Have you tried a gratitude campaign?

As the days fly off the calendar, daylight hours dwindle, and we’re starting to gear up for the holiday and year-end season, a lot of nonprofits start focusing on fundraising and making asks. Sometimes to a single-minded degree.

Let’s face it, most nonprofits only talk to their donors in November and December. They neglect their donors until the final few months of the year and then they start talking with them. Wait, scratch that. They don’t start talking WITH their donors, they start talking TO them...or sometimes just AT them. 

Year after year, I get approached by nonprofits that are disappointed by their fundraising results. “We hustle like crazy around our gala, but we don’t raise any more than the year before.” “Most of our donor base is one-time donors, and we can’t get them to come back!” “I just need new donors, mine suck.”

It’s hard to tell nonprofits this (I know, you’re already overwhelmed doing the awesome work you do), but it’s not your donors that suck, it’s you!

Okay, I don’t actually mean you suck. That was to make sure you were awake and paying attention. I love you, you do great work, thanks for being you...our world needs you. But as an industry, we really, truly suck at donor engagement. 

Wait, what’s donor engagement?

Glad you asked. Donor engagement is the process by which we bring our donors into our work and make them feel like a part of our community, like they are a fundamental part of the great work we do. We need to make our donors feel responsible for our successes; they are the heroes that can help us when we fail, and are directly responsible for the impact that our nonprofit is having on the world.

And you can be forgiven for not realizing this is a key component of a fundraising program. So much of our industry is focused on more and better solicitations; the “get rich quick schemes” of our industry...not doing the longer, more time-consuming work of relationship building with key individuals who can make your organization successful for the long-term.

I was explaining donor engagement once to a nonprofit Executive Director. He rolled his eyes and exclaimed “Why are donors such a bunch of whiny babies? I mean really, to get their money, I have to stroke their egos and make them feel like beautiful, unique little snowflakes? This is why I hate donors!” 

And while that was a particularly un-filtered response, it’s not an uncommon sentiment that I hear from nonprofit leaders. So often I hear some version or other of: I just want donors to hand over the money and let me get back to work. Why do I need to TALK to them?

That may seem extreme, but it’s expressed in these ways that might feel more familiar to you:

• “I think our mission is so important, people should just feel inspired to give.” 

• “I don’t think it’s my job to explain why this cause is so important, isn’t it obvious?”

• “If the donor doesn’t know what great work we’re doing, it’s because they aren’t paying attention.”

Have you ever had those thoughts? I mean, I hear you. You’ve got a lot on your plate and you just need your donors to be there for you when you call for help. I understand. 

But think about it this way, your donors are people just like you. Do you donate to other nonprofits beyond your own? If you answered yes, how up-to-speed are YOU on what the nonprofits YOU support are doing? My guess is you’re not all that tuned in. Maybe you read an email once a month, maybe glance at a social media post. Am I right?

Okay, realize that you’re probably as up-to-speed on those nonprofits as your donors are on YOUR nonprofit. And sit with that for a minute. 

Your email inbox is overflowing, you don’t have time to read every update from that other nonprofit you support. You get so much junk mail, you just throw the newsletter they sent in the trash. Whatever you do with other nonprofits’ materials, that’s most likely what your donors do with your nonprofit’s materials. Make sense?

Now that we’ve gotten that reality check, let’s talk about what DOES get a donor’s attention. Usually, your donor will notice your year end campaign. That’s because you start to talk to them ALL THE TIME. You send emails and direct mail; the campaign is all over your social media. They can’t fail to miss the campaign because it’s everywhere!

But they still don’t give. Why? Because the only time you bothered to go above and beyond to get their attention was when you needed their money. You don’t need THEM, you need their money. They get that message, loud and clear.

What to do though? In a cluttered world, what stands out?

It’s a constant refrain of mine: Nobody wants to be your ATM. So don’t treat your donors like you can just push the right series of numbers and get money out.

Here’s what I do...I put as much effort into gratitude campaigns as I do fundraising campaigns throughout the year. And for every fundraising campaign I run, I run a gratitude campaign. (I actually had a donor ask me to please stop thanking her, she’d heard it enough. But in that same phone call, she asked how much our organization needed for a campaign we had coming up...so...)

Before I launch a fundraising campaign, I plan gratitude campaigns. And as much effort as I put into the fundraising campaign, I put that same effort into the gratitude campaign. I don’t ask, I just let my donors know how much I appreciate their support. I connect the donor to the client my nonprofit serves or to the impact my nonprofit is having in the community. I make the donor feel appreciated and valued...but more than anything else, I make the donor feel responsibility and ownership over the organization’s success.

And when your donors feel responsible for your success, they give because they’ve got skin in the game. They feel needed, not just for their money, but for who they are...their own beliefs, dreams, and good they want to do in the world.

If you’ve never done a gratitude campaign before, don’t worry. I don’t know that it’s really “a thing” in the nonprofit world. But this is the top “thing” I’ve done to increase revenues for every organization I’ve worked for or with. And it isn’t about flattering egos or making people feel like beautiful unique snowflakes. It’s about genuinely creating a bond between the donor and the nonprofit...and more importantly, the people the nonprofit serves. 

How do you do a gratitude campaign? Here are my top 5 tips!

1. Build a list of donors who have given in the previous 12-month period.

First, do you even know the names of the donors who have given in the past 12 months? I’m always shocked when I talk to fundraisers or executive directors who don’t really even know the names of their top ten donors. Sometimes that’s because there’s no central hub or donor database that they’ve put the names in (so, first things first, take care of putting together a donor database). But more often it’s because they just don’t take the time to even look at the names on the checks...they just enter it into the database and move on. 

