It’s Obvious: Motivating Existing Donors to Donate Again—or Even Regularly—Is Less Effort than Acquiring New Donors
Someone who has already donated is already convinced and appreciates the work of your organization. If donors feel well-informed and cared for, they are more likely to donate again. However, it takes well-planned and consistently executed measures to avoid losing first-time donors right from the start.
These measures aim at donor retention, which is a type of loyalty that arises from a valued relationship. Such relationships are based on open communication, trust, and understanding.
After the Donation is Before the Donation
Every non-profit is delighted with new donors. This means that your work is reaching and convincing people outside the “known” circle. However, it’s the second donation that ensures new donors don’t become “inactive” and that they actively support your work in the future. This second donation is called the “golden donation.” It is the first indication that you did a good job with the first donation and that a delicate bond is forming.
The goal of sustainable fundraising should be to retain and even develop supporters in the long term. This is illustrated by the donor pyramid:
Donor Pyramid:
- Base Level: One-time donors.
- Middle Level: Repeat donors.
- Top Level: Regular, loyal donors and major donors.
Tips for Donor Retention
Here are some tips that can help build a relationship with your supporters. These tips are useful for fundraising beginners, but even experienced fundraisers can find inspiration and check if their donor retention measures are sufficient:
1. Thank Your Donors
When someone does something nice for others, they usually expect a “thank you.” Expressing gratitude is not only a measure for donor retention but also a matter of courtesy. By doing so, you show that the donation is not taken for granted and you value the donors.
Ideally, the thank you should be sent within 48 hours after the donation. While this might not always be feasible for every organization, don’t let that deter you: better to send a thank you later than not at all.
Which Communication Media to Choose?
The best medium for expressing gratitude depends on your organization’s resources and your target audience. Test different channels and observe follow-up donations over time. Many organizations find that subsequent donations are more generous from those who received a thank you. Possible channels include:
– Letters
– Emails
– Phone calls
– SMS
– Messengers
– Personal, short video meetings
Although more labor-intensive, thank-you calls are often very well received. It’s important not to immediately ask for another donation. Instead, you could inquire about their information preferences (“Would you like to be informed via letter or newsletter?”) or offer to answer any questions. Such a thank-you and service call is very appreciative and personal, which is ultimately good for retention.
Reactivating Former Donors
Thank-you notes are also a good opportunity to remind inactive donors of your organization. It’s important to refer to their previous support and thank them again. You could include a relevant project report or a brief summary of the successes your non-profit has achieved since then.
A “Permanent” Thank-You
Another approach to thanking donors is to permanently recognize their support. How you do this depends on your non-profit and its circumstances. Perhaps you can display a donor plaque somewhere visible?
Another nice idea I’ve seen in a larger non-profit is a wall decoration in their office. A tree was painted on the wall, and each leaf bore the name of a donor. You can then send the corresponding leaf, along with a full picture, to the supporter.
Ensure that donor names are not publicly visible without their consent (data protection!).
Incentives: The Issue with Gifts
Who doesn’t know it: from November, thick envelopes from non-profits arrive containing Christmas cards or gift tags. Often, you have never donated to these organizations. This is a psychological tactic: it aims to “repay” the perceived “debt” with a donation, thus acquiring new donors. From my personal experience, I can say that this works to some extent—but many recipients react negatively to this (quite blatant) manipulation attempt and see it as a waste of donations.
That doesn’t mean you should completely dismiss the idea of “gifts”—especially for existing donors. You can bring them a small joy and simultaneously strengthen the relationship with them. A small sticker with a thematically appropriate, decorative motif as a “thank you” doesn’t cost much and is usually very well received. For larger donations or long-term supporters, a t-shirt with your organization’s design might be appropriate. A good occasion for this could be the mailing of the annual report.
In any case, give your supporters the option to decline gifts. You can note this preference in your CRM so that these individuals are excluded from the next selection of recipients. This also applies to thank-you letters, calls, and similar gestures: respect your donors’ wishes!
2. Keep Your Donors Updated
Anyone who donates their hard-earned money for a good cause wants to know what is being done and achieved with the money. Good communication and information are essential for this.
So, regularly send updates on your projects, communicate successes and progress, and clearly explain how the donation has helped. In the interest of transparency, it also makes a good impression to communicate failures—provided you also explain what went wrong and what you plan to do about it.
To reach as many donors as possible with your communication, encourage them—e.g., on your website—to subscribe to your newsletter. You can also integrate a newsletter subscription field into your donation form (e.g., through custom fields in FundraisingBox).
Your non-profit’s website is usually the first point of contact for people wanting to learn about your work. Make sure it is always up-to-date and that all relevant information is easy to find! Social media and a blog on your website are also excellent for sharing news.
