Chief Strategy Officer, Christy Bergman, talks donor retention

By Chief Strategy Officer, Christy Bergman, and JVA Alumni, Ali Brieske.

In advance of this week’s training and next week’s [Development Intensive], Christy and Ali sat down to follow-up on last week’s blog, and answer another question from readers: so after I find donors, how do I keep them? For some quick donor retention tips from Christy, check out this week’s brief video blog, which is focused on how to incorporate donor retention activities into both your marketing/communications and fundraising plans.

Here is some more philanthropy-insider information from JVA’s fundraising guru and marketing maven:

Ali: So, Christy, last week you talked about fundraising’s biggest question: where to find donors. Thanks for sharing some quick thoughts. Readers are eager to hear more from you—and this time about donor retention.

Essentially, now that we have these new donors, how do we keep them?

Christy: Great question—and really among the most important. It is far less expensive to keep a current donor than it is to find a new one. And retention is really all about stewardship—the process of thanking, recognizing and communicating impact to your donors. Stewardship is what keeps retention rates high, and even makes upgrades possible. When your donors happy, it means that you know who they are and why they give. You’re making it clear that their investment is meaningful and appreciated, and that their involvement truly makes a difference.

Ali: Where do you start with building stewardship or donor retention into your work, then?

Christy: To start—just as with finding new donors—the first step is to assess your current donors. Who are they? How did they come to you? What do they have in common? And then, what makes them happy? What have you heard from them that keeps them coming back, and how are you ultimately fulfilling their wishes and communicating with them? The first step in any revisions or improvement to your fundraising efforts is to first thoroughly assess what you’re already doing.

Then, once you’ve mapped out what you know about your keeps your donors happy—their motivations, their interests and their general communication needs—determine how you can do that kind of stewardship and retention work—realistically and with support from others—throughout the year. I recommend building two things:

  1. Create specific stewardship activities for each giving level. For example, your major donors will get a “thank you” call within 24 hours of the gift, a personal email accompanying every monthly newsletter, a personal note on all event invitations, etc. and so forth for all of your giving levels. You should also coordinate these activities with whatever donor benefits and recognition you’re awarding at the same levels.
  2. Once you’ve established these stewardship activities, build them into your calendar so you do not have to think about them all the time. Basically, the gist is the more you plan time for your stewardship activities, the easier it will be to schedule your time to do it. Many times stewardship falls by the wayside, and don’t underestimate just how special and valuable it is for your donors to hear from you unexpectedly and thoughtfully.

Ali: And then how do you keep on top of this work? A lot of our clients are wearing several hats on one-man/woman fundraising shops.

Christy: We like to say that “fundraising is everybody’s business.” This is so true when discussing the ongoing work of thanking, recognizing and communicating with donors. It has to be embedded in the culture of your organization and expected of everyone from the front office to the board. First, you have to establish the structure, process and policies around saying thank you to those who make your work possible. Then, it is about giving your staff and board tools and supporting roles within this work.

Ali: This is great—do you dive into this more during [DI]?

Christy: We will most definitely talk about this in greater detail—with a lot of time to share best practices as a group with the professionals in the room—but I know JVA’s followers are eager to here more now, so here are other simple steps:

  • Make it easy—do you have monthly, “evergreen” or multi-year giving programs and renewals with easy, attractive technologies, options and benefits?
  • Get the board involved as much as possible. Thanking donors is really fun—and for some board members, a lot more fun than making the ask and still a vital role in the fundraising work of your organizations. Involve board members in the “thank you” calls after receiving the gift and/or annually during a “thank-a-thon” in which the board calls all the donors.
  • Make sure you have several non-ask communications with your donors throughout the year, tailoring these communications whenever possible and aligned with the individual donor’s interest(s) and impact. Send them an article that you think they’d like, wish them a happy birthday, congratulate them on work they’ve done with another organization, etc.
  • Be sure to honor your donor’s desired preference for contact (e.g., do not mail) and recognition (e.g., The Nava Family vs. Juan Nava vs. Anonymous), as well as stay consistent with who they likely want to hear from within your organization.
  • And, my favorite and most crucial tip—ask them for advice. I mentioned this in last week’s blog, too; the idea that a connection and investment through advice is often deeper than financial for donors. As you’re creating stewardship activities and communications, ask your closest donors what they want to hear from you!

Ali: Thanks for these insider tips, Christy.

Christy: Of course! I’m so excited for DI and the chance to meet some more awesome changemakers in our community. I’ll be sure to share back any new best practices, too!

REGISTER FOR DEVELOPMENT INTENSIVE