It’s that time of the year again. Your nonprofit is hard at work crafting messaging for the giving season, weaving stories for your annual report, and strategizing your end-of-year communications.
Without a clear set of foundational messages that articulate your organization’s value and impact, writing can feel and become overwhelmingly stressful.
Don’t get bogged down by the end-of-year chaos. Learn how to create strong new messages and elevate existing ones at our webinar, Messaging Must-Haves to End Your Year Strong.
We’ll teach you our sought-after Minute Message Model™—a four-part messaging framework designed to help you communicate what your organization does and why it matters in a concise, consistent, and compelling way.
You’ll learn how to leverage this framework to craft memorable communications with ease and confidence, helping your organization attract more support from more people this end of year.
By the end of the webinar, you will:
Abbey Meyers, Associate Director of Strategy
Mission Minded Associate Director of Strategy, Abbey Meyers ensures that teams inside and outside of the company have what they need to seamlessly transition from strategy to execution. She enjoys amplifying communication and culture within organizations at any life cycle from brand and messaging to strategic planning and digital strategy.
Before joining Mission Minded, Abbey worked in various advertising agencies where she found herself drawn to her client’s philanthropic efforts.
Abbey is passionate about enhancing our quality of life through food and movement. She supports initiatives that provide resources for maintaining emotional resilience and a balanced lifestyle.
Elisa Wiseman, Strategist
Elisa is a Strategist at Mission Minded with a passion for helping organizations she believes in, tell their stories and build intentional and valuable brands. Her background in storytelling and advocacy give her a unique perspective on how to leverage brand strategy for organizational growth and innovation.
Prior to joining Mission Minded, Elisa worked as an in-house communications manager for different nonprofits advocating for equity in education.
Outside of work, Elisa is passionate about reproductive justice and immigrant rights. She supports organizations working towards a more accessible healthcare system and those providing support to immigrants and refugees from around the globe.
Fundraising in today’s complex landscape demands a fresh approach to donor communications. Nonprofits of all missions share a similar challenge: How can we rekindle the passion of our long-time donors while inspiring a new generation of supporters for our cause? In this interactive webinar, you’ll learn a new values-driven framework for thinking about your donors, and how to translate this approach into powerful messages that uniquely connect to your donor types, helping draw them immediately to your cause—no matter what fundraising effort you’re leading.
When you place your donors’ values at the forefront of your strategy, you develop messages that not only seek support, but also inspire action, solidify loyalty, and nurture a community dedicated to advancing your mission.
Join us as we break the traditional fundraising mold to build a fresh fundraising strategy and message framework that prioritizes building meaningful connections.
By the end of our workshop, you will:
1. Learn the pitfalls of traditional fundraising models especially when it comes to attracting new donors.
2. Transform your fundraising by turning your donor profiles into rich and robust values-based personas that will help you develop a campaign that connects with them.
3. Leverage your organization’s core values in your fundraising strategy to create authentic donor messages that reinforce what you uniquely stand for.
Zach Hochstadt, Founding Partner & Creative Director
Zach Hochstadt co-founded Mission Minded in 2002 to provide nonprofits with the highest level of brand, strategy, messaging, and design. Today, the award-winning agency serves some of the nation’s most respected organizations in education, health, social services, and more!
Zach has particular expertise in brand strategy, messaging, and naming. He’s led big communication projects on behalf of clients like Colorado Health Foundation, Khan Academy, and Children’s Museum of Denver.
Prior to founding Mission Minded, Zach worked in several boutique agencies before joining the American Red Cross. Appointed by Mayor Hancock in 2014, Zach serves as the board chair for Denver Preschool Program.
Tia Robinson, Strategist
As strategist, Tia takes the time to fully understand clients’ needs to create compelling brands and strategies that help take client’s missions to the next level. She’s led transformation donor campaign projects on behalf of clients like University of British Columbia and Wesleyan University.
Tia started her career at DonorsChoose on the business development team, where she helped partners meet their philanthropic and business goals through research and data analysis.
Outside of work, Tia is a member and alumni of Prep for Prep, a leadership development program that offers promising students of color access to an independent school education in New York City.
Welcome to the new and improved Principles & Practices!
Developed for nonprofits, by nonprofits, our guide is now fully interactive. Find links to trainings, templates, and more within!
