When you stop communicating…people stop responding
And that includes donors. If you want to keep your donors, you need to make sure you’re engaging them regularly. Think of it like a relationship. Relationships are two sided. There’s give and take. If one person in the relationship decides to stop communicating, the other person wouldn’t stick around for very long. They’d lose interest and, without any interaction, they’d eventually move on and forget about that other person altogether.
Don’t let your donors forget about you!
The risk is real.
53% of donors say they stop giving to a non-profit because the organization stopped communicating with them. What a preventative reason for losing donors.
Here are five ideas for continuing the dialogue to keep donors engaged and committed to your cause:
- Well-written thank you note signed by someone higher up in the company
- Impact report showing tangible results
- Personal letter written by someone benefiting from their gift
- Invitation to a cookout or party to celebrate them
- Invitation to a tour of your facility or a location benefiting from your work
Once someone has given to your cause, do more than thank them. Use your communications to move them into the nurturing stage so that they stay engaged and become recurring donors over time. Again, like a relationship. You need to stay in touch to form a committed and lasting relationship.
