Key Takeaways:

• Supporters engage for a reason, a season, or a lifetime, each bringing unique value. Instead of expecting long-term loyalty from everyone, recognize the natural ebb and flow. Gratitude for every contribution keeps the relationship healthy and grounded.
• Tourists, seasonal residents, and townies each play a meaningful role in the ecosystem. One-time donors bring energy, visibility, and new connections when they matter most. Long-term supporters reveal themselves through aligned values and deeper engagement.
• Lasting relationships grow through purpose, connection, and involvement beyond giving. Inviting donors into stories, conversations, or behind-the-scenes roles builds ownership. When people feel seen and included, loyalty naturally strengthens and expands.
• Not every donor will stay forever, and that is part of a healthy pipeline. Letting go with appreciation frees energy to invest in aligned relationships. Focusing on shared values ensures every interaction remains meaningful and mutual.

“Our job is to give them meaningful experience while they're with us and release them with gratitude when they're ready to go.”

“Every donor plays a role in your ecosystem. You know, tourists bring energy and visibility, townies bring depth and sustainability, and there's space in between them, where just the relationships involved.”

“Relationship first, money will follow that. Build belonging, not just giving.” 

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• Goals are meant to guide, not judge. When they serve as a compass instead of a scorecard, they inspire growth and unity instead of strain or shame. Progress becomes something to celebrate, not a verdict on worth.
• Nonprofit leaders often walk the line between big dreams and achievable results. Rigid focus on financial targets can create tension and burnout, but realistic goals rooted in purpose help teams stay motivated and grounded.
• True success goes beyond numbers. Relationships, learning, and consistent effort shape sustainable impact. By valuing process over perfection, organizations can find meaning in every outcome—good or bad.
• Lasting results come from people, not pressure. Relationship-building should be prioritized over transactions, with gratitude and reflection fueling resilience, renewal, and authentic growth for the long run.

“Rejection isn't the opposite of success. It is part of success.”

“Goals should stretch us, not strain us. They should unite, connect us, not divide us, and they should inspire us to grow, not shame us for being human.”

“Remember: every ‘no’ refines your ‘yes’. You're not rejected, you're redirected. Rejection is protection.”

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• Goals are meant to guide, not judge. When they serve as a compass instead of a scorecard, they inspire growth and unity instead of strain or shame. Progress becomes something to celebrate, not a verdict on worth.
• Nonprofit leaders often walk the line between big dreams and achievable results. Rigid focus on financial targets can create tension and burnout, but realistic goals rooted in purpose help teams stay motivated and grounded.
• True success goes beyond numbers. Relationships, learning, and consistent effort shape sustainable impact. By valuing process over perfection, organizations can find meaning in every outcome—good or bad.
• Lasting results come from people, not pressure. Relationship-building should be prioritized over transactions, with gratitude and reflection fueling resilience, renewal, and authentic growth for the long run.

“Goals should stretch us, not strain us. They should unite, connect us, not divide us, and they should inspire us to grow, not shame us for being human.”

“What if we saw goals as a compass instead of a scorecard? It gives us direction, but it doesn’t judge us.”

“The growth comes from the receptivity of all of it: what worked and what didn’t, because everything was progress, everything was a lesson, everything was information.” 

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• True commitment begins with finding like-minded people, not convincing others to care. Instead of pitching or pushing, nonprofits should focus on shared values and invite donors into a community built on authentic connection.
• Meaningful conversations start with listening, not selling. By asking thoughtful questions and validating donors’ stories, organizations create space for people to feel seen and heard, laying the groundwork for lasting trust.
• Letting go of results transforms how we communicate. When fundraisers detach from fear or pressure, they become more open to honesty, mutual respect, and new possibilities that turn rejection into redirection and growth.
• Donors move naturally toward giving when each step feels like their choice. Using small yeses, open-ended questions, and calm follow-ups helps convert interest into action while maintaining dignity and genuine rapport.

“People buy to the level they feel seen and heard. Your job isn’t to convince—it’s to listen.”

“If you’re making friends with someone because they have money, that’s manipulation. Build relationships first; the money will follow.”

“Authentic, honest, transparent relationships create loyal donors for life.”

