{"podcast":{"title":"What the Fundraising","slug":"what-the-fundraising-4083661","podcast_index_feed_id":4083661,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/what-the-fundraising","website_url":"https://malloryerickson.com/Podcast/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/da8b9e20-daa4-11eb-bb81-87d9ee1fa7bb/image/What_the_Fundraising_-_podcast_artwork.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Mallory Erickson","episode_count":312,"summary":"What the Fundraising is the podcast for impact leaders and change-makers who are tired of doing things the old school way and are looking for best practices to raise money, run their organization, and think about the nonprofit sector in a whole new way. Every Tuesday for 40-60 min, your host, Mallory Erickson, will be having real and raw conversations with some of the best personal and professional development experts, many of whom are outside the nonprofit sector. These are bestselling authors, world-renowned researchers, and TEDx experts, most of whom have never spoken to a non-profit audience before. They have come ready to share expertise, lessons, and stories that will fundamentally change the way you show up as a leader and fundraiser. There are so many valuable lessons nonprofit leaders are missing because they are outside of their typical orbit, but no more. Mallory is bringing them in and helping to apply her guest's expertise to disrupt the nonprofit sector once and for all. So if you are ready to learn how to upgrade your fundraising strategy, leadership skills, energy, habits, and mindset to bring in more funding and actually have some fun doing it, then this is the ri…","last_synced_at":"2026-06-16T22:17:44.649319+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-the-fundraising-4083661"},"episode":{"title":"298: What if Fundraising Were Really About Connection, Not Money? with Matt Roben","slug":"298-what-if-fundraising-were-really-about-connection-not-money-with-matt-roben","published_at":"2026-05-05T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-the-fundraising-4083661/298-what-if-fundraising-were-really-about-connection-not-money-with-matt-roben","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-the-fundraising-4083661","url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/ICAAL8607035397.mp3?updated=1778010360","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/ICAAL8607035397.mp3?updated=1778010360","summary":"Fundraising is often seen as simply asking for money, but it is much deeper than that. What makes people truly connect with a cause? How can fundraisers create moments that donors remember long after an event ends? Meet Matt Roben, benefit auctioneer & farm sanctuary co-founder, who brings a unique background to fundraising, shaped by diverse careers. Before working in fundraising, he spent time as a performer, personal trainer, dietitian, and even a police officer. In each role, his main goal was always the same! It was helping people. He explains that whether he was performing for a crowd or speaking with donors, creating a real human connection was always the most important part. The discussion focuses on how connection and presence are important in fundraising. Matt explains that fundraisers should create meaningful experiences, just like performers connect with their audience. He talks about being intentional by clearly understanding the purpose of an event, preparing well, and linking every fundraising activity to the mission. He also breaks common fundraising myths by reminding people that fundraising should be thoughtful, personal, and deeply connected to the cause, not just about collecting donations. In this episode, you will be able to: Recognize how connections improve fundraising outcomes. Understand the importance of intentionality in fundraising. Identify common fundraising myths and how to challenge them. Recognize the importance of audience awareness in events. Learn how follow-up builds trust and lasting support. Understand how empathy improves donor experience and connection. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many…","meta_description":"Fundraising is often seen as simply asking for money, but it is much deeper than that. What makes people truly connect with a cause? How can fundraisers c…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1584,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/what-the-fundraising-4083661/episodes/298-what-if-fundraising-were-really-about-connection-not-money-with-matt-roben/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-the-fundraising-4083661/298-what-if-fundraising-were-really-about-connection-not-money-with-matt-roben.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}