In Is Your Website Driving Away Your Best Folks ? I warned of the danger relying on ‘vanity metrics’ like ‘page views’ or ‘time on site’ In fact, the use of ‘vanity metrics’ is problematic in our trade far beyond the online world. MORE

Things are getting better all the time! Right? In February and March I was doing a bunch of positive affirmations every day. What changed? Nothing. Positive affirmations don’t do anything. MORE

Recently I discovered what emotional labor is , and that I had been unconsciously doing it all of my life. I did notice that fundraising is emotional labor, as well as much of nonprofit work. Which is most often done by women. MORE

It’s summer, yea! Those of us who live in colder climates relish these few months of warmer weather, a slower pace, and a vacation to someplace fun. While I hope you get a chance to slow down and take a vacation this summer, that doesn’t mean everything in your organization has to come to a screeching halt. In fact, summer is a great time to tackle a few projects and get ready for a busy fall. Here are a few things you can take on this summer. Clean up your mailing lists. MORE

Time spent (minutes per month) on websites was down across all industries in the U.S. in 2016, according to an Adobe report. Despite time spent being down, visit rates are up 4% year-over-year across all industries,” CMO Adobe wrote. This makes sense. The simpler, faster and more convenient you make your website, the more likely a customer/donor is to come back. ‘Time spent’ and ‘pages viewed’ are lousy and dangerous metrics. See Agitator Vanity Metrics. MORE

Lauren McCafferty. Welcome to the latest installment in our series on the “Day in the Life” of nonprofit communicators, where we ask you to describe your day in your own words. We’d love to feature YOU in this series! MORE

Tom’s 127 Facts About Video Marketing last week inspired me to reprise some of my favorite videos that we’ve used in Agitator posts. So, for your viewing (and reading) pleasure here are three re-runs worth your time because I think each makes a helpful point. MORE

Just about every week, I talk to nonprofit communications directors who have “limiting beliefs” that are holding them back. Limiting beliefs are ideas or assumptions that you have about yourself, your situation, or others that limit your ability to succeed. MORE

If you don’t know where you are going, you will never get there. Here’s how to start with the end in mind so you can be resolute in finding the best fitting job for you and your dreams. First, dream. MORE

Dialogue. Major donors expect to be able to have a dialogue with an organization and its staff. Permission. Major donors expect to maintain power over whether or not they grant permission for dialogue to happen. Convenience. Major donors expect their engagements to be convenient for them. Focus. MORE

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