Copy Updated: September 2023
Principles & Practices for Nonprofit Excellence in Colorado is generously supported by:
The session will:
● Explain why having a core foundation for all of your messaging is so important
● Explain the core components of a core message foundation: Why, How, What, and Who
● Teach participants how to develop their core message foundation by providing examples and an easy framework to follow
● Teach participants how to tailor their messaging to their target audiences, as well as to different platforms
● Explain how to make messages culturally resonant and meet target audiences “where they are”
Catherine Alonzo, Founding Partner & CEO of Javelina
Catherine Alonzo is the Founding Partner & CEO of Javelina, a purpose-driven branding and marketing agency that develops and tells stories that create social, political, and economic change. Javelina helps nonprofits, political campaigns, and other organizations creating equity in their communities to build strong connections with their audiences and maximize their impact.
Originally from the UK, Catherine moved to Arizona in 2005 to complete her master’s degree in Public Administration at Arizona State University.
For over fifteen years, Catherine has been advancing the marketing and advocacy industries in the Southwest. She has been an integral part of the teams behind significant policy and communications campaigns in sectors ranging from transportation and infrastructure, to health equity and abortion rights.
Catherine’s specialty is developing unique and compelling approaches to messaging and brand development. Her ability to pull together words that connects to peoples’s hearts and minds procedures powerful results.
#GivingTuesday, the biggest giving day of the year, is just months away. We’re kicking off the countdown with a session to teach you how to maximize the time you have left and lay the foundation for a successful day of giving.
We’ll explore the important role your website plays, powerful tactics you still have time to implement and the essentials for an integrated communications plan. Let us help you create a successful #GivingTuesday strategy that lasts well beyond a one-day event.
Kiersten Hill, Director of Nonprofit Solutions at Firespring
Kiersten Hill is Firespring’s Director of Nonprofit Solutions. She has almost 2 decades of experience in nonprofit management and fundraising before joining Firespring. She has raised over $20 Million for Nebraska nonprofit organizations and has worked to better train and equip nonprofit leaders and Boards of Directors. Kiersten made a move from nonprofit management and fundraising to Firespring with the goal to help assist, educate, and equipt nonprofits at a larger scale.
She is a rising thought leader and frequently speaks to nonprofit groups and other organizations about marketing, fundraising, board development and organizational change. Last year alone, Kiersten has presented in-person and virtually for more than 75 webinars and 16 nonprofit conferences. Kiersten is also a Storybrand Certified Guide and has led nonprofits in storytelling workshops as well as individual coaching. Kiersten’s presentation style is energetic, authentic, and easily relatable as she has walked years in the audience’s shoes.
End your 2023 fundraising on a high note and learn how to optimize your short-term fundraising campaigns.
You’ll explore:
Upgrade your year-end giving (including #GivingTuesday) and let us help you create a successful strategy that lasts well beyond a one-day event to end 2022 strong—and start 2023 even stronger.
Kiersten Hill, Director of Nonprofit Solutions at Firespring
Kiersten Hill is Firespring’s Director of Nonprofit Solutions. She has almost 2 decades of experience in nonprofit management and fundraising before joining Firespring. She has raised over $20 Million for Nebraska nonprofit organizations and has worked to better train and equip nonprofit leaders and Boards of Directors. Kiersten made a move from nonprofit management and fundraising to Firespring with the goal to help assist, educate, and equipt nonprofits at a larger scale.
She is a rising thought leader and frequently speaks to nonprofit groups and other organizations about marketing, fundraising, board development and organizational change. Last year alone, Kiersten has presented in-person and virtually for more than 75 webinars and 16 nonprofit conferences. Kiersten is also a Storybrand Certified Guide and has led nonprofits in storytelling workshops as well as individual coaching. Kiersten’s presentation style is energetic, authentic, and easily relatable as she has walked years in the audience’s shoes.
Discover best practices, tips, and tricks for utilizing social media as a powerful fundraising tool! In this webinar, we’ll show you how to optimize your nonprofit’s online presence and share easy-to- implement strategies for attracting and converting donors on social media, both through organic posting and paid advertising. With over 4 billion users across platforms, now is your chance to expand your reach and amplify your voice, and fundraise for your mission.
Christine Vottima, VP of Strategy and Marketing at Strat Labs
Christine Vottima has worked with a large variety of organizations, ranging from nonprofits and start-ups to Fortune 500 corporations. She began her career in the B2B technology and cybersecurity industries and has since supported organizations within industries such as health, wellness, fashion, and more. Combining her education in Marketing and Psychology with her career experience, her true passion lies in marketing strategy by finding unique routes to market and new ways to reach target audiences.
