April 21, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Best Practices, Emotional Response, Facebook, Job Seeking, Kelly Blazek, LinkedIn, Online Communication, Social Media,
I have empathy for people who make bad professional decisions and must suffer the consequences of their actions. I just do. Back in February, the online shame police went into overdrive when it became known that Kelly Blazek, a marketing executive who ran a LinkedIn...
April 14, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Blog, Communication, Global Goes Local, Grant Gatekeepers, Josh Jacobson, Social Media,
Neglecting the organization’s social media when times get busy is one of the classic mistakes made by so many nonprofits – consistent messaging is the goal. And yet here I am, having given that advice before, now a full month behind on my own firm’s...
March 17, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Entrepreneur, Failure, Josh Jacobson, Next Stage Consulting, Nonprofits, Opportunities, Risk,
by Josh Jacobson “Eight out of 10 businesses fail. Are you sure you want to do this?” Not exactly the sort of thing you want to hear when you’re contemplating launching a new business. Now almost three months into my own new consulting venture (76 days to be exact,...
March 3, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Advice, Fundraising, Professional, Wisdom, Young,
by Josh Jacobson Early in my career as a development professional, I must have made hundreds of mistakes. Some were fairly minor, others somewhat more substantial, and some… well, let’s not go stirring up things better left in the past, shall we? I certainly learned...
February 24, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Academy Awards, Communication, Josh Jacobson, Next Stage Consulting, Oscars, Segmentation,
by Josh Jacobson The 86th Academy Awards are this coming Sunday, and my wife and I simply ran out of time. Each year since the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences expanded the roster of Best Picture nominees from five to 10 in 2009, we make our best effort to...
February 17, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Communication, Josh Jacobson, Next Stage Consulting, Nonprofit,
By Josh Jacobson Though it has been in business since 2000, I hadn’t heard of Red Ventures until just a few years ago. And even then, what I knew was somewhat fuzzy. Most folks talk about the amazing headquarters located in Fort Mill, South Carolina – a...
February 10, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Beatles, Boy Scouts, Carolina Raptor Center, Communication, Fundraising, Girl Scouts, Josh Jacobson, Next Stage Consulting, Nonprofit, Segmentation, Youth Marketing,
by Josh Jacobson For real fans, February 9 is one of many dates in the history of Beatles that is etched into memory. As you have no doubt heard at some point this past weekend, it was this day in 1964, fifty years ago, that the Beatles played the Ed Sullivan show. ...
February 3, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Atlanta, Carolinas, Communication, Crisis, Next Stage Consulting, Nonprofit, Snow,
by Josh Jacobson As I sit here writing this, most Carolinians are waking up to bright sunshine and temperatures in the low 50s. Our dog Miyagi is bouncing off the walls because she knows the mild weather will mean a long walk around the neighborhood. What a nice...
January 27, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Bill Gates, Carolinas, Josh Jacobson, Myths, Next Stage Consulting, Philanthropy,
By Josh Jacobson The Next Stage Consulting blog is committed to covering topics related to life in the Carolinas. So, what can a billionaire like Bill Gates teach us about what is happening in our own backyards? First, a refresher on Bill Gates – most likely know him...
January 20, 2014 | Uncategorized
Tags: Charlotte, Fundraising, Grant Funding, Grant Seeking, Grantwriting, Josh Jacobson, Mecklenburg, Next Stage Consulting, Prospecting,
The lure of grantsmanship is the intoxicating concept that your nonprofit can secure outsized investment by simply applying for it. Too many think of it like submitting a credit card application; based solely on the merits of your organization’s mission and impact,...
January 13, 2014 | Uncategorized
Have you seen a good play lately? It is a question at the heart of Next Stage Consulting’s current work with the theatre community through an engagement with the Arts & Science Council (ASC). How can producers and artists in the Charlotte region drive audiences to...
January 2, 2014 | Uncategorized
Happy New Year! If you’re like me, you found yourself on January 1 surfing the Internet without much on the agenda. News of the stock market’s incredible 2013 was being heralded seemingly everywhere I looked: Investors Cheer Record-Setting Year on Wall...
