This Week: Donor Advised Fund (DAF) Fundraising You shouldn’t need much encouragement, or any, to incorporate DAFs into your fundraising mix. But Matt Nash brings the encouraging stats. Then he explains how to overcome challenges, like anonymous donors; strategies for marketing and promotion; and tips on converting from transactional to relational …

This Week: Consciousness & Intentionality In Work & Retirement Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons wrote a book for retirement planning that has value for anyone, at any age, who aspires to fulfillment and joy through all the stages and pages of their professional and personal lives. She walks you through the value of play; embracing new mindsets; constantly…

This Week: Storytelling & Local Media Fabiana Meléndez Ruiz reminds us of the value of sound storytelling, and how to get your house in order before you go public with your stories. She shares sound advice on the great value of local media and how to build the journalist relationships that will help you get your stories told. Fabiana also reveals s…

This Week: Healthier Productivity From AI Our annual duo returns with tips and resources to make your use of artificial intelligence better for you. They also go beyond AI with many smartphone strategies, inbox management, and Meico shares his shutdown ritual for bedtime. They’re Jason Shim, from Canadian Centre for Nonprofit Digital Resilience, an…

This Week: Employee Wellness Meet a company where one of the employees is a wellness coach for all the others. Mandy Kutschied and Sam Hanley are with The Fresh Perspective Group. They share practical strategies for employee wellness; ergonomic resources; a 4-day work week; productivity tips; and, talk about the ethics of wellness coaching in the w…

This Week: Connect Small Donors To Your Major Donor Event Jenn Lejano and Jess Ray show you how to connect folks who would never come to your expensive event, to your expensive event. They’ll help you broaden event support by engaging donors you’re probably leaving on the sidelines, with actionable strategies to engage your entire donor base. Jenn …

This Week: PII In The Age Of AI Artificial Intelligence and big data have transformed privacy risks by enabling malicious, targeted communications to your team that seem authentic because they contain highly accurate information. Kim Snyder and Shauna Dillavou explain the risks your nonprofit faces and what you can do to protect your mission. Kim i…

This Week: #25NTC We launch our 25NTC coverage with the CEO of NTEN, which hosts the Nonprofit Technology Conference, sharing the numbers and the experience of this year’s Conference, earlier this month in Baltimore, Maryland. They’re Amy Sample Ward, and they’re also Nonprofit Radio’s technology contributor. The Human Factors Driving Your CRM Succ…

This Week: Wake Up Excited, Go To Bed Fulfilled That’s what Eric Saperston wants for you. In this archive show from October 17, 2022, he returns after many years to share his wisdom borne of research over cups of coffee with some of the most successful folks on the planet. Plus there’s his book, “Live In Wonder.” We can always use Eric’s inspiratio…

This Week: Your Improved Fundraising Messaging Do your fundraising messages engage and connect with your donors and prospects? Or do they merely inform? Do you know how to craft an engaging story? And what makes stories so valuable anyway? Lynn Bohart answers all these questions and more, as she encourages you into persuasive writing and core messa…

This Week: Nonprofit Leadership For Current & Aspiring There’s a new compassionate, inspiring and valuable guidebook on nonprofit leadership. It’s aptly named, “How To Lead Nonprofits.” The author, Nick Grono, shares his thinking on the role of the CEO, your team and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), because the success of the people leading t…

This Week: Mental Wellness Among The Chaos When the chaos is the point, let’s help you avoid getting overwhelmed or checking out. Jennifer Walter, a Swiss sociologist and mental health coach, has strategies to gain agency, recharge and build resilience. You need to be good to yourself first, then you can help others. Her practice is at JenniferWalt…

This Week: Join Us At #25NTC The 2025 Nonprofit Technology Conference is next month in Baltimore. Nonprofit Radio will be there. You still have time to join in-person or virtual. NTEN CEO, and our technology contributor, Amy Sample Ward, reveals all the learning and fun you can expect. Great Value In Sustainable Giving Dave Raley is the author of t…

This Week: Google Ad Grants & Your Digital Marketing Sean Littman has advice for leveraging Google’s generosity and pairing it with your own marketing to grow your email list; encourage giving; revive and cultivate your lists to expand sustainer giving; and, put the right systems in place. He also shares his favorite apps to help you along. Sean is…

This Week: Politically Motivated Attacks: Who, What & How Attacks on our nonprofit community are happening and the environment is likely to get worse before it improves. Just last week Elon Musk called our community a Ponzi scheme. The week before, he claimed only 5-10% of our work does any good, and that the sector is a big scam and a giant graft …

This Week: Julia Campbell On Social Media The social media maven returns to share her thinking and advice on short form video; ads; working within algorithms; content moderation; and, privacy policies. Let’s talk about X; Facebook; LinkedIn; Bluesky; Instagram; YouTube; and, TikTok. Julia is a nonprofit social marketing consultant. There’s more at …

This Week: Prudence In Our Political Environment Following from our December episode, “Is It Paranoia Or Prudence?,” Gene Takagi and Amy Sample Ward return with updates from the grass roots on DEI, USAID and other spending freezes, major media capitulation, and information on a potential reincarnation of last year’s H.R. 9495 bill. Most importantly…

