Fundraising Metrics To Track

I surveyed 50 nonprofit boards about fundraising. The struggling organizations had "fundraising boards." The thriving ones had "ambassador boards." The distinction matters. Effective board fundraising isn't about asking—it's about connecting: • Boards focused on "making the ask" report 27% lower participation rates • Boards trained as ambassadors engage 4X more donors through their networks • Organizations with ambassador boards raise 3X more than those with traditional fundraising boards One organization reframed board fundraising as "sharing passion" instead of "asking for money" and saw 100% board participation for the first time in 15 years. The most effective fundraising boards don't sell—they share. How do you engage your board in fundraising? Share your approach.

Fundraising in India is a beautiful, brutal dance. After 15 years of knocking on doors, writing proposals, and building relationships in the charity space, I've learned that money follows trust, not just need. And trust is earned in whispers, not shouts. Most fundraisers think it's about the pitch. The perfect slide deck. The heart-wrenching story. The immaculate impact metrics. But that's just the costume you wear to the real party. The truth is messier. More human. More honest. First, nobody cares about your organization. They care about the problem you're solving. Stop talking about your NGO's journey and start talking about the journey of the people you serve. Your founder's story matters less than the story of the girl who can now read because of your work. Second, relationships outlast transactions. I've watched fundraisers chase cheques like they're chasing buses – desperate to catch the next one, forgetting that the real journey happens when you're walking together. The donor who gives you ₹10,000 today could give you ₹10 crores in a decade if you treat them like a partner, not an ATM. Third, most Indian donors don't want innovation. They want reliability. They've seen too many NGOs come and go, too many promises evaporate. They're tired of funding pilots that never take flight. Show them consistency before you show them creativity. Fourth, your finance team is your secret weapon. In a country where trust in institutions is fragile, your ability to account for every rupee isn't just good practice – it's your survival strategy. I've seen brilliant programs collapse because someone couldn't explain where the money went. Not because of corruption, but because of chaos. And finally, the hardest truth: fundraising isn't about money. It's about meaning. People don't give to causes; they give to become the person they want to be. The businessman who funds your education program isn't just building schools – he's rewriting his own story, becoming the hero his childhood self needed. I've sat across from millionaires and watched them cry when they talk about their mothers. I've seen corporate leaders who manage thousands of crores struggle to write a personal cheque for ₹5,000. I've witnessed wealthy donors argue over a ₹500 expense while approving ₹50 lakhs in the same meeting. Because money isn't rational. It's emotional. It's cultural. It's complicated. The fundraisers who thrive in India aren't the ones with the fanciest degrees or the most polished English. They're the ones who understand that in this country, giving is deeply personal, profoundly spiritual, and incredibly relational. So stop treating fundraising like a Western import that needs to be implemented. Start treating it like what it is – a conversation about values that's been happening on this soil for thousands of years. Because when you get it right, you're not just raising funds. You're raising hope.

Email open rates are no longer a dependable metric. Why? Let us quickly understand how an email open is tracked first. Whenever we send an email, a small image is embedded in the email by email marketing platforms. They are similar to the tracking pixels we place on the website. It is usually very small, and we’ll never notice it. When this image loads, it “loads” the image from the URL hosted by the email marketing platform. This URL captures the information that tells that the email was opened. Now, the change. With Apple’s iOS15 release, this has changed. With iOS15, Apple introduced new email privacy features. Apple started prompting users with the option to “Protect Mail Activity” when they open the Mail app after the update. If the user enables it, Apple automatically prefetches all emails and loads all images within the email. Prefetching is a process of opening the email before the user actually opens it. Apple 100% prefetch emails as part of its “Protect Mail Activity” feature. This activity will artificially increase the email’s unique and overall open rates. Because of this, it is impossible to differentiate between a genuine open and an image prefetch carried out by Apple. Due to this, we will see a very high open rate in our email campaign. So, the problem is only with the iOS device, right? No. Currently, Gmail also employs image prefetching when the - User actively logs into the Gmail app - Receives an email while their session is ongoing This is a small percentage of the use case now. However, Gmail has indicated that it will prefetch emails in a manner similar to Apple’s, which would further reduce the reliability of open rate tracking. #digitalmarketing #onlineadvertising #emailmarketing

