As it turns out about third have come in for criticism and third for praise and I’ve been neutral on the final third.For this last post of 2006, I review the five best and the five worst cause-related marketing campaigns. Tags: 2006 cause-related marketing Top 5 Bottom 5 To be fair, I haven’t directly reviewed.

In the last two weeks, three people contacted me with questions about their direct mail pieces, and in a workshop in late July, I offered to post a few quick tips on tweaking appeals. End of summer is not a bad time to reach out to an organization's friends and wrap up what's happened so far this year. Don't ask for forgiveness. Ask for money.

Beth Kanter, a thought leader in the world of nonprofit blogging, recently shared some useful criteria to help nonprofits decide whether to blog or not. There is at least one model that doesn't meet all of her criteria, but would, I think, be a great approach for many nonprofits. None are ever required when publishing a business-lunch blog.

quot; I've long been a fan of designer Chuck Green, who created these wonderful Word templates -- for everything from reports to ads to brochures to certificates -- for OKI Printing Solutions. Another designer produced these, based on Chuck's work. Be sure to page down to the marketing materials to find the report template.).

CompassPoint Nonprofit Services and The Meyer Foundation have just released a new report, "Daring to Lead 2006," exploring the leading causes of nonprofit executive burnout; in particular, widespread frustration with boards of directors and funders, and dissatisfaction with their pay. As a sector are we not taking care of ourselves?

Two of my favorite bloggers recently published posts that, together, provide a great overview of the importance and potential of web-based communications for 501c3s. Check out Nancy Schwartz's Everybody's Talking About You--Why Your Nonprofit Needs to Listen, and Listen Hard. Be sure to click to read the whole article.). Technorati tags: net2.

Again, on the topic of not apologizing, but asking for money with confidence and grace. Earlier this fall, I received an email solicitation from someone I really like for an art project that was interesting to me. But the "ask" was so disturbing that I got stuck and just couldn't, and didn't, respond with a gift (even though I kind of wanted to).

However, in terms of using the report to drive decisions about business or nonprofit blogging, keep the second half of the study's title in mind: the ideas in this paper are based on the "self-reports" and opinions of bloggers who responded to an open call in May 2006 to participate. Blogs must be part of a plan. Bland is bad.

Any nonprofit interested in effective online communication should check out the executive summary of a fascinating study -- by the highly regarded Nielsen Norman group -- on e-mail newsletters , how to make them user friendly, and their value compared to web sites and RSS (also known as web feeds or news feeds). I'll have to check it out. nonprofit.

From Springwise, a new favorite, I learned of a wise move from the World Land Trust , which is allowing consumers to use text messaging to donate small amounts to offset carbon emissions: "Every time a consumer texts 'WLT CARBON' to number 87050 (within the UK), World Land Trust will offset 140 kilograms of CO2 through its Carbon Balanced Program.