Fundraising Auction Software

September to December is a *hot* period for nonprofit fundraising. Many foundations and donors are back to their desks after the summer and looking to make their closing funding rounds before the end of the year. If I were an advisor in your nonprofit organization, this is what I would suggest prioritizing in your fundraising plan from this month through the end of the year: 🫂 Curate Relationships Curating relationships with existing donors or key stakeholders is one of the most overlooked practices in fundraising. Only chasing new donors or funding opportunities goes at the expense of trust-nourishing and enthusiasm of those donors and stakeholders who are already "warmed up" about your work and mission. Don't make this mistake, and create space to strengthen the bonds with those who are already there. Think about personalized engagement and regular touchpoints to make them feel part of your mission and deepen their commitment to your cause. ⭐ Impact Storytelling Creating visibility around all the things your organization and your team have achieved throughout the year is a powerful avenue to leverage your commitment and attract the attention of donors and stakeholders ready to fund. Don’t be generic or conservative when it comes to showing the outputs, activities, results, community feedback, and transformations your work generated. Donors want to feel like they can make a tangible contribution to the end goal of your impact mission. Showing this to them in a compelling, story-based approach will help them understand what and why they are funding. 💰 Do Your Budget Know your number and make your financial plan clear. Prepare a budget that outlines your organization’s funding needs for the next 2 to 5 years. Identify the core areas that require sustained resources and ensure your strategy is aligned with long-term objectives. Create a strong narrative around why these areas need funding, how they will serve your impact goals, and why mobilizing resources into these areas will be foundational in securing sustainability and scalability to your work. 💥 Optimize Your Strategy You must have learned a lot in the past 9 months and got a lot of feedback, observations and lessons learned around your work. This is the perfect time to integrate the learnings into your overarching organizational strategic plan and fundraising strategy and adjust it according to the things you have now gained more clarity on, such as your new targets and goals. -------- Hey! I am Margherita, senior nonprofit consultant and advisor. I am open to working with nonprofit organizations in social justice and accelerating their development goals through fundraising, financial planning, organizational development, and operations. My fee model is equity-informed and open to accommodating all budgets. Contact me to learn more!

AI is only as powerful as the problems it solves. For nonprofits, one of the most fundamental challenges is knowing how much to ask for, and when. Ask too high, and you risk discouraging a gift. Ask too low, and you leave potential impact on the table. That’s why we’ve taken Intelligent Ask Amounts to the next level for GoFundMe Pro partners. Grounded in deep user research and powered by GoFundMe’s AI models, this improved version gives nonprofits the ability to dynamically optimize campaigns for what matters most: one-time revenue, conversions, recurring gifts, or a balanced mix. The ask amounts adapt in real time to donor behavior and campaign goals—helping nonprofits drive more sustainable giving. The best part? These improvements are to a product that has already delivered results. For example: the National Civil Rights Museum used Intelligent Ask Amounts during key giving moments and saw a 62% increase in average gift size on December 31st year-over-year, along with other strong gains. (I’ll link the case study with more details in the comments!) What makes me proud isn’t just the AI, it’s the teamwork behind it. Three product pods, Applied Science, Research, CX, Legal, Marketing, Comms and more all came together to turn a complex fundraising challenge into a solution that’s both powerful and practical. Because at the end of the day, innovation is only meaningful when it helps nonprofits raise more with less friction—so they can focus on their mission. 👉 Learn more here: https://gfme.co/47CvtSc 

For nonprofits, community fundraising challenges can help turn one-time supporters into champions. When someone fundraises on behalf of an organization, they bring their own story, network, credibility, and energy. They help people understand why the mission matters, turn passive support into active participation, and often reach people the organization could never reach on its own. When a supporter decides to run, walk, bike, swim, or climb for a cause, they’re also “brandraising”  by sharing what the nonprofit means to them, helping friends, family and neighbors build - through their advocacy -an emotional connection to the nonprofit they care about and bringing in new advocates for the organization. This is one of the things GoFundMe does best: providing a platform where supporters become advocates, organizers, storytellers, and fundraisers for the causes they care about most. A few powerful recent examples that inspired me: The #BurghProud Challenge brought together fans of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Pittsburgh Steelers to fight hunger, inviting people to walk or run 30 miles in 30 days while raising funds for Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. The campaign raised over 1 million for Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. https://lnkd.in/gw_rFSpR Skate Across America rallies supporters around Chad Caruso's amazing journey to raise awareness, inspire action, and create impact. Together, they raise funds and awareness for Natural High, helping provide young people with the tools, inspiration, and support they need to prioritize mental health, avoid substance misuse, and thrive. This is the *second* time Chad has skated across America - he’s an incredible guy.  https://lnkd.in/gmaKdQgK Defenders of Wildlife is empowering supporters to turn their passion for nature into action through community fundraising. Advocates can rally friends, family, and their broader communities to help protect endangered species, defend critical habitats, and ensure future generations can enjoy our natural heritage. https://lnkd.in/gU_S6HTM The best community challenges do even more than raise funds. They spark connections, start conversations, and shine a light on important causes, giving everyone a way to help that feels personal, joyful, and communal. Every day on GoFundMe, we see communities come together through challenges like these to support organizations doing essential work and create meaningful impact.