Lexie Robles, Director of Marketing at Strat Labs
Lexie Robles has worked exclusively within fast-paced startup agencies, making her keen on strategic development, client experience, and team processes. She has developed and successfully launched digital marketing and communications strategies for various industries, such as hospitality, rehabilitation, mental health, senior housing, wellness, and more. Being Floridian and Puerto Rican, Lexie is passionate about approaching marketing with an inclusive lens and crafting stories that powerfully connect with each unique audience segment.
Join the Colorado Gives Foundation to learn more about the tools and tactics your nonprofit can use to raise more this Colorado Gives Day and year-round. Not on ColoradoGives.org yet? This session will also cover the changes to enrollment that make it even easier for your nonprofit to join this statewide movement of generosity.
Colorado Gives Day is your chance to be a part of the largest nonprofit-support movement in the state. Enroll, update your account, access donor reports, leverage valuable fundraising and marketing tools – and make good happen for your organization!
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To help you dedicate more time to engage with donors, Colorado Gives has created a marketing toolkit to successfully promote and raise awareness for Colorado Gives Day. With a range of resources, including pre-made templates and materials, you can easily communicate with a consistent brand and message.
Jordan Brown, Nonprofit Success Manager, Colorado Gives Foundation
Success is the name of the game for Jordan who joined the Foundation in December 2022 as the Nonprofit Success Manager with the Colorado Gives 365 team. She brings over a decade of marketing, sales and partnership experience helping nonprofits make the most of online giving platforms. Before joining the Foundation team, Jordan was the manager of Enterprise Strategic Accounts for NeonOne and the Philanthropic Partnerships Manager for MightyCause which is the platform that drives ColoradoGives.org. Jordan has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies & English from Washington College. She participates in her community by actively supporting the Chaffee County Community Foundation.
The people we work with associate us in certain ways, based on how we communicate, make decisions, and the big and small interactions they have with us. We associate products and services as having a “brand”, and we also put this assessment on each other. Being intentional about who you want to be as a leader today, and how you want to be known long after people work with you, can deepen your impact, expand your career growth, and differentiate your value from others. This workshop will make it easier to show up in a more powerful way with others, give your team a compass for success, and own your authentic self-promotion.
Bonnie Davis, Hu Work
I have spent almost twenty five years following my passion for learning and growth by designing and delivering on programs that: develop leaders, help people know and grow their strengths, guide organizations through change and transformation, improve performance, enhance culture, help teams work better together, and generally make work a more meaningful experience.
I started my career in my hometown of New York City as a human capital consultant, where I got hooked on the challenge of diving into organization’s people problems, researching what they can do differently, and creating roadmaps and programs that will bring high impact change.
When I moved to Denver in 2000, I took on internal HR roles to get closer to business strategy, learn how to influence senior stakeholders, and implement HR and OD programs that impact the bottom line. I learned the pain and the joy of making change happen so that it sticks.
In 2012, I realized I wanted to focus on helping people, teams and organizations across industries and a variety of business challenges, so I left my last corporate leadership role to focus on consulting, facilitation, speaking, training, and leadership coaching. Most of my time is spent working with high performing global organizations, often in high-tech. I truly get what it takes to be successful in the world’s most demanding organizations, since I have lived it as an insider and now see it firsthand with my client’s cultural and leadership challenges.
I have tapped into my love of learning and sharing my knowledge by teaching at University of Denver and The University of Colorado at Denver, writing articles for Forbes online, and volunteering as a career coach with Dress for Success.
The session will:
● Explain what target audiences are and why they matter
● Explain what it means to “meet audiences where they are”
● Define demographics and psychographics
● Cover what information is important to know about your audience, and how to obtain that information, including what different research methods are available and what are the pros and cons of each
● Explain how to identify which target audiences you should focus on and why it’s important to select your highest priority audiences
Catherine Alonzo, Founding Partner & CEO of Javelina
Catherine Alonzo is the Founding Partner & CEO of Javelina, a purpose-driven branding and marketing agency that develops and tells stories that create social, political, and economic change. Javelina helps nonprofits, political campaigns, and other organizations creating equity in their communities to build strong connections with their audiences and maximize their impact.
Originally from the UK, Catherine moved to Arizona in 2005 to complete her master’s degree in Public Administration at Arizona State University.
For over fifteen years, Catherine has been advancing the marketing and advocacy industries in the Southwest. She has been an integral part of the teams behind significant policy and communications campaigns in sectors ranging from transportation and infrastructure, to health equity and abortion rights.
Catherine’s specialty is developing unique and compelling approaches to messaging and brand development. Her ability to pull together words that connect people’s hearts and minds produces powerful results.