Fundraising - is hand-written best?

Steve Hitchcock discusses whether hand-written addresses on the outer envelope and hand-written notes inside are worth the expense and bother:
"Almost all of the organizations we work with at Mal Warwick & Associates are using some form of hand-written mailings. The percentage of donors who respond to these mailings is very high -- two, three, or even four times as high as in response to conventional lasered or printed appeals. These hand-written appeals -- which cost two, three, or four times as much as a standard appeal – are ….  Read on

The WHODO

The WHODO

Before you walk into a meeting, send an email or start a call, take a minute to think about what you want to achieve.1. WHO are you talking to? This is the decider, your prospect, the person who, by direct action, can get you the result that you want.2. What do you want that person to DO? This is your call to action – the single, specific action you want him to take.

Meeting success tip

Before you go ahead with your meeting, ask "Is this meeting necessary?"  Look at alternatives in terms of cost effectiveness, what need is to be filled, more effective formats, levels of accountability and the possibility of using policy or procedure checklists instead. 

Meeting success tip

 
If you want everyone's opinion, take note of those who have said nothing.  When everyone is quiet, ask those people for their ideas. 

Communication upwards

The Inside Advantage
Have an important decision to make? Your employees know more than you think. Open the lines of communication and get valuable advice from those who understand your company best.
The biggest challenge in communicating with employees today is not coping with a culturally diverse work force, overcoming the impersonalization of e-mail or battling information overload to get your message across. Instead, it's getting employees to trust you and offer ideas for improving the business.
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Negotiating confidence

 

Negotiating can be a challenge. Sometimes we watch successful negotiators at work and wonder if it is an ability they were born with. But with a little time, information and preparation you can head for the negotiating table with confidence. Ten Steps to Win-Win Negotiating.1. Be prepared. Define your objectives and use lateral thinking to brainstorm possible ways they can be achieved.2. Research the other party’s objectives and brainstorm the methods they may use. “Find the edge” – any pressure points or hidden agendas. “Information is power.”3. Prepare yourself and the way you use the venue. Choose your seating for power, your clothes and your attitude. 4. Establish a cordial relationship on opening the meeting. Specify the aims of the meeting.5. Raise less contentious issues first.6. Promote harmony, minimise the negatives and articulate areas of commonality. 7. “Win-win” means compromises on both sides, so be prepared to bargain. Start with two lists – your must-haves and your might-haves, and start with a higher level than you expect to obtain. Highlight the contribution of your concession to the other person’s objectives. 8. Be prepared to release information at times beneficial to your cause. Use silence. 9. Listen for surprises.10. Articulate the agreed outcomes and any timelines, or they may collapse. Use detailed preparation and the win-win method and you have the tools to approach negotiation with confidence.

Follow a Leader to Become a leader

Follow a Leader to Become a Leader
When it comes to managing your employees, your leadership style directly affects your success. Put your business on top by following these proven HR strategies.
One of the best ways to become a great manager is to follow the example of another great manager. Adapting a "best practices" approach to managing your employees may be one of the best ways to excel in your market or industry. By studying what the top 10 percent of U.S. companies have in common, researchers have identified five HR practices these companies consistently use that make them successful. And each process, system or approach is a practice your company can easily adapt.
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