The Art and Science of Retaining Digital Donors

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About Steven »

@StevenShattuck

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

• won the David Letterman scholarship

Do you know your retention rate?

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In our surveys, less than 45% of fundraisers knew their current donor retention rate.

Do you know your retention rate?

https://bloomerang.co/blog/infographic-the-state-of-donor-retention-in-2014

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http://afpfep.org

Who is studying donor retention? »

The 2016 results are in »

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First-time donor retention »

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Repeat donor retention »

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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?

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Donor retention math »

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Why do donors leave?

• 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 »

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Source: Adrian Sargeant, Managing Donor Defec`on, 2003

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Why do donors stay?

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Key drivers of donor commitment »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.

Source: Donor Voice, Donor Commitment Report, 2011

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How to increase retention »

• Thank quickly + personally • Go overboard with appreciation • Donor-centric tone • Tell how gifts are used / will be used • Tell them what comes next • Keep lines of communication open

Why focus on online donors?

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First-time donor retention »

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How, where and when do we communicate that to

online donors?

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Do these 3 things well »

https://bloomerang.co/blog/3-things-your-nonprofit-must-do-well-after-an-online-donation

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1. “Thank You” page 2. Email confirmation 3. Formal acknowledgment

Do these 3 things well »

https://bloomerang.co/blog/3-things-your-nonprofit-must-do-well-after-an-online-donation

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• Communicate that donation was processed • Thank the donor • Communicate impact (text/photo/video) • Preview future communications • Give donor something to do next • Keep them on website to convert again!

Confirmation page »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/21-ideas-for-your-nonprofits-donation-confirmation-page

Confirmation page »

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Confirmation page »

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Confirmation page »

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Confirmation page »

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Confirmation page »

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• Should arrive immediately • Eye-catching subject line • Avoid role-based sender email address • Personal greeting • Thank the donor • Communicate impact (text/photo/video) • Give donor something to do next

• Social sharing • Employer matching • Survey

• Preview future communications • Include tax information

Email confirmation »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/19-point-donation-acknowledgement-email-checklist

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Email receipt »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/this-biz-has-a-better-email-thank-you-than-most-nonprofits

https://bloomerang.co/blog/this-biz-has-a-better-email-thank-you-than-most-nonprofits

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• Thank you for your donation! • Donation Confirmation from (ORGANIZATION) • Donation Receipt from (ORGANIZATION) • Confirmation – Donation Received • Donation Receipt • Thank you for your gift

Boring email subject lines »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/46-real-nonprofit-email-receipt-subject-lines-made-better/

• You just changed a life • You just fed a family of four • You have given the gift of hope • You are a hero!

Impactful email subject lines »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/46-real-nonprofit-email-receipt-subject-lines-made-better/

• info@nonprofit.org • development@nonprofit.org • no-reply@nonprofit.org • finance@nonprofit.org

Destroy all role-based emails »

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/this-overlooked-detail-is-undermining-your-nonprofits-emails/

• 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 or SurveyMonkey

Survey »

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http://t.co/XMUTnvjThP

https://bloomerang.co/blog/23-questions-to-ask-donors-and-prospects/

• Arrive within 48 hours • Preview future communications • Utilize their communication preference! • Email • differentiate from receipt

• Snail mail • handwritten note / signature

• Phone call • voicemails are just as good

Formal acknowledgement »

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• 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

The personal touch »

http://www.clairification.com/thank-you-calls-ebook/

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Now what? Have a plan.

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Acknowledge donors differently »

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Above average gift amount

At or below average gift amount

Phone call Personal letter

Email #2Email #1 (upgrade/recurring)

Prioritize monthly giving »

Source: Target Analy`cs, 2015 DonorCentrics US Recurring Giving Benchmarking Analysis

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Don’t forget social media »

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• Isolate donors who haven’t given in 2+ years • Remove from direct mail sends • Send a lapsed donor survey • Invest in data services • NCOA • Deceased Suppression Processing

Lapsed donors »

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• 3 things: • “thank you” page • email confirmation • formal acknowledgement

• Fast! • Donor-centric! • If you get a phone #, call! • Get that second gift.

Final thoughts »

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https://bloomerang.co/resources

•Nonprofit Wrap-Up •Bloomerang TV •Bloomies

•Daily blog post •Weekly webinars •Downloadables

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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

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https://bloomerang.co/blog/infographic-the-great-5-donor-communications-experiment

https://bloomerang.co/blog/infographic-2015-5-donor-communications-experiment

https://bloomerang.co/blog/infographic-2016-10-donor-communications-experiment

Questions? steven.shattuck@bloomerang.co

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Free eBook »

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https://bloomerang.co/ebook/

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