Our key Phrase is that we help nonprofits increase impact through technology. Let’s begin with your hot button issue, funding. In future blogs, we will explore the effectiveness of excellent communication and how you can use your website to attract and engage your audiences.
Improved Data About Donors
First the bad news, your largest problem does not show on your financial statement.
Donor turnover may be the most significant hidden cost to your nonprofit. Identifying and focusing on the data about return donors will provide more funding for your services. Proper use of technology is the most accurate and efficient way to explore and retain data. We are not making this up.
70% of first time donors in a year, do not contribute a second time. Donor retention on average is only at 30%. — 2016 Fundraising Project
Gift attrition is a term used to quantify reduced funding from prior donors.
In 2014 for every $100 generated from new and previously lapsed donors was offset by $91 in gift attrition.
The source for this information is the 2016 Fundraising Project that summarizes data from 9,922 survey respondents covering year-to-year fundraising results for 2014-2015.
For you to see where your organization stands, you will need to know the answers to the following questions:
- What is your organization’s donor retention rate?
- Is retention improving? Why or why not.
- What do you know about those who gave a second time?
- Annual or regular donation?
- More than prior years?
- How much time was donated compared to previous years?
- Did they influence any first-time donors?
- What do you know about the first-time donors?
- The result of an event or a fundraising drive?
- Prior user of your services? Individually or a family member?
- In which of your services are they most interested?
- Do you have the data to answer those questions?
- Are you confident about the accuracy of your data?
- Suggest your read our article on the importance of clean data.
What technology tactics can you apply to stay connected with returning donors?
What different tactics can you use to learn about your first-time donors?
And specifically, how do you engage each category of donor more deeply with your organization?
Please let us know what you think!
More Report Highlights From the 2016 Fundraising Effectiveness Project report
- Participating agencies raised $8.628 billion dollars in 2015 compared to $8.196 billion
dollars in 2014 for an overall rate of growth in giving of 5.3% ($4.695 billion). - Participating organizations had 8.27 million donors in contributing in 2015 compared to 8.11 million donors in contributing in 2014 for an overall rate of growth in donors of 2% (160,878).
- Gains of $4.695 billion in gifts were generated from new, upgraded current, and previously lapsed donors were offset by losses of $4.264 billion through reduced gifts and lapsed donors. It means that, while there was a positive $431 million) $91 in losses offset net gain-in-giving, every $100 gained in 2015 through gift attrition.
- Gains of 4.547 million in new and previously lapsed donors were offset by losses of 4.386 million in lapsed donors. There was a growth- of 161,000-donors, and every 100 donors gained in 2015 was offset by 96 lost donors through attrition.
Additional Resources:
Graphic by Fabien Barral on Unsplash
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