donor attrition « Nonprofit Technology & Fundraising Blogs

Are thank-you calls more effective than solicitations?

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

A few nights ago the phone rang at about 8pm. When I answered, a woman introduced herself and said she was calling in regard to my support of a non-profit called The Steppingstone Foundation that helps inner-city children attend private schools. “Oh great,” a late-night solicitation call I thought — but I was wrong.

She explained that her children were beneficiaries of my donation and were now attending a private school in my area. She told me what a difference my gift was making to her family and that she just wanted to thank me for my kindness. It felt really good, and it truly personalized the impact of this organization’s mission. The whole call took perhaps 2 minutes, but virtually guarantees that I will continue to support this organization for years to come.

So the next time your considering a phone campaign, consider making it a thank-a-thon.

Posted in donor attrition, fundraising basics, thank-you | 1 Comment »

Reducing Donor Attrition with a Monthly Giving Programs

Tuesday, July 1st, 2008

Why do donors stop giving?

Sometimes they may no longer be interested in your cause, but frequently it is just that they forget or misplace your solicitation, given the many distractions in their busy lives.

Every time we ask for their support, we’re asking them to take action — write a check or go to a website to make a donation. Even if a high percentage of them do it, some percentage won’t. The effect over time is pretty dramatic. For instance if each year 75% of those who gave the prior year renew their support, 100 donors in year 1 will become 32 donors in year 5 (100 *.75*.75*.75*.75=31.6).

A great solution is to stop giving donors a decision to make when you ask every year. If you don’t already have one, establish a monthly recurring giving program. Yes it takes a bit more effort to get donors to sign up, but they just need to make that decision once. Let them know that they can discontinue their commitment at any time — but now it requires them to take action to stop giving. You’ve now harnessed one of the most reliable aspects of human behavior — inertia.

In studies by Harvey McKinnon, author of Hidden Gold and a leading authority on monthly giving programs, donors that enroll in monthly pledge programs generate at least 800% more in donations over their life-time.

If you’d like to learn more about tools and techniques for establishing sustaining or recurring gift plans you are welcome to download a free article we wrote called Creating A Successful Preauthorized Gift Program

Posted in donor attrition, Monthly giving, recurring gifts, sustaining donors | No Comments »