You didn’t tell me not to murder someone! Over the last few years I’ve had to flag up several cases where a client has sent me data in a manner that poses a security risk. I’m not going to make out that is a frequent occurrence – it really isn’t, although risk-averse...
Data isn’t just for data people Over the years I’ve noticed a curious divide in fundraising teams. Data often gets treated as separate to fundraising. Sometimes there’s a bit of crossover, usually when a fundraiser says they quite enjoy the data side of things, but...
The most interesting people in a selection are the ones you didn’t pick The most interesting people in a selection are often the ones you didn’t select. I’ve been building selections for the best part of twenty-five years. Sometimes everything falls neatly into place....
Spot checking isn’t criticism. It’s editing your data. Over the last week I’ve been building an import template for one of my lovely clients. It would be nice if everything could be fully integrated and automated, but that isn’t always realistic. Often you have to...
I just want to say hello, or "salutations", as they said pre 19th century... ...and we still say in fundraising today! Have you ever received a piece of mail and opened it to see Dear J or Dear Pitt? I have, and it really flattens my soufflé. It’s because not...
Are all CRMs the same? Choosing the right CRM for charities brings up a conversation that I’ve had countless times and it goes something like this: Me: “How can I help you?” Them: “We’re a small charity. We have no money (this always comes up early), and we want to...
Rise of the machines and cybersecurity threats to charities. I usually try and keep my topics light and airy… upbeat with a touch of quirk. Alas, I need to put all that to one side for a short while so we can talk about bot generated email addresses and other...
The anatomy of a postcode or how do postcodes work? Today, we’re diving into postcodes. We take them for granted, barely notice them, and sometimes these clever alphanumeric codes feel a little unloved. The UK didn’t invent postcodes, that honour goes to Germany, or...
What is in a job title? Me and a friend-colleague have been talking about what we call ourselves. Before you imagine some weird professional therapy session where we unpack all our deepest insecurities, it’s not that. It came about because we both wrestle with how to...
In fundraising, we love to ask: “So, what are the barriers to making a donation?” Honestly, I’m a bit bored of that question. It’s been answered a thousand times, and by now, we should all know what the usual suspects are that stand in the way of support. But here’s a...