Articles

AGN articles help advancement professionals learn about some of the most important aspects of annual giving. Filled with information, tips, and examples, these publications often highlight the work of programs worldwide.

Search and filter our collection of articles below.

  • Filter by Category

Boosting Phone Contact Rates

Published on April 20, 2022  

Characterizing Effective Fundraising Volunteers

Published on March 8, 2022  

Introducing First-Year Students to Philanthropy

Published on February 22, 2022  

Planning a Giving Day

Published on February 5, 2022  

Improving Online Giving Forms

Published on January 25, 2022  

Training Callers to Listen

Published on January 2, 2022  

Explaining the Importance of Alumni Participation

Published on December 10, 2021  

Thanking Donors in Personal Ways

Published on November 23, 2021  

Making the Ask

Published on October 27, 2021  

Setting Giving Day Goals

Published on September 29, 2021  

Calling Donors at Dinner Time

Published on September 9, 2021  

Securing Meetings with Prospects and Donors

Published on August 26, 2021  

Understanding 4 Stages of Alumni Donors

Published on July 26, 2021  

Starting a New Fiscal Year

Published on July 6, 2021  

Redefining What Counts in Your Annual Fund

Published on June 14, 2021  

Tackling the Annual Fund Planning Process

Published on May 17, 2021  

Boosting Year-End Annual Fund Results

Published on May 6, 2021  

Determining a Donor’s Capacity and Inclination

Published on April 20, 2021  

Improving Parent Data

Published on April 7, 2021  

Understanding the Difference between Annual Fund and Annual Giving

Published on March 23, 2021  

Soliciting Managed Prospects for Year-End Gifts

Published on March 9, 2021  

Targeting Key Lapsed-Donor Segments

Published on February 23, 2021  

Bringing Homecoming to Young Alumni (in a Box)

