Motivate lapsed donors to resume their support for your nonprofit with strategies that make it easy for them to give and stay updated on your organization.

1. STEP BY STEP
GUIDE FOR
REGAINING YOUR
LAPSED DONORS

2. WHAT EXACTLY ARE LAPSED DONORS
Lapsed donors are donors who
used to give to your organization,
but for one reason or another,
have stopped giving

3. WHAT ARE DONOR RETENTION AND
DONOR ATTRITION
Donor retention rate
Donor attrition rate
Refers to the number (or percentage) of donors that
return to give another gift in a specific time period
Percentage of donors that your organization loses or
reduces (i.e. stops giving) from one time period to
another

4.  ALWAYS thank your donors after each donation –
no matter the gift size.
 Personalize your communication and use the
donor’s first (or last) name. No “Dear Supporter”.
 Share volunteering and other involvement
opportunities with your donors.
 Acknowledge the donor’s last gift amount and
your history together, especially when asking for
another gift.
 Use powerful images and videos to inspire and
inform your social media followers.
 Send out donation receipts following each
donation, and a cumulative one at the end of the
year for tax purposes
PREVENTION IS BETTER
THAN CURE

5.  With their permission, highlight donors on your social
media profiles and in your e-newsletters.
 Organize non-fundraising events to add value to donors
without asking anything from them.
 Regularly send email updates to supporters with
information detailing your organization’s latest
accomplishments, upcoming events, and the progress
of ongoing fundraising campaigns.
 Send out annual reports.
 Post pictures of your volunteers at work and share
mission-focused content to keep donors inspired.

6. STEP BY STEP GUIDE FOR
REGAINING YOUR LAPSED
DONORS

7. STEP 1: TRACK RELEVANT METRICS
Here are some metrics you can
consider tracking
First-time Donor
Retention: The number
of first-time donors
giving a second gift Returning Donor
Retention: The
percentage of donors
giving 2 or more gifts
that give again
Lifetime Value: The
monetary amount you
can expect from the
average donor

8. STEP 2: KEEP YOUR HOUSE IN ORDER
It’s possible that your donors just lost touch with you and
would have otherwise continued their giving. Perhaps
their credit card has expired or they changed their email
address
Maintaining a clean donor database is all about making
stewardship as efficient as possible. Once you’re
organized, a nonprofit CRM can help you get the most
out of your donor database

9. STEP 3: DO RESEARCH
The fastest way to get in touch
with your lapsed donors is to
send out a survey, usually via
email. Ask them straightforwardly
why they’re no longer giving and
what might convince them to give
again.

10. You could also establish criteria for your VIP lapsed donor
segment – that you’ll spend the most resources on
Cumulative giving
amounts
Number of years of
giving (3 to 5+ years)
Personal connections
to your organization

11. STEP 4: SEND OUT A ‘THANK YOU’
COMMUNICATION
Express your gratitude for the
donor’s past gift(s) sincerely and
authentically

12. STEP 5: CALL – YES REALLY
Telephone calls are also the best
way to help you find out why
your donors stopped giving.
Time-consuming and deemed as
old-fashioned by some, but
calling is a great way to try and
re-establish the relationship

13. STEP 6: BE AUTHENTIC AND PERSONAL
The very best way to show lapsed donors that your
organization cares about them is by personalizing your
communication and being as authentic as possible
Each donor is an individual, so as far as practicable and
possible, personalize your outreach to them specifically.
Show your care

14. STEP 7: INVITE THE DONOR TO COME BACK
When communicating with
lapsed donors, it’s important to
share the impact of your
organization’s work and recent
activities so they can visualize
what their renewed support will
go toward

15. STEP 8: BE OPEN TO ALTERNATIVE WAYS OF
CONTRIBUTION
A donor can’t or doesn’t want to make a financial
gift – even after you asked them again, don’t be closed to
other options of engaging with your lapsed donors
Perhaps a change in circumstances is preventing them
from making another charitable gift, even if they’d love
to support your organization. So, give your lapsed donors
the opportunity to donate their time instead

16. STEP 9: MAKE GIVING EASY AND
CONVENIENT
If donors can opt into a recurring
giving program, they’re more
likely to make regular gifts to
your campaigns. A set-it-and-
forget-it approach is one of the
best ways to ensure high donor
retention

17. STEP 10: PUT SYSTEMS IN PLACE
To make regaining donors a sustainable and integrated
practice in your nonprofit, put systems in place that will
make it so
For major donors, you might try to set up an in-person
meeting (or, if necessary, a one-on-one call)

18. Get to the why of your donor retention problem,
and then figure out what strategic changes need
to be made to address it and regain a part of your
lapsed donors
READ THE ENTIRE BLOG
https://donorbox.org/nonprofit-blog/regaining-your-lapsed-donors/

19. DONORBOX
Rebel Idealist LLC,
5 3rd St, Suite 900,
San Francisco, CA 94103
Website: https://donorbox.org/