Plan for it now – or never.
Did you know? Research shows that the donors you worked so hard to get in through the door in the peak fundraising season – from Dussehra last year right up to 31st March this year – are already leaving, or have left.
Consider these findings, from a study on Fundraising Effectiveness Survey conducted by the Association of Fundraising Professionals and The Urban Institute in the US.
- A gain of every 100 donors in a year is offset by the loss of 105 donors who just stopped giving.
- For every Rs 100 raised, not-for-profits lose Rs 96 because of a drop in other donations.
Let’s unpack these facts for you.
- A gain of every 100 donors in a year is offset by the loss of 105 donors who just stopped giving.
Which means that you end up spending more money every year replacing the donor who just left.
And the sad part is: These donors didn’t need to, probably didn’t want to, leave.
Donors don’t just stop giving. They stop giving because we stop listening to them, or paying them attention. When we treat them like real people – rather than numbers on a database – they stay.
- For every Rs 100 raised, not-for-profits lose Rs 96 because of a drop in other donations.
Which also means that you worked hard to raise money to replace the money you would otherwise lose.
And why do you lose that money? Because most not-for-profits pay more attention to donor acquisition, and not as much to what they call donor retention.
Acquisition is what’s in fashion. Acquisition is what consultants and agencies sell you. Acquisition is what the leadership wants to see to decide next year’s fundraising budget.
And that’s the trickiest chicken and egg problem we’ve seen. So here’s a word of advice.
This year, when you present your fundraising plan and budget, take a long-term view. Plan for donor nurturing, in addition to acquisition.
And this is the right time to do so. Most non-profits tend to look at post March giving, leading up to May and beyond, as a “dry” period. But in our experience, it’s anything but. Giving tends to continue over the summer months. But more importantly, it’s when donor nurturing can be at its peak.
As the ink dries on your fundraising plans, ask yourself this. Issues of long-term development and social justice require committed, regular and continued support.
How do we influence one-time supporters to become long-term investors in these issues?
How do we move them from being one-time charitable givers to committed donors and finally, investors in long-term development and social justice?
If you want to talk at length about this, feel free to email me.