Published on January 31, 2021  

Building a Strong Annual Giving Team

Published on December 31, 2020  

Working with Volunteers to Secure Leadership Gifts

Published on November 30, 2020  

Benchmarking Annual Fund Results

Published on October 21, 2020  

Calculating Donor Coverage Ratios

Published on October 7, 2020  

Incorporating Incentives Into Appeals

Published on September 23, 2020  

Optimizing Email Subject Lines

Published on September 9, 2020  

Listening to Donors

Published on August 12, 2020  

Starting a New Fiscal Year

Published on July 8, 2020  

Measuring Annual Fund Performance

Published on June 17, 2020  

Engaging Alumni in Online Communities

Published on June 3, 2020  

Stewarding New Donors in Difficult Times

Published on May 6, 2020  

Engaging Young Alumni in Meaningful Conversations

Published on April 17, 2020  

Empowering Student Callers to Work Remotely

Published on April 2, 2020  

Managing Your Annual Fund During a Crisis

Published on February 23, 2020  

Writing Donor Contact Reports

Published on February 9, 2020  

Managing Volunteers

Published on January 19, 2020  

Calculating Alumni Engagement Rates

Published on December 22, 2019  

Responding to Donor Complaints

Published on December 8, 2019  

Analyzing Fundraising Results

Published on November 24, 2019  

Selecting Locations for Prospect Meetings

Published on November 10, 2019  

Writing Annual Fund Appeals

Published on October 27, 2019  

Improving Annual Giving & Alumni Relations Collaboration

Published on October 13, 2019  

Becoming a Great Advancement Leader

Published on October 6, 2019  

Running a Giving Day on a Budget

Published on September 29, 2019  

Celebrating Reunion Zero

Published on September 22, 2019  

Highlighting Gift Impact

Published on September 15, 2019  

Measuring Gift Officer Activity

Published on August 25, 2019  

Engaging Alumni with Nostalgia

Published on August 18, 2019  

Setting High Expectations for Volunteers

Published on August 4, 2019  

Soliciting Trustees for Annual Fund Gifts

Published on July 21, 2019  

Promoting Recurring Gifts

Published on July 7, 2019  

Planning for Slow Periods in Fundraising Cycles

Published on June 23, 2019  

Counting Volunteer Hours in Campaign Achievement

Published on June 16, 2019  

Adding an Ask to Stewardship Communications

Published on June 9, 2019  

Using Text Messages to Communicate with Donors

Published on June 2, 2019  

Using Social Media to Promote Giving

Published on May 26, 2019  

Avoiding Analysis Paralysis

Published on May 5, 2019  

Beginning the Annual Fund Planning Process

Published on April 21, 2019  

Preparing for Out-Of-Town Donor Visits

Published on April 14, 2019  

Showing Young Alumni How to Stay Connected

Published on April 7, 2019  

Hiring Effective Fundraisers

Published on March 17, 2019  

Acquiring New Donors through Crowdfunding

Published on March 10, 2019  

Sending Annual Fund Appeals to Major Prospects

Published on March 3, 2019  

Preparing for Cold Calls

Published on February 17, 2019  

Marketing a Giving Day

Published on February 10, 2019  

Segmenting Donor Populations

Published on January 27, 2019  

Building Connections Between Students and Donors

Published on January 20, 2019  

Increasing Giving by Faculty and Staff

Published on January 13, 2019  

Improving Annual Fund Appeals

Published on January 6, 2019  

Renewing Past Donors

Published on December 16, 2018  

Finding the Right Appeal Frequency

Published on November 25, 2018  

Stewarding Donors with Simple Holiday Gifts

Published on November 18, 2018  

Creating a Job Description for Volunteers

Published on November 11, 2018  

Utilizing Social Media as a Donor Research Tool

Published on November 4, 2018  

Retaining Student Phonathon Callers

Published on October 28, 2018  

Promoting Restricted Gift Designations

Published on October 21, 2018  

Using Your Phonathon to Secure Gift Officer Visits

Published on October 14, 2018  

Featuring Students in Appeals

Published on October 7, 2018  

Renewing Donors on their Gift Anniversary

Published on September 23, 2018  

Targeting Donors with Digital Ads

Published on September 16, 2018  

Creating a New Donor Welcome Package

Published on August 26, 2018  

Asking Donors for a Second Gift

Published on August 19, 2018  

Incorporating Texting into Volunteer Outreach

Published on August 12, 2018  

Using Video to Personalize Donor Stewardship

Published on August 5, 2018  

Making It Easy for Faculty & Staff to Give

Published on July 29, 2018  

Uncovering the Hidden Benefits of Crowdfunding

Published on July 22, 2018  

Launching a Women’s Giving Circle

Published on July 15, 2018  

Creating RFM Scores for Donors

Published on July 8, 2018  

Coordinating Annual Giving Efforts in Decentralized Organizations

Published on June 24, 2018  

Using Teasers to Increase Appeal Response Rates

Published on June 17, 2018  

Structuring an Annual Fund Plan

Published on June 10, 2018  

Using Surveys to Reactivate Lapsed Donors

Published on June 3, 2018  

Soliciting Blended Gifts

Published on May 27, 2018  

Selecting a Date for Your Giving Day

Published on May 13, 2018  

Assessing the Alumni Population Boom

Published on April 29, 2018  

Mining Social Media for Donor Data

Published on April 22, 2018  

Soliciting Small Gifts

Published on April 15, 2018  

Recognizing When You Need an Annual Fund Assessment

Published on March 25, 2018  

Gamifying Reunion Giving Efforts

Published on March 18, 2018  

Raising Minimum Donations for Giving Societies

Published on March 11, 2018  

Renewing Donors Around Tax Cycles

Published on March 4, 2018  

Retargeting Donors to Enhance Your Digital Fundraising

Published on February 25, 2018  

Inspiring a Lifetime of Consecutive Giving

Published on February 18, 2018  

Employing Students Outside the Call Center

Published on January 14, 2018  

Involving Donors on Giving Day

Published on January 7, 2018  

Leveraging Events to Encourage Young Alumni Giving

Published on December 27, 2017  

Soliciting Leadership Gifts with Direct Mail

Published on December 10, 2017  

Developing a Student Foundation

Published on November 12, 2017  

Preparing The Next Generation of Major Donors

Published on November 5, 2017  

Using Competitions to Encourage Student Giving

Published on September 24, 2017  

Securing a Meeting with a Prospective Donor

Published on September 10, 2017  

Incentivizing Alumni to Answer Phonathon Calls

Published on September 3, 2017  

Creating Effective Impact Reports

Published on July 30, 2017  

Integrating Giving into Commencement Activities

Published on July 23, 2017  

Asking Alumni for More than Just Money

Published on July 16, 2017  

Encouraging Young Alumni to Become Consistent Donors

Published on June 18, 2017  

Providing Insider Access to Gift Society Members

Published on May 7, 2017  

Making Recurring Giving More Appealing to Donors

Published on April 23, 2017  

Using Volunteers to Help Create Engagement Scores

Published on April 16, 2017  

Recognizing Athletic Donors

Published on April 2, 2017  

Inspiring Gifts through Athletic Events

Published on March 26, 2017  

Educating Students About Philanthropy

Published on March 12, 2017  

Putting Faces on Your Phonathon

Published on January 28, 2017  

Measuring Gift Impact

Published on January 21, 2017