HEADLINES

Ambition to Audacity: Takeaways from the 2014 Skoll World Forum

(Stanford Social Innovation Review)

Five top-line lessons from the annual global convention of social entrepreneurs, this year featuring the theme “Ambition.” Among them: “Even the rich struggle” and “‘Good enough’ solutions are worth pursuing.”

GEORGIA

Thousands on Waiting Lists for Meals on Wheels

(Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

The AJC reports on the effects of decreasing funding and an aging population on the senior citizens of Georgia relying on the nonprofit-implemented Meals on Wheels program, “as waiting lists grow to the point that people die without receiving their first meal.” (Requires subscription.)

BOARDS

Terrible Board Members are Created, Not Born

(GuideStar)

A few ways you might be turning well-intentioned, high-potential board members into disengaged, dysfunctional stewards of your cause--from missing role descriptions to needlessly boring meeting agendas.

EVENTS

How to Manage Onside Social Media During Your Conference

(Brite Blog / Eventbrite)

Anytime you’re running an event, it can be difficult enough to keep up with all the in-real-life logistics--much less the online details. To that end, Eventbrite puts together a list of ways to keep Twitter, Facebook, and your other social media channels fed while keeping everything else in full swing.

FUNDRAISING

7 Things About Fundraising You Should Already Know

(Daniel Melbye)

A helpful survey of what’s standing in the way of fundraising, and how to overcome them: from the challenge of the task itself (“Fundraising is a lot of effort,” potential donors “don’t know the purpose of your cause”) to the assumptions that prevent people from supporting you (“they don’t believe they can make a difference”).

Infographic: Tips and Tweets that Will Make You a Smarter Fundraiser in 2014

(Fired Up Fundraising)

Gail Perry puts together a handy, shareable infographic rounding up 39 top tips from the International Association of Fundraising Professionals convention in March.

Mobile for Good: How Mobile Wallets Will Transform Fundraising

(NTEN)

Heather Mansfield fills you in on the latest form of e-payment, the “mobile wallet,” and how it may provide a major new fundraising opportunity, in this excerpt from her new book Mobile for Good: A How-To Fundraising Guide for Nonprofits.

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS

What Impact Are Your Donors a Part Of?

(The Storytelling Nonprofit)

Following up a post on the dangers of overusing the word “impact,” this post gives you some smart ways to demonstrate what impact means in your organization, and the vital part that donors can play.

Have Nonprofit Videos? Use Them to Increase Open Rates

(StayClassy)

Piggybacking on news that one organization found video content boosted their email open rates by 300%, StayClassy provides a quick-and-dirty guide to producing compelling videos without a budget.

4 Must-Know Features of the New Twitter Profile Design for Nonprofits

(Nonprofit Tech for Good)

Another week, another social media update: this time, Twitter has introduced revamped profile pages emphasizing header images, popular tweets, and other usage data. NTFG fills you in on what nonprofits need to know.

Are Nonprofits Now Stuck with Facebook?

(npEngage / Blackbaud)

Facebook numbers look worrying once again: organic reach is down 49% since October, and the social media monolith’s ad policies look to bring that number steadily down. Blackbaud looks at the options for nonprofit communications--including a twitter campaign pushing Facebook to offer ad grants for causes. Meanwhile, John Haydon (the artist formerly known as the Nonprofit Facebook Guy) sits down with Nancy Schwartz to help you figure out your Facebook ROI.

M&R Community Benchmarks Study: Findings and Implications

(Community Organizer 2.0)

Another look at the recently-released results of M&R and NTEN’s annual online activity survey, diving deep into what it means for your communication strategy.

ON GCN.ORG

Earth Day at 44: Confessions of a Climate Accepter and Community Builder

(GCN)

The next in our Nonprofit Voices series: Suzanne Burnes, executive director of GCN member Sustainable Atlanta, takes stock of how the environmental landscape has changed in 44 years, and how transformative environmental change flourishes when driven by positive behavior, rather than guilt.

Marc Schultz is contributing editor at the Georgia Center for Nonprofits.