What’s your donor relationship strategy?

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Our ResultsPlus team believes that the most important piece of fundraising is a solid donor relationship strategy. Michael Rosen, president of ML Innovations, Inc., backed up our belief in a recent blog post entitled, “What is the Special Ingredient that Leads to #Fundraising Success?”

His answer: building relationships

According to Rosen, “Strong relationships are the key ingredient to a successful philanthropic process.” He also lists the benefits that nonprofits can expect when they focus on those donors relationships. These benefits include:

  • Increased donor acquisition
  • Increased donor retention
  • Donor gift upgrades
  • An increase in planned gifts
  • An increase in major gifts
  • More donor engagement

Rosen also pointed out the hard truth: that donor retention rates are continuously falling and that relationship building has not been a focus for the nonprofit industry. So how can donor management software, like ResultsPlus, help you change this negative trend and focus your organization’s efforts on nurturing relationships?

Donor management software does more than just track gifts. Did you learn that one of your donors is expecting? Getting married? Has three kids? Just changed jobs and is moving across the country? These may seem like tedious, unimportant details, but how great would you feel if a fundraiser called you up and asked how your daughter’s softball games were going? Or sent a card to wish you and your spouse a happy anniversary? These small details help you build relationships with your constituents. It also makes your donors feel more connected with your organization and mission when they feel a personal connection to it.

Have you noticed that one of your donors consistently attends golf events? Donor relationship building means that you notice these things and segment your donors based on their interests and trends in their giving patterns. If you find that some of your donors are uninterested in charity galas, but love walk/run events, make sure to reach out to them when you have another 5k coming up, but maybe take them off the mailing list for that next banquet. Your donors want to feel like you know them, so keeping an eye on these trends will make tip them off that you’re paying attention to them.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” We’re not sure about you, but we would love to see that donor retention rate start to go up, and it starts with building and nurturing relationships with your constituents. And using the right technology can help!

What are some tips and tricks you’ve found that help you maintain personal, meaningful connections with your donors? Share in the comments below!