Donor Report
How To Chart The Best Path For Your New Supporter
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By Allen Davidov
ow that the holiday and end-of-year fundraising period has wrapped up, many not-for-profit and fundraising organizations are coming up for air. But they are also preparing to chart out cultivation and stewardship plans for their newest supporters, as many donors raised their hands and replied to a call to action during GivingTuesday, Holiday, or Yearend campaigns. These donors have taken the essential first step, and now it’s up to the fundraising organizations to take the careful next step of understanding who these supporters are, and what their journey with your organization should look like. A donor’s journey should not be predicated by organizational or program need, but by what makes the most sense for the donor concerning what is offered. Ultimately, setting out a course for the best relationship outcome and maximizing the opportunity with your newest supporter. Having been in the charitable sector for over 15 years, I have experienced the pressure to deliver programmatically and have seen some terrific plans crumble because of that. The push for immediate results can put pressure on everyone, even at the beginning of a new year, and comes at the expense of retaining and stewarding the organization’s existing donor base. Not only is this acquisition mindset taxing on charities, but it also drives up costs. So, what are some innovative options to break this cycle and make it easier for fundraising teams? Focus on the right plan Large charities have dedicated teams to help them make smart decisions to keep their donors engaged. In contrast, smaller organizations with fewer resources have had to rely on their wits and tenacity to connect with supporters. But to reach the next level, 44
FOUNDATION Magazine
January/February 2020
wits and determination alone will only get these smaller organizations so far. Imagine what can be accomplished if they were able to channel all of their energy on the right existing donors, considering their capacity to give, what is meaningful to them, engagement and donation history. Organizations, specifically smaller and midsized charities, need data-driven solutions that will fit their budget and provide actionable insights to address the needs of fundraisers. One of the ways to accomplish that is with systems that provide insights based on supplementing existing in-house data with new tools. There are innovative proprietary scoring systems which these kinds of charities and foundations can adopt to provide advanced data and analytics in the same way that many larger organizations have been doing for many years. Small- to mid-sized organizations, using customizable scoring systems, can utilizes third-party privacy-friendly data that offers a cost-effective way to prioritize their existing supporters and can help organizations with as little as a few hundred donors. Powerful and easy to use While data and analytics can often be complicated and intimidating, what you need to look for are tools which are simple to understand and easy to use. What you’ll get are insightful views of your new supporters and that leads to more comprehensive look at their wealth and psychographic data to allow you to guide the creation of the best plan for each individual. By getting a deeper understanding of your new supporters, you can refocus efforts on building those critical relationships and maximize opportunities before starting additional expensive acquisition programs. We all know that the best prospects for midsize and large gifts are found from within the Continued on page 47 foundationmag.ca
