How to Fund Your Next Board Retreat or Strategic Planning Session
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Release Date: 04/06/2026
Unresponsive Donors: A Smarter Way to Respond
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
If you’ve spent any time in fundraising, you know this moment well. You send the email, make the call and follow up—politely, professionally, thoughtfully. And then… nothing. No reply. No acknowledgment. No signal of interest or disinterest. Just silence. For many fundraisers, donor silence feels personal. It triggers doubt. Did I say the wrong thing? Did I wait too long? Did they lose confidence in us? Should I push harder—or back off completely? Here’s the truth most fundraisers need to hear—and hear often: Donor silence usually has very...
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The Year-End (Holiday) Fundraising Secrets Nobody Uses
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
The “Notify First” Trick There’s one move that can turn your ho-hum year-end appeal into a home run: notify first! Before you send a single email or stuff a single envelope, reach out to donors—by phone or email—and announce your campaign is coming. This one act can boost your response rate up to five times higher. If you actually reach a donor and they feel connected to your cause, half of them will give. Do it well, and that number can soar 70%. Incredible. But skip the notification and rely only on a generic appeal letter or email? Expect a limp response rate of...
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Specialty Events: How To Turn Small Gatherings into Big Gifts
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Let’s be honest: most nonprofits don’t need another event. They need better ones. The kind that doesn’t drain staff, exhaust volunteers, or leave donors wondering why they just spent two hours listening to speeches when they could have been home in slippers. That’s where specialty events come in. Savvy fundraisers love specialty events—typically gatherings of 10 to 75 people—because they create something you simply can’t replicate at a big gala. Donors see friends they respect, meet peers they admire, and experience your mission together. There’s energy in the...
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How to Fund Your Next Board Retreat or Strategic Planning Session
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Every nonprofit eventually hits a moment of polite stagnation. Board meetings are full, calendars are packed, and everyone is working hard—but progress feels heavier than it should. Conversations repeat themselves. Decisions take longer. Direction becomes unclear. Passion wilts. The organization isn’t broken, but it isn’t quite clicking either. That’s usually when someone finally says what everyone else is thinking: “We should probably do a board retreat.” Or, “Maybe it’s time for a planning session.” The idea hangs in the air for a moment, feels responsible and hopeful,...
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Board Members: Help Raise Money (Without Asking For It!)
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Fear not! To raise money, you and your fellow board members don’t have to cold call strangers (or worse, friends), or suffer through awkward donor coffees where you feel like the people at the table next to you are eavesdropping on your shaky pitch. Nope. There’s an alternative. It’s a heck of a lot easier for board members to do things that support the fundraising efforts of the organization, rather than do something terrifying they loathe. Below is a list of 21 things board members with no fundraising experience can do to support the fundraising efforts of the organizations they...
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10 Strategic Fundraising Principles - Every Fundraiser Should Know
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Fundraising—it’s part charm offensive, part emotional trapeze act, part caffeine-fueled chaos. Some days you feel like a philanthropic superhero, and other days you’re crying into your donor database while searching for the ‘undo’ button. But you don’t have to go it alone. Enter the Rainmakers: the mythical, magical, magnificently strategic fundraisers who know how to play the long game—with flair. What’s their secret? These 10 fundraising principles. We’re talking about donor stickiness, connection asks, custom everything, and enough ‘You’ language to make even...
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Don’t Pitch—Connect: 10 Smart Moves for First Donor Meetings
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Your first face-to-face meeting with a donor isn’t a sales pitch or interview. And it’s definitely not the time to comb through the details for your 30-page strategic plan. It’s a discovery conversation—a delightful dance where you listen, learn, and laugh. Apply the following 10 tactics to get your first meeting right and the odds of landing a second meeting (and ultimately a donation) jump to more than 70%. Not bad for the cost of a latte and scone. Listen in and learn . . .
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A Lighthearted Field Guide to Fundraising Disasters
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Here’s a crash course in what “not” to do when fundraising, what donors secretly loathe, and a short list of how to ask for money without breaking into hives. Listen in and learn . . .
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Make Your Board Retreats Outcomes Stick with "Ownership."
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Ah, the board retreat. A magical time when board members gather to dive into strategic discussions, unleash big ideas, and nod sagely at visionary plans. You laugh, you brainstorm, you may even awkwardly roleplay. By the end, you’ve covered walls with stickies and flipchart paper, deepened your culture, and high-fived over fresh possibilities. And then… nothing. Everyone returns home. Retreat outcomes are emailed but never opened. The notes from the flipcharts are filed away and the long list of follow-up ToDos sits unopened in Dropbox. Another week passes and the staff still waits...
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Donor Objections: Part 3: Common and Uncommon Types (includes scripts)
The Fundraising Coach -- Fundraising Tips, Tools, and Tactics for Nonprofits -- by Tom Iselin
Fundraisers know that most donor objections boil down to just two things: the amount you’re asking for and the timing of the ask. But here’s the good news—both are manageable. In this article, you’ll discover practical tactics to navigate these common roadblocks, plus smart ways to handle the trickier, less common objections that inevitably pop up. By the end, you’ll not only be ready to face objections with confidence—you’ll actually welcome them as opportunities to move the conversation forward and close more gifts. Listen in to learn A LOT more and there are scripts . . .
info_outlineEvery nonprofit eventually hits a moment of polite stagnation. Board meetings are full, calendars are packed, and everyone is working hard—but progress feels heavier than it should. Conversations repeat themselves. Decisions take longer. Direction becomes unclear. Passion wilts. The organization isn’t broken, but it isn’t quite clicking either.
That’s usually when someone finally says what everyone else is thinking: “We should probably do a board retreat.” Or, “Maybe it’s time for a planning session.” The idea hangs in the air for a moment, feels responsible and hopeful, and then gets quietly shut down with a familiar phrase: “We just don’t have the budget for that right now.”
That sentence sounds practical. It feels disciplined. And most of the time, it’s the wrong conclusion.
Listen and Learn!