Readers of this blog probably aren't surprised to hear that Isaac Castillo of the LAYCis a fan of ETO Software, but did you ever think it would go this far?

We might be biased, but we think Isaac's Query Wizard beats out any Obama, McCain, Hannah Montana, or other costume de jour this year. 

Happy Halloween!

Check out Social Solutions featured here in a Fast Company article. The piece details not only nonprofit's need for funds and the tools, such as ETO,  that can help secure them, but also the software's ability to increase program and organizational effectiveness.   Anisha Chablani at Roca and Isaac Castillo at LAYC, phenominal users of ETO,  are also included. 

A good time to spread the word of the need for nonprofit effectiveness. As we all encounter a slow economy, organizations have to find a way to stand out and prove their worth to funders. What better way than through ETO.

Fast Company, nonprofit, LAYC, Roca

If you’ve seen USA Today’s recent Q & A article offering tips on giving – and giving smarter – you know it contains some useful common sense tips for the donating public.

As a first step, we know to beware of email solicitations from dubious sources, the old fake change bucket at the shopping center schemes and to resist giving over the phone without first examining some materials from the charity that’s seeking a donation.

The article gets some things right – like giving with your head and not your heart and making sure to do your due diligence regarding an organization’s financial statements and structure before giving – but misses the mark on others. For instance, should our first step really be to “focus on your interests and priorities”?  This might be a tad elementary in our book.

Without question, we advocate giving to an organization/cause that you’re passionate about and have an emotional connection to.  Not only will you be more involved in your giving, but you’re likely to keep giving if you have a native interest in where your money is going. 

But let’s not forget, it’s important to realize that you can still give to “pet” causes and give to effective organizations at the same time.  Just do a little more digging, that’s all.

No matter what the cause we know some organizations are more accountable and more effective at delivering results than others.  Make sure to check their efforts and ask questions. Make sure to give to that organization that is focused not only on its performance but on measuring its efforts and relating that to its performance. 

With GuideStar estimating that there are 1.7 million nonprofits in the U.S. alone, shouldn’t you find the one that gets the most bang for your buck?  Give smart this year, identify and reward organizations who value getting the job done and prove that their efforts continue to lead to successful outcomes.

In the midst of all the news about the financial meltdown on Wall Street and Capitol Hill and how it will impact the nonprofit sector we were struck by an interesting piece in the International Herald Tribune that talked about the issue of donor anxiety as related to high net-worth individuals.  While the sector is bracing for big changes as a result of the crisis and what this might mean for fundraising and corporate giving, this article discusses the pressure facing those who have big money and are likely to give in spite of the gloomy economic climate.  And how do these individual philanthropists and donors in general, give responsibly?  By looking at the impact of their dollar.  Sounds simple ... but it is a crucial step that is often overlooked. 

Responsible giving is more than looking at one of the many online charity rankings.  It is more than selecting a group based on its name or mission.  Responsible giving is making sure that when your dollar leaves your hand it arrives in the hands of those who will do something with it.  Something that makes a difference.  Something that counts. 

The uncertain future of Wall Street has almost every industry questioning its financial future — the nonprofit sector included. Speculation of today’s economy and the impact on the nonprofit world has been addressed over and over (see here, here, and here). This latest financial crisis seems to have convinced many that the impact will be great. Mike Spector of the Wall Street Journal addresses the crisis and how charities and other organizations who heavily rely on corporate giving are already feeling the aftermath of the fall of giants like Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and the uncertainly of other major institutions.  According to Spector, many NYC organizations rely on gifts from the financial industry and those that do are already feeling the heat.

It is times like these that organizations need to tell—and show—potentials  donors and funders exactly what they are doing with their money.  This will make for more effective giving, in the hope for a more effective sector.

How might the latest financial crisis affect the industry as a whole — corporate giving, individual donations, fundraising, etc.?  Sound off in our comments section.

Our own Steve Butz was featured on WYPR on Tuesday discussing the important topic of nonprofit management as well as efforts by Social Solutions and future efforts by the Superstar Foundation to change the way nonprofit organizations and the sector are managed and supported.                                               

Here’s a summary of the segment.

After working with juveniles for a nonprofit, Baltimorean Steve Butz thought he saw inefficiencies- and opportunities- in the way nonprofits are commonly managed.  His software company Social Solutions has made a name for itself helping nonprofits streamline their operations.  Now, he’s started the Superstar Foundation to give grants to outstanding direct service providers.  We’ll ask how a little bit of cash might actually motivate the ‘not-in-it-for-the-money’ set.

To listen, click here.

Marc Pitman, a fundraising consultant and author of The Extrememe Fundraising Blog, posed an interesting question on his LinkedIn page — as a donor, what do nonprofits do that annoy you?  Answers range from not sending address labels in direct marketing campaigns to don’t try to guilt someone to giving over the phone.  Read the responses here.  While some responders simply listed off a handful of what some might consider minute details (don’t call at dinnertime, for example), there are some underlying issues addressed.

One person talked about the lack of engagement from the organization — the communication is in form letters, there is no genuine thank-you.  And because of this disconnect, the person felt that they were not a true part of the movement.

We all know the donor-charity relationship is crucial to providing services to help those in need.  Why not make the donor feel empowered? Just as we should with our volunteers, our employees, and the communities we serve.  Give them the chance to see how their $10, $100, or $1000 donation is being used.  Whether they appreciate the market ploy or not, they might just be impressed by your org and no longer bothered by the ringing phone at dinnertime.  

An interesting survey from the Corporation for National and Community Service found that just over one quarter of Americans, nearly 61 million people, volunteered in their communities in 2007.  These volunteers gave 8.1 billion hours of service worth an estimated $158 billion in terms of volunteer-worth.    

Perhaps the best news is that after a six percent decline in total volunteers between 2005 and 2006, volunteering levels stabilized in 2007.  And there were one million more volunteers in 2007 than 2002.

The survey didn't find all was good when it comes to Americans and their time giving back to their communities, however.  One third of those who volunteered in 2006 did not continue to do so in 2007, raising concerns that volunteers are losing interest, are not encouraged to remain with the organization or are feeling burned out.

Despite positive news that volunteer levels are increasing from previous years, there is still much work to be done.  What should organizations do to keep volunteers interested?  Are you encouraged by the results of this study?    

According to the Wall Street Journal, those seeking donations are starting to more readily turn to social networking sites to seek out potential givers.  It's not sneaky - it's smart.  Considering that the biggest givers are individuals, according to GiveWell - they are reaching them right where it counts.  Plus, nonprofits and chariries are making it easy to access the information donors want, even those tear-jerking videos, and pass it along to their friends and families, who reportedly are 100 times more like to donate based on a friendly recommendation than a blind solicitation. And donating is of course, a mere click away – just as easy as shopping online.

Although this phenomenon is reportedly going to help boost donations to the philanthropic sector, we hope those donors using social networking sites for donor research are doing just that – their research. We love the accessibility, but we still need accountability. These givers should be smart enough to know that there’s more to donating than feeling good and there’s more need for the money than what might be visible on Facebook. Props to charities for meeting the donors half way.  But a reminder to donors to not take the easy way out.

It's no secret that were big fans of Steve Butz ... And it looks like the Baltimore Sun is too. 

Check out today’s article on Social Solutions, ETO Software and, of course, the Superstar Foundation.  In addtion to Steve, several ETO users were also featured.  We particularly liked a quote from Nancy Hall, a senior adviser at the Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations and teaches a nonprofit management course at the Johns Hopkins University, who said, "It's not enough to just do good work, you have to show results." We couldn't agree more.