Welcome to the Future of Fundraising. In the first year of Autonomous Fundraising, my team and I observed that donors were consistently increasing their giving after working with the Virtual Engagement Officer. Now, beyond just observation, the data is providing definitive proof that trusted digital labor fundamentally changes what’s possible for our organizations. Across more than 100 Virtual Engagement Officers, we're seeing something remarkable. When a donor makes a gift under VEO management, almost one third of them are increasing their giving. And, when they increase giving, they're doing it by an average of 40%. This is not just engagement or cultivation or discovery work, it’s all of these that combine to result in direct revenue acceleration. What makes this even more significant is that the VEO has now raised more than $4 million, and $1 million of that comes directly from upgraded gifts. A quarter of all revenue generated by the VEO comes from donors who have decided to deepen their commitment after autonomous, 1:1, engagement. But the data point that I'm most proud to see is that 99.5% of donors with increased giving remain in VEO portfolios. This reveals something fundamental about Autonomous Fundraising versus AI Enablement. AI Enablement tools help existing fundraisers work more efficiently - drafting emails, prioritizing prospects, analyzing data. They're designed to help your current team do more with the capacity they already have. Autonomous Fundraising creates new capacity entirely. VEOs don't just identify donors who should be in someone's portfolio - they own the portfolio. They have the conversations that inspire upgrades. They deepen relationships between donors and nonprofits. And our Innovation Partners see that these donor relationships are sustainably managed by VEOs, with no need to be transferred. This is what happens when we stop asking "how can AI help fundraisers reach more donors" and start asking "how can AI expand the fundraising team itself." Autonomous Fundraising doesn’t put more pressure on a human team’s capacity. These are hundreds of sustained relationships generating real revenue growth - $1 million worth of it - that simply wouldn't exist without this capacity. The pattern holds across institutions of all types and sizes. The upgrade rate is consistent. The retention is consistent. The revenue growth is consistent. This isn't about individual success stories, it's systematic proof that Autonomous Fundraising can augment what our traditional gift officers do, provide strategic and personalized attention that naturally leads to giving – but at scale. If you're looking at your own donor make and thinking about the donors who could upgrade with the right attention, you're asking the question that led to this data, and Autonomous Fundraising matters. Every organization deserves this kind of capacity.

We added a button to a nonprofit's email that wasn’t a donation button, and it started driving donations anyway. Here’s how… Most nonprofit email strategies are built around one call to action: “Donate” Which makes sense. That's one of the goals in nonprofit digital marketing. But here's what we've found working with nonprofits: when every touchpoint is an ask, donors start to tune out. Not because they don't care, but because the relationship starts to feel transactional. So we ran an experiment. For a faith-based international nonprofit, we added a simple button to their email: "I Prayed." Not a donate button. Not a "give today" button. Just an invitation to participate in the mission in the most natural way possible for their audience…prayer. When someone clicked it, they landed on a page that shared a story from the field and thanked them for praying. There was a donation option on that page — but it wasn't the main call-to-action. The main goal was going deeper with the person. Here's what happened over time: people started donating from that landing page. Not because we asked them to. But because the relationship we'd built through consistent, non-transactional touchpoints had earned the right to ask for a gift, and they were inspired to give. This is what relationship-first fundraising looks like in practice. The call to action doesn't always have to be a donation. For faith-based orgs, it might be "I prayed." For others it might be "read a story," "share with a friend," or "send a note of encouragement." But also don’t do it in a manipulative way. People can sniff that out. Do it in an authentic way that is genuinely interested in building relationships. These aren't consolation prizes for people who don't give. They're relationship builders that create raving fans (as Jon McCoy and Becky Endicott put it). What non-donation call to action does your nonprofit use, or could you start using, to go deeper with your audience?

