You have donors contributing to your nonprofit by way of its
a) mission, vision, purpose and values
b) qualified and competent staff (trusted relationships)
c) impacted on constituents (e.g., Veterans, Patients, under-privileged Youth, emerging Artists, Students…).
GREAT!
But there may be a way to enhance and increase the way you connect with, engage, empower and serve your current and future donors. Especially in an ecosystem where charitable giving is declining, and attention spans are shrinking. You’ve noticed that standing out is becoming more difficult due to factors like a crowded marketplace, ‘information overload’ and the fact that there may be 100 other charitable organizations with similar goals/objectives as yours.
On top of these trends, digital convenience has transformed donor expectations, placing a significant emphasis on seamless, personalized experiences to match those of online shopping. Consider that your DMS or CRM must execute an entire series of actions surrounding an appeal – education, inspiration, ask, ask reminder, ask again, gift processing, automatic thank you, automatic gift receipts, post-gift drip campaigns and so on. Our world has changed and today’s younger donors, especially Millennials and Gen Z, expect intuitive immediacy via digital transactions.
While the above certainly applies to online giving, YE campaigns and more, let’s go back and focus on MAJOR GIFTS in the old fashion way of fundraising.
Clemons-Associates has seen firsthand what a seamless donor experience can deliver—increased donations, higher retention rates, stronger loyalty, and advocacy. Our principal, Craig C;lemons, was a frontline fundraiser for a Division One University Foundation (starting with a $300M campaign) before consulting with nearly 40+ nonprofit clients in a multitude of channels. We know the donor experience is crucial.
Better Donor Engagement DEVELOPMENT TOOLS
Delivered by Clemons-Associates
A great donor experience shows supporters that you value both their generosity and their time by making it easy for them to embrace your cause, engage with your organization, and expand your donor community.
What makes for a good donor experience?
Rebuilding Together national leader, Mike Edmison, has said, “We know donors are passionate.
But look for the expressed way they communicate who they are and how they see an improved world. Your nonprofit is a vehicle for them to make the impactful change they want to see in the world.”
The donor experience should be seen as a continuous journey. And while we know year-end giving continues to be important—a good donor relationship is ongoing throughout the year.
How can nonprofits elevate the donor experience?
While donors come from all walks of life and nonprofits vary in the causes they support and the communities they serve, one thing is certain: The donor experience should be seamless, streamlined, and supportive.
Empowering supporters can look like this: You make it easier for donors to give regularly. You make them ‘ambassadors’ so they endorse your story with others. You invite them to workshops, events and behind-the-scenes opportunities. You connect them to your impactful staff members or directly with constituents/recipients of your services.
Here are three ways nonprofits can do this
1) PRIORITIZE PESONALIZED MESSAGING
Given how much data today’s organizations have, donors expect messaging that’s tailored to them (your system should be able to use variable data). The way people discover your cause or find their way to your organization is by no means a one-size-fits-all journey—and both your engagement strategy and donation or landing page should reflect that.
Whether you create unique appeal segments or use machine learning to craft predictive ask amounts, more personalized donor experience does a lot to nurture a relationship rather than a transaction. A tailored experience invites them to be a valued member of your community. It builds trust and fosters loyalty—and loyal, recurring donors (those with active recurring donations or those who gave at least three times over five years) are the foundation of your long-term success.
2) MAKE IT EASY TO GIVE BACK
Your online donation process needs to be easy and intuitive. U.S. adults spend an estimated 88% of their time on mobile using apps, so immediacy and efficiency are key—both in how your page functions and how donors can engage it.
Your donation or landing page should be an optimized experience, so your donation page checklist should ask: Is my landing page fully responsive? Does it load in less than three seconds? Is it easily findable via search engines?
To remove potential barriers to giving, ensure consistency and accessibility across devices, campaigns, and donation methods. The data shows that when your page offers options like Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Venmo, donations are up to 50% faster and gift amounts are up to 64% higher.
3) MAKE IT EASY TO GIVE FORWARD
Empower your donors by driving more positive impact through social sharing. Once they’ve donated, ensure they’re readily able to share their support with their networks.
According to The Social State of Giving, half of Gen Z shares causes or fundraisers weekly, over half of Millennials share monthly, and more than half of Gen X shares occasionally. In fact, at least two in five Gen Z say that social media content has motivated them to research or donate to a cause, compared with one in five Millennials and Gen X.
To truly engage and support your donor community, you need to have a clear follow-up strategy in place. Are you leveraging the full power of your donation and landing pages with an ongoing testing roadmap? According to several resources, the average loyal donor gives four times the amount of the average passive donor, and recurring donors ultimately prove to be nine times more valuable than one-time donors.
The donor experience shapes your nonprofit's future
Clemons-Associates suggests you weave DONOR EXPERIENCE strategies, objectives into the following tools/resources/applications
a) Branding strategies
b) Messaging strategies
c) Case for Support
d) CRM/DMS (Donor Management System)
e) House Gatherings
f) One-on-One Donor Solicitations
g) On-on-Many Donor Solicitations
h) Board of Directors training, coaching
i) Campaign Committee training, coaching
j) Volunteers, Ambassadors training, coaching
k) Staff Members training, coaching
Bottom line:
A good donor experience is one that increases donations while building lasting relationships with your donor community. Focusing on the above principles to guide an improved donor experience will deliver short-term gains, yes, but it’s really about designing an ecosystem your organization’s long-term success.
By personalizing the experience for donors, inviting them into your community, and empowering them with the right tools to champion your cause, you strengthen each supporter’s commitment while helping them to expand your cause’s reach.
Clemons-Associates works closely with each client on developing these mission critical elements (we have developed and/or collected quite a tool chest over the last 25 years). Contact one of our team members and we can share case studies, templates and best practices tools.
Craig Clemons with Friend, Philanthropist and President/Founder/Board Chairman of Express Employment Professionals, Bob Funk, Sr.
Seeking expert assistance from seasoned professionals?
Contact Craig Clemons at craig@clemons-associates.com or one of our rock star associates for more details. Clemons & Associates is on standby to help you with brand identity, strategic messaging, campaigns, digital assets, programs/projects and/or development endeavors.