This BLOG is intended to help conservation organizations and land trusts pursue excellence in all aspects of their conservation endeavors. I welcome your comments and feedback to these posts.
By David Allen, Development for Conservation My Plan B this year starts on November 13th. Years ago now, I organized a hand-written letter party for the Board. We had seventy-something prospects who had given $250 or more last year and we were launching a $1,000 giving club....
By David Allen, Development for Conservation Let’s say you need to raise some money for a specific project. You’re thinking capital campaign. Somebody asks you whether you’ve done a feasibility study. As you consider the question, several other questions come up. Do we have to? Aren’t feasibility studies...
By David Allen, Development for Conservation As you complete your summer plans and prepare for entering the Fall fundraising season, here are some timely reminders to help you get the most from your efforts. You’re raising money from people who already give you money. As tempting as it...
By David Allen, Development for Conservation When I come home every evening, I throw the change from my pocket into an old coffee can. (Remember when coffee used to come in cans?) It’s an old habit that has served me well around Christmas on more than...
by David Allen, Development for Conservation As I quipped several weeks ago, you will be asking just about everyone you know for a gift to your land trust between now and Christmas. Most will be asked in a letter, which means that you will be needing...
by David Allen, Development for Conservation Dear Mary, We opened the Trillium Trail today. In the grand scheme of things, it was a little thing. There were about 30 people there, mostly the volunteers who worked on building it these last three years. Frank was there,...
by David Allen, Development for Conservation The new website is here! The new website is here! After weeks of promising, the new version of Development for Conservation’s website is complete. Take a look around. I hope you like it. The new site is still subject to Spam, but the...
People should not give money to an organization because they serve on the Board. They should give money because they believe in the work enough to give money. Doing so shows the kind of passion for the mission that inspires others – especially other donors....
by David Allen, Development for Conservation At some point between now and Christmas, you will be asking just about everyone you know for a gift to your land trust. Some will be asked to “renew.” Some will be asked to make an additional gift this year. Most...
The reason to do all this to inform your planning – to reverse engineer the process and project what kind of marketing budget would be required to achieve a certain specific “more.” Let’s say, for example, that your land trust wanted to go from the...