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Javan Van Gronigen is the Co-Founder of Donately, a leading fundraising platform that has processed over $180M in donations for 1,400+ nonprofits. With 15+ years in digital marketing and social impact, he helped create accessible, transparent fundraising technology after his work on the global Kony 2012 campaign.

Key Takeaways:

Nonprofits thrive when they align marketing, storytelling, and data into a unified approach that strengthens both mission and message, especially when working with small teams and limited resources.

Tools like Donately, Google Analytics, and AI empower nonprofits to personalize donor experiences, track engagement, and make informed decisions that drive sustainable growth.

Establishing a steady rhythm—such as quarterly roadmaps—helps organizations stay consistent while leaving room to explore new ideas, platforms, and emerging technologies.

Nonprofits that take risks, communicate openly, and lead with authenticity build stronger trust, greater visibility, and lasting donor relationships.

“Act like for-profit businesses, take those risks. You will be rewarded for that if you're more bold and you go after being unique in that space.”

“With AI...you just have the ability to audit and look through mounds of information far better than you used to. Understanding who your audience is, what's working, what's not, that's really critical.”

“If you don't know where your donors are coming from, you don't know where to put your money.”   

- Javan Van Gronigen

Reach out to Javan Van Gronigen at:

Website: http://www.donately.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javanvangronigen/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wearedonately
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donately_org/
X: https://x.com/donately

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• True leadership success is measured by alignment with your values and season of life. It is not about busyness but about making intentional, sustainable choices that bring fulfillment.
• Leadership has natural rhythms of growth, energy, refinement, and rest. Recognizing and embracing each season allows leaders to act with clarity and avoid burnout.
• Success is reflected in energized weeks, meaningful relationships, lasting influence, and personal joy. Leadership thrives when others feel better and positive change continues.
• Lead from peace, set boundaries, and focus on depth over breadth. Continuously evolve your definition of success to expand in wisdom and align your leadership with purpose.

“Sometimes you have to stop moving to see where you're really going.”

“Busyness is not being important. It's just filling your life with stuff so you can feel important.”

“Joy is not optional. It's a leadership strategy.”

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

David Blyer is the Co-Founder, CEO, and President of Arreva, a leading provider of fundraising and donor relationship management software for nonprofits. With over three decades in the industry, he’s passionate about helping organizations strengthen donor engagement through technology and innovation.

He previously founded DonorCommunity, the first all-in-one fundraising software for nonprofits, and co-founded Arreva through a merger with Susan Packard Orr’s company, Telosa. Earlier in his career, David led Vento Software, later acquired by SPSS and IBM. He also serves on NonProfit PRO’s Editorial Advisory Board.

Key Takeaways:

• Donor acquisition and retention decline not because people stop caring—but because organizations often fail to acknowledge and engage donors quickly and personally.
• Fragmented systems hurt relationships. When fundraising, events, and CRM data don’t “talk” to each other, nonprofits lose time, insight, and donor trust.
• Integration and automation empower nonprofits to respond faster, personalize communication, and strengthen long-term loyalty.
• Timely gratitude matters: reaching out within 48–72 hours after an event or donation dramatically increases donor satisfaction and retention.
• Peer-to-peer fundraising, when integrated into a nonprofit’s ecosystem (unlike GoFundMe), helps acquire new donors, foster engagement, and turn supporters into ambassadors.
• A donor-centric website and seamless online giving experience—especially mobile-friendly—serve as the foundation of modern fundraising success.

"I can honestly say I'm so proud of the team that I have. I've never had the opportunity to work with a collective team like this and and be so proud of them every single day."

"When you're a nonprofit, I caution you do not use GoFundMe, because I'll tell you why, what you want to have, and I go back to software you want to have a pit. I'll call it, as opposed to a GoFundMe. I look at that as what I will call the peer to peer fundraising."

"But my challenge has always been and now I'm very frustrated that my last tribute gift and I just gave another one, but my last tribute gift, it's been four months. I didn't get any acknowledgement that the person I gave a tribute gift to...was acknowledged."

"61% of donors worldwide prefer giving online. So if you're giving your volunteers, if you're giving your board members, maybe even your active donors, the ability to send something out online, there's a better chance of them raising more money and an easier way of doing this."

