By Mandy Cloninger
As I was preparing my own taxes this year, flipping through a stack of gift receipts and donor thank yous, it struck me. Where is the love?
Quite a few of the nonprofits my family chooses to support didn’t send a year-end summary this year. I received a few automated ones via email. A few in the mail. But it was February, and with Valentine’s around the corner, I had to reach out and ask — can I get my year-end giving summary?
There are a few best practices that I think we should all agree on!
- Send thank you letters to donors within 24-48 hours of gift receipt.
- Be sure to tell a good story of a client, patient, neighbor that has been helped because of the gift, even better include a picture too. Statistics tell, but stories sell.
- Send an annual summary of giving to your recurring/monthly and larger donors and don’t forget #2!
The number one reason donors quit supporting an organization is they don’t feel connected or needed. The overall donor retention rate for 2022 was 42.6%, the lowest rate on record, and average first-time donor retention rate was at a staggering 19.2%. (FEP) The news is glim as initial reports for 2023 show declining donors, dollars and retention falling even lower.
How can you combat the donor churn and record-low donor retention? Start showing the love to your donors.
Take every opportunity to tell donors you love them! This Valentine’s Day – show your donors some love. Be creative, send a KISS! Keep it simple silly, but just do it.
What do donors want? To know that you received their gift, you’re using it and what kind of impact it is making.
Here’s a great example of some love I recently received from ECHO, a local nonprofit serving Eastern Hillsborough County neighbors in crisis with emergency food, clothing and life-stabillizing programs and resources. This is a cool ornament I received in December that went right on my tree. What happened when I got their year-end appeal after that? I also got a kind postcard of thanks after the start of the year.