When I took on my role as Chief Corporate Citizenship Officer at PMI, I set a handful of parameters for myself and my team: 1. Don’t fall into the trap of arm’s-length checkbook philanthropy: One-off cash infusions can help nonprofits in the immediate term, but they don’t get at the issue of sustainable growth. 2. Focus, focus, focus: Diffusion is the enemy of progress. There are an endless number of worthy causes and charitable organizations, but our greatest impact will come from identifying a small number of causes that are intrinsically tied to our values and vision and making those causes priorities. (In our case, this is U.S. military veterans, women’s equity and empowerment, and hyperlocal activations.) 3. Empower—and learn from—those already in the trenches: We’re not going to dictate what happens at the community level. We’re here to listen and learn and find ways to support and expand the good works already underway. 4. Give a “hand up” instead of a handout: Band-Aid solutions may make us feel good in the short term, but they don’t get to the root problem. The cash infusions we give our community-based partners are meaningful, but their value grows exponentially when paired with our business expertise and insights. 5. Offer employees a chance to contribute to change: We polled PMI’s U.S. workforce earlier this year about our plans to support military veterans. An astonishing 97 percent of employees raised their hands to get involved. There’s a hunger out there for making a positive difference in local communities and the broader world. Find ways to connect your people to the issues that matter most to them. It turns out that this is the way the next generation of philanthropists is thinking about their impact as well. A recent article (I’ll share the link in comments) shares interesting insights into how our younger generations—millennials and Gen Z—are embracing a more comprehensive approach to philanthropy focused on measurable impact and deeper connections. They’re also showing a greater tolerance for the “long game,” willing to take risks in the short term to lay the groundwork for greater gains down the road. As the next generation of philanthropists takes the reins and starts investing more than money in the causes they care about, let’s make sure our organizations are prepared to do the same.

Why 70% of Corporate Donors Want to See Your LinkedIn Profile Before Donating: Nonprofits, if I had to prepare for corporate funding today, this is what I would do: 1. Stop relying on pitch decks. Start building your online credibility. When corporate donors are considering funding your nonprofit, guess what they do first? They check your LinkedIn. If your profile reads like a personal resume rather than a movement’s voice, you’re missing out. Instead, make your LinkedIn page: • A storytelling hub that highlights your impact • A space where partners can see your work, not just hear about it • A dynamic profile that shows you’re not just asking for money, you’re building something powerful 2. Make your team visible. Corporate donors want to know who’s leading the mission. A faceless organization feels risky and impersonal. Instead: • Highlight your key team members • Share their stories, expertise, and why they’re passionate • Show a collective force working towards change 3. Post like a leader, not a lecturer. Corporates are looking for vision and execution, not just mission statements. Instead of: • “We need funding for X” Try: • “Here’s how we’re tackling X, join us in making an impact.” 4. Data builds trust. Use it. According to a recent survey, 70% of corporate decision-makers vet nonprofits on LinkedIn before donating. They’re not just looking for feel-good stories, they want evidence of results. Post insights like: • Key metrics you’ve achieved • Social proof from partners or community members • Testimonials from those impacted 5. Engage, don’t broadcast. The best profiles don’t just post, they start conversations. • Comment thoughtfully on corporate partners’ updates • Share insights that align with their values • Position your nonprofit as a peer, not just a beneficiary In 2025, your LinkedIn profile shouldn’t look like a static brochure… It should feel like a vibrant hub of purpose and progress. Want to build a profile that attracts corporate partners? Connect with me and comment “Profile” and I’ll send you a free resource to help optimize your profile! With purpose and impact, Mario

Here’s how marketers get 30% open rates with their email blasts. We surveyed 219 marketers with an email list size of at least 20,000 contacts, and this is what they are doing to achieve high open rates. Scrubbing list - they delete records of inactive email subscribers who aren’t opening their emails, typically within 30 to 90 days of inactivity. Segmentation means they are sending different people different emails based on preferences. Send less than 4 emails weekly - they aren’t clogging up people’s inboxes. Sends educational emails - a percentage of their emails add value and don’t sell anything. Sends emails in the morning - typically based on the subscriber's time zone or the geographical location of the majority of their list. Plain emails - their emails are simple, with just text and a link. Most aren’t using fancy designs. Casual subject line - think how a friend would write you an email versus a co-worker. Personalized subject line - doing things like adding the person’s first name in the subject line. Resend emails to unopens - for the people who don’t open up the email, they get the same email a few days later using a new subject line. Asking questions—The email blast contains a question, which gets responses and helps build trust with the email providers. You can also get your email added to their address book through this method. Urgency in subject lines - doing things like running a sale for a limited time or creating a limited-time offer.

