by Eddie Thompson | Nov 25, 2013 | Charitable Estate Planning, Donor Communications
Charles Schultz and I go back a long way. I remember my first training event with Charles, Artie, and Carol in a very small room in Camarillo, CA. Many years have passed, but I remember being impressed with Charles and his vision for planned giving software. He had...
by Eddie Thompson | Nov 6, 2013 | Donor Communications
I love to fly, and I love relating to donors. Consequently, I can’t help but think about the two in the same context. Fundraising is a lot like piloting my Cirrus SR22 Turbo, and flying my Cirrus is a lot like fundraising. There is an aspect of every conversation with...
by Eddie Thompson | Sep 13, 2013 | Donor Communications
Two donor appointments early on in my career showed me then (and remind me now) how donor relations is a never-ending learning experience. With both experiences, I made some very wrong assumptions about what those two donors wanted and needed to hear. In retrospect,...
by Eddie Thompson | Aug 20, 2013 | Donor Communications
I have spent my whole career working as a fundraiser. I never really thought about doing anything else, and my dad is the one responsible for that. In fact, every lesson about giving that really matters, I learned from him. It’s kind of a bittersweet story. By the...
by Eddie Thompson | Aug 5, 2013 | Charitable Estate Planning, Donor Communications
In a previous blog I wrote about a process to help donors work their way through their three big gift planning questions: how much will they need for the remainder of their lives; how much should they give to their children; and, how much should they give to...
by Eddie Thompson | May 30, 2013 | Donor Communications
It thrills and amazes me to witness individuals go through transformations with regard to their giving. Those transformations don’t happen that often, or that easily. Some might say (paraphrasing the Gospel of Mark), “It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a...
