Renewal

Let's face the facts, there is no such thing as single-channel fundraising any longer, not even for renewal campaigns. In our November 2012 issue, direct-response fundraising guru Roger Craver, editor of the Agitator and member of the FS Editorial Advisory Board, laid out the keys to a renewal program in this feature, "The Multichannel Renewal Campaign."

Attrition is a fact of life at nonprofits, but what you do now can increase the number of first-time donors who remain loyal in the new year.

A look at the 2012 Direct Marketing Fundraisers Association Midlevel Renewal Package of the Year: the ASPCA Memo Mailing.

As you reach out to renew those friendships with loyal donors to your cause with year-end appeals, the first question you should ask yourself is how these investors to your organization came to be the loyal, dependable friends that they are? You’ll discover that sustaining and expanding the flow of year-end investments is much more about what you did last year than anything you will do in the next few weeks.

No matter what other programs you currently have in place, if you don't have a renewal channel — and especially a multichannel program — you're missing the boat big time. So, let's start by looking at an ideal renewal framework and then move to the multichannel dimensions.

A look at the Direct Marketing Fundraisers Association 2012 Renewal Package of the Year winner: amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research December 2011 Appeal.

Every nonprofit, large or small, has one thing in common. All suffer, in some degree or another, from donor attrition. Once you know where your biggest “leakage” is occurring, you can focus on strategies to plug some holes.

Veteran fundraising expert Roger Craver shares five ways to get the most from your multichannel fundraising renewal efforts.

Your two top priorities for your year-end fundraising this year should be to get last year's donors to renew their gifts and get your lapsed donors back into the fold with a renewed gift.

A look at the Direct Marketing Fundraisers Association Package of the Year winner: the Fountain House Flying Cat Pads and Cards renewal campaign, with Amy Tripi of Tripi Consulting.