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Improving Donor Retention: How Creative Thank You’s and Cultivating an
Attitude of Gratitude Can Boost Fundraising
Claire Axelrad September 11, 2013
Twitter Hashtag - #4Glearn
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Advising nonprofits in:
• Strategy
• Planning
• Organizational Development
www.synthesispartnership.com
(617) 969-1881
INTEGRATED PLANNING
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Coming Soon
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Today’s Speaker
Claire Axelrad Principal
Clairification
Assisting with chat questions: Jamie Maloney, 4Good
Founding Director of Nonprofit Webinars and Host:
Sam Frank, Synthesis Partnership
Part
Of:
How Creative Thank You’s
and an Attitude of Gratitude Can Super-
Charge Fundraising Success!
Substitute “donor” for “client.”
Then… consider a warm, genuine thoughtful thank you as a hug in an envelope.
The typical charity
loses 50 – 75% of
donors after the first
gift, and 30% annually
thereafter. Yipes!
Donors want to
change the world, but
they generally want
(and deserve)
something else too.
Cultivate an Attitude of
You’ve put in time and effort to get your donors, wouldn’t it be nice if they stuck around?
Is there any way to beat the average and get donors to stick with you for life?
Yes! One study found that increasing retention by 10% increases lifetime donor value by 200%.
But not without a gratitude plan.
Be Thoughtful
Would you believe…
a study conducted by
Charity Dynamics and
NTEN shows 21% of
donors say they were
never thanked for their
support at all! When you
send something
perfunctory and non-
personal your donor may
fail to notice. You’ll leave
no impression.
Channel Miss Manners Donors are people. Stop treating them as transactions.
Just like grandma when she sends you a gift, donors want to know how much it meant to you. Make your thanks:
Prompt
Personal
Descriptive of impact
Source: Avectra
Perfect
Polite Personal
Prompt
Think about it from the donor’s
perspective.
Even though my giving is modest, it represents a financial sacrifice for me. It’s important to me to support organizations I strongly believe in, even if I can only give an amount that probably won’t make much of a difference.
Philanthropy is about caring for others over caring about myself. Some people are motivated by the tax deduction, I suppose, but I think that they are missing the real meaning of giving.
Giving is something that, for me, is done with no expectation of anything in return. A simple thank you is more than enough.
Giving is a habit that needs to be modeled for us when we are very young, practiced and improved as we live our lives, and encouraged in our children. Nothing satisfies me more as a mom than seeing my own kids get involved in causes they care about – especially when I care about them too.
Respond to the why; not just the what.
I feel a moral obligation to contribute to programs that assist those in need, even if it means temporarily going without myself. We should all be in this together.
I actually gave more money last year than I realized…and often more than I could afford. I don’t regret it, though. I would like to give even more if I could.
Sometimes I feel taken for granted by not-for-profits that we have been supporting for a long time; so I was elated when someone called to express their gratitude for the gift I quietly make to them every month.
As a young professional, I am looking for not-for-profits that I can engage with and grow with in more than one way. I especially appreciate the ones that want more than just my money. The ones that also value my participation are rare, but those that do get my support.
A word about technology. Think!
Use it; don’t abuse it.
E-thanks are swell; just don’t stop there. Your donor deserves more than a pro-forma receipt.
Be careful! Automation can produce some funky results.
Have first names?
Using a program that inserts that name multiple times?
Don’t use the canned receipt language that may come with your email provider.
Do get creative with videos, Pinterest, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.
BASICS: Policies & Procedures
Send within 48 hours.
Align the thank you to the appeal.
Reinforce what may be important to the donor.
Review for personalization opportunities.
BASICS: Perfect Thank You Letter
Catchy opening; no jargon.
Tell a story to illustrate how gift will be used.
Invite involvement.
One signer.
P.S.
Perfect inserts.
10 Creative Ways to Rock Your
Donor Acknowledgment
Tried and True 1. Phone calls
2. Handwriting
3. Personal notes
4. Different signers
5. Thankathon
Dare to Try 6. Greeting cards, e-greetings, post
cards
7. Token gifts
8. Snapshots
9. Videos
10. Public recognition
Wow!
Pow!
Tried and True 5 Thank you strategies that have proven effective
1.Call people!
Donors who were called gave 39% more next time.
14 months later they gave 42% more
Even though you probably can’t call all of your donors, selecting just a few to call each week can have a huge impact.
Who to target will be different for every organization.
Who makes the call will vary by organization and segment.
Don’t delay the call.
You want folks to remember you’re the one they gave to!
Questions about thank you calls
A Call is a Terrible Thing to Waste
After the call make a
record.
Don’t make it a ‘chore.’
Be warm, gracious and personal – a
verbal bouquet
Revel in the reflected
glow. Channeling an attitude of gratitude
makes everyone happy.
Tried and True More thank you strategies that have proven effective
2. Handwritten
Pick a group.
Add a note.
3. Personal notes
Spontaneous.
Yet a habit.
How do I heart thee?
Let me count
the ways.
Tried and True More thank you strategies that have proven effective
4. Different signer
Someone helped.
Program director.
Volunteer
5. Thankathon
Pure.
Gets volunteers
feet wet.
All signers are
not equal.
Dare to Try 5 Fun thank you strategies to delight your donors
1. Greeting card, e-greeting or post card to mark important
events
in your donor’s personal
calendar
in your donor’s relationship with your cause
holidays big and small
make something up!
We’re dancing
a jig of joy
because
you care!
Make it up! This is where to really have fun and get creative
Happy Mother’s Day!
“Thanks for all the love you’ve given us, and for nurturing this project to fruition. Wish every project had a ‘Mom’ like you.”
Happy July 26th!
“Did you know on this date in 1952 Mickey Mantle hit his first “Grand Slam?” Well, you hit one too this past year when you joined our Legacy Society. We hope you’ll wear your ‘mantle’ proudly. Thank you so much.”
“You hit it out of the ballpark
for us. Thank you!”
Dare to Try More fun thank you strategies to delight your donors
2. Token Gifts
Creative; thoughtful
3. Snapshots
your work; your clients; your donors at events; your volunteers
4. Videos pinterest.com/charityclairity
/gratitude-nonprofits-say-thanks
I’ve brought you some home- baked cookies – just to say THANKS and tell you you’re awesome!
Dare to Try More fun thank you strategies to delight your donors
5. Public Recognition
Say something positive about your
donor in front of someone they admire
Write a story about your donor
Publicly honor your donor
Send a group email acknowledging your donor in front of others.
Send a tweet acknowledging your donor’s awesomeness
Pin photos of your awesome supporters onto a special Pinterest board (e.g., “Star Supporters,” “Extra Mile Donors,” “Razoo Raisers”).
How to Move from Transactional to
Transformational Donor Acknowledgement
Consider who might appreciate a thoughtful, unexpected thank you at some point during the year
1st-time donors
monthly donors
long-term donors
gift club members
Volunteers
Staff
Vendors
Clients
Community professionals
What are some timely themes around which to build creative thank you’s that are relevant to your constituents?
Holidays – the regular; the quirky
Events in the life of your organization
News events related to your mission
Thank You is Contagious
You can’t say it too often. Layer it on!
Thankees help thankers.
Thankees help others.
He may be catching
a case of the
thank you’s
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