Purpose & Profit Club® – The Nonprofit Fundraising & Marketing Podcast

Christina Tzavaras Edwards
  • 5.0 (35)
  • Non-Profit
  • Updated Semiweekly

Ready to stop fundraising the old way and start doubling results? Join nonprofit strategist Christina Tzavaras Edwards for bold, fast-action tactics that help you 2X your next fundraiser and build a community fueled by generosity. From leveraging the Social Street Team®: Influencer Marketing Method to mastering courageous fundraising asks, this podcast equips you with the mindset and strategies needed to spark deep engagement and sustainable growth—no extra workload required.Music by The Selmanaires, featuring "Selmanaire Rock." Visit http://www.splendidatl.com/podcast for more.

  1. 2d ago

    215: The $16K Fundraising Campaign That Brought in 100+ Donors [Client Case Study]

    Mars Sailors joined my coaching program, The Purpose & Profit Club®, as a graphic designer and marketing manager, not a fundraiser. The work already included telling the story of The Source LGBT+ Center across communications, social media, and email. What changed was learning how to connect those dots to donors. In this conversation, Mars shares how that mindset shift turned into a first full SPRINT™ campaign: a Give Out Day fundraiser that raised $16,000, exceeded a $15K goal, included a $5,000 match, and brought in 100+ donors. Mars also shares the story behind the Build to Belong capital campaign, which has raised nearly $700,000 toward a $1 million Phase One goal to secure a permanent home for LGBTQ+ people in California’s Central Valley. This one is for every communicator, designer, or marketing manager who’s been handed fundraising responsibilities and isn’t sure they belong there. You do. Topics: How Mars reframed fundraising as a communications discipline, and why the stories he was already telling were halfway to a donor askThe Give Out Day campaign: a $5K match, 100+ donors, and exceeding a $15K goal with a campaign built around "Pride doesn't end in June"What it felt like to send that last email and have two donors independently close the $1,000 gap at the same timeThe Build to Belong capital campaign: $700K raised, a campus purchased, and belonging framed as infrastructureFundraising in a politically turbulent climate, and why The Source doubles down instead of going darkBeing named a PR Daily finalist alongside Make-A-Wish, Guide Dogs for the Blind, and MD Anderson For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  2. Sep 8

    214: The Slowest Path to Millions: 7 Signs You’re On It

    Most established nonprofits aren't stuck because they're not working hard enough. They're stuck because they run fundraising like separate projects, not one connected operation. In this episode, I walk through seven signs your fundraising isn't compounding, why that disconnection is the slowest path to millions, and why it's also the fastest path to burnout. I also share what one client did differently that led to $50,000 more across their digital campaigns (no new channels, no additional budget). The only change was connecting their communications strategy to their fundraising. If you have the pieces and they're still not working together the way they should, this one is for you. Topics: Why fundraising runs like separate projects (not one connected operation) creates a revenue ceiling even for established organizationsHow adding more channels, events, and campaigns without optimizing what already exists keeps organizations stuck at the same levelWhy isolated wins don't compound, and what a repeatable, buildable result actually looks likeThe hidden cost of hiring execution before shared strategy is in placeWhat the compounding path actually looks like, and how one client raised $50K more simply by connecting their communications to their fundraisingWhy the slowest path to millions is also the fastest path to burnout, and how to break the cycle For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  3. Sep 1

    213: No Gala. No Auction. No Swag. Still Raised 81% More. [Client Case Study]

