The Fundraising Coach

First Things First and Tom Iselin. This audio clip provides a brief overview of our services, experience, credibility, and fees. For more detailed information, visit  www.tomiselin.com , or call 858.888.2278.  With gratitude,  Tom~

This is an audio clip of Tom Iselin's business bio. It's intended for those who want to learn a little bit more about me and how I got into the nonprofit world.  For more detailed information, visit  www.tomiselin.com , or call 858.888.2278.  With gratitude,  Tom~

Do you send out appeal letters or emails for your year-end campaign? Just sending an email or an appeal letter, with no announcement or personalization, will yield a response rate of 1-3% . . . maybe 5% if you're lucky. However, if you send make an announcement notification BEFORE you send your appeals, either by phone or email, to donors who have a connection to your nonprofit, more than 50% will...

Imagine watching a movie like Star Wars, Jaws, or Top Gun with no sound. They would be dry, listless, and yes, dull. In many movies, the sound makes the movie. It elicits emotional responses that can lift us up, make us cry, and give us goosebumps.  When reading a brochure or an appeal letter, there is no sound; it's like watching a silent movie. The emotional power of the stories and information...

What good are your appeal letters if no one reads them? In this podcast, learn what makes create content and how to increase the response rates of the appeals you send out -- especially your yearend holiday appeals.

12 minutes. Listen Podcast host Erin Brinker interviews Tom on her show called: On The Brink! KCAA 102.3 FM, 106.5 FM, and 1050 AM in the Inland Empire-East LA. Tom provide straight-talk answers to a handful of Erin's poignant questions about things like nonprofit overhead, wasteful spending, marketing, and more.

Face it. You are competing for funds in a fiercely competitive environment with limited resources. Many large universities and institutional nonprofits have hundreds of people raising money for them and operate multimillion dollar marketing budgets. It's you (David) verses Goliath. How do you compete? One of the simplest things you can do is to invest in marketing. Most small to medium-sized nonpr...

Stop using "I", "Me", and "We" when asking for money. This short podcast shows you how to quickly change how you position your asks so the focus is on connecting the donor -- and the donor's gift -- on the needs you fill . . . not the needs you have!

There are many ways to raise money - grants, galas, email, letters, and phone calls . . . but the most effective way is asking for money in a face-to-face setting. In fact, this podcast will show why it's the most effective tactic over all others. 

Competition for donors is tough. The problem is that most nonprofit are focused on acquiring donors when they should be thinking about how to retain them. In this podcast, learn how to create loyal and generous fans by thanking donors in ways that stand out and separate you from the competition. 

Learn 3 of my favorite ways to raise money from donors during the month of December. Time is running out -- do what works!!

This is a brief podcast on how to create an engagement form that your board members can fill out when they join your board, or annually, to get board members more engaged in the work of your organization, based on their gifts and skills -- and interests! A free template is made available by writing Tom at tomiselin@gmail.com . 

Engage more members in your fundraising efforts by urging them do what THEY want to do, not what you want them to do!

The best way to raise money from donors when you first meet them is NOT to ask them for money. Rather, make a non-monetary ask, first -- a "connection" ask. Ask them to volunteer, observe your programming, provide advice, watch a performance, or attend a "friend-raising" event.    This podcast addresses this common problem and provides suggestions on ways you can raising more money by taking a sof...

There are many positive things you can do to engage board members and volunteers to support the fundraising efforts of your organization. However, some organizations require their board members to raise money. The problem? Forcing people to ask for money often results in tragedy. Learn why!

Sometimes your smallest donors hold the largest promise of major gifts, but you'll never know unless you reach out to them!

Does your board have a "Give or Get" policy? Should they? This podcast, or shall I say rant, discusses the downside of having such a policy and why it's more effective - and practical - to establish a "Give and HELP Get" policy. If you do, your board will be much happier, and you'll probably raise more money from them and your donors.