Getting The First Gift
(No Short-Cuts)
The Role of Donor Acquisitionin the
Donor Commitment Continuum
Getting The First Gift
The Donor Commitment Continuumand Relationship Building
Convert patrons, clients, patients, visitors, volunteers, readers, students into donors.
InterestThe Initial Gift (acquisition)Annual Gifts (retain, renew)Major GiftsThe Ultimate Gift
Short cuts lead to dead ends.
Getting The First Gift
The PreliminariesMission, programs, case for support
Do work that people care about, work that will invite them to
learn moreparticipatesupport financially
Remember what I just said about short cuts?
Getting The First Gift
Build a Contact List
Sources of names What other information to proactively collectTo buy or not to buy lists
Getting The First Gift
Personalize Your Appeals
“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them
feel.” - Maya Angelou
“Martin Luther King didn’t get up 50 years ago and say
‘I have a budget and a plan! ’ ”- Alan Clayton
Stories Transform Interest Into Action.
Getting The First Gift
Prepare to Analyze and Make Informed Choices
First, ask how you feel about & react to the multitude of solicitations you regularly receive.Consider a donor survey Study historical statistics and trendsIdentify and analyze resources Human - staff, volunteers Financial - expenditure budget Time for each desired appeal
Getting The First Gift
Track Acquisition Statistics, and use those statistics
Per Appeal Total cost # solicited $ raised Cost per donor
Track retention/renewal by the same categories to help you determine which acquisition appeals work best in the long run.
Getting The First Gift
Thank and inform your donors!
What’s the point of donor acquisition if you don’t keep ‘em?
Getting The First Gift
Acquisition Methods: Market Segmentation
The more personal the contact the greater the likelihood of YES, of a higher success rate, of larger gifts.
Direct mailOnlineTelephoneEventsIndividually
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Acquisition Method: Direct Mail
1 % success rate but steadily declining over the past decade
Getting The First Gift
Acquisition Method: Online
3 % Success Rate But your success is in large part dependent on
recipient
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Multi-Channel Solicitation
Email Mail PhoneLower response Higher response
Highest responseLower cost Higher cost Highest cost
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Events ConsiderationsInviteesFrequencyExisting EventsSolicitation-Specific EventsStaff and/or VolunteersCost
Getting The First Gift
Plan
Execute
Analyze
Revise
“In my experience, getting new donors is a long, organic process. No quick fix.” (Marc Pittman)
Getting The First Gift
Additional Resources
Donor Acquisition Strategieshttp://www.fundraiserhelp.com/donor-acquisition-strategies.htm
8 Key Fundraising Metricshttp://www.thenonprofittimes.com/management-tips/8-key-fundraising-metrics/
Scripting for Acquisition Callshttp://www.academicimpressions.com/news/scripting-acquisition-calls
What do we do about Phonathon?https://cooldata.wordpress.com/category/phonathon/
Study: Nonprofits Score an “F” in Online Fundraising Scorecardhttp://www.frogloop.com/benchmarks#ixzz3Nh9VvoOe
Seven Online Fundraising Strategies You Can Do Right Nowhttp://www.fundraising123.org/article/seven-online-fundraising-strategies-you-can-do-right-now#.VKb1c3uqF30
15 Techniques Used by Top Nonprofits to Boost Donor Acquisition and Online Fundraising Results http://npengage.com/nonprofit-fundraising/boost-donor-acquisition-online-fundraising/
Getting The First Gift
The Next Generation Of American Giving -- Convio, March 2010
http://www.convio.com/files/next-gen-whitepaper.pdf
2014 eNonprofit Benchmark Study http://mrbenchmarks.com/
The Basics of Email Metrics: Are Your Campaigns Working? http://www.idealware.org/articles/email_metrics.php
How Integrated Fundraising Maximizes Return on Investment for Nonprofits
http://www.ipmadvancement.com/?s=how+integrated+fundraising
Online Resources for Donor Surveyswww.surveyshare.comwww.fluidsurveys.com
Getting The First Gift
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