tips

By Susan Ross. Like many of you, I celebrated June 30th again this year. It has been many years since I was Director of the Duke Annual Fund, but I am still tuned in to the importance of this particular day on the calendar, and the hard work with LYBUNTs that leads up to it.  I’d bet anyone whose resume includes annual giving shares my feeling. Of course, our donors may or may not be attuned to the fiscal year-end importance of a random day in mid-summer, focused as they are on the IRS-provided December 31 timeframe.  But we development folks know it is about more than just a budget. There is value in giving donors a deadline. People need a reason to make a decision in a timely fashion, and good development officers can help close gifts [...]