I analyzed the fundraising reports of 50 different nonprofits. The ones growing year-over-year weren't necessarily the best at acquiring new donors. They were the best at keeping the ones they had. According to the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, the average nonprofit loses 57% of its donors each year. Yet, increasing donor retention by just 10% can boost the lifetime value of your donor base by up to 200%. How do the top-performing organizations do it? They thank donors within 48 hours. Not a generic email receipt, but a personal call, video, or note. They report on impact, not just activity. They close the loop, showing donors exactly what their gift accomplished. They create a "First-Time Donor Welcome." A 3-part email series that onboards new supporters and makes them feel like insiders from day one. A small food bank I worked with shifted its focus from a splashy annual event to a simple, personal thank-you call program. Within one year, their donor retention rate jumped from 38% to 61%, nearly doubling their revenue from existing donors. Stop spending all your time trying to fill a leaky bucket. The real work is in sealing the leaks. What's one change you've made that improved donor retention?

Fundraising is not just about raising money — it is about building trust, relationships, and sustainable impact that keeps NGO work alive in communities. Strong organisations don’t depend on one source of funding; instead, they use a mix of strategies that work together to ensure continuity and growth. Here are key fundraising approaches used by impactful NGOs: 1. Community & Individual Support This is where impact begins — from people who believe in the cause. It includes: Regular supporters and monthly giving programs Online fundraising campaigns Community-based contributions Small local donations that grow into big impact over time 2. Partnerships with the Private Sector (CSR) Many organisations grow faster through collaboration with companies that invest in social impact. This brings: Long-term funding relationships Strong visibility for both sides Shared value between business and community 3. Grants from Development Partners Grants remain one of the most structured funding sources for NGOs. They are usually provided by: International development agencies Foundations and philanthropic organisations UN bodies and embassies Government-funded programs Success here depends on clear ideas, strong proposals, and measurable impact. 4. Campaigns & Public Engagement Funding can also come through creative and engaging public activities such as: Crowdfunding campaigns Charity events and fundraising drives Awareness and advocacy campaigns Social media storytelling that inspires giving 5. Income-Generating Projects Some organisations build their own financial sustainability through social enterprise models like: Agricultural and farming projects Training and consultancy services Community-based business initiatives 💡 The strongest NGOs are those that diversify their funding sources — because sustainability is built, not wished for. #FundingOpportunity #GrantFunding #NGOFunding #ClimateAction #Sustainability #CommunityDevelopment #SocialImpact #EnvironmentalProjects #SDGs #ClimateFinance #GreenGrants #InternationalDevelopment #CapacityBuilding #ResilientCommunities #DonorFunding #ProjectFunding #InnovationForImpact #SustainableFuture #GrassrootsImpact #DevelopmentSector

Last week, I talked about the constant balancing act nonprofits face—securing funding while staying true to their mission. But what if I told you some organizations have flipped the script? Instead of constantly shifting to fit funders' priorities, they’ve positioned themselves so that funders align with 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. Sounds idealistic? It’s not. Organizations like Twaweza East Africa have done this successfully. So, how do you attract the right funders—those who believe in your vision? 1️⃣ 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗼𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 Funders don’t just want to hope their money is making a difference. They need proof. But here’s the thing: It’s not enough to say, “𝘞𝘦’𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬.” You have to 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 effectively. 🔹 What change are you driving? 🔹 What evidence shows your approach works? 🔹 How are you learning and improving over time? When you have data-backed results and a learning mindset, funders trust your expertise instead of dictating how you should work. 2️⃣ 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝘀 A lot of nonprofits chase project-specific grants, which can lead to a cycle of short-term funding and shifting priorities to match funders’ requirements. Twaweza took a different approach: 🚀 They created 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 with an overarching budget. 💡 Instead of writing separate proposals for every grant, they asked funders to contribute to their strategic fund. 🤝 They built relationships with funders who trusted them to allocate funds where they were most needed. This “basket funding” model gave them the flexibility to stay mission-driven and sustainable. 3️⃣ 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 Many funders are used to project-based funding with strict reporting requirements. But Twaweza challenged that thinking with a simple question: 👉 “𝘞𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘐 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵?” By clearly communicating these tradeoffs, they helped funders see why flexible funding leads to better long-term results. 4️⃣ 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 Most nonprofits rely on outbound fundraising—constantly applying for RFPs and open grants. But the most successful ones attract aligned funders by: 📢 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 🤝 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 🚀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 None of this happens overnight. It takes time, persistence, and a willingness to challenge the status quo. But the long-term impact on your organization’s sustainability and effectiveness is worth it. 💡 Are you working toward a more mission-aligned funding model? What challenges are you facing? #fundingafrica #fundraising #nonprofits #philanthropy #impact Rakesh Rajani

