Two-Thirds of Charities Predict Giving Increase in 2011 - News - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: "While many organizations stopped the bleeding, giving simply didn’t rebound like we thought it might, especially given the economic growth we saw in the last quarter of the year,” said Paulette Maehara, president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, one of six organizations that make up the research collaborative."

- Red Nose Day leads the way for future giving

- Red Nose Day leads the way for future giving: "More than 10 percent of the UK population supports Red Nose Day. 'Such huge support for needy causes shows just what can be achieved when the media, celebrities and new technologies are mobilized behind an appeal', says professor Cathy Pharaoh, co-director of the Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy jointly funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, Office for Civil Society, Carnegie UK Trust and Scottish Government."

New Report: 2011 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study | NTEN

New Report: 2011 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study | NTEN: "A high unsubscribe rate is bad, right? Not necessarily, according to the 2011 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study, just released at the 2011 NTC by M R and NTEN.

As it turns out, a high unsubscribe rate correlates directly with high fundraising results. People unsubscribe because they read your message and decide your cause isn't interesting to them; people donate because they read your message and decide that it is."

Stories And Premiums Ruled During The Holidays- The NonProfit Times march 15, 2011

Stories And Premiums Ruled During The Holidays- The NonProfit Times march 15, 2011: "The holiday season provides ample opportunity to proposition potential donors and renew supporters' contributions. According to Michael Nilsen, senior director of public affairs for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), approximately half of all charities get between 30 percent and 60 percent of their contributions during the last quarter of the year. Roughly 20 percent of AFP member organizations noted that in December alone, they received 50 percent of their annual contributions noted Nilsen."

Convio’s Annual Benchmark Study Showcases Online as Fastest Growing Fundraising and Engagement Channel | Business Wire

Convio’s Annual Benchmark Study Showcases Online as Fastest Growing Fundraising and Engagement Channel | Business Wire: "AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Convio, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNVO) today released the results of its annual Convio Online Marketing Nonprofit Benchmark Index™ Study. The results of the study indicate that online is the fastest growing fundraising channel for nonprofits. In 2010, Convio’s clients raised more than $1.3 billion online, up 40 percent from 2009. The study shows that online engagement continues to play a crucial role for nonprofits: online legislative advocates grew 20 percent, email files continued to grow at a median 22 percent across all sectors and gift sizes increased in 2010. The full study is available at www.convio.com/2011benchmark."

Nonprofit Sector Continues to Grow, Despite Recession -- BALTIMORE, March 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --

Nonprofit Sector Continues to Grow, Despite Recession -- BALTIMORE, March 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --: "BALTIMORE, March 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The 2010 Nonprofits by the Numbers report by Maryland Nonprofits shows that nonprofit organizations in Maryland continued to add jobs in 2009, despite the recession. Nonprofit employment grew 2% in 2009, compared to a statewide drop in total employment of 3.2%. Nonprofits sustained the growth trend throughout the last five years delivering a robust 9.5% nonprofit employment growth, or 22,205 new jobs in Maryland from 2004-2009, while total employment contracted from 2004-2009 by 2.1% in the same period. Nonprofits in Maryland employ 255,408 people or 10.6% of the state's workforce, and account for 10% of all wages paid statewide. This is up from 9.5% of the workforce and 8.6% of wages in 2004. An early look at the first six months of 2010 employment data indicates that the growth trend continued and accelerated last year, as well."

Charity Fraud Fears Deter Canadians From Giving | Canada | Epoch Times

Charity Fraud Fears Deter Canadians From Giving | Canada | Epoch Times: "It may come as no surprise then that a growing number of Canadians are worried about fraudulent charities that intend to pocket hard-earned donation dollars.

New survey findings show that 53 percent say they are less likely to give to charities because of concerns about charity fraud, while 65 percent report an increased concern over the possibility of fraud—particularly in the wake of a natural disaster."

SinhaGreenspanHandy_VolunteeringandCivicParticipationamongImmigrantMembersofEthnicCongregati.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Volunteering and Civic Participation Among Immigrant Members of Ethnic Congregations: Complementary NOT Competitive by Jill Witmer Sinha of Rutgers University, and Itay Greenspan and Femida Handy of the University of Pennsylvania utilizes survey data from 496 first generation immigrants who attended 23 ethnic congregations to assess the variables influencing levels of civic participation outside the congregation.

