Inspirational & Innovative Moments from Raise 2024

Over 650 fearless fundraisers gathered in Nashville, Tennessee for two days of learning, networking, and growth at the 2024 Raise Conference.

With more than 40 interactive sessions, there were plenty of key takeaways to grow your nonprofit organization’s impact.

Session tracks included:

• Fundraising Strategy & Donor Engagement
• Event, Peer-to-Peer, & Auction Fundraising
• Storytelling, Brand, & Marketing
• Leadership, Operations, & DEI

While we’re no longer in Nashville, we’ve compiled insights and creative ideas from Raise 2024 to keep the learning going.

Let’s dive into popular sessions from Raise!

• How to Get CEOs and Boards to Embrace AI & Digital Fundraising
• Rethinking Stewardship to Create Better Donor Experiences
• Brett Culp and Deborah Barge as Keynote Speakers
• How to Create a Long-Term Social Media Strategy in a Short-Term World
• Move Your Mission Forward with Events
• Get with the Times! Event Timing Tools to Raise More Money in Auction & Fund-a-Need
• Winning the Hearts of Millennial and Gen Z Donors

How to Get CEOs and Boards to Embrace AI & Digital Fundraising 

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly growing – with 78% of nonprofits reporting to be interested in AI. While AI is becoming popular, 73% of nonprofits feel unprepared to use AI. So how exactly can nonprofits adapt? Christal Cherry, CEO of The Board Pro, and Taylor Shanklin, Founder & CEO of Creative Shizzle, gave us all the details.  

Here are a few key takeaways:

• Make AI less daunting: Show your board and organization’s leadership how AI is already part of their lives. Everyday scenarios include unlocking their phone with facial recognition or using predictive text.
• Highlight how similar organizations use AI: Provide examples of how peers or nonprofits use AI to improve services or boost fundraising.
• Point them to helpful resources: Explore downloadable content or free online blogs to help your nonprofit adapt to AI.

From sharing the risks of resisting AI to understanding its potential and how to implement best practices, Cristal and Taylor walked us through how and when to use AI.

However you decide to incorporate AI in your fundraising, it’s important to talk with your board about where it makes the most sense to use for your organization and where it does not.

Once you’ve learned and determined how AI can help your organization, you’re ready to bring your board along on the AI journey with you!  

Rethinking Stewardship to Create Better Donor Experiences

Nonprofits can boost donors’ experience by knowing that they seek relationships and community. Barbara O’Reilly, Founder & Principal of Windmill Hill Consulting, and Nicholas Kristock, Founder & CEO of KindKatch and Fleece & Thank You, joined us at Raise to share about stewardship and donor experience.

“Donors are coming to your organization for a very specific purpose. And your job is to figure out what that purpose is, what the story is behind their connection to you, and to build on that, honor it, and leverage it,” Barbara explained.

Think about what the ideal supporter experience should be for your organization – how do you want donors to feel when connected to your mission? Nicholas walked the audience through a step-by-step scenario of welcoming new supporters to make a gift.

Here are three steps to encourage donations:

• List interactions: Include every place or moment you have non-monetary interaction with a contact.
  • Example: Newsletter signups, event registration, or volunteer signups.
• Create a new donor welcome series: Map out a series of communications for each point of interaction.
  • Example: Call, email, text, or letter.
• Insert ask: Strategically insert the places you want to “make the ask.”
  • Example: Starting with a small gift ask before asking for more commitment.

Pictured: Nicholas Kristock and Barbara O’Reilly

While average donation amounts are increasing, the number of donors is down, making it even more important for your nonprofit to understand what drives generosity and how to approach supporters effectively.

Brett Culp and Deborah Barge as Keynote Speakers

Raise 2024 brought the heat to Nashville with Brett Culp and Deborah Barge as keynote speakers.  

On Day 1, Brett Culp, an award-winning filmmaker, spoke about how unique storytelling can inspire others to embrace and accept change while empowering them as they pursue everyday leadership.  

“Real leadership is inviting people on a mission to do something extraordinary together.” – Brett Culp 

 The audience left Brett’s keynote feeling inspired and empowered. On Day 2, Deborah Barge, Chief Development Officer for Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, took the stage to speak on the mental health of fundraising professionals.  

Fundraising is hard work. If you’re looking to… 

• Reduce anxiety 
• Increase feelings of belonging
• Build stronger peer connections
• Increase self-esteem 

…Deborah says to consider mentorship!  

Creating a sense of community involves acts of mentorship that can improve overall mental health. Connection, communication, and collaboration – not just with other individuals, but with other nonprofit organizations as well – are important to your growth. 

Pictured Left to Right: Tom Riles (Emcee), Brett Culp (Raise Keynote), Deborah Barge (Raise Keynote), Steve Johns (OneCause CEO), and Reggie Rivers (Emcee). 

How to Create a Long-Term Social Media Strategy in a Short-Term World

Julia Campbell, Founder & Principal of J Campbell Social Marketing, and Josh Hirsch, Senior Strategist at Soukup Strategic Solutions, came together to create the dream team on all things social media.

In their interactive session, they covered:

• Current social media landscape and trends
• Implications for fundraisers raising money on social media
• How to get donors off social media to build long-term relationships
• How to use ChatGPT to create high-converting social media content

While social media platforms are not all created alike, Julia and Josh presented long-term strategies to convert social media fans into donors.

Here are a few of those strategies:

• Intentionally and consistently use social media to build your email list
• Leverage the power of targeted social ads
• Craft high-converting calls-to-action for social media

Remember, context is key!

“There are no best practices for ALL, just best practices for YOU – your specific nonprofit, your unique circumstances, and your amazing mission,” emphasized Julia.

