Boys & Girls Clubs of Grand Rapids Youth Commonwealth has provided quality after-school programming to children and youth in the Grand Rapids community since 1938. A crucial part of their mission is to support youth in graduating from high school and one of the best...
Intern Spotlight – Rebecca Rowland
Meet Rebecca Rowland! Rebecca is a senior at Western Michigan University, graduating this summer. Rebecca is majoring in Organizational Communication and minoring in Event Management and Psychology. My expectations coming into this internship were pretty high....
Engaging your Board and Fundraising Volunteers
Connecting your volunteers to your organizational needs and goals is important work; volunteers, including the board, are a key to significantly increasing your fundraising outcomes. However, keeping your volunteers engaged and feeling like they are making a...
Mobile and Text Giving
In today’s fundraising landscape, mobile or text giving is no longer avoidable. In 2020, mid-size nonprofits saw a 25% increase in online giving, and 28% of contributions were made through a mobile device, so it’s time provide your donors with the proper tools to make...
Tracking Fundraising Outcomes
For a variety of reasons, many organizations do not have a good, consistent fundraising reports that they regularly pull and use. There are also not one-size-fits-all reports that work perfectly at every organization. Identifying what is important to share, making...
Innovation, Flexibilty and Strength: Creative solutions in 2020 and encouragement for 2021
Last year, we urged our friends and partners in the nonprofit community to Keep Calm and Keep Moving. While we are not completely past the challenges we faced in 2020, we wanted to take a moment to recognize the incredible tenacity shown during this unprecedented...
Intern Spotlight – D’onna King
Meet D'onna King! D'onna is a senior at Grand Valley State University, graduating in April with a Bachelor's degree in Public and Nonprofit Administration, with an emphasis in Budget and Finance. My time with Kennari Consulting was more than just an...
Making Your Website Donor-Centric
Are you missing a critical step in your donor engagement strategy? Your website is a key way that your donors – current and prospective – interact with your organization, and yet it can be one of the last places we focus our effort. To maximize your website for donor...
Events – Different Look, New Potential
Here at Kennari, the question we have been hearing the most is, “How can we shift an in-person event to virtual and still gain the projected revenue we need?” It is true that fundraising events look different lately, and this shift is changing the way philanthropic...
Giving USA 2020 – a look at philanthropy in 2019
Giving USA is the longest running annual philanthropy report and is published by the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University. This report is trusted by nonprofits across the country and helps the sector make strategic decisions about fundraising. It...
7 Tips to Make Your Year End Appeal Stand Out
2020 is a very noisy year and it’s about to get a little louder. Mail in ballots, Return to Learn, and the ongoing pandemic are a lot to contend with for your year-end fundraising efforts. Want to ensure your letter – your year-end ask – gets heard? Here are 7 musts...
Use Video to Enhance Your Communications
Are you utilizing video as a key piece of your fundraising communication strategy? If not, you’re missing out on an opportunity to have personal, impactful engagement with donors and prospective supporters. Because, Science! Did you know that when we view images that...
“You Talking About Us?”: Third Party Endorsements
A third-party endorsement is becoming a must have for any nonprofit who wishes to stand out above the crowd. With over 1.57 million registered nonprofits in the U.S., you almost can’t afford not to! A third-party endorsement is the nod of approval for your...
Our Nonprofit Community Continues to Innovate and Inspire
Over the past few months, we have experienced an unprecedented period of upheaval. The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted nearly every aspect of our lives and has forced businesses and nonprofits to rethink their operations and quickly adapt to a very different social and...
Seven Emerging Fundraising Trends in the Current Climate
While it can feel like there is no roadmap to direct us through this period, the nonprofit world has weathered past challenges that have offered valuable lessons that continue to be relevant. These past lessons, along with trends we have seen so far during this latest...
House Parties for Cultivation and Solicitation
The current climate is ever-changing – and it is ideal to consider smaller-scale ways to safely gather supporters or potential supporters of your organization, once we have been cleared to do so. House Parties are an effective way to gather a smaller, targeted group...
Messaging Through Challenging Times
In this challenging public health crisis, our community has been impacted in many unexpected ways. Nonprofit communications should be carefully considered to have the best results. Donors Want to Know Three Things: How has your organization been impacted? What you are...
Intern Spotlight – Elyse Bax
Meet Elyse Bax! Elyse is a graduating senior at Calvin University, receiving her Bachelor's degree in Organizational Communication next month. We are excited to share that Elyse recently began a career as a Special Events Coordinator at an area nonprofit! Three...
Keep Calm and Keep Moving: Funding Resources and Support
Even as we move through another work week in our “new normal,” it’s ok if you feel like things still really aren’t normal at all. When we are not quite sure what the future holds, it can be difficult to adjust and feel comfortable even when we establish a daily work...
Balancing Annual and Capital Needs in Times of Uncertainty
Fundraising can be very challenging during times of economic uncertainty or natural disaster. It may appear that donors are moving their dollars to immediate crisis needs versus making their regular annual gifts to their favorite organizations, but what we have seen...