The study addresses a central question: whether participation in an ethnic congregation, which promotes bridging social capital, is also related to contributing to participation that contributes to bridging social capital in the wider community.

SinhaGreenspanHandy_VolunteeringandCivicParticipationamongImmigrantMembersofEthnicCongregati.pdf (application/pdf Object)

EgerMcDonald_ReligiousAttitudesandCharitableDonations.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Religious Attitudes and Charitable Donations by Robert J. Eger, III of Florida State University and Bruce D. McDonald, III of Indiana University - South Bend

utilizes data from Robert Wuthnow’s Arts and Religion Survey to explore the correlation between a person’s self defined religious orientation and religious charitable giving.

The data support the hypothesis that individuals who define themselves to be religiously conservative exhibit higher levels of generosity to religious charities than those who define themselves to be religious liberals. This occurs because self-identified conservatives are more involved in religious institutions, activities, and commitments, such as regular church participation and stable family structures, than religious liberals. Second, there are normative differences: religious liberals are expected to contribute less than religious moderates when other characteristics are held constant.

2010 Online Giving Trends | Nonprofit Trends with Steve MacLaughlin | a Blackbaud Blog

2010 Online Giving Trends | Nonprofit Trends with Steve MacLaughlin | a Blackbaud Blog: "Blackbaud released its 2010 Online Giving Report today. The 2010 Online Giving Report combines findings from The Blackbaud Index of Online Giving with additional multi-year giving data to provide the most comprehensive analysis of online giving trends in the nonprofit sector."

Press Release Detail - Sage Nonprofit Solutions

Press Release Detail - Sage Nonprofit Solutions: "Press Release Detail

U.S. Nonprofits More Optimistic About Meeting Fundraising Goals in 2011, According to Sage Nonprofit Insights Survey
Quarterly Survey Looked at U.S. Nonprofits’ Views and Outlook on Fundraising, Tax Exemptions, Government Funding, and Legislation
2/15/2011 8:00:00 AM

AUSTIN, TX (Feb. 15, 2011)—Sage North America today announced the results of its recently conducted Sage Nonprofit Insights, Q1 2011, survey of U.S. nonprofit organizations. In general, organizations that fundraise are optimistic that 2011 will be a better year than 2010, with 90 percent saying they expect the amount of funds raised in 2011 to be equal to or higher than the amount raised in 2010."

Higher Ed Endowments Starting To Rebound- The NonProfit Times Jan 27, 2011: "Higher Ed Endowments Starting To Rebound

By Mark Hrywna

Endowments at colleges and universities boasted improved rates of return last year but still need a few more years to get back to pre-recession levels.

The average rate of return was 11.9 percent (net for fees) last year, quite a turnaround from the negative19 percent average return in 2009, according to the second annual NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments (NCSE) which gathered data from 850 U.S. colleges, universities and affiliated foundations for the fiscal year 2010 (Jan. 1-June 30).

The study is a joint effort between the Wilton, Conn.-based Commonfund Institute and the National College and University Business Officers in Washington, D.C."

This material is from August but is noteworthy

Parents Matter: New Study Shows Influence of Family on Giving Decisions - News - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: "That is one of the findings of new study of donor attitudes and giving behavior released this week by Russ Reid, a Pasadena, Calif., company that provides direct-marketing services to nonprofits. The study was released here at the Direct Marketing Association New York Nonprofit Conference."

Charities Seeing Slight Recovery in Giving, But Not Enough to Keep Up With Demand or Budget Cuts - Press - AFP

Charities Seeing Slight Recovery in Giving, But Not Enough to Keep Up With Demand or Budget Cuts - Press - AFP: "Charities Seeing Slight Recovery in Giving, But Not Enough to Keep Up With Demand or Budget Cuts

(Nov. 29, 2010) Nonprofit organizations have seen a slight turnaround in giving so far this year that mirrors the slow economic recovery, a new survey from the Nonprofit Research Collaborative (NRC) finds. But the small rebound hasn’t been enough to help many nonprofits that are grappling with staff and service cuts even as demand for their services has increased."