From learning how to build your donor base to navigating social ads and motivating supporters to act, Julia and Josh shared examples of how to bring this to life.

Move Your Mission Forward with Events

In Giving USA’s 2024 report, 87% of donors said they preferred to give at an event. Samantha Swaim, Owner & Strategic Director of Swaim Strategies, brought her fundraising expertise to share how nonprofits can leverage events to create greater impact from donors.

“Stories are at the root of how we make change. It’s how we connect people. And I believe our entire event should be a story.” – Samantha Swaim

People attend an event typically for two reasons:

• Build relationships and have experiences with others
• Feel a connection to the organization and community

According to Samantha, as an organization, you must strategize how to harness your event’s momentum to transform your supporters’ interest into donations and long-term relationships.

A successful event will…

• Create a sense of belonging. Encourage engagement by serving dinner family style or having guests wear the same bracelets.
• Include a shared experience. Consider a sing-along or call-and-response to make the event resonate longer.
• Plan points of connection. Schedule time in your event for people to network and socialize.

Samantha took it a step further by providing a roadmap for a fundraising event. The steps included:

• Welcome: Explain how donors can participate in your event.
• About the mission: Show and tell with a video or impactful speech surrounding your cause.
• Fundraising: Consider a live auction or a paddle raise for your event.
• Celebration: Incorporate a keynote speaker, honoree, or some sort of entertainment like live music.
• Gratitude: Appreciate your board members, staff and committee, sponsors, and guests for their support.

After answering questions from the audience, Samantha wrapped her session by offering the audience insightful advice. “Design a party you want to be at. If it’s not a party that you think is fun, it’s probably not a party your donors think is fun.”

Get with the Times! Event Timing Tools to Raise More Money in Auction & Fund-a-Need

The average attention span is 8.25 seconds, while the average audience attention span is just 8 to 10 minutes. If you feel that your audience is not listening, you’re at risk for lower engagement and lower participation.

Benjamin Farrell, Founder & President of Custom Benefit Auctioneers, spoke on how to get your supporters to engage, connect, and give at your next event. Enhancing your event timing will tackle common challenges like running out of time for activities and alleviating stress for your planning committee.

Check out Ben’s timeline for success to help boost your event fundraising.

• Pre-program: Plan event registration and social hour before the event begins.
• Main program: Welcome your guests with who your organization is, what you do, and why you do it. Host your live auction first to maximize attention, and then provide dinner as a break before closing your silent auction.
• Post-program: Draw your raffle and wrap up any games before announcing your goodbyes and gratitude.

Ben also shared best practices around timing to help you raise more money.
Here are his live auction tips:

• Ice breaker: Have the first live auction item connected to your mission that is not on the bidding list to excite the crowd.
• Give big early: Don’t wait to end with the biggest item, instead start strong to capture attention.
• Number of live auction items: Focus on the quality of items rather than having an extensive bidding list.
• Close with multiples: Emphasize it’s your last item to maintain momentum, then sell as many of those as you can.

Similarly, here are his tips on how to make the most of your silent auction:

• Open early: Allow supporters to view your silent auction items before the event to increase exposure.
• Open to all: Promote the auction to supporters attending your event and those unable to attend in person.
• Number of items: Avoid guests scrolling through uninteresting items. Procure popular items to excite your audience.
• Concentrated close: Gather the audience with a countdown timer or communicate the auction will close at “dinner time” without a specific time.

Implement these timing practices to make the most of your live and silent auctions and build excitement leading up to your fund-a-need announcement.

Winning the Hearts of Millennial and Gen Z Donors

Have you ever wondered what inspires philanthropy among different generations? At Raise 2024, Capin Alexander, VP of Nonprofit at The Lukens Company, dove into fundraising strategies to help nonprofit campaigns resonate with younger audiences.

Capin put the “fun” in fundraising with an interactive session. The audience got to play “generational bingo” and participate in a mini trivia game about Millennial and Gen Z giving habits.

After discussing similarities and differences between the generations, Capin shared ‘trust tentpoles’ to boost donor engagement.

This included:

• Intentional social experiences
• Inclusive and diverse environments
• Sustainability in action
• Organizational impact
• Ethical partnerships

Once trust is established, creating a connection with potential donors becomes easier.

Sending monthly emails is not enough to create a connection with supporters. Capin explains you want to offer opportunities for them to engage with your organization and build a strong relationship.

“Do not mistake communication tools for connection tools.” – Brene Brown

Unique opportunities include:

• Youth boards: Welcome a younger audience to feel they’re making a greater impact.
• Interactive content: Utilize polls to find out donor preferences.
• Advocacy: Show and tell new supporters what your mission is all about.

Trust and connection will help your organization tap into different generations and earn their long-term support.

A Nonprofit Conference Worth Attending

Raise 2024 went beyond inspiring keynotes, interactive workshops, and engaging sessions – it was about enhancing YOUR impact.

Fundraising insights that your team can implement and networking to build on each other’s expertise are key elements to a worthy conference. After an exceptional time at Raise 2024, Fearless Fundraisers were excited to take everything they learned back to their organizations.

Stay tuned because Raise 2025 might just top off this year’s memorable conference. In the meantime, explore resources to elevate your fundraising.

• Giving Experience Study: Dive into the data to discover emerging trends driving event and auction-based, peer-to-peer, giving day, & occasion giving.
• 5 Best Strategies to Boost Your Nonprofit’s Growth This Year: Explore tips for expanding your nonprofit in new and dynamic ways.
• Auction Donation Request Letter Template: Send the perfect silent auction donation request letter to corporate sponsors and individual donors for your next event.