Dear friends,

Avalon is getting back to regular routines after the holidays, and I hope you are as well. Our current focus is on year-end analysis, winter campaigns, FY26 kickoffs for several clients, and Avalon strategic planning. I’m enjoying the fresh energy, and it has been nice to reconnect with our team.

In addition, we are excited to welcome Melissa Roberts as Avalon’s new Senior Vice President of Client Services, starting this week!

Melissa brings 17+ years of experience in direct response and peer-to-peer fundraising, most recently serving as SVP & Managing Director, National at TrueSense Marketing, where she led the national client services team and oversaw an extensive client portfolio. She also brings valuable client-side experience from organizations like the Alzheimer’s Association, American Cancer Society, and Autism Speaks. We’re thrilled to have Melissa join the Avalon leadership team and look forward to the impact she’ll make for our clients and our people.

Urgent Regulatory Deadline

Nonprofits using online platforms to fundraise in California should confirm good standing with the state’s Registry of Charities and Fundraisers ASAP. This requirement took effect in 2024 under California AB-488, a.k.a. the Charitable Solicitation Registration Act. However, rollout challenges complicated enforcement and resulted in a grace period that ends on Thursday, January 15. Moving forward, California plans to provide a new portal that should make the process easier, but for now you can check your organization’s status here.

Content Marketing 101

Nonprofit Tech for Good posted a helpful overview of content marketing, which covers best practices for strategy, workflow, and creative. For anyone still filling out their 2026 editorial calendar, the article recommends five creative categories that consistently perform well: blog posts and news, photos, call to action graphics, statistics and quote graphics, and videos. This resource is a great starting point for new marketers and social media managers, and it’s a nice refresher for the rest of us.

Leading with Hope

The Center for Creative Leadership noted new research from Gallup on “The Foundations of Great Leadership.” The report highlights four “universal and enduring” needs, which followers consistently seek from leaders around the world: hope, trust, compassion, and stability. Cited by 56% of respondents across 52 countries, hope stands out as the most valued and impactful contribution a leader can make. Trust follows at 33%, and compassion and stability also top their list, though at less decisive percentiles (7% and 4%).

Fundraisers should flag this not only for their personal leadership, but also for their organizations. Nonprofits are vital institutional leaders, and trust is a core value of our profession. So, I’m encouraged to see alignment with what followers say they need. In addition, the report confirms the value of a message of hope, which I wrote about in my annual strategy dispatch:

A strong message of hope not only conveys optimism, but also remains honest and grounded in authentic needs, possibility, and impact. Nonprofits offer the hope of action, not wishful thinking, and it is both our opportunity and our responsibility to call donors in.

The Avalon Gridiron

Finally, Avalon boasts many football fans – so many, in fact, that we started our own fantasy league! I love this virtual activity because it builds suspense and camaraderie for our staff over several months – and that means everybody wins. As for league winners, here are our final standings: Congratulations to this year’s fantasy champions, senior VP Jackie Libby’s humble “Benchwarmers Anonymous” for the NFC and VP Peter Childs’ eponymous “Peter’s Team” for the AFC. Thanks to all our players and especially to the league organizers, analytics VP SB Birnie and production project manager Kathy Criser, for a fun season.