This session explores the Fundraising Effectiveness Project report commissioned by AFP and the Urban Institute. The dismal news in this report can and should be an eye opener for every nonprofit engaged in fundraising. We will focus on the root causes of poor retention rates, and offer tips for improvement based on the principles of Dr. Adrian Sargeant and Tom Ahern: two world-renowned authorities on building donor loyalty. Sargeant and Ahern’s principles are based upon years of research conducted in the sector and can be used by any organization, whether you are a one-person shop or a large department. We will show examples of their principles in action. The results can be astounding when put into daily use! Learning Outcomes: Be familiar with current research on donor retention and how an increase or decrease can impact your bottom line Understand how to calculate your donor retention rate Learn new donor communications techniques in order to improve donor loyalty and retention

1. What Every Fundraiser Can Do To
Stop Falling Donor Retention Rates
DFW Philanthropy in Action Conference
Steven Shattuck
@StevenShattuck

2. Chief Engagement Officer, Bloomerang
Co-founder/ED, Launch Cause
Contributor: Fundraising Principles and
Practice: Second Edition
Member: Fundraising Effectiveness Project
(FEP) Project Work Group, AFP Center for
Fundraising Innovation (CFI)
Fun facts:
• 1st job: producing fundraising videos
• prefers tea to coffee
• allergic to rhubarb
• recipient of David Letterman scholarship
About Steven »

4. @StevenShattuck
http://afpfep.org
The current state of donor retention? »

5. The 2016 results are in »
@StevenShattuck

6. First-time donor retention »
@StevenShattuck

7. Repeat donor retention »
@StevenShattuck

8. Retention by gift size »
@StevenShattuck

9. @StevenShattuck

10. Donor retention over a decade »
@StevenShattuck

11. Donor Attrition Over Five Years
# of
Donors
Attrition
Rate
Donors
Remaining
After 1
Year
Donors
Remaining
After 2
Years
Donors
Remaining
After 3
Years
Donors
Remaining
After 4
Years
Donors
Remaining
After 5
Years
1,000 20% 800 640 512 410 328
1,000 40% 600 360 216 130 78
1,000 60% 400 160 64 26 10
So what?
https://bloomerang.co/resources/downloadables/donor-retention-math-made-simple
@StevenShattuck

12. Donor retention math »
@StevenShattuck

13. The cost of poor retention »
Source: Adrian Sargeant - Lilly School of Philanthropy
@StevenShattuck
• Cost per acquisition = 5x cost per renewal
• Cost per acquisition = 2-3x initial donation amount
• break-even after 12-18 months
• Renewal response rates = 20x30 higher than
acquisition response rates

14. Importance of being a chosen charity »
The number of charities supported annually:
• Income 50K – 2-3
• Income 100K – 3-4
• Income >100K – 4-5
• One is usually their church
• Second is most likely their school
Source: Philanthropy Panel Study - Lilly School of Philanthropy
@StevenShattuck

15. Source: Philanthropy Panel Study - Lilly School of Philanthropy
@StevenShattuck

16. @StevenShattuck
• 2001 study by
Adrian Sargeant
• Survey to lapsed donors of
10 major U.S.-based
nonprofits
• Respondents were asked to
check each reason for
stopping their contributions
Why nonprofit donors leave »
@StevenShattuck
http://www.campbellrinker.com/Managing_donor_defection.pdf

17. @StevenShattuck
• 5% - thought charity did not need them
• 8% - no info on how monies were used
• 9% - no memory of supporting
• 13% - never got thanked for donating
• 16% - death
• 18% - poor service or communication
• 36% - others more deserving
• 54% - could no longer afford
Why nonprofit donors leave »
@StevenShattuck
http://www.campbellrinker.com/Managing_donor_defection.pdf

18. @StevenShattuck
Why do donors stay?

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• 2011 study
• Survey of 1,200 recent (last 12 months), frequent (more
than 2 gifts to cause based charities) donors from over
250 nonprofit organizations
• Donors were given a list of 32 reasons why they might
continue giving
• Asked to rank them by order of importance
Key drivers of donor commitment »
http://www.thedonorvoice.com/national-donor-commitment-study-and-proof-of-link-between-donor-attitudes-and-behavior/

20. @StevenShattuck
1. Donor perceives your organization to be effective in
trying to achieve its mission.
2. Donor knows what to expect from your organization with
each interaction.
3. Donor receives a timely thank you.
4. Donor receives opportunities to make his or her views
known.
5. Donor is given the feeling that he or she is part of an
important cause.
6. Donor feels his or her involvement is appreciated.
7. Donor receives information showing who is being helped.
Key drivers of donor commitment »

21. @StevenShattuck
How to increase retention »
• Focus on first-time and above-average donors
• Thank quickly + personally
• Go overboard with appreciation
• Donor-centric tone
• Tell how gifts are used / will be used
• Tell them what comes next
• Solicit feedback
• Keep lines of communication open

22. @StevenShattuck
Stewardship essentials »
• Fast, personal gift acknowledgement
• Segmented communications
• Documented communications plan that
includes non-appeals

