The latest declining fundraising trends, and those of the last few years, are troubling to say the least. Nonprofits are seeing a decline in giving when adjusted for inflation, giving by individuals is down, and retention metrics continue to decline.
Yet community needs continue to increase. With the number of nonprofits fighting for the same donors and dollars, raising funds seems like a never-ending battle.
If your nonprofit is struggling with these trends, you might wonder what you, as a fundraiser, can do.
The good news is that there are ways to overcome declining fundraising trends right now. And the even better news is that some don’t require much effort or investment.
Your mission depends on your donors and the funds you raise. Your community counts on you, and even your donors count on you because they’ve already invested in your mission.
Consider these three strategies to overcome declining fundraising trends.
1. Embrace Digital Transformation
Donors of all ages are becoming more comfortable with smartphones, QR codes, websites, and online giving. However, it’s up to you to make it easy for your donors to find the donation page and make the gift.
Leveraging your digital tools and platforms is crucial. If you haven’t tested your donation page in a while, donate yourself or ask someone else to do it and report back. You need to address any friction encountered on your donation page. If you’re unsure, see how many people click on the donate page and how many actually make the gift.
If you’re feeling stuck, NextAfter provides valuable resources for nonprofits aiming to optimize their donation pages and leverage insights from extensive research. Be sure you also know what features your CRM platform provides. Find out what kind of retargeting and abandoned donation campaigns you can implement.
Every organization is different, but the truth is, more people give online every year, but they may need a nudge to get there. That’s why direct mail still plays a really important role.
Create a QR code that goes to a specific landing page and include it on your direct mail letters and postcards. That way, it’s easy to track the number of gifts that come in, driven by your direct mail efforts—you might be pleasantly surprised.
2. Diversify Your Fundraising Channels
My mother always taught me never to put all my eggs in one basket. I should have plans A and B (and sometimes even plans C and D).
That’s where your fundraising channels come into play. Many nonprofits have historically relied on grant funding, and they coasted nicely until the grants stopped. That’s why examining your donor base and activities is important, and creating an annual budget is critical.
You need to know how much money comes in from grants and how much comes from donors (including direct mail, online giving, events, and more). You need to have a strategy that includes working with your major gift officers and other fundraisers. Develop a recurring giving program and ask small donors to give monthly. Work with your fundraiser(s) to ensure mid-level donors are being nurtured and bequests are worked into your strategy.
Once you have a strategy in place, look at the channels you use. Is it email marketing? Perhaps you use telemarketing and direct mail. Some donors will only give via online channels. Some might only come to events and not give throughout the year. Determine the cost to raise a dollar for each of those channels and analyze what is working best for your nonprofit. You might be surprised by what you find.
If you’ve only been reaching out via direct mail, consider sending a follow-up email or text message. You might learn that some donors prefer a different approach or need reminders.
A tool like Virtuous can help you manage what kind of communications a donor prefers, then you can leverage that into meeting your donors in the space they prefer.
3. Strengthening Donor Relationships
Saying thank you and focusing on building a relationship with your donor is critical. One of the greatest opportunities for nonprofits for building a donor relationship is thanking a donor after their first gift. It needs to go beyond a receipt—send your donors a handwritten thank you note, or if they prefer email, you can send a personal email. You need to acknowledge more than the transaction.
Even better, you can set up a new donor welcome email series with your CRM platform. Start by thanking them for their donation and interest in the nonprofit. Then, follow up with an email about what their donation provides. For a food bank, this might include the number of meals given per month. Then, send an email featuring a real recipient of their generosity.
From there, you can engage with them to better learn why they support your organization. Find out what brought them to you and why they chose to donate.
Better Fundraising coined the process: Ask. Thank. Report. Repeat. If you just remember that formula, you’ll do great.
Repeat this process—continue to keep your donors informed of your organization’s needs, ask them for a gift, thank them, and share information. Don’t just wait for certain times of the year. Engage with your donor regularly. A nonprofit CRM can help with this so you can see when donors were engaged, and you can time it just right. With tools like Virtuous, you can make notes on donor preferences to ensure you are reaching out when and how that donor wants to be contacted.
If your donor doesn’t feel appreciated, they won’t give to you again. Don’t underestimate the importance of a thank you.
The more you can do to build personal relationships by phone, email, or in person, the better off your organization will be.
Tackle the Declining Fundraising Trends
There will always be obstacles in the way of fundraising. However, keeping these tactics in mind will help boost the loyalty of current donors and build relationships with future donors. A robust nonprofit CRM, like Virtuous, can help fill the gaps and automate your processes where possible so you have time to build those critical relationships.