Today I decided to kill our crowdfunding campaign before it even launched, and refund our early investors. Here’s the story: On May 31st, we sent out our first invitations to our community to show their interest for our Community Round via a Typeform survey. In less than 3 weeks, we gathered massive early interest with more than $3.5M interest expressed (this is after cleaning out all the fake emails and entries). We spent weeks perfecting the narrative of our core brands — and how they all fit together — to build something we truly believe will change the media landscape. We were ready to launch with our egos through the roof. Pre-launch we had made an assumption that about 30% of parties interested would convert to investments. That would allow us to close our round in the first few weeks, we thought. But… our assumption was totally wrong. Hours after we sent out our Private Link, we quickly realized that the majority of people that had showcased interest (apart of a devoted few that really get it, thank you 😊 ) never translated to actual investors. Our conversion rate on the campaign overview page was terrible and it never really picked up. We built multiple touch points in our process, spent over $5,000 on retargeting ads, drove thousands of qualified visitors to our landing page, and… **crickets**… So after a month and a half with no meaningful traction, I decided to kill it. The amount raised would’ve not been significant enough for a meaningful return. Here’s what I learned: 1. Strong interest does not necessarily correlate with actual investment. It doesn’t matter how good your marketing or your story is, if you’re fighting to change business perception of a declining industry like media, you’re literally swimming against the current －in the rapids. People like the concept of supporting media but struggle with the idea of it being a good business to invest in. 2. You need to be ready to go all-in on your time. I struggled with investing all of my time into the fundraise due to ongoing projects and day to day with our existing business, and especially with the traction we were seeing. We do not depend on this capital to survive so I had to make a decision on where my time was most effective, and this wasn’t it. 3. Timing is everything when it comes to investing. Truth is, I’m terrible at knowing when to raise. People want “in” when things are going extremely well (your business and your industry), not when you’re doing a turnaround. —- Anyways… you learn and you move on 💪 We will definitely try again in a year or two when our new models / brands have proven out. We still very much believe in the potential of Community ownership. Until then, we’ll focus on delivery and execution of our new mission and our turnaround with no Plan B. A big thank you to everyone who participated, I will make sure you get another opportunity soon(ish)! ❤️

Many in the startup world operate with the belief that venture capital is a year-round, always-open faucet. And while investors are always looking to meet great companies, the pace and dynamics of fundraising definitely shift with the calendar. Just like many other industries (think retail or real estate) there are unspoken seasons in VC. Right now, we're in the BEST fundraising period, the pre-Thanksgiving push. Many investors think about deployment in yearly cycles, in other words, how many deals did I do in 2025?? Since summer is always slow, there's increased urgency to close deals in the next 3 months. In fact, three companies in our portfolio received term sheets just this week. So, what can founders do to capitalize on this window? 💥 Engineer momentum by stacking your calendar. Instead of a slow, sequential fundraising process, schedule 20 "first meetings" within a week. This creates a sense of moving things forward and can accelerate follow-ups and decision-making. Investors are far more likely to move quickly if they feel the deal has momentum. 💥 Clearly articulate the "Why Now?". An investor's seasonal urgency is a tailwind, but it's not enough. You need to connect it to your own story. Frame your raise around a critical milestone you can hit with this capital before the end of Q1. This gives an investor the compelling internal narrative they need to champion your deal with their partnership right now. 💥 Drive the process with a clear timeline. Don't be afraid to be transparent about your timing. It's perfectly fine to say, "We're having great conversations and are aiming to have a lead identified before October" This isn't being pushy, it's being professional. It's go time for many founders raising, share your best tips so we can all close some cash before December! #VCFunding #StartupFunding #Fundraising #Entrepreneurship #Startups

Something that isn't obvious about startup fundraising: it's seasonal. Worst times to raise: summer and late Nov/Dec. Fundraising is all about FOMO (fear of missing out) and competition, and it can be difficult to get momentum when VCs have other priorities. Best times to raise capital: winter, early spring and autumn. The other thing to remember - you need to allow enough time. For the fast, competitive round that seemed to come together "overnight," there was often 3 months of planning. Starting the process in late spring or late fall can mean an otherwise hot round loses momentum. January is a great time! Good luck everyone 🤞

I increased my open rates by 17% with these 5 subject line tests: Your subject line is the first impression your email makes. It determines whether your audience opens the email or skips it entirely. Here are 5 subject line tests I ran that actually moved the needle (and why they work): 1. Add Personalization: Instead of: “Improve Your Email Marketing Results” I tested: “Chase, These Email Tips Could Boost Your Revenue” Why this works: Seeing their name feels personal and grabs attention in a crowded inbox. Personalization also shows you’ve tailored the content specifically for them. --- 2. Tap Into Curiosity: Instead of: “Email Marketing Strategies for Your Business” I tested: “You’re Leaving Money on the Table with Email” Why this works: Curiosity compels people to open. But the key is delivering on the promise—your content has to match the intrigue, or you’ll lose trust. --- 3. Create Urgency: Instead of: “How to Improve Your Email Campaigns” I tested: “Last Chance to Fix This Email Mistake” Why this works: FOMO (fear of missing out) gets people to take immediate action, especially when there’s a sense of a ticking clock. --- 4. Go Shorter: Instead of: “Here’s Everything You Need to Know About Email Marketing” I tested: “Better Emails, Today” Why this works: Short, punchy subject lines cut through the noise, especially on mobile where 50%+ of emails are opened. --- 5. Use Numbers or Specificity: Instead of: “Email Tips for Business Owners” I tested: “3 Subject Lines That Boosted Open Rates by 17%” Why this works: Numbers and specificity make your email feel actionable and credible. People know exactly what they’re getting. --- The Big Lesson: Your subject line is your email’s best salesperson. Start testing small variations today—personalization, curiosity, urgency, or brevity. Even a 1% improvement across a large list can make a massive impact. What’s the best subject line you’ve tested?