What it takes to make a press release successful.
Press release myths
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Articles
The marketing plan
Marketing plans for nonprofit organizations
Painless performance appraisals
How to help people set goals and achieve them through painless performance appraisals.
Ethical considerations in strategic planning
Four key ethical considerations to be made in strategic planning.
Realistic budgeting
This article explains how to go about developing a realistic budget.
Ten steps to successful interviewing
A step-by-step process to effective interviewing.
To stay or leave: Job satisfaction and turnover
Job satisfaction and retention in the workplace.
Seven tips for successful strategic planning
Seven tips to improve strategic planning.
Building an arsenal against stress and burnout
In honour of Mental Health Week, a profile of the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Stress & Burnout workshops.
Managing anxiety in the workplace
Tips and guidelines for managing stress in the workplace, in particular for dealing with concerns related to SARS.
Budgeting basics
This article provides a very basic overview of the budgeting process.
How to conduct a SWOT analysis
Follow these five steps to conduct a SWOT analysis.
Setting goals and targeting constituents
Targeting marketing efforts
Attracting talent: Living your values
How to use workplace values to attract talent and retain employees.
Avoiding groupthink and strategic blind spots
How to avoid groupthink in decision making.
Everyday solutions for training and development
Everyday learning opportunities and activities.
Best practices in strategic planning
Best practices for an organizations strategic plan.
An orientation plan in three phases
A three-phase orientation plan checklist with a description of how successful orientation plans benefit an organization.
Translating vision into action
Three steps to translate your organizational vision into action.
Marketing for the nonprofit organization
Marketing plans for nonprofit organizations
A human resources strategy
Does your organization have a strategy for human resources planning? If not, here’s why you should.
The Role of the Executive Director & Board in the Strategic Planning Process
The realities of a nonprofit board, its limitations, roles and responsibilities
Guidelines for Creating an Effective Spinoff
Based on research, this article walks through the process, considerations and success factors for starting a spinoff or social enterprise
Assessing your organization’s financial health
This article uses three components to assess an organization’s financial health: controllership, resources and planning
Image Matters: The Importance of Branding in the Nonprofit Sector
Article discusses the importance of branding for an organization’s communications, image and strategy.
The major problem with strategic planning
Overcoming the failure to implement a strategic plan.
Researching to improve results: Getting to the heart of your prospect
If you want to write winning proposals and increase your organization’s rate of success when fundraising, then conducting thorough research is key.
Campaign Feasibility Studies: What are some of the pitfalls?
A look at some of the obstacles and considerations to think of when conducting a campaign feasibility study.
The many forms of strategic management – part 2
Processes for developing your strategic plan; the “conventional process”, and the “opportunity based process”.
Campaign Feasibility Studies: Sample letter of introduction and invitation for interview
A sample introduction letter to use in your campaign feasibility study. (Appendix A)
Campaign Feasibility Studies: Sample Interview Questionnaire
Sample interview questions to ask in your campaign feasibility study. (Appendix C)
Campaign Feasibility Studies: How should a feasibility study be conducted?
The best way to gather information in a campaign feasibility study is to conduct candid and frank one-on-one interviews with individuals of affluence or influence.
Saying goodbye: Exit interviews
What to include in an exit interview with volunteers.
The many forms of strategic management – part 1
Ways of thinking about your organization during the strategic planning process.
Campaign Feasibility Studies: Taking the time to find out whether the time is right
It is essential for an organization to use a campaign feasibility study to assess the likelihood of success of a capital or endowment fund-raising campaign.
Volunteer recruitment brochures: How to tap into the marketing power of testimonials
How your current volunteers can help with recruitment campaigns.
Strategy development is more than a group hug
Ideas to avoid the lack of information and efficiency in strategic planning.
Coping with change
This article examines how changes in an agency can be a positive experience for all, and reasons for negative reactions to change.
Strategic planning in times of uncertainty
Myths about strategic planning.
Donate Now doesn’t do it: Tactics for successful online transactions
Online fundraising involves a three-tiered strategy: e-mail information, online transactions, and program extensions. Does your program have a solid foundation?
Supporting, recognizing and challenging volunteers
Supporting, recognizing, and challenging volunteers are all separate tasks, but together they provide a strong volunteer program with satisfied volunteers. This article addresses these three issues separately, but also considers how they work together.
Strategy by projection or creation?
How to choose a strategic planning process.
Using donated services from graphic artists and printers
How to avoid pit-falls when using donations in-kind
A Breath of Fresh Air in the World of Philanthropy
This article looks at the growth of strategic or venture philanthropy.
Selecting your spokesperson
How to choose a spokesperson for your organization.
Linking strategy to operations
Five approaches to connecting your strategy with operations and in turn improving the probability of successful implementation.
Election Action — What should non-profit groups do before/during/after an election?
Advice on how nonprofits should engage during election periods, including how to conduct contact with candidates
Connecting volunteers to community
A look at the role and importance of Canadian community volunteer centres.
Team-building exercises
A list of team building exercises for use with staff or volunteers.
Marketing for the Cause: A Growing Trend in Corporate Philanthropy
Article looks at what cause-related marketing is and offers some tips on how to go about developing a corporate partnership for this purpose.
