Category: Books
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The classic book that changed how we think about readability
Type & Layout, by Colin Wheildon, is one of those books that helped change the way a lot of people thought about design. I discovered it not long after it was first published in 1995. I worked at The Domain Group, and the book used a print ad we had created as an example —…
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[Book Review] Your tool for helping others believe in effective fundraising writing
Book Review: Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please: The Case for Plain Language in Business, Government, and Law by Joseph Kimble This book is a useful and comprehensive guide for the Plain Language movement. It’s light on how-to-write material, but has a ton of foot-noted background information — the kind of stuff bosses sometimes listen…
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Here’s something that will inspire and strengthen you and your colleagues [Book review]
Book review: The Healthy Nonprofit: Inspirational Thoughts on Leadership, Purpose and Success by Harvey McKinnon This is not the typical nonprofit book. It’s not going to help you run a monthly giving program, recruit bequest donors, or raise more money this month. But it just might help with all those things — and many others…
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[Book review] The one thing you need to know about fundraising (and every other kind of writing)
Book review: Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t: And Other Tough-Love Truths to Make You a Better Writer by Steven Pressfield The title of this book is some of the advice you’ll ever get as a fundraiser. Once you know and internalize this truth, you can stop wasting your (and your donors’) time. And get…
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Fundraising books finally back in print
For about a year, I’ve been getting queries from people who wanted to read one of my books — and couldn’t find a way to get them. Or all they could find were used copies and exorbitant prices. What gives? What gave was this: They were out of print. “Out of print” meant new copies…
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The 2 (only 2!) things your donors need to know about you
Adapted from How to Turn Your Words into Money: The Master Fundraiser’s Guide to Persuasive Writing. Remember the song about the lady who swallowed a fly — then a spider, then some other creatures until she died from ingesting a horse? (If you don’t believe me about this, see the video below.) Suppose you worked…
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How to make your fundraising relevant [Book Review]
Book Review: The Art of Relevance by Nina Simon One of the main causes of weak fundraising is that it’s irrelevant to donors. Fewer give, because the ask doesn’t connect with their lives in any way they can perceive. It could be superbly written, masterfully designed, a great call to action, smart segmentation … and…
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The goofy cartoon character who can transform your life [Book Review]
Book review: Creative Deviations by John Lepp. Take a good look at this simple cartoon character. You may be about to learn the most important lesson about fundraising you can ever learn from this fellow. It’s a googly-eyed grinning person in the shape of a blue heart. Blue. Who happens to be holding a red…
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The power of directly addressing your reader in fundraising
I recently read a really excellent book that doesn’t have anything to do with fundraising: An Elegant Defense: The Extraordinary New Science of the Immune System by Matt Richter (2019). I learned a lot about the immune system, but I also learned something about fundraising — something I half-knew before, but now understand more clearly.…
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Book review: Stop raising funds and help your donors make progress
Book Review: Demand-Side Sales 101: Stop Selling and Help Your Customers Make Progressby Bob Moesta Remember “supply-side economics”? There’s also “supply-side sales.” And “demand-side sales.” The difference: supply-side sales is an approach that focuses on the thing being sold — its features, benefits, and all-around awesomeness. Demand-side sales focuses on the customer — what she…