17–Bill Jacobs – Game over. Fundraising no longer works?

In this episode of The Unfolding Thought Podcast, host Eric Pratum interviews Bill Jacobs, who has spent over two decades helping nonprofits use data to drive better fundraising results. Bill explains how donor behavior is shifting—especially in today’s economic and cultural environment—and why many nonprofits find themselves behind the curve when it comes to analytics and innovation.

Together, Eric and Bill explore:

• Fundraising as Both “Art & Science”: Balancing data insights with creative storytelling to grow sustainable donor relationships.
• The Agency Shake-Up: How private equity and cultural mismatches are reshaping the fundraising agency world.
• Changing Donor Landscapes: Why donor file counts have been shrinking since 2008, and the growing dominance of major donors.
• New vs. Established Approaches: Why “testing something new” is so risky in nonprofits—and yet increasingly necessary. Bill: “They support ideas that work. They do not support ideas that fail.”
• Predicting What’s Next: How AI, rising costs, and generational shifts might transform nonprofit fundraising in the near future.

If you’ve ever wondered how organizations can keep donor pipelines strong amid uncertainty, Bill’s data-driven perspective offers both caution and fresh ideas for navigating a rapidly evolving sector.

The quote that Eric was searching for at one point came from Fred Polak: “The rise and fall of images of the future precedes or accompanies the rise and fall of cultures. As long as a society's image is positive and flourishing, the flower of culture is in full bloom. Once the image begins to decay and lose its vitality, however, the culture does not long survive.”

Links

• AnalyticalOnes (Bill’s Company): https://analyticalones.com
• Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-jacobs-a617321/

For more episodes, visit: https://unfoldingthought.com

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