$48 Billion In Giving Projected For The Holidays- The NonProfit Times Nov 30, 2010

$48 Billion In Giving Projected For The Holidays- The NonProfit Times Nov 30, 2010: "$48 Billion In Giving Projected For The Holidays

Americans will spread an average $281 across multiple charities via various solicitation channels this holiday season. Donors who have online relationships with a nonprofit report they will give almost $100 more than the average -- $378 vs. $281.

These are among the findings of a national survey by Edge Research for Austin, Texas-based online fundraising firm Convio. Based on the survey results, Americans could be giving as much as $48 billion during this holiday season. Many nonprofits generate as much as 30 to 40 percent of individual donations during the holidays."

Face-to-face fundraising divides the sector - Third Sector

Face-to-face fundraising divides the sector - Third Sector: "Face-to-face fundraising divides the sector

By Sophie Hudson, Third Sector, 21 September 2010
[Fundraising]

Fundraising

Despite a drop in sign-ups, face-to-face fundraising refuses to go away, reports Sophie Hudson

Face-to-face fundraising, particularly street fundraising or 'chugging', as it has become known, has never been the most popular of fundraising methods with the public. But how effective a method is it proving to be?

The most recent figures from the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association show a slight drop in both the number of sign-ups and the average gift per month for both street and door-to-door fundraising."

Giving by rich Americans fell during recession-study | Reuters

Giving by rich Americans fell during recession-study | Reuters: "Wealthy Americans donated average $54,016 in 2009

* Only 2.5 percent made donations of more than $500,000

By Michelle Nichols

NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Charitable giving by wealthy Americans dropped by more than a third between 2007 and 2009 as the worst U.S. recession in decades put pressure on the nonprofit sector, according to a study released on Tuesday.

While almost all rich Americans -- more than 98 percent -- donated to nonprofit groups last year, the average amount fell to $54,016 in 2009 from $83,034 in 2007 and $91,928 in 2005, the third biennial Bank of America Merrill Lynch study found."

Study Questions Efficiency of Charity Business Activities - Ideas & Advice - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

Study Questions Efficiency of Charity Business Activities - Ideas & Advice - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: "Study Questions Efficiency of Charity Business Activities

By Nicole Wallace

As nonprofit organizations earn more unrelated business income—through such activities as merchandise sales or renting their donor lists—the proportion of their budgets that they spend on programs goes down, according to a new report.

The study analyzed 700 informational tax returns filed by 150 social-service organizations in Manhattan for the years 2000 to 2005. It was conducted by Rebecca Tekula, executive director of the Helene and Grant Wilson Center for Social Entrepreneurship at Pace University, in New York."

PRESS RELEASE"WealthEngine Releases Best Practices in Arts & Culture Fundraising Report

Outlines Seven Best Practices and Features Museums, Theaters and Performing Arts Centers that are Leveraging Best Practices to Outperform

Bethesda, MD, October 26, 2010 – WealthEngine, the leading provider of sophisticated prospect research tools and analytics, announced today the release of a new research report, entitled Best Practices in Arts & Culture Fundraising. WealthEngine’s Best Practices report is intended to facilitate knowledge sharing, stimulate dialogue and help arts & cultural organizations achieve a higher level of fundraising effectiveness."

The Center on Philanthropy New Study: Women More Charitable Than Men -- SEATTLE, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --: "SEATTLE, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As Indiana University releases a new study today showing women are more charitable then men, Christian humanitarian group World Vision says these findings mirror what it is seeing among its supporters across the country. Among the nearly 885,000 Americans who sponsor a child through the organization, three out of four are female.

According to the study by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, female-headed households—in nearly every income bracket—are more generous towards charities than male-headed households. The survey, titled 'Women Give 2010,' proves that women play a very powerful role in the world of philanthropy both in the likelihood of their giving, and in the amount that is given, the Center says.

World Vision says that while it actively engages both men and women, as well as youth and other groups, women do play a unique role in tackling critical issues in world poverty."