Joshua M. Birkholz - Fundraising Analytics

1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 5
5. Chapter 6
6. Chapter 8
7. Chapter 9

Joshua Birkholz

Copyright 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Birkholz, Joshua.
Fundraising analytics : using data to guide strategy / Joshua Birkholz. p. cm. (The AFP fund development series)
Includes index.
ISBN 978-0-470-16557-7 (cloth)
1. Fund raising. I. Title.
HG177.B49 2008
658.15'224dc22
2007049356

The AFP Fund Development Series is intended to provide fund development professionals and volunteers, including board members (and others interested in the nonprofit sector), with top-quality publications that help advance philanthropy as voluntary action for the public good. Our goal is to provide practical, timely guidance and information on fundraising, charitable giving, and related subjects. The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and Wiley each bring to this innovative collaboration unique and important resources that result in a whole greater than the sum of its parts. For information on other books in the series, please visit:

The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) represents 28,000 members in more than 185 chapters throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and China, working to advance philanthropy through advocacy, research, education, and certification programs.

The association fosters development and growth of fundraising professionals and promotes high ethical standards in the fundraising profession. For more information or to join the worlds largest association of fundraising professionals, visit www.afpnet.org.

• Samuel N. Gough, CFRE, Chair
  Principal, The AFRAM Group
• Nina P. Berkheiser, CFRE
  Principal Consultant, Your Nonprofit Advisor
• Linda L. Chew, CFRE
  Associate Director, Alta Bates Summit Foundation
• D. C. Dreger, ACFRE
  Senior Campaign Director, Custom Development Solutions, Inc. (CDS)
• Audrey P. Kintzi, ACFRE
  Director of Development, Courage Center
• Robert J. Mueller, CFRE
  Vice President, Hospice Foundation of Louisville
• Maria Elena Noriega
  Director, Noriega Malo & Associates
• Leslie E. Weir, MA, ACFRE
  Director of Family Philanthropy, The Winnipeg Foundation
• Sharon R. Will, CFRE
  Director of Development, South Wind Hospice
• John Wiley & Sons:
  Susan McDermott
  Senior Editor (Professional/Trade Division), John Wiley & Sons
• AFP Staff:
  Jan Alfieri
  Manager, New Product Development
• Rhonda Starr
  Vice President, Education and Training

When any real progress is made, we unlearn and learn anew what we thought we knew before.

Henry David Thoreau

How soon not now becomes never.

Martin Luther

The first acknowledgment I would like to make is to the people working in this most worthy field of fundraising. It is my privilege to learn from you every day. Your contribution to society is more than economic. It is the spark that ignites a generous spirit of change and opportunity. Be proud of this industry. You make a difference.

I wish to acknowledge the support and encouragement of my colleagues and friends at Bentz Whaley Flessner. I am especially indebted to the DonorCast team, Rachel Hurlbert, and Alexander Oftelie. Thanks are also in order to Judith Bourdeau, Katie Drossos, Tracy Gellman, and Sarah Billington for their substantial contribution. I could not do this without the trailblazing work of thought leaders such as Bobbie Strand and Terry Handler. A very special thanks to Bruce Flessner, a model of innovation, for his words.

Thanks are also due to Janet Hedrick for introducing me to Jan Alfieri and the great people at AFP. Thank you to the AFP publishing committee and to the team at John Wiley & Sons, Inc. I would like to pay a very special acknowledgment to Susan M. McDermott, Senior Editor. Thank you for all you did to make Fundraising Analytics possible.

As is only fitting, I would like to thank the donors to the campaign for building a beautiful, new Stillwater, Minnesota library. I hope my countless hours writing this book in the space you so generously funded enable many other organizations to connect with people like you.

I would like to thank God for leading me down this path. Thank you to my extraordinary daughters, Zoe, Charis, and Nora, for your unconditional love and support. And most of all, I would like to express my sincerest thanks to my wife, Tracy. Words cannot express how much I appreciate your love, sacrifices, and spiritual encouragement. I hope my actions forever reveal how much it means to me.