Why does it cost nonprofits $20 to raise $100, when it only costs companies $4?

The answer is that we may be raising money from the wrong people.  Most nonprofits today are focused on ”psychic” donors – those who have no direct stake in our work and derive no direct benefits, other than the “warm glow” of philanthropy.  The problem is that we have no leverage.  As a result, it is very hard to raise money.  If donors feel like supporting us, they will.  If they don’t, they won’t.  For nonprofits, it’s a tough way to live…

But today, we have a choice.  We live in a new economic era - an era where consumers, businesses, investors, employees and service providers attach real economic value to social outcomes.  An era where yesterday’s “feel good” issues – education, the environment, healthcare, global development, even the arts and animal rights  – now have direct economic consequences and opportunities. We now have leverage.  To use this leverage, nonprofits must learn how to “sell” their impact to a new set of stakeholders.  

The End of Fundraising is available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and Jossey-Bass Wiley Publishing.

Could Wal-Mart offer a better solution to healthcare than Medicaid? Could GE help reduce global warming faster than the Kyoto protocol?

Social Innovation, Inc. declares a new era where companies profit from social change. Leading corporations like GE, Wellpoint, Travelers and Wal-Mart are transforming social responsibility into social innovation and revolutionizing the way we think about the role of business in society. Based on four years of measuring the social strategies of America’s leading corporations, Jason Saul lays out the five strategies for social innovation and offers a practical roadmap for how to get started.

• Explains the fundamental shift in the role of business in society, from social contract to social capital market
• Identifies the 5 social innovation strategies: submarket products and services, social points of entry, pipeline talent, reverse lobbying, and emotive customer bonding
• Offers step-by-step guidance for creating economic value through positive social change
• Social Innovation, Inc. is about making social change work for the business, and in turn staying relevant in the new economy.

Social Innovation, Inc. is available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and Jossey-Bass Wiley Publishing. 

Benchmarking- the ongoing process of measuring your organization against leaders- can help stimulate innovation, increase your impact, decrease your costs, raise money, inspire your staff, impress your funders, engage your board, and sharpen your mission.

Most nonprofits already are benchmarking informally.  This book defines a formal, systematic, and reliable way to benchmark- from preparing your organization to measuring performance and implementing best practices.  Real-world examples illustrate benchmarking in action. This book features a number of exercises and worksheets to guide you through the entire process.

Benchmarking For Nonprofits is available on Amazon.com.