Donor Appreciation: Experiences They Will Never Forget

Lynne M. Wester

@donorguru

Why is Stewardship Important?

• If a donor is stewarded properly he or she is more likely to continue to give

• 93% of individual donors would definitely or probably give again the next time they were asked if a charity thanked them promptly, in a personal way and followed up later with a meaningful report on the program they had funded.

• 64% would give a larger gift• 74% would continue to give indefinitely

» (Source: Penelope Burke – Donor Centered Fundraising)

Drive the Point Home

• 61% of donors would increase their donations if they had greater access to information about an organization’s performance and use of their funds

» (Source: Adrian Sargeant – Robert F. Hartsook Chair in Fundraising, The Center on Philanthropy at the University of Indiana)

What We Think Donors Want

• Gifts

• Plaques

• Certificates

• Donor Honor Roll

What Donors Really Want!

• Access

• Information

• Experiences

What Type of Access?

• To Leaders

• To Facilities

• To Services

What Information is Most Important?

• Impact Reports

• Insider Information

• Evidence-based measures of progress, outcomes and impact

Experiences They Will Never Forget

• Tours

• Events

• Meetings with Beneficiaries