Responsive Lab Podcast

Javan Van Gronigen joins Gabe Cooper to talk about the power of story to bridge the gap between givers and the good you're making in our world, the importance of pivoting to think of donor cultivation less like a funnel and more like a network, and more. Javan is the Founder and Creative Director at Fifty & Fifty. When not directing the path of his creative team, he's driving strategy to roll out new solutions for the nonprofit world through web design. With previous professional experience as the Art Director for companies like Digitaria and Invisible Children, he founded Fifty & Fifty in 2009 to put nonprofit web design and branding on the same playing field as Fortune 500 brands. Javan and his wife Candice have sons named Sebastian and Graeme along with a brindle Boxer named Brutus...who is inadvertently (or advertently) the office mascot.  https://www.linkedin.com/in/javanvangronigen/ https://fiftyandfifty.org/about/ ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Oli Bridge joins us to talk about the power of personalization, and how nonprofits are using personalized video to close the gap between givers and the good and increase giving.   Oli heads up Bonjoro’s marketing team. He has worked in SaaS for the last 12 years - his first job was in Customer Success with a media startup, Gorkana, who made a successful exit to Cision for £25m during his time there.   After starting and failing with his first solo venture, Oli joined Bonjoro in 2016, sold by the founder’s vision to grow Bonjoro into a global success and customer-centric company in the grain of Zappos. Oli spends his time thinking of new ways to spread the simple ethos of Bonjoro: automate processes, not relationships.   https://www.linkedin.com/in/olibridge/ https://www.bonjoro.com/videofunnelplaybook   ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Dawn Crawford joins us to share her insights on how nonprofits can craft communications that bridge the gap between donors and the cause, leading to increased connection and engagement. Dawn is the engine behind BC/DC Ideas, Dawn has dedicated her career to good. Before launching BC/DC Ideas in 2010, she earned her chops in 10+ years of communications leadership roles for public health, healthcare and youth-focused nonprofits. Working for nonprofits is Dawn’s dream job, and she loves that her 40+ hours a week make the world a better place. These days Dawn brings her considerable experience and expertise to helping elevate the nonprofit sector. Our team’s lead strategist, Dawn is often seen leading our IdeaStorms, penning communications plans, or checking in with clients. ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Martin Leifield joins us to share his insights and experience, while also highlighting the characteristics of an effective fundraiser and the GCC methodology that helps you cultivate deeper donor relationships. Martin would sit in his car rehearsing his ask with sweaty palms praying he wouldn’t get another rejection. Determined to master his craft he learned the power of embracing discomfort and through powerful human behavior techniques was able to raise over $500 Million for 3 organisations!   Martin served as vice chancellor for university advancement at the University of Missouri–St. Louis for ten years. While there, he led a dramatic increase in fundraising, averaging $26.4 million per year. Prior to joining UMSL, Martin was associate vice president or university development at Saint Louis University where he led his team raising $158 million in 3 years. Raising money became his #1 passion and Martin has since been able to distill the art of fundraising into core fundamental principles and a clear formula that anyone can learn.   http://www.martinleifeld.com/   ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Sarah Olivieri joins us to share lessons learned from over 15 years of nonprofit leadership, how vulnerability and respite help nonprofits thrive, and a simple, yet effective framework that prioritizes process and two-week sprint cycles to laborious strategic planning as fuel for improvement and growth. Sarah Olivieri is a nonprofit business strategist, #1 International Best Selling author, and former Executive Director. She has been featured on over 30 podcasts and is the creator of the Impact Method™ - a framework that helps nonprofits simplify their operations, build aligned teams, and make a bigger impact without getting overwhelmed or burning out. ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Barbara O’Reilly, CFRE joins us to talk about the challenges facing nonprofit leaders today and what we should be focused on, how we must balance empathy and urgency in our messaging, and her approach to navigating through each stage of a crisis: the response (our current phase), recovery, and resilience building. Barbara brings to her clients more than twenty-five years of annual fund, major gifts, and campaign fundraising experience at major non-profit organizations including Harvard University, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Oxford University in England, and the American Red Cross.    Whether it was leading record-setting reunion classes, securing tens of millions of dollars from global corporations following some of the most devastating natural disasters around the world, or overseeing a team that grew donor engagement of major individual donors committed to historic preservation, Barbara understands that fundraising is much more than just raising money.  It’s about enabling donors to realize their philanthropic dreams for issues that are most important to them and to be part of the change they want to see in the world.  She serves as president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Washington DC Metro Chapter and as a former member of the Advisory Panel for Rogare, The Fundraising Think Tank in the U.K.  Her firm, Windmill Hill Consulting, helps non-profit organizations of all sizes cut through the noise and develop a profitable fundraising strategy that focuses on the resources, skills and tactics they need to build more effective donor relationships and catapult their revenue. https://www.whillconsulting.com/bio https://www.linkedin.com/in/boreillywhc ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Sophie W. Penney, Ph.D. joins us to talk about the challenges facing nonprofit leaders today, why fundraisers should adopt a teacher's mindset, and a framework to identify and isolate challenges to ensure you navigate them well. Sophie is the Director of Foundation Relations for Penn State University and the founder and President of i5 Fundraising and a dynamic development leader with extensive expertise in building strategic fundraising initiatives within higher education and non-profit sectors. Sophie is also the author or co-author of numerous books, articles, and reports including: Dollars for Dreams: Student Affairs Staff as Fundraisers (NASPA 2001) and Student Affairs Fundraising: Raising Funds to Raise the Bar (NASPA, 2019).  She is a sought after facilitator, teacher, and coach for aspiring and current fundraising professionals. In 2019 Sophie was recognized by the Allegheny Mountains Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals as the Fundraiser of the Year. ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

