Fact-packed presentation from the 2013 DMA Washington Nonprofit Conference. Chuck is the Founder of Target Analytics and Chief Scientist at Blackbaud. Read the companion blog post at: http://www.event360.com/blog/identify-and-invest-in-your-most-passionate-supporters/
A Nonprofit's Guide to Event Fundraising Analytics
New Donors Trends by Chuck Longfield
1. NEW DONOR TRENDS
Center of Philanthropy Symposium
November 2012
02/07/2013 Customer & Market Insights 1
2. DECLINE IN NEW DONOR ACQUISITION
2001- 2 0 1 0
% Change % Change
Sector Total # New Donors New Donors/Year New Donors/Year
(# of organizations) 2001-2010 2001-2007 2007-2010
Advocacy (16) 6.6 million -9.5% 14.4%
Hospitals (23) 1.2 million 17.2% -0.4%
Cultural (16) 2.2 million 5% -2%
Environmental (37) 16.4 million -23.1% -11.0%
Health Research (30) 117 million 12.5% -14.8%
Human Services (36) 6.7 million 4.7% 2.5%
Colleges (34) * 350,000 -18.9%
* The % Change for colleges is for the period 2006-2011
SOURCE: TARGET ANALYTICS
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3. DECLINE IN FIRST YEAR RETENTION
2001- 2 0 1 0
Sector Retention Rate Retention Rate % Change % Change
(# of organizations) 2001 2010 2001-2007 2007-2010
Advocacy (16) 34.0% 27.4% -19.5% 0.1%
Hospitals (23) 21.2% 18.1% -2.7% 0.6%
Cultural (16) 33.3% 26.8% -13.7% -6.5%
Environmental (37) 29.7% 24.0% -18.2% -1.4%
Health Research (30) 20.9% 19.3% -11.7% 0.4%
Human Services (36) 30.8% 26.3% -10.9% -4.2%
Colleges (34) * 30.8% 28.1% -8.8%
* The % Change for colleges is for the period 2006-2011
SOURCE: TARGET ANALYTICS
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4. SUMMARY OF CHALLENGES
• Acquisition is increasingly more expensive
• First year retention rates are declining
• Trends started prior to downturn and will likely continue
after recovery
• Younger donors are less loyal than older donors
• Low ROI on new donor acquisition (and getting lower).
- too costly to acquire new donors to replace lapsing donors
• WHAT CAN WE DO? !!!
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6. EMPHASIZE DONOR RETENTION OVER ACQUISITION
• View donors as valuable assets!
• When acquiring new donors, factor in whether you will
retain the donor, and at what dollar level
• Fill the holes in your leaky bucket!
• Why did the donor give? Stop giving?
• According to Adrian Sargeant, Ph.D. from Indiana
University’s Center on Philanthropy
“A 10% increase in donor retention can increase the
lifetime value of the donor database by up to 200% .”
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8. EMPHASIZE DONOR RETENTION OVER ACQUISITION
• View donors as valuable assets!
• When acquiring new donors, factor in whether you will
retain the donor, and at what dollar level
• Fill the holes in your leaky bucket!
• Why did the donor give? Stop giving?
• According to Adrian Sargeant, Ph.D. from Indiana
University’s Center on Philanthropy
“A 10% increase in donor retention can increase the
lifetime value of the donor database by up to 200% .”
02/07/2013 Customer & Market Insights 8
10. EMPHASIZE DONOR RETENTION OVER ACQUISITION
• View donors as valuable assets!
• When acquiring new donors, factor in whether you will
retain the donor, and at what dollar level
• Fill the holes in your leaky bucket!
• Why did the donor give? Stop giving?
• According to Adrian Sargeant, Ph.D. from Indiana
University’s Center on Philanthropy
“A 10% increase in donor retention can increase the
lifetime value of the donor database by up to 200% .”
02/07/2013 Customer & Market Insights 10
11. FOCUS ON LIFETIME VALUE, NOT RESPONSE RATES
• Be willing to invest in your donors, e.g. thank you calls.
See Donor-Centered Fundraising – Penelope Burk
• Determine a donor’s potential early in your relationship
and allocate resources accordingly
• Be Donor-Centric, not Campaign-Centric
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13. FOCUS ON RESULTS, NOT EFFORT
• Set goals and measure your results
• Find peer groups and benchmark your results
• Checklist Manifesto, by Atul Gawande
• Identify best practices
• Find ways to collaborate to maximize results
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14. INVEST IN YOUR MOST PASSIONATE SUPPORTERS
• Organize yourself to recognize a donor’s passion for your
mission
• See yourself through the eyes of your donors
• Be willing to invest in your donors
• Test investments and track results carefully
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16. KEY TAKE-AWAYS
1. Emphasize donor retention over donor acquisition
2. Focus on a donor’s lifetime value, not a campaign’s
response rate
3. Focus on results, not effort
4. Identify & invest in your most passionate supporters
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17. THE BLACKBAUD INDEX
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18. WWW.SOFII.ORG
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know about fundraising from c.1500 BC to the present day
• Over 300 of the best fundraising ideas ever,
at your fingertips 24/7…for free!
• Contribute your own exhibit.
• Sign up to receive hot news and
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• What three things will you do
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02/07/2013 Customer & Market Insights 18