for the next few months. So if you’re wondering how on earth you’re going to continue to develop relationships and inspire major and mid-level donors, companies and other key influencers, then I think you’re going to find today’s episode really helpful. In this episode Rob Woods talks to the innovative major gif...

With nearly everyone now staying at home and worried about their health, income and families, its hard to know how to keep and build relationships with supporters, especially for causes not directly linked to the coronavirus. In this episode of the fundraising bright spots podcast, Rob Woods discusses responses to these problems with Ben Swart, Head of New Business Corporate Partnerships at the NS...

As many charities are pushed to the limit in how they serve their beneficiaries during the current global pandemic, charities are also searching for ways to respond to unprecedented threats to fundraising income. In the short term, an obvious casualty is the loss in income due to cancelled events. In this interview recorded on 17th March 2020, I talk to event fundraising expert Jane Curtis. Though...

Many activities to raise funds for charities are successful because they’re relatively easy and can be used whatever the cause. An advantage to cake sales is that they raise money in the short-term, but a downside is they don’t necessarily help you build relationships with supporters after that. What if the fundraising proposition itself makes a connection to your cause more likely to happen? In t...

16. Emily Casson – Digital Fundraising Part 2. Think big, start small… by Rob Woods, Bright Spot

As the influence of digital technology on our lives continues to grow, it clearly represents an important opportunity for any charity. But with so much rapid change and pitfalls to beware, taking advantage is far from easy. In this episode of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, Rob Woods talks to Emily Casson, the award-winning Digital Marketing Manager at Cats Protection. Emily explains her ove...

There’s nothing new about the benefits of charities working with a board of volunteers to raise funds. This is a classic strategy and there is a reason it’s still used so widely – when it works well, it’s so much more powerful than staff seeking funds for an appeal on their own. But it’s not for the faint-hearted, and when it goes wrong it can be stressful and frustrating. In this episode of the F...

In this noisy, distracting world, charities are finding it harder than ever to hold donors’ attention long enough to have proper conversation. So what can relationship fundraisers do to build strong, inspiring relationships with the people who care about our causes? In this episode of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, Rob Woods interviews Lynda Harwood-Compton of Animals Asia, a creative, dyna...

If you’ve ever needed to represent your charity at a meeting with someone important – eg a powerful supporter or a Board Member – then you know how easily those differences in power can harm your performance and your stress levels. In this episode Rob Woods interviews the best-selling author, voice coach and gravitas expert, Caroline Goyder. Caroline originally trained as an actor at Central Schoo...

Understanding and appreciating your supporters’ situation is a crucial element in consistent fundraising success, but how do you go about gathering this insight more effectively? In this episode of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, we share the second half of Rob Woods’ interview with Lesley Pinder. Lesley is the Head of Supporter Experience at the British Red Cross and here she shares a range...

At the heart of most fundraising success stories you find that the fundraiser(s) worked hard to better understand the supporter’s world. And unless you strive to understand and appreciate your supporters’ situation, it’s very difficult to consistently create great experiences. But doing this in practice is not always easy for busy fundraisers in busy charities. In this episode of the Fundraising B...

We spend so much of our life at work, it clearly makes sense that we should aim to make this time rewarding and enjoyable. But how can you increase your chances that your career will take you in a direction that makes you really happy? In this episode of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods talks to Liz Tait, Director of Fundraising at Teenage Cancer Trust. When it comes to career development, Liz...

Over a five year period, high value income at EMMS International built steadily from almost nothing to £2m / year. In this episode of the Fundraising Bright Spots Podcast, we share the second half of Rob Woods’ interview with Tony Gaston who managed major donor fundraising during this period of fabulous growth. As in the previous episode, this interview gives you a sense of how Tony approaches the...

How can you increase high value income for your charity? Clearly context matters - the same strategies will not work for every charity - but if you want ideas and an increased belief that growth is at least possible, then a good place to start is to look at a fairly small charity that’s achieved an impressive year on year uplift in major gifts income. In this episode of the Fundraising Bright Spot...

There is no factor more important to your success as a fundraiser than your grit. But is it possible to become more resilient? In this episode of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods explores the inspiring research of Professor Angela Duckworth who talks about ‘grit’ in terms of how able you are to keep on moving forward, in spite of the setbacks you face. Rob shares key lessons he has learned from...

Most fundraisers agree that you won’t achieve serious growth without first investing in fundraising. But how do you actually persuade the board to invest? In this episode of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods talks to Adam Heuman, Director of Engagement at the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. In three separate charities (of varying sizes) Adam has asked the board to invest, and a...

One major challenge for a fundraiser is how you help your colleagues and trustees to see things from the supporters’ point of view. In Episode 4 of the Fundraising Bright Spots podcast, Rob Woods interviews the individual giving expert Rachel Hunnybun about one personalised thank you project and the difference it made to the charity. She explains how handwritten thank you cards were written to any...

Taking full advantage of an opportunity makes a huge difference to your fundraising momentum. In this episode of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods talks to Jo Bega, Chief Executive of Child Rescue Nepal. The charity’s Radio 4 Appeal was one of the most successful of the year and in this interview Jo explains how they achieved these stunning results. This included securing investment from the boa...

Many charities spend huge effort recruiting people to do fundraising events, but often fail to inspire them to become long-term supporters. In episode 2 of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods asks Andy King to explain how he went about solving this missed opportunity when he worked at East African Playgrounds. The strategy was so successful that it was a major factor in the charity’s income growin...

How can anyone improve their fundraising skills and results? In this first episode of Fundraising Bright Spots, Rob Woods explains a powerful tactic he has been using to help charity fundraisers grow their results over the last two decades. He explores the power of modelling or ‘searching for bright spots’ and shares the most common reason we tend to run out of steam too early when trying to get b...