What good are your appeal letters if no one reads them? In this podcast, learn what makes create content and how to increase the response rates of the appeals you send out -- especially your yearend holiday appeals.

12 minutes. Listen Podcast host Erin Brinker interviews Tom on her show called: On The Brink! KCAA 102.3 FM, 106.5 FM, and 1050 AM in the Inland Empire-East LA. Tom provide straight-talk answers to a handful of Erin's poignant questions about things like nonprofit overhead, wasteful spending, marketing, and more.

Face it. You are competing for funds in a fiercely competitive environment with limited resources. Many large universities and institutional nonprofits have hundreds of people raising money for them and operate multimillion dollar marketing budgets.

It's you (David) verses Goliath. How do you compete? One of the simplest things you can do is to invest in marketing. Most small to medium-sized nonprofits have little to no marketing budgets because they (often board members) view marketing as an expense instead of an investment.

This 5min podcast will show you 1 simple secret you can use to ensure you're marketing materials are first class, but can cost you little to nothing.

Stop using "I", "Me", and "We" when asking for money. This short podcast shows you how to quickly change how you position your asks so the focus is on connecting the donor -- and the donor's gift -- on the needs you fill . . . not the needs you have!

There are many ways to raise money - grants, galas, email, letters, and phone calls . . . but the most effective way is asking for money in a face-to-face setting. In fact, this podcast will show why it's the most effective tactic over all others.

Competition for donors is tough. The problem is that most nonprofit are focused on acquiring donors when they should be thinking about how to retain them. In this podcast, learn how to create loyal and generous fans by thanking donors in ways that stand out and separate you from the competition.

Learn 3 of my favorite ways to raise money from donors during the month of December. Time is running out -- do what works!!

This is a brief podcast on how to create an engagement form that your board members can fill out when they join your board, or annually, to get board members more engaged in the work of your organization, based on their gifts and skills -- and interests! A free template is made available by writing Tom at [email protected].

Engage more members in your fundraising efforts by urging them do what THEY want to do, not what you want them to do!

The best way to raise money from donors when you first meet them is NOT to ask them for money. Rather, make a non-monetary ask, first -- a "connection" ask. Ask them to volunteer, observe your programming, provide advice, watch a performance, or attend a "friend-raising" event.

This podcast addresses this common problem and provides suggestions on ways you can raising more money by taking a softer, more patient approach. Enjoy!