An effective way to grow fundraising income is to add value to relationships with high value supporters. But how do find ways to do it? One approach is to start looking at your existing resources differently. When you ask yourself what potential assets you could make use of, rather than what is difficult for your charity; and what you can give (to relationships with supporters) rather than what you can get from them… amazing things become possible. To help you look again at opportunities (that might be under your nose), Rob and Ben share stories of creative, determined fundraisers doing things ..read more

One greatly under-estimated tool for building relationships with potential funders, corporate partners and major donors, is LinkedIn. But what’s the most effective approach? Rob was delighted to talk to fundraising and LinkedIn expert Michelle Benson. After many years as a fundraiser and grant giver, Michelle has found that most fundraisers are failing to make the most of this potent tool for success in major donor / trusts / corporate partnerships fundraising. Michelle and Rob discuss an approach which is different to what most people usually do. Rather than you chase them, a better way is to ..read more

There are plenty of factors that make fundraising difficult at the moment. Whether it’s the cost of living crisis, the pace of change, the sense of political chaos, shorter attention spans etc…it’s true that connecting with people who care about your cause can feel harder than ever. So what can we do to defy the odds and achieve great fundraising results, in spite of the challenges? For clear answers and encouragement, Rob was delighted to talk to best-selling author and marketing expert, Grant Leboff. He explains why taking steps to increase genuine human connection is so powerful and offers ..read more

Is silo working inevitable in charities? Or is it possible to create a culture where it’s the norm for the different teams to proactively help each other, so that efforts combine to make a bigger difference? This is the second part of Rob’s interview about integrated working with the brilliant Joe Jenkins. They build on the Team of Teams concept from Part 1, and the amazing difference it makes to both results and trust between teams. Joe shares how one charity applied these ideas in three important projects, improving results and working relationships with each iteration. Finally he shares pra ..read more

One of the biggest sources of stress for people working in charities is conflict between teams. Many find that however committed they are, and however hard they work, the default structure and culture often hamper genuine cooperation and progress toward a common goal. Given how difficult this problem can be, Rob was thrilled to talk to Joe Jenkins, who has given more thought and energy to solving it than anyone he has interviewed. Joe shares what happened when he worked for Friends of the Earth over a decade ago, when the leadership team did certain things to reduce silo-thinking and nurture c ..read more

Rob is again joined by Bright Spot colleague and fellow fundraising trainer Ben Swart to talk about some of the episodes that most inspired us in 2023. Our discussion of fundraising ideas and examples includes: how to ace your event or media appeal (ie what content makes all the difference to results); ways to beat the Curse of Knowledge – and how one charity did this to raise five times more than the average through their appeal; ideas to help you succeed in spite of very competitive trust application processes; and how to create a culture where people genuinely value failure / learning as a ..read more

If you’d like practical lessons and a bunch of encouraging stories from our fundraising podcast in 2023, or you’d like tips on what to listen to next, we recorded this special episode for you! Rob is joined by Bright Spot colleague and fellow fundraising trainer Ben Swart for this round up of our podcasting year. They pull out key insights from some episodes they’ve found most inspiring to listen to, including: tactics for corporate fundraisers to win multiple partnerships; ideas to further your mission through partnerships; how to use the Top 20 Rule to grow income with any group of supporter ..read more

Just occasionally we (hopefully) have a bigger opportunity to reach more people and raise money. Whether it’s being chosen for a media appeal that reaches thousands or millions; or the chance to tell your charity story at an event in front of hundreds of people…there are a few moments when the fundraising rewards can be HUGE…if we get it right. So what can you do to maximise the potential of these valuable opportunities? For shrewd insights and examples, Rob was thrilled to interview Sally Flatman. In her many years as producer of BBC Radio 4 appeal, Sally worked with hundreds of charities on ..read more

Changes in technology over the last three decades mean our supporters’ now have less time, and more demands on their attention, than at any point in history. This makes it tougher than ever to deepen relationships with people who care about our cause. In this environment, what can we do to create effective marketing and communications? To better understand the issues, Rob was delighted to talk to best-selling author and marketing expert, Grant Leboff. Grant routinely advises both companies and charities on effective marketing and communications strategies in the fast-changing world we live in ..read more

Many charities see the advantages of creating strategic, long-term partnerships with companies, rather than applying for those intensely competitive Charity of the Year partnerships. But how do you initially approach companies where there is a good fit? Even after you get that first meeting, how do you inspire them to want to partner? And how do you solve the challenges in bringing your two organisations together to achieve something that works really well for both parties? It’s not easy, but its less daunting if you can hear insights from someone who has already done these things. So I was de ..read more