23. @StevenShattuck
The personal touch »
• first-time donors who get a personal thank you within 48
hours are 4x more likely to give a second gift (Tom Ahern)
• a three-minute thank-you call will boost first-year retention
by 30%. (Roger Craver / The Agitator)
• a thank-you call from a board member to a newly acquired
donor within 24 hours of receiving the gifts will increase
their next gift by 39%. (Penelope Burk)
http://www.nonprofithub.org/fundraising/excuses-need-call-every-new-donor
http://www.guidestar.org/rxa/news/articles/2010/how-to-increase-donations-by-39-percent.aspx

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28. • Utilize communication preference
• Make the donor the star of the show
• more “you” than “we”
• State exactly how donation will be used
• Communicate impact
• Preview future communications
• Give the donor something to do next
@StevenShattuck
Acknowledgement tips »

29. @StevenShattuck
No more email receipts »

30. @StevenShattuck
Greet them by donor type »

31. @StevenShattuck
Communicate their impact later »

32. @StevenShattuck
Snail mail that stands out »

33. • All acknowledgements: treat them like royalty
• Email: send a new donor survey
• Snail mail: include handwritten note
• Call as many new donors as possible
• Get board members and volunteers involved
• Schedule in-person meetings/tours
• 2nd ask within 90 days is okay
• Introduce monthly giving for certain segments
Acknowledgement tips »
@StevenShattuck

34. Communications segmenting »
@StevenShattuck
Above average gift amount
At or below average gift amount

35. Differentiate the acknowledgement »
@StevenShattuck
Above average gift amount
At or below average gift amount
Letter # 1
Phone call
(tour invite)
Letter #2
Handwritten note
Email/Letter #4
(Volunteer request)
Email/Letter #3
(survey)
(monthly upgrade)

36. Differentiate the appeal »
@StevenShattuck
Above average gift amount
At or below average gift amount
Ask #1
Ask #2
Ask #3
Ask #4

37. Segments per channel »
@StevenShattuck
Website Direct Mail/Ad Event

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http://ignitedfundraising.com/resources/sample-timeline-donor-retention

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46. • Send a donor survey to 1st-time donors
• Boosts retention even if they don’t respond
• Respondents signify high-engagement
• Email receipt is a great place to include
• Google Forms / SurveyMonkey / Formstack
Survey »
@StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/blog/23-questions-to-ask-donors-and-prospects/

47. • Why did you first give to our organization?
• What interests you most about organization? Why? What is less
interesting to you? Why?
• Why do you give to our organization? How would you describe our
mission? What does it mean to you?
• What are the most critical results you expect our organization to
produce?
• What do you tell others about us? How do you describe this
organization to others?
• Why does this cause matter to you? Why now in particular?
@StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/blog/23-questions-to-ask-donors-and-prospects/
Survey question ideas »

48. Keep donors happy »
@StevenShattuck
Source: Target Analytics, 2009 DonorCentrics US Recurring Giving Benchmarking Analysis

49. @StevenShattuck
Monthly giving »
Source: Target Analytics, 2015 DonorCentrics US Recurring Giving Benchmarking Analysis

50. @StevenShattuck
Monthly giving welcome »

51. @StevenShattuck
Don’t send the same 12 receipts »

52. Random touches not tied to gift »
@StevenShattuck

53. • Isolate donors who haven’t given in 2+ years
• Segment
• gift frequency/size
• other engagement signals
• Consider removing from direct mail sends
• Send a lapsed donor survey
• Invest in data services
• NCOA
• Deceased Suppression Processing
Lapsed donors »
@StevenShattuck

54. 2 common “one and dones” »
@StevenShattuck

55. • Memorial donors
• Thank (if you can), then isolate
• Peer-to-peer donors
• Have first gift acknowledgement come from
fundraiser, not benefiting org
• (Re)introduce the charity
• Explain why fundraiser supports it
• Ask for donor to continue support
@StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/blog/3-tips-for-improving-p2p-donor-retention/
2 common “one and dones” »

56. • It’s not about you. It’s about the donor.
• Segment your donors.
• Create a written comms plan for each segment.
• Concentrate on first-time donors.
• Get that second gift.
• Personalize!
• Steward, then solicit.
Final thoughts »
@StevenShattuck

57. @StevenShattuck
Can acquisition trump retention?

58. @StevenShattuck

59. https://bloomerang.co/resources
•Nonprofit Wrap-Up
•Bloomerang TV
•Bloomies
•Daily blog post
•Weekly webinars
•Downloadables

60. @StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/blog/category/5-experiment/

61. @StevenShattuck
Donation Thank
You Email
Template »
https://bloomerang.co/resources/
downloadables/sample-donation-
thank-you-email-template/

62. @StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/resources/downloadables/basic-thank-you-letter-template/
Snail mail letter template »
1. Personal intro
2. Thank you
3. Impact statement
4. Future communications
5. Another thank you
6. Personal signature
7. PS w/ additional action

63. Questions?
steven.shattuck@bloomerang.co
@StevenShattuck
Free eBook »
@StevenShattuck
https://bloomerang.co/resources/guides/the-art-and-science-of-retaining-digital-donors/