Always remember: communication is not a one-way street. Listen to your donors, be accessible, and approachable—this strengthens trust in your organization.
3. Build Trust
Donating has a lot to do with trust. After all, people want their donations to do good but must trust that the non-profit will manage them well and honestly. Unfortunately, many stories—true and false—about donation fraud circulate. Therefore, many people are understandably skeptical and critical.
Show transparently and openly how your organization uses the donations. The best way to answer these questions is on your website:
– How is your non-profit’s income composed (private donations, corporate donations, sponsorships, grants, others)?
– How much of this went to each project?
– How much was used for the organizational structure?
The last point is still sensitive. The understanding that non-profits cannot operate without (paid) infrastructure is still low in society. Non-profits are judged by very different standards than for-profit companies, which is very unfair. Being transparent can be a step towards more understanding and acceptance.
Donation seals can also contribute to a trustworthy appearance. They have a consistently good reputation and guarantee the appropriate use of donations. However, they come with significant bureaucratic effort and costs, which can be a major hurdle, especially for smaller non-profits. In Germany, there is the DZI donation seal, in Austria the ÖSGS, and in Switzerland Zewo.
4. Be Personal
Automating thank-you emails and similar communications can be a real relief. However, personalization is crucial: in addition to a personal salutation, you can refer to the specific project funded or address other more or less individual topics.
Nevertheless, it is important to maintain personal contact with donors. This concerns both the public appearance of your organization and donor care. Those who always receive a friendly, personal (or seemingly personal) response to every inquiry to your organization build trust. This effect is even stronger if donors always have the same contact person. Over time, this creates the feeling of truly knowing each other personally. This is especially important for major donors.
Personal contact can mean sending short video greetings or handwritten thank-you cards from time to time. It can also mean giving your non-profit a “human face.” For example, introduce your staff, volunteers, and beneficiaries on the blog and let them speak for themselves. This makes it clear that donors are dealing with committed people, not an anonymous, opaque organization.
In general, a CRM system is enormously helpful for personal care. In this system, you can keep all information and communications with your donors organized and quickly retrieve them when, for example, you receive a call. This way, you always know who you are communicating with, and the donor feels like you know them well.
5. Offer Long-Term Engagement
People usually do not come up with the idea of setting up a recurring donation, sponsorship, or membership on their own. As always in fundraising: if you don’t ask, you don’t get. People who help continuously through regular engagement have a much higher commitment to the organization.
Therefore, set up an appropriate program for your non-profit and also consider how you want to take care of your most loyal supporters. Then actively ask your donors to help in this way. Show them the benefits over one-time donations. As mentioned: many do not think of this possibility but are happy to consider it.
Transparency is crucial here: regular donors need to know (or easily find out) whom to contact if they want to change or stop the donation. This should be easy and possible at any time!
Read more about this topic in our blog article: Fundraising Tips: Receiving Monthly Donations.
6. Place Great Importance on Service
Inquiries are always a sign of interest. Therefore, you should not just answer them “quickly on the side” but take the time to respond quickly and thoroughly. Otherwise, you miss the chance to strengthen the bond with the inquirer.
Be approachable for your supporters and promptly address their questions and concerns. This greatly contributes to trust, as your donors will know they can always turn to you and your team.
Pro Tips:
Exclusive Events
From time to time, say “thank you” in a special way to particularly loyal donors, major donors, sponsors, etc. For example, invite them to an exclusive benefit concert or dinner or organize a meet-and-greet with celebrities.
Offer Exclusive Information and Insights into Your Work
People who have a strong interest in your non-profit will surely appreciate exclusive opportunities to learn more about you. You could invite them for a tour of your facilities or provide them with exclusive content such as interviews, videos, guides, studies, etc.
Celebrities Enhance Your Organization’s Credibility
Try to recruit celebrities as “ambassadors” for your non-profit. They are in the public eye themselves and carefully consider whom they publicly support. If a celebrity trusts your organization, your donors can also trust it with peace of mind.
Pay Attention to the Little Things
It’s not just the big things that contribute to donor retention. It’s like a romantic relationship: small gestures and words also contribute to the overall picture. For example, it makes a difference what appears on the donor’s bank statement. Does it just show your organization’s name and a cryptic number? Instead, use personalized purposes—for example, you can thank them again here. Read more about this here: Personalized Purpose on the Bank Statement.
Donor Retention: Not Rocket Science
Fundamentally, it’s not that difficult to retain donors for your non-profit. It just takes a few good ideas, consistently executed measures, and a mindset of appreciation. You will see that personal donor care, interesting and up-to-date information, and well-thought-out donation programs can turn one-time donors into loyal supporters—which in turn means more donations for your charitable work.
