Facts and education alone are not enough to move donors and supporters to contribute to an organization. Compelling storytelling and showing deep understanding of what drives their allegiance is critical for building long-term relationships. While many nonprofits excel at raising awareness about their missions and causes, they often miss the opportunity to leverage the power of informed, emotional and thought-provoking messages.
In order to communicate the right message to the right audience, nonprofits need to first establish a multipronged strategy that is rooted in personalized communications and donor data. Having two-way communication and ensuring that a donor can get in touch with the nonprofit at all times and via multiple platforms are critical.
Choose the right communications mix
The explosion of social media, mobile devices and big data has created a cluttered communications ecosystem. In this context, it is critically important to create meaningful touchpoints with donors and engage them in open dialogue about the issues and trends that drive their giving decisions. For example, establishing contact centers to field calls, answer emails and respond to tweets can help nonprofits ensure they are responsive and accessible to their donors.
In the era of message saturation, personal outreach is especially effective at generating repeat gifts and turning supporters into long-term donors. In fact, research shows that a personal call has proved to have a positive impact on the future of giving. The 2013 Burk Donor Survey found that “34 percent of respondents who made a gift after receiving a thank-you call attributed the call to their subsequent decision to give again. And, among those donors inspired to give again because of the call, 21 percent made a more generous gift than they had in the past and attributed that generosity to the thank you call they received.”
Another form of personal communication includes social media and other digital channels, which allow nonprofits to connect in real time with their donors. Nonprofits should take advantage of these social hubs of connectivity and use them to build their communities of mission champions and supporters. Online communities provide unhindered access for nonprofits to uncover the “secret sauce” to what motivates their donors’ giving and support.
Although much ink has been spilled to describe the potential of new technologies to drive donor retention, the traditional outreach methods such as direct mail are still relevant and effective, if managed properly. Many donors like to share their interests on mail responses, confirm their personal information through call centers or request information on a particular program via email.
For example, nonprofits such as Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) utilize call centers to improve donor service productivity.
“Immediate responses and timely results are engrained in PVA’s high-touch donor strategies,” says Madison Shaffer, development coordinator at PVA. “The contact center allows PVA to receive customer feedback, which results in improving our methods for serving donors. We use a third-party vendor to help cut down time for PVA employees by performing tasks while interacting with the donors at the same time.”
As donor preferences are constantly evolving, more and more nonprofits are using separate inserts in their mailings called “Communication Cards.” These cards ask very specific information regarding communication preferences. They give donors an opportunity to define the amount of mail they receive, sign up for email, set phone preferences and communicate their feelings with the organization.
Personalize through data
What drives donors to respond to a message and contribute to an organization? The answer is that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy and messaging. Often, the key to igniting donors’ passion is personalization.
“A prompt, highly personalized thank-you leaves a lasting impression on donors,” says Libby Czerlinsky, director of donor services at Operation Smile. “In order to balance a timely response with personalization, we use a handwriting machine that ‘hand’ signs special acknowledgments and writes thank-you notes to high-dollar donors. We believe it’s important to keep our donors happy, and with every gift, we generate a specific acknowledgment.”
One technique to personalize a nonprofit’s message is through the capture and use of microdata — unique, donor-specific data than can be gathered from closely reviewing incoming donations. Specifically, microdata looks at the physical information from donor’s contribution by mail that is typically left behind the name, address and gift amount.
For instance, a donor who applies a stamp to a business reply envelope can provide valuable insight into the donor’s commitment to the nonprofit. This type of action should be documented and recognized in the nonprofit’s acknowledgment. Nonprofits that capture data at every touchpoint are able to make better informed, data-driven responses and refine their outreach strategies.
Knowing as much as possible about donors can help fundraisers keep them involved with the organization and develop greater retention. Nonprofits can break through the noise by utilizing traditional engagement methods, as well as emerging data and personalization tactics to focus on what matters — cultivating relationships with donors by addressing their interests and allowing them to communicate with your organization based on their preferences.