This Week: The 4 Mindsets Over his years working with nonprofits, Dan Johnson has developed four mindsets, or principles, which he encourages leaders to embrace, and spread throughout their teams. He invites us to get comfortable with: The point is impact; the sustainable impact cycle; donors are partners, and, how volunteers get paid. He shares th…

This Week: Consider Video There are lots of video use cases you may not have in mind. Like employee recruiting, donor stewardship, and volunteer recruiting and thanking. After you identify how video might work for your nonprofit, you need the right equipment, which doesn’t mean spending a lot. Then there’s preparation, shooting and editing. Pat Tag…

This Week: Your Grantmaker Relationships Shoshana Grossman-Crist leads you through the pathway of relationships with institutional funders. She reveals her advice on how to build and maintain relationships before you apply for a grant; while your proposal is under review; after you’ve been funded; and, while you’re doing the work. Also, what if the…

This Week: Storytelling Sarah Wood reminds us of the value in telling good stories to your stakeholders. Also, how do you tell them? Where do you tell them? Which ones are worth telling? What’s ethical storytelling? And, what’s the right engagement or call to action? We pull some lessons from her children’s favorite stories, the “Narwhal and Jelly”…

This Week: “Ambiguity Is The Answer” Though wildly counterintuitive, producing and embracing ambiguity can give you the upper hand when it looks like you have no hand to play. Stop thinking of ambiguity as something you must react to and avoid. Start seeing the value in cultivating it. Kyle Crawford’s book is “Ambiguity Is The Answer” and he explai…

This Week: “Don’t Mess With Stress” In 2025 Dr. Jill Baron walks us through her four cornerstones for minimizing stress and maximizing wellness in the New Year: diet, meditation, walking (or other exercise), and sleep. Plus, your mental and emotional resilience. She’s our first medical doctor guest, and her book is “Don’t Mess With Stress.” There’s…

This Week: Looking To 2025: Is It Paranoia Or Prudence? Our esteemed contributors share what they’re looking to next year, with the uncertainty of a new president and administration. On the table is HR 9495, which some call the NonprofitKiller; government agencies no longer given deference by the federal courts, with the Supreme Court overruling th…

This Week: The Art & Science Of Fundraising James Misner explains what he sees as the right and left brain activities of your nonprofit’s fundraising. There are relationships and data; stories and metrics; motivations and outcomes; emotions and systems; and, more brain interactions. Your objective is to balance the art and the science. James is CEO…

This Week: The Chronicle of Philanthropy Leaders Stacy Palmer is CEO of the now nonprofit newspaper, and the editor-in-chief is Andrew Simon. We talk about the transition from privately held to 501(c)(3); their plans for growth; the mission, values and priorities guiding them; new content that’s coming; improving mass media’s coverage of our commun…

This Week: “Passion Isn’t Enough” That’s David Rhode’s new book. “It’s necessary, but not sufficient,” says the author. He brings us his practical advice on building your programs, your board, your brand, your team and your volunteer community. His expertise has value for aspiring, new and experienced nonprofit leaders alike. David is CEO of DotDot…

This Week: Scaling Altruism That’s Donald Summers’ new book, where he introduces the seven phases of nonprofit growth derived from his research and practice. He walks us through assess, align, plan, test, fund, execute, and lead, so your nonprofit scales to meet the demands of your mission and vision. He’s the CEO of Altruist Partners. There’s more…

This Week: Accepting Cryptocurrency Gifts Code. Blockchain. Proofs. Wallets. Exchanges. Coins. If foreign words like these keep you from accepting a gift that tens of millions of Gen Z and Millennials invest in and gift, Pat Duffy will set your mind at ease. He defines the terms in plain language and explains why crypto giving belongs on your donat…

This Week: Your One-Page Strategic Plan In a lot of ways, we can see typical strategic planning as a flawed process. Veronica LaFemina shares a more collaborative endeavor, with more staff collaboration and stakeholder inputs, resulting in a more actionable plan with greater decision-making value. She’s the CEO of LaFemina & Co. There’s more at ton…

This Week: Your Strategic Partnerships Local nonprofits, companies, government officials and agencies, business leaders, and others can improve your outcomes in ways you cannot imagine. Taking the time to build relationships with potential partners—before you need them—makes a smart investment in your mission and programs. Mark Lillis from Leaven K…

This Week: How We Got Here It’s the story of the unpredictable trajectory that led to today’s U.S. nonprofit sector. How did we come to be what we are? The history is told by Dr. Robert Penna, author of the book, “Braided Threads.” (This originally aired August 3, 2018.) There’s more at tonymartignetti.com…

This Week: Tech Policies To Reduce Toxic Productivity First, what is toxic productivity? Then, as your teams use technology more often for work, how might your practices be hurting the people who work with you? Finally, what are the better practices and policies? It’s all covered by Marina Martinez-Bateman, at New Coyote Consulting. (This originall…