Last week I reviewed a nonprofit's fundraising plan and it was 67 pages long. Know how much of it will actually get done? About 3 pages. Maybe. Here's the problem: Most fundraising plans don't fail because the strategy is wrong, it's because they're built for organizations that don't exist. They assume you have: • A full development team (you have 0.5 FTE) • Board members who make calls (they don't) • Time for 12 different tactics (you barely have time for 2) • Months to cultivate donors (you need revenue NOW) The plan looks impressive. But it's not useful. From working with small nonprofits I've learned that the organizations that actually grow revenue don't have the fanciest plans. They have the simplest ones. Three priorities per quarter. That's it. Not 22 strategies. Not a 67-page document. Not a wish list of what you'd do if you had unlimited capacity. Three things you'll actually DO. And here's what happens when you focus: → You stop drowning in competing priorities → Your board knows exactly how to help (because the ask is clear) → You see traction within 90 days, not 18 months from now The nonprofits I work with don't raise more money because they're doing MORE. They raise more money because they're doing LESS — but doing it well, consistently, and strategically. If your fundraising plan feels overwhelming, it's not a you problem. It's a plan problem. If you're overwhelmed by an unrealistic plan, DM me and I'll send you the framework I use with clients, the 90-Day Sprint Fundraising Roadmap, which focuses on what you can ACTUALLY execute, not what looks good on paper. Let's stop planning and start doing.

🔹 Struggling to Find New CSR Donors? Here’s the Strategy That Works 🔹 In my recent poll, the #1 fundraising challenge that stood out was: Finding New Donors. And I get it. The usual advice—"research prospects, send cold emails, apply for grants"—isn’t enough. The real problem isn’t finding donors, it’s attracting them. Here’s how I’ve helped organizations consistently acquire new funders: 1️⃣ Donors Fund What They See—Are You Visible Enough? Most NGOs expect funders to find them, but in reality, funders are actively looking for high-impact organizations. The question is: Are you in their line of sight? 🔹 Be active on LinkedIn—Thought leadership builds credibility. 🔹 Attend sector-specific events—Grantmakers and CSR heads don’t sit in isolation. 🔹 Leverage media & PR—A published impact story can attract unexpected funders. 💡 New donors don’t come from new emails; they come from new visibility. 2️⃣ Your Outreach Isn’t the Problem—Your Positioning Is Most fundraisers send out asks. Instead, think like a strategic partner: ✔ Speak funders’ language—Link your work to their ESG, CSR, or SDG goals. ✔ Show long-term impact, not just needs—Funders fund solutions, not problems. ✔ Use warm introductions—Cold outreach has a lower success rate than referrals. 💡 Stop “seeking donors.” Start attracting them with a compelling impact proposition. 3️⃣ Expand Your Donor Pipeline Strategically The best organizations don’t rely on one donor type. They diversify: 🔹 Corporate Partnerships – Target ESG-driven companies, not just CSR teams. 🔹 High-Net-Worth Individuals – Engage philanthropists via networking events. 🔹 Institutional Funders – Focus on multi-year grants instead of one-time funding. 🔹 Community Giving – Crowdfunding and individual giving add resilience. 💡 If you only rely on grants, you’ll always struggle to find new donors. 4️⃣ Funders Talk—Make Sure They Talk About You A warm referral from an existing donor is 10x more effective than a cold approach. How? ✅ Keep existing funders engaged—They will introduce you to their networks. ✅ Ask for introductions—Many funders know other funders. ✅ Share impact updates regularly—Make it easy for funders to showcase your work. 💡 Fundraising isn’t just about acquiring donors; it’s about making them your ambassadors. Final Thought: The Best Fundraisers Don’t “Find” Donors—They Position Themselves to Be Found. If you’re struggling with new donor acquisition, it’s time to shift from chasing funding to attracting funders. #FundraisingStrategy #NGOFunding #NewDonors #CorporatePartnerships #NonprofitGrowth #SocialImpact #DonorEngagement