Charisma Charity Recruitment | Podcast - Fundraising fundamentals your charity is forgetting

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S3 | Ep 17

42 mins

Fundraising fundamentals your charity is forgetting

Robin Peake, Deputy CEO at Wycliffe Bible Translators, has just written the 8th edition of The Complete Fundraising Handbook, and he has a warning for the sector: too many charities are abandoning what works in favour of the next shiny thing. In this episode, Adam Stacey talks to Robin about why the fundamentals of fundraising never change, what he put into the new edition, and how to build innovation on tried and tested foundations rather than putting good money after bad. Along the way, Robin shares how a masters in 1920s football history led him into fundraising, the major donor meeting where he stopped himself five minutes before walking in, and why relationships don’t work in 12 month cycles. We also talk about the £50 a month budget that turns a supporter care team into donor delighters, why he only hires fundraisers who give, and the personal board of trustees that keeps his thinking sharp. If you work in fundraising, lead a fundraising team, or want to understand what actually makes donors give and stay, this one is for you. In this episode

Why the fundamentals of fundraising don’t change, and why the sector keeps forgetting them
What’s new in the eighth edition, from Facebook ads to AI
Why “people give to people” and “people give because they’re asked” still hold true
The major donor meeting that nearly went wrong, and the mindset shift that saved it
Why Robin only hires fundraisers who are donors themselves
How a £50 a month budget creates donors for life
Building a personal board of trustees

Timestamps

00:00 Welcome and introduction
01:04 Quickfire questions: camping, electric scooters and Bible translation myths
04:32 How Robin found his way into the charity sector
06:50 Learning from other charities: lunches, coffees and generosity
10:56 Donor-centric fundraising and why it works
12:54 Hiring fundraisers who give, and building a culture of thanks
16:02 Standing out: the £50 a month supporter care budget
20:55 From Innovista to Home for Good to Wycliffe
23:24 Mentors, coaches and a personal board of trustees
26:58 Becoming Deputy CEO and the problem of quieter feedback
30:17 Building culture in a remote-first organisation
34:28 The Complete Fundraising Handbook, eighth edition
36:52 Why the fundamentals never change
39:13 The lesson Robin learned the hard way: relationships don’t work in 12 month cycles

About the guest Robin Peake is Deputy CEO at Wycliffe Bible Translators, with around 15 years in the charity sector, primarily in fundraising. He is the author of the 8th edition of The Complete Fundraising Handbook. Links