    What happens when a former midnight-shift postal worker with zero nonprofit background builds a health organization by ignoring every rule she never bothered to read? In this episode, I sit down with Kathy Ruiz-Carter, co-founder and Executive Director of the Lichen Sclerosus Support Network, for one of the most energizing client spotlight conversations I've recorded. Kathy sent 33 emails for her sixth annual summit, kept unsubscribes under 1%, and nearly doubled revenue to $29K with the exact same audience as the year before. Her organization has grown 30-50% year over year. She raised $1,000 in seven minutes from a single emergency email. And she built all of it while working solo, serving a community that deals with a deeply personal and stigmatized health condition. We dig into how she thinks about email as a daily conversation rather than a campaign tool, why she stopped feeling guilty about asking her patients to donate, how AI collapsed her timeline and dramatically changed her results, and why leaving the nonprofit marketing rulebook behind was the best thing she never did. P.S. If you're ready to grow the way Kathy has, The Purpose & Profit Club® is where we do this work together. Go to splendidatl.com/start to learn more. Topics: From monthly newsletter to daily emails: why more frequency means more revenue, not more unsubscribesAsking patients and service recipients to be donors, and why the guilt around this is costing organizations real moneyHow AI collapsed her summit timeline and helped her go from $16K to $29K with the same audienceWhy radical financial transparency builds more donor trust than any campaign strategyThe e-commerce and customer service mindset that outperformed the nonprofit playbook every timeThe emergency email that raised $1,000 in seven minutes, and what it proves about community trust For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  4. Aug 25

    212: You’re Not Saving Money by DIYing Your Fundraising

    Most nonprofit founders and leaders think DIYing their fundraising is the responsible choice. It feels like smart budgeting and being resourceful, but it quietly costs the organization more than any support ever would. In this episode, I share why free fundraising advice, AI-generated campaigns, and trial-and-error in front of donors aren't savings; they're expenses that never appear on a budget line. I walk through what DIY fundraising actually costs in time, momentum, donor relationships, and delayed campaigns, and share stories from clients like Mary who went from raising just $3,000 in her year-end to multi-five-figures with one change. You’ll hear about Sophia and Jamie who canceled a gala and raised $20,000 in one simple online campaign, and why investing in a proven system is the fastest path to your first $250K, $500K, and beyond in unrestricted individual donations. Topics: Why DIY fundraising costs more than it saves: in time, donor relationships, and revenue never raisedThe "we can't afford support" loop and why it keeps organizations stuck at the same funding level year after yearWhy AI is making it easier to produce more mediocre fundraising, not better fundraisingMary's story: from a $3K year-end campaign to $12K after joining The SPRINT Method™Why my clients canceled a gala, raised $20K in weeks, with less work, less overhead, and a lot more funWhat investing in a fundraising system actually gives you: accountability, community, expert feedback, and a repeatable process For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  5. Aug 18

    211: She Doubled Her Fundraising While Her Son Was in Cancer Treatment — Inside The SPRINT Method™ [Client Case Study]

    Dina Besic started Maxwell's Toy Box because her two-year-old son Max wanted a train table in his oncology playroom. Three years later, while working a demanding full-time corporate job, raising two kids, and navigating Max's cancer treatment, she built an organization that has supported over 5,000 children, donated $9,100 directly to families, delivered 8,500 toys, and created 4,064 joy packages for children receiving chemotherapy… and she doubled her fundraising year over year with the support of The SPRINT Method™. In this episode, Dina shares how she got out of her own way, moved from begging friends and family to running peer-to-peer campaigns and securing corporate sponsorships, and shifted her donors from giving physical toys to unrestricted cash donations. We also talk about the identity shift that changed everything, and what she would tell the version of herself who was terrified to ask. Topics: How 108 donated toys grew into an organization serving thousands of children and families Moving supporters from donating physical toys to giving dollars the organization can put to work How peer-to-peer fundraising opened the door to corporate sponsorships and new donor acquisitionGetting out of draft mode when you’re the founder, fundraiser, marketer, and decision-makerWhat doubling fundraising looks like when you have a full-time job, two kids, and a nonprofit to run For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  6. Aug 11

    210: 5 Signs You’re Overcomplicating Your Fundraising Campaign

    Most nonprofit leaders don't have a strategy problem. They have a complexity problem. In this episode, I'm breaking down the 5 signs your fundraising campaign has gotten too complicated to actually launch, and what to do instead. From planning that never ends, to waiting for the perfect story, to campaigns so exhausting that nobody wants to do them again, these are the patterns I see most often in small and solo-led organizations (and every single one of them is fixable!). If your campaigns feel like a production, if your board needs to approve every subject line, or if the last fundraiser left your team too tired to run another one, this episode will show you exactly what's getting in the way and how to get out of your own way before year-end arrives. Topics: Why planning can quietly replace actual fundraisingWhat happens when you build the graphics before the message is clearHow too many opinions weaken the campaignWhy waiting for the perfect story keeps you stuckThe sign that your campaign is too exhausting to repeat For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  7. Aug 4

