Speaking Engagements

Smart non-profit organizations have disciplined people with disciplined thought taking disciplined action. These effective organizations make decisions based on data and imbue this information into their strategies.

What are the most important metrics that an organization should utilize to create a culture of disciplined thought and action? How do you create a data-driven culture at your organization to ensure greatness? What small, smart, successive steps can you take to improve your overall results?

Using an interactive approach, participants discuss real-world examples to empower them to slowly turn the flywheel at their organizations. Participants will leave with a plan to operate a more effective organization which will result in more philanthropic dollars to support their missions.

• The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement, St. Louis, MO

• Lehigh Valley Philanthropy Institute, Bethlehem, PA

• Midsouth Nonprofit Conference, Memphis, TN

I am a firm believer in using data and the science behind it to drive your fundraising results. I encourage my clients to use giving data to uncover their best annual (sustainer) prospects, enhance donor growth using data-backed targeted gift asks and to use effective tactics to acquire new donors. Instead of taking a buckshot approach, non-profit organizations must strategically focus their energy and efforts. Prospect research and wealth screening allows organizations to get a feeling for their best possible prospects.

It’s important to run a batch screening annually to identify who is in your database, but it’s not as simple as “these are my richest donors.” Identifying major donor prospects requires you to look at their affinity to your cause, their propensity to give, and how much they’ve given to organizations like yours and not like yours. Start by looking at newly identified prospects who look like, on paper, major gift donors who already give to you.

But for as many times as I talk about “science” in fundraising, “art” is just as important – especially when raising major gifts. When it comes to actually asking donors in person for a major gift to your organization, the “artful ask” is just as important as the science behind it. Wealth screening will allow you to identify who SHOULD give. Building an authentic long-term relationship with a donor allows you to identify who WILL give.

During the economic downturn of the last decade, non-profit organizations struggled to retain dollars and donors. This loss of revenue caused many non-profits to struggle to achieve their mission and some had to cease operations. Whether or not a recession is on the horizon is unknown, however non-profit organizations can take steps today to prepare for what may come tomorrow. This includes strategic stewardship efforts, data management, reacting to donor behavior and enhancing monthly giving efforts. 

Participants leave with a knowledge of the effects of the last recession on non-profits and plan on how to navigate any headwinds that are to come.

For participants to understand the importance of creating, maintaining and executing an annual fundraising plan which is based on historic performance and industry standards and focused on SMART outcomes.

1. Why is an annual fundraising plan important?

2. What is an annual fundraising plan?

3. What do you base your plan on?

   • Revenue expectations

   • Expense realities

   • Historic performance

   • Industry standards and metrics

4. What is a fair expected increase in performance?

   • Discuss Key Performance Indicators

5. Review Slides and discuss

6. Building your annual plan activity

Smart non-profit organizations make decisions based on data and imbue this information into their strategies. What are the most important metrics and data that an organization should utilize in their fundraising? How do you create a data-driven culture at your organization? What steps can you take to make your fundraising metrics “actionable”?

Using an interactive approach, participants discover real-world examples that will empower them to lead more effective organizations that ultimately result in more money for their organizations.  

• AFP-Eastern PA Chapter, Center Valley, PA

As non-profit organizations begin to research their prospective donors, the amount of information that is received can seem overwhelming. It is important for non-profit leaders to be prepared to effectively use and manage this data to ultimately make decisions to increase fundraising results. This presentation highlights strategies for data management, provides guidance specific to various sized non-profits and discusses multiple pathways to effective data utilization. Regardless of whether your organization has performed a wealth screening or not, every attendee will discover strategies to ensure success.  

• iWave Client Presentation, December 2018

Raising charitable dollars for any non-profit organization is both an art and a science.  Board members and newly hired professional staff need to understand the mechanics that make fundraising work.  During this session, participants discuss and discover effective ways to raise dollars including personal solicitation techniques, direct mail strategies, effective digital marketing and basic special event guidelines to ensure success. Participants also learn the importance of data management and using fundraising program metrics to drive success.  

• Emerging Nonprofit Leadership Accelerator, SUNY Albany, Albany, NY, 2019

This workshop is designed to educate participants on the importance of donor retention, how to improve donor retention and the positive impact a high donor retention percentage will have on your organization. This day-long workshop also educates participants on additional program metrics including growth in giving rate, average gift, new donor acquisition costs and ten additional metrics.  Using an interactive learning approach, participants discover the importance of monitoring these metrics and the positive impact they will have on your organization.   

• Mohawk-Hudson Association for Fundraising Professionals, January 2019

The battle for the non-profit dollar is ever increasing.  With millions of non-profit organizations competing for the same dollar year after year, how do effective non-profits craft their messaging to appeal to individuals’ donors’ interests?  During this presentation, participants discuss important demographic information to retain about their donors, how to assess their donor’s interests, and how to maximize that information to increase results. Both effective solicitation and donor stewardship strategies will be shared. Participants also review successful direct mail, digital, and in-person solicitation examples.   

• Motivate Monday, January 2019

2020 will be a memorable year for countless reasons. For fundraising, and specifically community based nonprofits, fundraising in 2020 presented both a dose of reality and a strategic opportunity. Many organizations saw an increase in the demand for their services, an increase in their level of recognition in the community and an increase in their fundraising. For others, the demand and recognition increased while the fundraising did not.

Either way, during this webinar we will share insight and thoughts on how 2021 may shape up and provide you tools and strategies to retain your 2020 donors while also projecting fundraising revenue in 2021. Participants will leave the webinar with a formula to forecast revenue as well as applicable strategies to increase individual and corporate support in 2021.

This webinar is geared towards community based nonprofit leaders who seek to sustain or increase the current level of fundraising at their organization.

Leaders within non-profit organizations spend a great deal of time and energy ensuring that their organization’s mission and vision are communicated widely and accurately. While that approach is effective to build trust within your community, a more personalized approach must be taken when building individual donor relationships. Instead of communicating to donors and prospects, we must listen and communicate with them to be most effective and to ultimately reach our goal.

Learn to combat conversational narcissism using research discussed in Malcolm Gladwell’s Talking To Strangers and Kate Murphy’s You’re Not Listening: What You’re Missing and Why It Matters. This session will highlight what is known about effective communication skills and discuss how to apply that information to cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship within the donor pipeline.

Past speaking topics include

Key Performance Indicators: Growing Your Organization from Good to Great

Blend: Using Science and Art to Build Relationships with Prospective Donors

Recession-Proof Your Annual Fund: Lessons Learned and Anticipating the Future

Developing an Effective Annual Fundraising Strategy

Effective Fundraising Data: What It Is and How to Use

The Game of Life: Strategies to Effectively Utilize Prospect Research Data

Fundraising Basics

Keeping Your Donors

Personalizing the Donor Experience

Beyond COVID: Planning and Forecasting Your 2021 Fundraising Revenue

Listening To and Talking With Donors: Applying Research to Reality

About Mike Buckley

Michael J. Buckley, CFRE is a career fundraising professional and Founder and Managing Partner of The Killoe Group. His firm assists nonprofit organizations increase revenue, exposure and capacity through smart, data driven, successive decisions and effective planning. Mike’s experience and passion for the profession of fundraising have made him a sought-after speaker, consultant and presenter. The Killoe Group’s broad experiences include annual campaign audits and management, capital campaign leadership, feasibility studies, interim program leadership, board governance, strategic planning and capacity building.