A new study commissioned by The Chronicle of Philanthropy finds that large charities are much more likely than small groups to use screening tools to help them find donors.

The study, conducted by the research firm Campbell Rinker finds that large charities are much more likely than small groups to use screening tools to help them find donors.

The study, which was released at last month’s annual meeting of the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement, asked fund raisers whether they use products that help them identify prospective donors, determine how big a gift to seek from donors, and gather demographic information about supporters.

Forty-two percent of fund raisers said they used such tools. But at wealthy organizations the number was much higher: The survey found that 66 percent of nonprofit groups with $25-million or more in annual revenue use such tools.

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Annual reports can be an effective way for nonprofit groups to communicate with their donors, outline their goals and accomplishments, and thank those who have contributed money and time to their causes.

But, too often, groups waste valuable time and money producing reports that aren’t read and that fail to meet even their most basic goals.

As a result, some marketing experts are advising charities to rethink the way they produce annual reports. And with the growth of online marketing, some groups are finding new and creative ways to communicate with their supporters without producing costly, bulky reports.

How can your organization get more mileage out of its annual reports? What are some creative ways to present these reports to donors and supporters? How can your organization use online tools to present its annual report in new ways?

Join two experts — Kivi Leroux Miller, a ...

Kelly Stettner, founder and director of the Black River Action Team in Springfield, Vt., was inspired by the recent exchange Prospecting sponsored to help a charity official draft his first fund-raising letter.

Ms. Stettner, who works as a secretary by day, runs the nine-year-old environmental advocacy group in her spare time and says she is drafting an appeal in the hope that it “will encourage more business owners to donate and to think creatively about the ways they can help. Ink cartridge donations, money, food for volunteers, items to raffle off — it’s all good.”

Before she sends out her pitch, though, Ms. Stettner would love some advice from her peers in the fund-raising world. Please post a comment to show how you would improve the following appeal:

In 2000, I was walking across a bridge near Riverside Middle School in Springfield with my family. I looked over the...

Less than half of the nation’s charities use screening tools designed to help them find donors, according to a new study of more than 1,300 fund raisers commissioned by The Chronicle.

The study asked fund raisers whether they use products that help them identify prospective donors, determine how big a gift to seek from donors, and gather demographic information about supporters. Forty-two percent of fund raiser said they used such tools.

Not surprisingly, larger nonprofit groups are more likely to use professional research tools for screening potential donors. The survey found that 66 percent of nonprofit groups with $25-million or more in annual revenue use such tools.

Results from the full survey, conducted by the research firm Campbell Rinker, in Valencia, Calif., will be released Saturday morning at the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement conference in...

Nearly three in four of America’s largest corporations expect donations to charity to remain flat or decrease this year, according to The Chronicle’s annual survey on corporate giving.

Even so, charities can find ways to win money from businesses. To learn how to do so, join the Chronicle today at noon Eastern time for a live online discussion.

You will be able to pose questions to:

• Mark W. Shamley, chief executive of the Association of Corporate Contributions Professionals in Orlando, Fla.

• Nancy Williams, national program director at the Verizon Foundation, in Basking Ridge, N.J.

David Hickman, the executive director of CharlotteONE, in Charlotte, N.C., has never written a direct-mail fund-raising letter before.

And he’s looking for your suggestions.

Mr. Hickman, who runs a nonprofit ministry group that reaches young adults and singles in Charlotte, has put together a draft letter and is hoping for some recommendations from Chronicle readers.

Below is a draft of Mr. Hickman’s letter. Please post a comment to share your (constructive) feedback.

Dear «First_Name»,

Every day young adults and singles are faced with life-defining decisions. Many are deciding which career path to pursue, whom they should marry and where they should live. However, according to the latest research, a vast majority of young adults are also deciding to walk away from Christ and the local church.

According to the Barna Research Group, young adults and singles...

John Brian McCarthy says he was shocked when he went through his mail recently and found a direct-mail solicitation for Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.

The reason?

It was the first piece of non-electronic communication Mr. McCarthy has received from the campaign. And it caused the Arlington, Va., marketing consultant to think about what the Obama campaign’s fund-raising strategy foreshadows for nonprofit groups.

“I’ve been donating online since February, but even the thank you’s for my online donations came in via e-mail, with no supplemental thank you/re-ask message arriving in the mail,” wrote Mr. McCarthy, on the blog maintained by his employer, Beaconfire Consulting in Arlington, Va.

“How is it that Obama for America could shatter all fund-raising records with small donations, without making direct mail a central part of their strategy?”

Mr. McCarthy says the...

Kimberly Lauth, a consultant who specializes in nonprofit endowments, offers three tips to fund raisers who want to convert annual donors into those who make endowment gifts.

Ms. Lauth, owner of Nonprofit Outfitters, Community Benefit Consulting, a Knoxville, Tenn., was one of three experts who took questions from Chronicle readers today during a live discussion.

Among her suggestions:

• “Make sure that all your marketing materials and appeals mention the endowment.”

• “Start an endowment-giving recognition program. Encourage people to let you know when they have made a bequest.”

• “Ask— sometimes I think we spend all of our time relationship building and forget that we need to actually ask for the gift.”

For more suggestions, read the transcript. of the discussion.

Charities can expect a long recession, or so comments made by Secretary Henry Paulson on Sunday suggest.

Speaking on CBS’s Face the Nation, Mr. Paulson said the challenges facing the U.S. economy will continue.

“I think it’s going to be months that we’re working our way through this period — clearly months,” he said.

As a result, charity leaders who were hoping for a quick economic turnaround should be preparing for long-term turbulence, writes the anonymous author of Don’t Tell the Donor.

“Fund raisers need to prepare for the fact that there will be no recovery in 2009,” she writes. “This is not a typical six-month recession… and all those ‘expert’ fund-raising jokers who are out there saying that they have 30 years of experience fund raising and have survived many recessions in the past should be reminded that we need to be prepared for an extended period of fear and economic ...

How can you make sure your charity is getting the most out of its marketing arrangements with companies?

How can charities that have never pursued such deals get in the game?

Two experts on corporate marketing deals — Katrina McGhee, vice president of marketing at Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Michal Ann Strahilevitz, an associate professor at Golden Gate University — will be available at noon Eastern time today to answer these and other questions on the topic.

We invite you to join the discussion. You may pose questions now so that they have a better chance of getting answered.