From the President's Office
Dear Friend:
We are determined to make GuideStar a service that you not only value highly but also one that you help to design and customize to meet your needs, one that ultimately you are eager to recommend to your friends and colleagues. We hope that through continuous improvement we can meet—and eventually exceed—your expectations. This month, I want to focus on your feedback regarding a new service and a recurring issue.
One of GuideStar's most significant accomplishments last year was the launch of our new search engine, thanks to your advice and encouragement. Our new search engine is much faster than its predecessor—the average time it takes us to return search results has decreased by 83 percent, to less than a second.
Our new search engine is also more accurate. Many users have commented that they are now able to find the exact organization they are looking for closer to the top of the search results. A few users have had questions or suggested improvements. I'd like to take a few minutes to respond to the most frequently mentioned of those comments. ... Read more
Understanding the Motivations of
Major Donors, Part II: Know Thy Donors
To learn what motivates donors, go to the source: the donors themselves.
Get to know your major prospects and donors. More importantly, get to know as many of your donors—major or not—as you can. See them all as having potential to give a large gift at some time or to connect you with those who can. If you're fortunate enough to have research capability at your organization, use it as a baseline. ... Read more
Bridging the Gap between Volunteers and Coordination
Do you hesitate to enlist more volunteers because you can barely keep up with the ones you have? The answer may be easier than you think.
"So little time. ..." Has this become a mantra at your organization? If so, you are not alone; it's a common theme at most nonprofits nationwide. One solution to this time shortage is, of course, to recruit additional volunteers. ... Read more
Transforming Your Board Members
into Brand Ambassadors
Five steps for helping your board members spread the word about your organization.
"Many of our board members often cannot clearly and concisely articulate who we are or what we do. How can we turn them into better Brand Ambassadors for our organization?" I get this question a lot in my branding workshops, and my answer is always the same: The best place to start is in the board recruitment process. ... Read more
Creating Spam-Filter-Friendly E-mails
As spam filters become stronger, legitimate messages are getting trapped.
Have you ever sent a beautifully written, compelling e-mail to your constituents, only to have several of them tell you that they never received it? The messages didn't bounce back to your in-box, so what happened? Your message may be stuck in a spam filter. ...
Read more
A Brief Overview of Supporting Organizations
In response to a Newsletter article last month, readers asked for more information on supporting organizations.
A supporting organization is a specific type of public charity. All 501(c)(3) organizations are considered private foundations unless they qualify as public charities. It can be to a nonprofit's advantage to be a public charity; private foundations are more closely scrutinized, regulated, and taxed than public charities. ... Read more
New Rules Affecting Donor-Advised Funds:
December Question of the Month Results
There are new rules for donor-advised funds.
The December 2006 Question of the Month asked, "Are you aware of the provisions affecting donor-advised funds contained in the Pension Protection Act of 2006?" A little over half—52 percent—of participants said they were. The remaining 48 percent replied that they were not. Here, then, is a brief summary. ... Read more
In This Issue
Understanding the Motivations of Major Donors, Part II: Know Thy Donors
Bridging the Gap between Volunteers and Coordination
Transforming Your Board Members into Brand Ambassadors
Creating Spam-Filter-Friendly E-mails
A Brief Overview of Supporting Organizations
New Rules Affecting Donor-Advised Funds: December Question of the Month Results
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