A Strong Donor Relations Program Means Repeat Donations
How you say “thank you” to your donors could be the most important communication you generate as a nonprofit organization. How you recognize their generosity, and your plan to keep them engaged with your organization, will often mean the difference between a one-time gift and long-term support.
Components of a strong donor relations program
Acknowledgment, recognition, and stewardship are the cornerstones of a strong donor relations program. When you put all three of these concepts together with your donors, you generate a synergy that if handled correctly can ensure a solid future for your nonprofit.
Donor acknowledgment is more than just a “thank you letter”. Any donor giving more than $250 in a single contribution to a tax-exempt nonprofit organization will need a written “acknowledgment” from the organization to claim that deduction on their individual or corporate tax return. And we all know that you can say thank you in a variety of ways including phone calls, personal notes, testimonials from those benefiting from the gift, and more.
Donor recognition, on the other hand, is an expression of appreciation to or for those who provide charitable support to the nonprofit. Strong donor recognition plans, which are often public, will authentically represent the mission and impact of the nonprofit organization, communicate the important relationship between the donor and the nonprofit, acknowledge the donation and align it directly to community impact, and accurately identify the donor with name and logo.
Donor recognition should be delivered in proportion to the size and value of the donation. A well thought out strategy with built in levels of recognition is the best way to provide giving options clearly and concisely to your donors and allow them to select the level of giving they feel is best suited for them.
Donor stewardship is the process of managing the relationship between the donor and the nonprofit organization resulting in continuous giving. Stewarding a donor, simply put, is what a nonprofit does (or should be doing) from the time of the first gift and lasting until that donor no longer has a relationship with the organization. Stewarding is a process by which the organization builds a growing relationship with the donor whereby constant communication and engagement deepens that relationship.
Thank often and recognize donors
Most of us agree that thanking a donor 7 times is the magic number. Many nonprofits create a calendar of thank you activities to ensure they reach at least 7. Examples of acknowledgments include
Prepare a personal email or phone call from the Executive Director or President.
Pen a hand-written note, sometimes prepared by a volunteer.
Create a thank you video. Plan social media call outs.
Celebrate milestones: birthdays, anniversaries, etc.
Arrange a thank you phone-a-thons, with volunteers.
Host a donor appreciation reception or event. Personal, face to face acknowledgment is the best kind of thank you.
Like acknowledgments, there are many ways nonprofits can handle donor recognition. Some common examples include:
Website placement, often with links to the company if these are corporate donors.
Appreciation gifts such as plaques designed for the donor.
An award given at an appreciation event.
Publishing a Donor Honor Roll.
Press release or announcements of new/special donations.
Feature article in your nonprofit newsletter.
Naming of spaces or programs. This recognition is typically saved for the largest of gifts.
Stewardship can be synonymous with “building relationships.” The stronger your relationship with your donors, the more likely they are to be retained as donors. More importantly, these relationships often grow into major and planned gifts that ensure the legacy of your organization.
Stewardship activities should be ongoing and wired into your program, and include examples such as:
Schedule one-to-one donor meetings with the President.
Engage board members as donor relationship managers.
Profile donors in the monthly newsletter.
Develop and deliver an impact report to donors.
Send a gift anniversary card to recognize donor loyalty and have it signed by the President. Recognize years of giving.
Be aware of significant milestones for the partner and recognize them. (mergers, changes in leadership, etc.)
Deliver a gift unique to the donor. Celebrate that event publicly.
While there are some items that can be applicable to all donors (like an honor roll), the rule of thumb is to be as personal as possible in thanking, recognizing, and stewarding your donors. The result – strong donor retention and elevation.
Many nonprofits struggle with donor relations programs
Donor stewardship is often an afterthought, which is risky. In the business of the day, stewardship programs can easily fall by the wayside, especially since they are labor-intensive and don’t always make the priority list.
In the for-profit world, the best customers are current customers. The same is true for a nonprofit organization. It takes far fewer resources (time, money, effort) to renew or upgrade a current donor than it does to find, cultivate, solicit, and close a new prospect, making stewardship not only beneficial to your fundraising strategy, but also cost-effective for your organization.
The challenge, however, is the lack of time and personnel to carefully manage all the moving parts of a comprehensive donor relations program. Without adequate administrative support to track your activities with each donor, it’s tough for volunteers or even professional staff to engage in full-blown donor relations programs.
But it can be done. Start simple and build upon the programs you already have in place, using that magic “7” as a guide. Set some specific goals or benchmarks which will make tracking and measuring your progress easier. Most importantly, consider providing dedicated administrative support to your donor relations program.
Nonprofit Virtual Assistants to the rescue
A certified and trained Nonprofit Virtual Assistant (NPVA) can make a significant difference in managing your donor relations program. Having the help of an NPVA will ensure that donors experience timely and high-quality interactions that foster long-term engagement and investment with your nonprofit. Your NPVA can navigate the acknowledgment, recognition, and stewardship processes so that volunteers or professional staff can concentrate on cultivating and soliciting donors. Some specific tasks might include:
Acknowledging donor support/thanking donors seven times.
Surveying donor input and feedback/asking them what they think.
Creating communications to share with donors the impact of their support.
Scheduling personal emails or phone calls from the organization’s leadership.
Helping with video clips; Ordering gifts unique to your organization.
Planning donor appreciation receptions or events.
Scheduling social media call outs.
Building in donor spotlights on your website or in your newsletter.
Managing your constituent database to ensure all opportunities for renewal are maximized.
Maintaining a tracking system that monitors contacts with donors.
The anticipated outcomes of successful stewardship include improved donor retention rates, increased level of donor gifts, increased donor referrals, and a strengthened commitment to the organization’s mission. Nonprofit Virtual Assistants are an option worthy of consideration.
Your best donors are your current donors
A strong well-managed donor relations program will undoubtedly lead to greater giving. Admittedly, this area is often overlooked or placed on the back burner due to other pressing tasks within the organization, not the least of which is the actual solicitation of gifts. But, know that this does not need to prevent you from having a stellar donor relations program. It requires management, tracking, some creativity and engagement from your group – all things that can be provided by a Nonprofit Virtual Assistant in an extremely focused and cost-effective manner.
Stewarding your current donors well will ultimately instill the habit of giving into your donors, translating into larger fundraising revenue. If you need a little help to do that effectively, get it. You’ll find that the outcome will justify the investment.
Let us help you find the resources you need. Contact us here or schedule a call to share.