Blog / Strategy and Planning

You can set goals all day long, but if you don’t know where they are taking you—they are just chores. Drudgery. Items to check off an unending to-do list. And if you’re anything like me (and the rest of the Western world), we don’t need extra items there. As a fundraiser, it can be easy to think once you reach an initial financial goal your work is done, and naturally shift into maintenance mode. But that’s not the way it should be. You might be surprised to know, fundraising has little to do with money—and more to do with how […]

“How would you like all of your new staff to be at 50% of their monthly support within the first 4 weeks of support raising?” That’s what one campus ministry leader asked me, who then went on to explain how they have seen this become a common trend. The reason was not their incredible training for new staff or wealthy networks; it started with how they lead students to raise short-term support for the summer project and mission trips. Over the past 20 years, the US has seen a surge in short-term missions, with millions of teenagers, students, and adults […]

It is an honor to be invited to contribute to the SRS newsletter on the topic of fundraising while on furloughs. My wife Jody and I have served with Wycliffe Bible Translators for 26 years, so we have deep experience with the topic. My current job with Wycliffe is as a Partnership Development Coach. I coach new Wycliffe members whose first job is to reach 100% budget funding by building a partnership team. I also coach established career Wycliffe members (EMs) on furlough required to increase their budgets to 100% to return to the field. The Wycliffe members I have […]

For many of us, support raising is enough of a challenge in and of itself. Often, adding the obstacles of raising additional funds from the field just compounds the challenge. Now imagine you serve overseas, far from your primary support base, and the task can seem almost insurmountable. Believe me, I know. I serve 8000 miles away from my main support base! How can we most effectively maintain full support funding while serving on a faraway international assignment? First, develop good support raising habits so that you don’t find yourself in a big bind while on international assignment. Are your […]