This Week: Grants Readiness & Success DeaRonda Harrison helps you get ready to accept grants and shares strategies for successful grants research, writing and outcomes. Also, how to win grants quickly (it shouldn’t take years!); how to turn a one-time grant into multiyear funding; and her recommendations for grant research platforms. DeaRonda is th…

This Week: AI, Organizational & Personal Artificial Intelligence is ubiquitous, so here’s another conversation about its impacts on the nonprofit and human levels. Amy Sample Ward, the big picture thinker, the adult in the room, contrasts with our host’s diatribe about AI sucking the humanity out of nonprofit professionals and all unwary users. Amy…

This Week: Quantitative Fundraising Research You can stop relying on conventional wisdom passed on through webinars and conferences. There’s a plethora of quantitative research on how to optimize storytelling to get your best fundraising outcomes. What is social emotion, how do you evoke it and why should you? How much story detail is not enough or…

This Week: Board Members Are People Too One size fits all rules may not make sense for your board, especially if you’re embracing diversity and equity in board membership. Judy Levine is a longtime board coach, trainer and consultant, and she led Cause Effective for 17 years. She’s now an independent consultant. This originally aired August 15, 202…

This Week: A Different Take On Donor Retention Most donor retention research is on process. Like, get your acknowledgment letters out within 24 hours. Kerry Hecht’s research takes a fresh look at how to keep folks with you. She shares her thinking on getting people to donate time (volunteering), and donating through purchases. Kerry is CEO of 10k H…

This Week: Community & Engagement Michelle Boggs shares her thinking on creating community and expanding engagement across your donors and volunteers. How might a Chief Community Officer help? Also, what your nonprofit can do to improve fundraiser retention, which helps you build solid relationships and community. Michelle is with Classy, the nonpr…

This Week: “Empowering Women” Jenny Mitchell’s new book, “Embracing Ambition,” unites the leadership stories of twelve exceptional women CEOs. The result is a mentorship resource for the current and next generation of women leaders. She shares the challenges, including perception barriers, glass cliff assignments and collective vision. Jenny is chi…

This Week: “The Responsive Nonprofit” That’s Gabe Cooper’s new book. He walks us through the 8 core practices that will disrupt the status quo and make your nonprofit responsive. Like dismantling silos, adopting agile methods, managing change, building a durable team culture, and more. Gabe is CEO of Virtuous. There’s more at tonymartignetti.com…

This Week: Get Heard In The Election Season Peter Panepento returns with savvy advice about getting your messages heard through crowded, noisy channels for the rest of this year. He urges you to prepare your messaging, prepare to pivot away from that messaging, and more. Plus, the value of journalist relationships. Peter comes to us from Turn Two C…

This Week: High ROI Development & Marketing Communications Teams You want these two teams—fundraising and marcomm—to align every fundraising hour with its maximum dollars. You want these teams to have the time to secure investment level gifts. And you want them to secure the unrestricted gifts you need to grow and sustain your mission. Sherry Quam …

This Week: “How To Thrive When Work Doesn’t Love You Back” That’s Meico Marquette Whitlock’s new book, and he returns to share his wisdom. The Mindful Techie has advice like honor your priorities; negotiate your boundaries; embody your well-being; mind your meds; and quite a bit more. There’s more at tonymartignetti.com…

This Week: 700th Show! It’s Nonprofit Radio’s 700th show and 14th Anniversary. To celebrate, co-host Claire Meyerhoff brings “Claire’s Quiz.” We have our associate producer, Kate Martignetti, live music from Scott Stein, and our contributors Gene Takagi (law), and Amy Sample Ward (technology), are also on board. Also, our sponsors Donorbox and Virt…

This Week: Exploit Conflict & Intuition To Make Better Programs & Products Our panel from the 2024 Nonprofit Technology Conference is Drew Nelson, Cassi Johnson and Eve Lacivita. They explain how to add conflict resolution and intuition-driven strategies into your program and product development. Drew is with the City of Saint Paul, MN; Cassi is at…

This Week: Improve Your Communications With AI Carlos Morales, from Viva Technology, shares how to use specific ChatGPT prompts to accelerate your written drafts; optimize your messaging for clarity and audience; and, personalize your outreach as you maintain a consistent voice, tone and brand. All through artificial intelligence. (This was recorde…

This Week: Use Your Tech To Enable Generosity Our panel encourages you to expand your definition of generosity and how you measure it, to better acknowledge diverse forms of giving. They help you facilitate generosity through your data, tech and business processes. They’re Jamie Mueller with PTKO; Peter Genuardi at See the Stars; and, Natania LeCle…

This Week: The Essential Craft Of Leaving Your Job This provocative panel shares their real stories to inspire you if working at your job, isn’t working for you. They recommend you leave well, and share their advice for your handover plan along with tips for setting up your successor or team for future success. They also help you manage your emotio…

This Week: Gen Z Career Challenges After a deeply personal episode, Ray Sherry devoted himself to helping Gen Z’ers—like the one who saved his life—with their careers. He channels his 40 years of experience in financial services and consulting to share his advice, so younger professionals take charge of their careers. Ray is CEO of Zynd. There’s mo…