- David Blyer

Reach out to David Blyer at:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arreva/

Website (Company): https://www.arreva.com/

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• True leadership often means loosening your grip. You cannot force outcomes, timelines, or people, but you can release and lead with trust. Surrender opens space for wisdom and growth.
• Surrender is not weakness but strength in disguise. Rest becomes a strategic act when we allow it to restore us. In slowing down, we sharpen clarity and courage.
• Perfection and rigid plans weigh leaders down. Balance is found in the natural rhythm of effort and rest. Honoring both flow and pause leads to sustainable impact.
• Leadership is not a solo journey but a shared one. Trusting your team and support network empowers them to rise higher. In giving space, you multiply strength together.

“Surrender isn't weakness. It's wisdom. Choosing rest is a strategic decision.”

“Let go of perfection and timelines. Whatever you missed happened anyway. It's all okay, nothing's going to pass you by.”

“Balance comes from rhythm, not rigidity. Leadership is expansion and contraction. Go with the flow… honoring the rest as much as the pushes, honoring the ebb and the flow.” 

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

A Canadian direct response strategist, designer, and author with over 25 years of experience. He champions donor-centered approaches that prioritize authenticity and emotional connection. His 2022 book, Creative Deviations, has inspired fundraisers worldwide to embrace creativity in storytelling and communication. John brings warmth, insight, and a human-first philosophy to every stage. Empowering fundraisers to build more meaningful donor relationships.

Key Takeaways:

• Donor relationships thrive when leaders allow open, honest dialogue rooted in empathy. Vulnerability invites trust, making it easier for supporters to share openly and feel truly heard.
• Engagement comes not from polished presentations but from being human. Dropping the “professional bubble wrap” allows values-driven conversations that foster deeper bonds.
• Direct mail and appeals work best when they feel one-to-one, conversational, and emotionally compelling. Donors respond when a message feels like it was written just for them.
• Great fundraising relies on trusting experienced people and never losing vulnerability. Staying passionate and authentic ensures both donors and leaders stay connected to the deeper “why.”

“We’re being emotional. We’re connecting with each other as humans. That’s how we create engagement with donors. … Not by me showing up a suit and tie and in a big desk with gold stuff around me.”

“The more mail looks personal and looks like I sent it to you, the better it performs all the time…”

“We want donors feeling something. It’s the emotions that make us take action. And it can be joy, it can be anger, it can be sadness, whatever it is.” 

- John Lepp

Reach out to John Lepp at:

LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/johnlepp

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnlepp_aog/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AgentsofGood/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/agentsofgood

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker

Key Takeaways:

• Go through a seamless process with the donor; don’t go from unaware to action. Create a replicable, consistent donor experience through these stages of relationship building: awareness, interest, connection, and action.
• Build relationships with donors through direct communication, creating content that provides value to others, rather than simply bragging about one's own accomplishments. Identify your areas of expertise and share them with others in a way that is informative, entertaining, or emotionally resonant.
• Personalized invitations create deeper connections with potential donors, and so does creating trust through smooth processes and acting in donors' best interests. Be a value to others in every interaction.
• Set up nurture sequences before and after events in order to engage attendees. Connect with the attendees and understand their needs, and build relationships with them by reaching out and listening to their values and interests. Don’t neglect follow-up.

“A lot of times, what I see is people go from unaware to action. We have to create an experience. It's like courting or dating, where you're enrolling someone slowly. And you're allowing them to move through this experience at their own pace.”

“They have to know you to like you, like you to love you, or trust you enough to give, to act.”

“What gets smiles on screens and souls on seats is a personal invitation.” 

- Maryanne Dersch

Let’s Work Together to Amplify Your Leadership + Influence

1. Group Coaching for Nonprofit Leaders

Want to lead with more clarity, confidence, and influence? My group coaching program is designed for nonprofit leaders who are ready to communicate more powerfully, navigate challenges with ease, and move their organizations forward.
 

2. Team Coaching + Training

I work hands-on with nonprofit teams to strengthen leadership, improve communication, and align around a shared vision. Whether you’re growing fast or feeling stuck, we’ll create more clarity, collaboration, and momentum—together.
 

3. Board Retreats + Trainings

Your board has big potential. I’ll help you unlock it. My engaging, no-fluff retreats and trainings are built to energize your board, refocus on what matters, and generate real results.

Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com

Connect with Maryanne about her coaching programs:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect

Book Maryanne to speak at your conference:

https://www.courageouscommunication.com/nonprofit-keynote-speaker