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#IGiveCatholic – The Digital Wave That’s Raising Millions

November 27 is changing how Catholics raise funds online

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

If you are fundraising in November and December, you don’t want to miss this opportunity. One of the biggest trends in Catholic fundraising is the social media campaign called #iGiveCatholic.

This campaign is an online giving day that kicks off the charitable season and brings the Catholic community together to give thanks and give back. It is celebrated annually on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday.

The hashtag, followed by the phrase ‘I Give Catholic,’ was inspired by the popular non-profit social media campaign #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving. In social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn), when a word or phrase is preceded by a hash mark (#) when it is used in a post, it becomes indexed by the social network and becomes searchable/discoverable by other users.

The #iGiveCatholic social media campaign is an online giving day designed to celebrate our unique Catholic heritage. #iGiveCatholic inspires faithful stewards to “Give Catholic” on #GivingTuesday.

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How to fundraise, without the heavy lifting

3 steps that make every Catholic non-profit's fundraising easier

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

New donors can be the catalyst for your Catholic non-profit or mission. But finding donors can be overwhelming for many of us. Based on years of experience launching successful fundraising campaigns, today I am sharing with you the three steps that will take you from drawing board to raising funds in no time.

In this article, you are going to learn how to save time when it comes to finding donors and use a method for building a sustainable approach to raising funds.

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Scandals, Vatican II and Fundraising

How to Ask for Donations during another Church scandal

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

In the wake of the scandals which continue to plague the Catholic Church, I’ve been interviewed multiple times by news outlets asking the same question, “How will Catholics respond?” The question is focused on the aspect of financial giving. Yes, Catholics are most definitely considering how to take action. However, you and I both know that taking financial action – which is appropriate – is not the most important.

And yes… it’s the fundraiser saying this – money is not the most important action! You and I can respond in greater ways than reducing the amount we donate.

We should look at the Second Vatican Council on how to respond. One of the pillar documents, Apostolicam Actuositatem, was written by the Council Fathers and lays out the blueprint for what the laity must do, especially during a scandal.

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Confidence: Building Hope, Raising Donations

The Confidence of Faith is the Foundation of Fundraising

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

Asking for donations is not something that comes naturally to me, even though I am a fundraiser! In fact, I still get scared. Whether it’s a one-on-one donation request or an appeal letter, asking for donations is a skill that I had to learn.

Thinking about how I have improved (and conquered my fears), I was reminded of a discussion I had with the director of a Catholic non-profit in California.

She had been hesitant when it came to asking for donations. She knew she had to ask but just kept struggling. Finally, after listening to her express her fears, I assured her that I could offer advice to help boost her confidence.

Confidence is essential when it comes to fundraising. You can have a long list of potential donors – who are ready to give – but if you don’t have confidence, you probably won’t be able to ask them for a donation.

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How to Write an Appeal Letter

... the Catholic way

If you’ve been following me for the past two years, I hope that you’ve enjoyed my weekly articles on how to fundraise in a Catholic context. Yes, I’ve dedicated 100% of my attention to Catholic fundraising. That includes religious orders, lay apostolates, youth ministry, family ministry, pro-life ministries, schools, universities, and the list goes on.

I’ve offered the steps on where to find donations, how to ask for donations, and when to adopt new strategies (such as online fundraising).

Today, let’s dive into the world of appeal letters. You will notice that I take a different approach to the average fundraiser. Rather than focus my attention on asking for a donation, I focus on my relationship with the reader.

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Meet Your New Best Friend: The Fundraising Pyramid

A Simple and Smart Way to Find Major Donors

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

The fundraising pyramid is one of the most important visual aids at your disposal to help you understand how to find donors and major donors.

As a fundraiser, you have to manage three critical tasks: finding prospects, asking for donations, and increasing the number of your donors and major donors.

When I began to fundraise, I found juggling each of these tasks quite difficult. I’d focus on one and leave the other two to fall. For example, when I  was running around to find new donors, I would forget to keep the donors that I had. So for every donor I found, I would lose one.

Another mistake was focusing my attention on building relationships with my current donors but forgetting to ask them for another, if not larger, donation.  So I kept the donors I had but never got major donors.

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The Thomist Method of Fundraising

How the wisdom of Saint Thomas Aquinas can help you fundraise

Make sure to get your free copy of ‘The 10 Commandment of Catholic Fundraising’. It’s a book that highlights the ten tasks you should do to keep you focused on your mission and hit your fundraising target, every time.

I recently spoke with the manager of a Catholic conference that aims to educate, inspire and empower her community. While chatting, she asked me how to properly train herself — and her board — to fundraise.

Their goal was to get out of what had become a ‘slump’ in their fundraising.

I am often asked, “How do I get out of my slump?” When you feel God is nudging you to ‘up your game’, do you wonder how to respond? Does it sometimes feel like the right response is to raise more funds?

Saint Thomas of Aquinas was a master at finding the right answers to the tough questions. But before he answered a question, he made sure it was the right question being answered.