On this episode, we're joined by Gabe Cooper and Mckenna Bailey to discuss their new book Responsive Fundraising: The Donor-Centric Framework Helping Today’s Leading Nonprofits Grow Giving Gabe Cooper is the Founder and CEO of Virtuous, a software platform helping nonprofits grow giving. Gabe has a true passion for creating market-defining software and helping charities reimagine generosity. Throughout Responsive Fundraising, readers will learn what the data tells us about the modern donor and their generosity habits. They will receive step-by-step responsive fundraising plays they can implement right away to improve their current fundraising tactics. Plus, they’ll get a look into how responsive nonprofits are shifting their internal teams to create a more collaborative, successful organization. Get a free copy of the book here ~ https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsivebook/ ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Shannon McCracken joins us to talk about the current fundraising landscape, why trust and relevancy our essential now more than ever, and her take on what nonprofit leaders should focus on amidst times of crisis and uncertainty. Shannon has a unique vantage point, as she's the CEO of The Nonprofit Alliance, leading the association through rapid growth since its launch in 2018. Previously she spent two years as Charity Navigator’s Chief Development Officer, facilitating communication with nonprofit organizations and dramatically increasing resources to support successful implementation of a new strategic plan. She now serves on their board of directors. She spent 17 years with Special Olympics International, most recently as Vice President of Donor Development, building and managing a multichannel individual fundraising program. Shannon has been an engaged member of the DMA Nonprofit Federation, with past roles as Chairperson of the Advisory Council and Chair of the Ethics Committee. https://tnpa.org/membership/telluswhatyoulove/ ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.

Julia Campbell, author, speaker, and digital strategist to mission-driven organizations, joins us to talk about the current state of social media, how nonprofits should be maximizing social channels, and the dos and don'ts on how to use social engagement for fundraising. Julia wrote her book Storytelling in the Digital Age: A Guide for Nonprofits as a roadmap for social change agents who want to build movements using engaging digital storytelling techniques. Her second book, How to Build and Mobilize a Social Media Community for Your Nonprofit, was published this year.   Julia launched Social Media for Social Good Academy, the first online training course for nonprofit social media managers. She also founded and organizes the annual Nonprofit Social Media Summit, a live event for nonprofits. www.jcsocialmarketing.com/firstdibs ----- Learn more about the tools Virtuous provides leading nonprofits to grow giving at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/.  Get an in-depth guide to responsive fundraising to help your organization grow generosity from the modern donor at: https://www.virtuouscrm.com/responsive/.