Category: Covid-19 Trends

New ‘Giving USA’ Report Signals Turbulence Ahead for Fundraisers

By Laurence A. Pagnoni, MPA The pre-eminent source of annual data about giving and philanthropy in the United States — Giving USA Foundation — this week released its 2021 report. This year’s edition offers a mixed bag of news for fundraisers and sends a few warning signals about what we can expect in the balance of 2022. But before the warnings, some good news: Charitable giving totaled a near-record $484.9 billion in 2021, which was flat when compared to 2020. That’s considered a win, especially since COVID-19 sparked an 8.1% annual increase in giving in 2020, and many observers feared

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The tips below will help your virtual gala succeed.

Make Your Online Gala Pop

By Laurence A. Pagnoni, MPA Participants are expecting more personal engagement — and a higher production quality — from your online gala and fundraising events. What worked last year will not carry the day if you want to raise more in 2022. Galas are a show. And in this era of virtual and hybrid events, it’s important for you to think differently and make your virtual event as engaging as possible. Many online galas and smaller Parties With A Purpose have room for production and program improvement. Pay attention to the nuances, because fundraising in the time of COVID-19 means

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Our 2022 Crystal Ball

By Brooke Bryant, Ph.D; Robin Merle, CFRE; and Laurence A. Pagnoni, MPA As we approach a new year, fundraisers continue to navigate an unsettled landscape. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, calls for racial justice, changing donor expectations, and a tight labor market have been central themes in 2021 — and they will continue to influence how we approach our work in 2022. Against that backdrop, we offer these 12 fundraising trends to watch over the next 12 months: The 12 Biggest Nonprofit Trends for 2022 Donors Will Give More Generously Equity Must Be Front and Center Hybrid Is Here to Stay Megadonors Will Be

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Site Visits in the Zoom Age

By Laurence A. Pagnoni, MPA & Sheldon Bart In what we might call the BC era (Before COVID), site visits mainly entailed a tour of your nonprofit’s facility. You took the foundation program officer or the major donor on a walk around the program site to give them a good look at your day-to-day operations. They were happy to see in action the services described in words in your proposal or application. The tour consumed most of the time available for the visit, with a few minutes left over for questions. Now, after the disease disrupted our routines (or AD),

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New Donor Giving Trends

By Laurence A. Pagnoni, MPA Fidelity Charitable conducted an initial survey of 3,055 charitable individuals in March 2020. They then conducted a subsequent survey in January 2021 to detect any shifts in donor attitudes and behaviors related to the COVID-19 pandemic and other events of 2020. There are more than a dozen takeaways, but here are the top four: A quarter of donors have donated to charity through a social media platform, and 4 in 10 have made donations through crowdfunding platforms. The study doesn’t say so, but if 25% of donors donated through social media, guess what platform the

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Covid-19 Relief Package II: What’s in it for Nonprofits?

I’ve combed through the new COVID-19 Relief Package II, and here’s the news from it that affects our nonprofits.

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Bill and Melinda Gates Delivers New COVID-19 Funding

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has committed an additional $250 million to support the research, development, and equitable delivery of lifesaving tools in the global effort against COVID-19. Marking the end of a year focused on the scientific breakthroughs needed to end the pandemic, the foundation calls for global commitments to making these innovations available in 2021 to everyone who needs them.

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Campaigning During Covid-19 and Economic Downturn

You were in the middle of a campaign, then Covid hit, and now it’s stalled. You were just about to launch a campaign, then the economic downturn hit. What do you do?

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What’s Going On With Private Foundations?

All foundations have been impacted by the ups and downs of the stock market and the relief support that nonprofits urgently needed (and still need) because of CV-19. Federal law requires private foundations to spend a portion of their endowments, typically at least 5%, on charitable endeavors each year. Many of the largest private foundations keep close to that 5% floor.

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