    209: 7 Lessons From the Healthiest Million-Dollar Board I've Ever Seen

    I recently spent a full day with one of the healthiest nonprofit boards I've ever seen, spread across the country, meeting mostly virtually, with 100% attendance, full fundraising participation, and zero circular conversations. And by the end of the day, I realized there was one thing this executive director never once did. It's probably the thing you're doing the most. In this episode, I share 7 lessons from that experience that every nonprofit leader needs to hear: from how great board meetings start weeks before anyone arrives, to why connection isn't a nice-to-have but actual infrastructure, to the most common mistake executive directors make that quietly turns their board into their managers. If your board is disengaged, inconsistent, or draining more than it's building, this episode will show you exactly why and what to change starting today. Topics: Why great board meetings start weeks before the meeting, and what an impeccable board packet actually looks likeHow clear expectations create 100% attendance and real accountability, even across a fully virtual boardThe most expensive mistake executive directors make: training their board to manage them instead of leading with CEO energyWhy not every board member's idea should become a strategy, and how to honor input without losing focusWhy the connection between board members isn't a nice-to-have; it's the infrastructure that makes everything else workHow fundraising becomes a culture, not a committee, and what "done" looks like on a high-performing board For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

  8. Jul 28

    208: The Fundraising Lesson Behind a $149K Giving Circle with Kids Hub

    What does it look like when a nonprofit team thinks like a business, not a charity? In this episode, I sit down with the powerhouse team behind Kids Hub Child Advocacy Center: founder and CEO DiDi Ellis, Director of Development Erica Smith, and Donor Relations Manager Paige Thames. In 11 years, Kids Hub has grown from 1 paid employee to 21, from 1,300 square feet to nearly 7,000, and from grant-dependent to running one of the most creative individual donor programs I've heard of, including a Power of 100 Women giving circle that raised $149,000 this year alone. We dig into how they think about donor acquisition in a rural southern community, why the chicken plant became one of their sponsors, how they tell emotionally compelling stories without ever showing a child's face, and why Paige says fundraisers have the cushiest job in the building and should act like it. This conversation will change how you think about the ask. All of it. Topics: The Power of 100 Women giving circle: from $0 to $149K and how peer-to-peer became their #1 donor acquisition pipelineWhy a chicken plant, a yeast company, and a paper mill are now sponsors, and the mindset that made the ask possibleHow to tell emotionally compelling stories when you can never show a child's face or share specific detailsBuilding donor relationships that go beyond the gift: volunteer days, feedback conversations, and year-round connectionThe relay race model: splitting donor acquisition and donor retention between two people with different giftsWhy DiDi paid cash for a $680K renovation while still raising the money, and what that business mindset means for any nonprofit For a full list of links and resources mentioned in this episode, click here. Bloomerang is the complete donor, volunteer, and fundraising management solution that helps thousands of nonprofits like yours. Book your demo here. Read The 2026 Giving Signals Report here.  Apply here: splendidcourses.com/apply Resources: Easy Emails For Impact™: The $5K+ Fundraising Campaign SystemPurpose & Profit Club® Fundraising + Marketing Accelerator   The SPRINT Method™: Your shortcut to 10K fundraisers Instagram, LinkedIn, website , weekly newsletter  [FREE] The Brave Fundraiser’s Guide: Stop getting ignored. Start raising more. May contain affiliate links

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Ready to stop fundraising the old way and start doubling results? Join nonprofit strategist Christina Tzavaras Edwards for bold, fast-action tactics that help you 2X your next fundraiser and build a community fueled by generosity. From leveraging the Social Street Team®: Influencer Marketing Method to mastering courageous fundraising asks, this podcast equips you with the mindset and strategies needed to spark deep engagement and sustainable growth—no extra workload required.Music by The Selmanaires, featuring "Selmanaire Rock." Visit http://www.splendidatl.com/podcast for more.

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