Info

The ENGAGE Podcast

Subscribe to The ENGAGE Podcast to hear experts from across the social good community share best practices, tips and must-know trends that will help organizations increase their impact. Formerly called The sgENGAGE Podcast.
RSS Feed
The ENGAGE Podcast
2023
July
May
April
January


2022
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2021
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2020
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2019
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2018
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2017
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2016
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


Categories

All Episodes
Archives
Categories
Now displaying: November, 2018
Nov 29, 2018

Storytelling is important in the social good community. It’s through stories that donors become interested and engaged in an organization and its cause. It’s not enough to just tell the stories in words. Visual images help donors visualize and understand what the organizations they support are doing, and how their contributions make a difference.

Today’s guest joined the podcast to talk about how organizations can better incorporate visual elements into their storytelling. Ira Horowitz, the founder of Cornershop Creative, has worked in communications, fundraising, and advocacy for nearly 20 years. Listen to the episode to hear what Ira has to say about why visuals matter in storytelling, how to demonstrate to donors that they can be the heroes of the story, and how to match copy with the right visuals for maximum impact.


Topics Discussed in This Episode:

  • Why visual storytelling matters to fundraising
  • Ways that organizations can make donors the heroes of the stories they’re telling
  • Resources that organizations can use to get the visual images that they need
  • Matching the right copy and content with the right visual images
  • How to test and fine-tune a story over time
  • How to make use of imagery even when an organization has limited staff or resources
  • How visuals can help make data more comprehensible
  • Examples of great visual storytelling

Resources:

Ira Horowitz

Cornershop Creative


Quotes:

“Everybody knows the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words. That’s actually wrong, though. A picture is worth about 60,000 words because studies have shown that the human brain processes images about 60,000 times faster than plain text.”

“The studies I’ve seen have said that text accompanied with images actually do a lot better. People process that information three or four times faster if they’re looking at both images and text.”

“Don’t be afraid of using emojis, actually.”

Nov 21, 2018

Donors want to help when disaster strikes, but they often don’t realize how long disaster recovery can really take. Donors often contribute toward disaster relief when the news of the disaster is fresh, but months or even years later, the recovery is still in progress and a variety of needs still require funding.

In today’s episode, recorded live at bbcon, Bob Ottenhoff, president and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, talks with Blackbaud’s Rachel Hutchisson about disaster philanthropy and what it means to have a strategic and holistic response that considers mid- and long-term needs. Listen to the episode to hear what Bob has to say about the funding “mosaic” involved in disaster relief, how donors can make sure their funds are having the greatest impact, and the role that community organizations play in disaster recovery efforts.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

  • How to define a disaster, and the increasing number of disasters occurring each year
  • The current state of disaster philanthropy
  • What it means to think of disasters in the mid-to-long-term sense
  • How philanthropy fits into the overall disaster response landscape
  • The role of community foundations in disaster relief
  • Advice for philanthropic organizations on how to develop strategic, holistic disaster response plans

Resources:

 

Notable Quotes from Bob Ottenhoff:

“There were 16 disasters in 2017 that caused a billion dollars or more in damage.”


“We find consistently that about 70% or more of all dollars are given within 30 days of a disaster…by 60 days or so, we're pretty much at the end of the giving cycle for that disaster.”

“So, the philanthropic dollars become really important. They’re not the biggest in terms of dollars, but they have the ability to do things nobody else could do.”

“There’s a lot of funds that have gotten into serious trouble because there were misunderstandings about the purpose of the fund, how decisions were going to be made, when the money was going to be disbursed.”

Nov 15, 2018

Community foundations are doing critical work to create change at the local level. They play a convening role in the community and engage community members in philanthropy to address pressing local issues. 

In this interview recorded live at bbcon 2018, Javier Alberto Soto, president & CEO of The Miami Foundation, talks about the important work the Foundation is doing to improve the quality of life in the Greater Miami area through philanthropy, community investment, and civic leadership. Listen to the episode to hear what Javier has to say about the role community foundations can play in advancing civic engagement, why community foundations can be effective conveners, and the role of technology in enabling mission delivery.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:
  • Why and how The Miami Foundation embraced the concept of new power
  • How the Foundation launched and has grown Give Miami Day to be one of the largest giving days in the country
  • The difference between independence and neutrality when it comes to community foundations
  • How digital technology has helped The Miami Foundation accomplish its goals
  • How organizations can measure when they are being effective and moving the needle

 

Resources:
Javier Alberto Soto
The Miami Foundation

Quotes: 

"I think we've demonstrated the deep generosity that exists in Miami through new power."

"We have the ability - because we're seen as an independent actor whose only agenda is to improve the community - to really empower people at a grassroots level."

"Miamians are from so many different places - it's such a diverse area - but when you get at those stories, particularly "how did you get here?" it's amazing how similar they are across geography."