But realize this, while you can just cash the check and spend the money, that donor gave that money to you because your organization is doing something that is important to them. They had to learn your name, learn your mission, and care enough to part with their money. So do your part and learn their names...not just the amount on the check.

So go into your donor database (or wherever this information is) and build a list of everyone who has given in the last 12 months, along with their contact information and how much they’ve given. Get it all in one list (you’ll use it later), and look through it. Learn the names. 

2. Think about the best channels to reach these donors.

At a minimum, I send a letter (handwritten if I have few enough donors) and a series of emails.

How you acquire a donor is how you keep a donor. So if they gave to a mailed appeal, mail them a thank you letter. If they gave to an email appeal, email them to say thanks. Do both to stand out in the crowd. But make it as personal as you have the capacity to do. (I like phone calls…but more on that later.)

I also like to do it in a way that invites engagement. So rather than email a blanket “thanks so much” via my mass mail system, I send individual emails (truth: sometimes I use mail merge, so I can do it with a click, but it looks like a personal email to my donors) to say “Thank you so much for your gift. It means a lot to me and to our organization. Do you mind if I ask what inspired you to give to us?”

I start a conversation with my donors, and so many email me back to tell me. I learn so much that way about the donors themselves, but also what is and isn’t working in my fundraising communications. It’s such a big win!

3. Engage the board in a thank-a-thon.

So your board won’t fundraise for you? No problem. I introduce board members to the wonderful world of fundraising through thank-a-thons. No need to ask, just thank! (And let’s get real, if your board members won’t pick up a phone to say thanks to a donor, what the heck are they doing on your board? That’s, like, the least you could possibly ask of a board member.) 

Thank-a-thons are SO much fun, and most of the time board members walk away from them re-energized and more ready to fundraise...because they hear from donors directly how much they love the organization and what donating means to the donor. When your board members realize that people joyfully give to your organization, they’re able to joyfully ask.

4. Host an “Investor Meeting.”

I LOVE doing these, and donors love them too! One of my favorite donor “benefits” to offer is face-to-face meetings and opportunities to ask questions of a nonprofit’s leadership. I call them “Investor Meetings.” For-profit companies report back to their investors in stockholder meetings, and I think of our donors and supporters as the investors in our nonprofits...so host meetings with them where you share the impact of their investment on the community you serve. 

Donors who are really invested in your mission have questions; they want to be brought in on the ground level. Regular conference calls or Zoom meetings (or in-person meetings if it’s safe and convenient to do so) with your donors can really go a long way to help build donor confidence and long-term, consistent giving. 

One advocacy organization I worked with had a quarterly call with donors. I was consistently blown away by how engaged their donors were, how much they seemed to read the updates, and how much they wanted to help the organization succeed. Their donors asked questions that provoked new thinking internally and helped shape future actions for the nonprofit…and when that happened we always reported back to that donor. Donors LOVED it! They could see not only how their money made a difference, but how their care made a difference. Give your donors that opportunity whenever you can. It’s good for them, and it’s good for you.

5. Schedule one-on-one conversations with your most valuable donors.

Okay, notice I said “most valuable donors,” not necessarily your biggest donors. I had a donor once that gave an organization I worked for $25,000...but he made us jump through obscene amounts of hoops, kept us on the fence for almost a year, and barely came through until I was on the phone nearly crying with frustration. It was like a pity check by the end. He didn’t make my MVD list. He came off my list and I never really talked to him again. Sure, he could have “made it rain” and given us an even bigger check, but at what cost? He clearly didn’t care about our organization or the people we served. 

Instead, I focus these conversations with the donors that I can tell are caring and committed. Honestly, over a 40 year time period, another donor had given that same organization $48,000 (just in amounts of $100 per month). Most nonprofits would overlook that donor, but I treasured my conversations with that donor. He was thoughtful, he was committed, he valued the people we served...and he was more valuable than that donor that gave us the single $25,000 check and peaced out. He also made a bequest in his will, so he’d be able to leave a legacy with the organization he cared so much about. I showed him how much we valued that commitment and care by caring for him, calling consistently, checking in when I heard he’d had a hospital stay, and so forth. It’s not about ego stroking, it’s about creating caring communities and showing commitment to the people who are committed to you.

Look through your donor rolls. Who are those donors you just couldn’t possibly exist without? Who actually sustains your mission? Give those people a chance to engage with you, share their thoughts, and feel valued. 

Donor engagement isn’t a schtick, it’s a way of creating community.

So often in fundraising trainings, conferences, and so forth, I see “experts” pitching “donor engagement” as some kind of schtick. But they aren’t talking about real engagement, they are talking about quick, easy, and (often) expensive ways of creating obligation with your donor. These are things like gifts, peer-pressure-y emails, and other things—to be 100% honest—make me doubt an organization rather than continue to support them.

Other ways I hear experts talk about donor engagement is the ego stroking angle…and it’s reserved only for your biggest donors. You focus on taking them out to dinner, gifts, fundraising tourism, and more, and you hang your smaller donors out to dry.

For me, donor engagement is part of creating community. Your donors are the investors in your mission, whether they gave you $50 or $50,000. What we forget when we focus on major donor cultivation is that to the school teacher who gave you $50, parting with that money was probably harder than the big business person who gave you $10,000. That school teacher needs to know they matter as much as the wealthy business person.

When we show genuine care and curiosity toward our donors, they respond in kind. When your gratitude comes from an authentic desire to understand your donor and include them in your mission, they invest more in that mission. It’s not a schtick, it’s a way of building community. And having a community that is invested in your success is something that can take your nonprofit far!

Are you ready to launch your gratitude campaign?

Need help with that? We’ve got you! Schedule a discovery call today to see if we can bake up a better fundraising recipe for your nonprofit so this year’s bake can rise to new heights!