WHAT THE FUNDRAISING
141: Unlocking Donor Engagement: Mastering Donor Retention
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“When I receive a check or I receive an online donation or I even get an in kind donation, I always say that person is sending me and the organization a message. Hey, I’m interested in supporting you.”
– Karl Ferguson
Episode #141
Overview
In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast…
If you’re feeling frustrated and overwhelmed by the constant cycle of acquiring new donors, only to see them quickly fade away, then you are not alone! Despite your efforts to send out regular communications and thank-you messages, donors may still feel disconnected and unappreciated, leading to low retention rates.
Karl Ferguson is a highly respected figure in the nonprofit sector with over 30 years of experience. As a seasoned fundraising professional, he’s always looking for ways to ensure donors remain connected with an organization after making their first contribution. What sets Karl apart is his relentless focus on maintaining relationships with already-engaged donors, rather than simply reaching out to new ones. Karl has a clear understanding that a loyal donor base isn’t built overnight but through time, dedication, and meticulously planned strategies. His unique approach in placing a high value on the time of donation, the immediate thank you calls, the letters, the note cards, and tours have resulted in donor retention rates hitting new heights.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
- Introducing Karl Ferguson
- Importance of Donor Engagement
- First-Time Donor Engagement
- Donor Retention Metrics
- Real-Time Giving Tuesday Calls
- The Importance of Monthly Donors
- Segmenting Donor Retention
- Making Donor Phone Calls
- Transitioning Adoption Families to Donors
- Engaging Adopters as Donors
- Engaging Donors and Educating Them About the Organization
- Offering Various Avenues for Giving
- Fundraising as an Offer
- Balancing High Goals with Selective Donor Engagement
- The Success of FurFest Fundraiser
- Cleaning up the donor database
- Reaching people through multiple channels
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Karl Ferguson
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- Many thanks to our sponsor, Bloomerang for making this episode possible. Bloomerang offers donor management and online fundraising software that helps small to medium nonprofits, like First Tee of Greater Akron, a nonprofit that empowers kids and teens through the game of golf. After just one year with Bloomerang they doubled their unique donors, improved donor stewardship, and raised more funds. Head to bloomerang.com/whatthefundraising to learn more about Bloomerang.
- If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link.
- If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point
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TIPS AND TOOLS TO IMPLEMENT TODAY
- Creating a positive atmosphere through gratitude and encouragement can leave a lasting impression on your donors. By expressing thanks for their contributions and encouraging them to stay involved, you foster a culture of mutual respect and support. Some of the ways to create a positive atmosphere include:
- Sending a personalized thank-you letter after receiving a donation or making phone calls to donors to express gratitude.
- Following up with a note card written by a board member about a month after receiving a donation or offering a tour of the organization's facility to new donors helps to further engage them in the mission.
- Monitoring and improving donor retention is like the North Star for nonprofits – it guides every aspect of fundraising strategies. By setting clear targets and tracking your retention rates, you’ll quickly identify what’s working, and more importantly, what isn’t.
- With so many communication channels to choose from nowadays, it’s crucial to reach out to donors through various avenues. Whether it’s via phone calls, emails, or social media, diversifying your donor communication can provide a personalized and engaging experience.
- Karl uses, and loves, Bloomerang's dashboard feature to track and run reports allowing him to prioritize first-time donors for immediate phone calls.
FAVORITE QUOTES
- When I receive a check or I receive an online donation or I even get an in kind donation, I always say that person is sending me and the organization a message. Hey, I'm interested in supporting you. - Karl Ferguson
- I always tell people, a check comes in, there has to be a reason behind it being sent to us, and it's our goal to find out why they gave. - Karl Ferguson
- Even the curmudgeons of the world that say, 'oh, you don't need to thank me,' I always love calling those people because it's like they think they don't want to be thanked, but they want to be thanked. - Karl Ferguson
- I'm not asking for money. I'm laying a palette of stuff out in their lap and they're just choosing what color they want to paint with, basically. - Karl Ferguson
- People are engaged with us in some sort of way, whether they got an animal from us, they got a surgery from us, they somehow saw us on Facebook, whatever. They know us because they're engaged. Somehow they came through one of those portals, right? So then it's our job to educate them about what we're doing, what we're trying to do. - Karl Ferguson
- So I always tell people when it comes to donor retention, If I have two people in the room and one person has given me a donation before, and there's a person here that's just as engaged with our mission, but they've never given a donation. Truthfully, I will spend more time with the donor person that's given us money, because I have a better chance of getting another gift than I am from that first gift. - Karl Ferguson
- Making donor phone calls, I've learned over time to become more and more comfortable with silence, because people will give you information if you shut your mouth. That's hard for fundraisers to do because we love to talk. But I've learned that because it's like, Karl, just be quiet. And they'll fill in the space. They'll tell you why they love your organization, why they love their dog, all that stuff comes out if you just are quiet. - Karl Ferguson
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Get to know Karl Ferguson:
Karl has been fundraising for 30 years and has been in work for organizations from development organizations, and international aid, to all the way to mental health to hospitals. Now he works for an animal shelter Española Humane, located in northern New Mexico, about a half an hour west of Santa Fe.
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I teach nonprofit fundraisers to bring in more gifts from the RIGHT donors… so they can stop hounding people for money. Fundraising doesn’t have to be uncomfortable.
- CEO & Creator of the Power Partners Formula™
- Disruptor in the funding sector, changing lives everyday
- Relentlessly committed to the movement of money into the nonprofit sector
- Focused on win-win partnerships that allow fundraisers to be authentic and empowered in their work
- Over 15 years working in nonprofits (managing director and ED of multiple fast-growth organizations)
MALLORY ERICKSON
