Donor Retention is Easier Than We Thought! Here's the Key.

We all know it is infinitely more expensive to acquire new donors than it is to keep our existing donors. But, we are often focused on expanding our donor pipeline rather than deepening relationships with our existing donors. Some say they don’t want to ‘bother’ their existing donors by asking too much of them, while others struggle with maintaining connections during these challenging and somewhat uncomfortable times. Whatever the reason, we all need to challenge ourselves to do more in the area of donor stewardship if we want to increase donor retention rates and ultimately grow our fundraising programs.

Develop real and meaningful relationships with as many of your donors as possible. Keep in mind that strong relationships are two sided. All too often, we focus a lot of time and energy on creating the perfect message to send to our constituents and end up running out of time to have interactions with them. So, rather than focusing on sending messages, focus on creating opportunities for interaction that allow your donors to communicate back with you.

Listen. Most people will tell you what is important to them if you just take the time to listen. By listening to our constituents, we cut down on time and energy spent trying to figure out how best to communicate with them.

By creating opportunities for interaction and listening to our donors, we can most effectively communicate impact to our donors that translates to positive experiences and feelings toward our cause and organization.

By developing a stewardship plan where you thoughtfully communicate with your donors consistently throughout the year, you will greatly increase your donor retention rates because at the end of the day, people give to people.

Marti Barrow, CFRE
Vice President of Client Services
PRIDE Philanthropy