A Volunteer's Guide to Changing the World

We know budgets are reduced and giving is down. Asking for more won't help. Sending more emails, planning more events, and hosting more auctions are signs of desperation.People don't need to give money. People don't need to raise money. People NEED to belong to something special. People NEED to...

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More than ever, online outreach is VITAL to your and your organizations ongoing success. I hope this post provides you valuable information and tools to stay ahead of the curve.Currently, there is a nonprofit blog carnival sweeping the Internet... Its full of great information, tips, and tools for nonprofits and...

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Crowdsourcing has been a growing trend and its a wonderful way to find new volunteers. There are a variety of different types of crowd-sourcing that fit almost any need that a nonprofit might have. Recently, National Association of Federal Credit Union leveraged a crowd-sourcing group to help launch advertisements to...

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Just like the first three principles of real estate are priority, priority, priority, the first rule for nonprofits to engaging volunteers and donors should be BELONGING, BELONGING, BELONGING!This rule is inspired by Marsha Shenk, and her presentation, Brain, Body and Business.You can see the full presentation here:View more presentations from...

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Increasingly, you can do the things that you like to do, and do them in the name of a charity or cause. I have recently experimented with the following and I love what these groups are doing. I encourage you to check them out. And if they haven't listed your...

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I came across this today and fell in love with this concept...Ask yourself - do you have enough fun?1. Figure out who you are, what you want to do, and be confident in yourself | "Always be a first-rate version of yourself instead of a second-rate version of someone else."...

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This is my first Guest Post, so I am very, very excited to be featuring Colin Salisbury, the founder of Ripples of a Difference. Ripples of a Difference recently released a wonderful ebook which you can find here.Colin Salisbury, Founder and President of Global Volunteer Network (GVN), is the visionary...

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!I can't begin to explain how excited I am for this year - it's going to be amazing!!!Among my many resolutions, I'm committed to bringing more valuable and more relevant content to my readers. I found this great article on mint.com about charitable giving and its a great...

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YOU are the great gift - and what you bring to the people around you.Thank you - and have a wonderful, wonderful Holiday Season!!!!Best,Mark...

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Check out this free Holiday game / card from White Space Healthcare Marketing. For every person that plays, White Space will donate $.50 to the American Diabetes Association.The game is simple - you will play a doctor that is trying to save the holidays. You'll "operate" on 4 different holiday...

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Whether its online or offline, a relationship is still a relationship. And in a relationship, a :) IS a smile.On the web, whether its through IM, email, Twitter or Facebook, certain actions mean that same thing online as they do in person. Here are some examples:A :) in an email...

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I have a list of people that inspire me, and whenever possible, I let them how much they mean to me. Perhaps, more than any other time of the year, this is to season to let people know that they inspire you!But today is not about my list because I...

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What Matters Now was recently released by Seth Godin. According to him:Seventy big thinkers, each sharing an idea for you to think about as we head into the new year. From bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert to brilliant tech thinker Kevin Kelly, from publisher Tim O'Reilly to radio host Dave Ramsey,...

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Wow - I came across a terrific thought-starter for my next brainstorm session. Check it out, and happy brainstorming!However, before you start, I want add two very important rule that trumps all of the below: Make everybody feel welcome and valued before you even start.Change the venue and change the...

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Thanks to my good friend Kelly Ronan for sending this over.It took a lot of people to make this video, but only the camera man and editor had to put significant time and effort into it. I think people in committees need to work the same way. Everybody is the...

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Chris Brogan just wrote a GREAT post on Prioritizing Social Media Efforts. I liked it so much I put it into a visual.Social media is a great way to build trust and provide value, and prioritizing your efforts will help you be more successful in accomplish both!...

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Sometimes, people only need to be reminded or asked in order to give.Mobile couponing is an emerging trends that kindly reminds people to make purchases, and even provides discounts for doing so. In exchange for the coupon, the coupon recipient usually provides and email or phone number for ongoing communication...

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My friend J.D. forwarded me a GREAT article called Leading a Life of Intentional Influence by John C. Maxwell. I highly recommend you read it, I have copied it below for your convenience:Leading a Life of Intentional InfluenceBy John C. MaxwellIn the classic Christmas film, It's a Wonderful Life, George...

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Holy cow: 8% of internet users account for 85% of all clicks!...

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Next time you need help with something, try finding the answers at one of these great sites:Instructables.com | Instructables is a web-based documentation platform where passionate people share what they do and how they do it, and learn from and collaborate with othersHowcast.com | Howcast engages consumers to watch and...

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A just read a great blog post by Jon Gordon, forwarded from my good friend Shelley Sprouffske. The blog post is titled The Passion to Thrive and I have copied it below for your convenience. The blog post discusses how passion will allow you, and your organization to thrive today,...

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When a significant event happens to a person, they want information immediately. Not just published information, but real, relevant information. Often times this information does NOT come from your nonprofit, the media, or other publishing organizations, instead, and just as easily, it can come from people just like you.Check out...

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Mashable published a great post today about using the Web to improve your marketing, and I recommend you check it out by clicking here. The post is geared for "small businesses", but the takeaways are relevant for nonprofits.The tips are:Use FacebookUse TwitterUse a blogUse LinkedinParticipate on other blogsUse mobile social...

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THANK YOU SEATTLE!!!I just had an AWESOME weekend presenting at the ACS Leadership Summit in Seattle - what a blast!!!I did a lot of presenting and met a lot of incredible people! I learned a lot, but more than anything, I learned about the importance of creating personal connection. You...

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Here are 5 of the best social media videos. Together, they do a great job showing the what, why and how behind the social media revolution:The Social Media RevolutionDramatic Shift in MarketingWhat is Social MediaHow to be a Social Media Change Agent...

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