"We've invested significantly from day one in all of our communications tools, but with a deep emphasis on our technology first to support our fund holders." 


"At the core of everything we've been doing is injecting new power, or civic engagement."

"I think all of us in the community foundation world are grappling with how we define impact beyond asset size."

Nov 8, 2018

#GivingTuesday is approaching rapidly. What should your organization be doing to get ready? What should you be planning for the day of #GivingTuesday, and do you have plans for the day after? This episode explores these questions and more. 

In today’s supersized three-part episode of The sgENGAGE Podcast, you’ll hear from several different guests who will help you have a successful #GivingTuesday. In the first segment, Mel Rancour and Jackie Zimmerman from Blackbaud University discuss the things that organizations should be doing before, during, and after #GivingTuesday. In the second segment, you’ll hear from Erica Burroughs, Director of Annual Giving and Family Engagement at High Point University, about how they engage supporters and how #GivingTuesday works together with other fundraising events. Finally, in segment three, you’ll hear from Andy Schroeder, Director of Development at Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, about how a funny video helped his organization earn three times their donation goal, and how they plan to build on that success for this year’s #GivingTuesday. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

Segment 1 [00:01:49] - Mel Rancour and Jackie Zimmerman, Blackbaud University w/ host Steve MacLaughlin: 

  • What organizations can do right now to launch a Giving Tuesday campaign this year
  • What organizations can do to prepare for Giving Tuesday all year long, and how they can leverage what they are already doing
  • Ideas and resources for organizations to make the day of Giving Tuesday go more smoothly
  • What organizations should do after Giving Tuesday to continue engaging supporters and new prospective donors

 

Segment 2 [00:20:04] - Erica Burroughs, High Point University w/ host Sally Ehrenfried: 

  • How High Point University prepares for Giving Tuesday
  • How their approach to engage supporters on Giving Tuesday differs from their spring university giving day
  • How campus-wide fundraising events work together for positive outcomes
  • Erica’s advice for organizations that want to participate in Giving Tuesday

 

Segment 3 [00:37:20] - Andy Schroeder, Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary w/ host Sally Ehrenfried: 

  • Why Giving Tuesday is important to fundraising campaigns
  • How Sisters of Charity BVM came up with the video that helped them smash their fundraising goal for buying new chairs, and how they marketed it to engage so many supporters
  • How Sisters of Charity BVM plans to build on last year’s Giving Tuesday success
  • Andy’s advice for other organizations for a successful Giving Tuesday, even if they have basic organizational fundraising needs (like new chairs!) 

Resources: 

Proven #GivingTuesday Strategies for Higher Ed Institutions

Creating a #GivingTuesday Strategy that is 'Just Right'

Six Free Webinars for #GivingTuesday Success

Blackbaud University's Organizational Best Practices curriculum

The Ultimate #GivingTuesday Toolkit

Connect with: Mel Rancour, Jackie Zimmerman, Erica Burroughs and Andy Schroeder

Quotes: 

“Flexibility is going to be important. Because sometimes everything goes as planned and then you can have a little party, celebrate – but in my experience that almost never happens.” –Jackie Zimmerman 

“It’s never too late. You can put together a campaign, you can implement software, in a time frame that you just frankly wouldn’t believe.” – Erica Burroughs 

“One of the things that I think organizations do well is ask for money. The thing that they don’t always do as well is tell people how the money was used and be able to show the impact in some way, shape, or form.” – Andy Schroeder

 

Nov 1, 2018

New power. What does it mean? Who is using it? How is new power changing the world, and how can it be used for fundraising and social good? Today’s episode will explore those questions and more with Jeremy Heimans, co-author with Henry Timms of the book New Power: How Power Works in Our Hyperconnected World—and How to Make It Work for You. 

Rachel Hutchinson is your host for today’s episode, which was recorded live from bbcon, the leading tech gathering for social good. Listen in to learn what new power is, how it differs from old power, what’s different about fundraising in a new power world, and how your organization can begin to embrace new power. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

  • The definition of new power
  • How new power differs from old power, and how they can work together
  • Examples of new power and how it works, from #GivingTuesday to healthcare
  • What’s different about fundraising in a new power world
  • How organizations are making the shift from old power to new power
  • What people can do next to embrace new power 

Resources:

Article: Understanding “New Power”

Book: New Power: How Power Works in Our Hyperconnected World--and How to Make It Work for You

Quotes by Jeremy: 

“One really easy way to think of that difference between old and new power is the difference between power as currency – that’s old power, the kind of power you hoard up – and power as a current.” 

“All the evidence is that if you can empower patients to organize around their own challenges, you can get far better health outcomes than by kind of imposing solutions to them from the top down.” 

“It's absolutely true that the most effective players today are the ones who actually know how to blend old and new power.”

“You've got to be able to find a way of not just appealing to elites but appealing to everybody.”

1