donor retention education with wayne robbins - bloomerang

What Fundraisers Can Do to Stop Falling Donor Retention Rates

Wayne Robbins

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“Active donor commitment is the enduring passion for your nonprofit.

Inspiring donors is key for loyalty.”

- 101 Fundraising

Retention »

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1. WHY? The Case for building/improving Donor Retention

2. Addressing the Attrition Problem (Building Donor Loyalty)

3. HOW? – Retention Drivers

4. Conclusion: Donor Engagement!

Agenda »

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In our surveys, less than 45% of fundraisers

knew their current donor retention rate.

Do you know your retention rate?

https://bloomerang.co/blog/infographic-the-state-of-donor-retention-in-2014

What does a 10% increase in donor retention mean in terms of LIFETIME dollars raised?

• 50%

• 100%

• 150-200%

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Do you know your retention rate?

Donor Attrition Over Five Years

# of

Donors

Attrition

Rate

Donors

Remaining

After 1

Year

Donors

Remaining

After 2

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 3

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 4

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 5

Years

1,000 20% 800 640 512 410 328

1,000 40% 600 360 216 130 78

1,000 60% 400 160 64 26 10

So what?

http://afpfep.org

Growth in Giving Initiative / FEP »

Participating Donor Software Firms:

• Donor2/Campus Management Corporation • PhilanthrAppeal (FundTrack Software) • DonorPerfect Fundraising Software • The Raiser’s Edge ® (Blackbaud) • eTapestry • Avectra • Bloomerang • Sage Software • MatchMaker FundRaising Software • Telosa Software (Exceed!) • Metafile

Fundraising Effectiveness Survey »

The 2014 results are in »

Nearly 6 out of every 10 donors do not give again!

New donor retention is even worse »

Participating Donor Software Firms:

• Donor2/Campus Management Corporation • PhilanthrAppeal (FundTrack Software) • DonorPerfect Fundraising Software • The Raiser’s Edge ® (Blackbaud) • eTapestry • Avectra • Bloomerang • Sage Software • MatchMaker FundRaising Software • Telosa Software (Exceed!) • Metafile

Fundraising Effectiveness Survey »

(Not a SINGLE firm above has taken any steps to address the continually increasing problem of FALLING Donor Retention!)

Donor Attrition Over Five Years

# of

Donors

Attrition

Rate

Donors

Remaining

After 1

Year

Donors

Remaining

After 2

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 3

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 4

Years

Donors

Remaining

After 5

Years

1,000 20% 800 640 512 410 328

1,000 40% 600 360 216 130 78

1,000 60% 400 160 64 26 10

So what?

Donor retention math »

Addressing the Attrition Problem!

Is It a Donor Loyalty Problem?

Building Donor Loyalty!

1. Listen to your donors -Find out what will compel them to further help you achieve your mission. Ask for their

advice, and put it to practice.

2. Share your good news -Communication is key to building any relationship, and nonprofit relationships are no different. Think about newsletters, e-mails and face-to-face visits to keep the flow of information open.

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Building Donor Loyalty!

3. Measure your success -“In general, donors like to receive regular, measurable and concrete feedback about

how their money makes a difference,” says Ursula Pfahl. -By sharing the impact in real measures, you solidify the good work you are doing.

4. Survey your donors -When Courtney Polster, fund development manager at Agrace HospiceCare, started surveying her donors, she discovered that a high percentage were utilizing planned-giving vehicles to support a charity — but she was surprised to see how few said hers was their charity of choice for this option. This revelation led to further research. “Quality initiatives like these are helping build a stewardship and recognition program as well as a planned-giving program," Polster says. "It has been most beneficial!”

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Building Donor Loyalty!

5. Leverage donor loyalty -Use your board members to make calls and write thank-you notes. The power of

appreciation from a strong board member can go a long way in building loyalty.

6. Involve donors in the cause -By regularly inviting donors to come and see their donations in action, Keith Greer,

fundraising and membership coordinator at Popejoy Hall, has changed the way donors view his organization and increased retention rates by 14 percent and the average donation size by $500!

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Building Donor Loyalty!

7. Get social -Create connections in the social networks where your donors spend their time.

Connecting socially is very powerful.

8. Customize your approach -“Bottom line: Loyalty comes when we show folks we know them. This means we have

to really listen to them. There's no cookie-cutter approach, as donor preferences vary. We have to be sensitive to our donors’ particular styles, then give them what they want,” says marketing and fundraising consultant Claire Axelrad.

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Building Donor Loyalty!

9. Recognize repeat donors -“Whether your organization is new or has been around for years, you can recognize

continuous yearly donors in your annual report. Give recognition to donors who have supported you (at a set level) for three years, five years, 10 years — break it down however it works for you — but with recognition, if they have to drop a nonprofit one year, hopefully it won't be yours!” says CFRE Debbie Joyner.

10. Say thank you -“One easy element is thanking donors for every gift either with a phone call or personalized e-mail. When dealing with loyal donors, I am always sure to mention how long they have been giving and let them know how much their continued support is appreciated. Most donors haven't thought about how long they have been giving, and I think these small gestures have deepened donor relations with a pretty small investment of my time and our long-distance bill,” says Daniel

Blakemore, assistant director for individual giving at International House, New York.

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Lifetime value »

Dr. Adrian Sargeant, Bloomerang Chief Scientist

Professor of Fundraising at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University holding what is presently the world’s only endowed chair in that discipline.

Professor of Nonprofit Marketing and Fundraising at Bristol Business School (U.K) and an Adjunct Professor of Fundraising at the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies.

Top 10 Most Influential People in Fundraising

“The total net contribution that a customer/donor generates during his/her lifetime in your database”

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Defining Lifetime Value (LTV) »

LTV = ∑Ci Where

c = net contribution from each year’s fundraising activity

i = expected duration of each relationship in years

Defining Lifetime Value (LTV) »

Key Decisions in Building Donor Loyalty

• Costs vs. Donation Revenues

• Average Lifetime (1-25 Years)

• Your Retention Rates

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Key Decisions in Building Donor Loyalty

• Costs vs. Donation Revenues

• Average Lifetime (1-25 Years)

• Your Retention Rates

• Best Use of Staff Time

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$1000 +

$500 - $1000

$100 - $500

$25 and under annually

$25 - $100

Value

Value Segments »

Time

Key Decisions in Building Donor Loyalty

• Costs vs. Donation Revenues

• Average Lifetime (1-25 Years)

• Your Retention Rates

• Best Use of Staff Time

• Using Retention/Reactivation Practices

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Key Decisions in Building Donor Loyalty

• Costs vs. Donation Revenues • Average Lifetime (1-25 Years) • Your Retention Rates • Best Use of Staff Time • Using Retention/Reactivation

Practices • Finding a Database that Helps

rather than Hinders Loyalty!

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Why customers leave »

• 1% - death

• 3% - relocation

• 14% - won by competitor

• 14% - bad service/complaint handling

• 68% - lack/loss of interest

http://www.insightsfromanalytics.com/blog/bid/335381/5-Reasons-Customers-Leave-and-9-Ways-to-Keep-Them

• 5% - thought charity did not need them • 8% - no info on how monies were used • 9% - no memory of supporting • 13% - never got thanked for donating • 16% - death • 18% - poor service or communication • 36% - others more deserving • 54% - could no longer afford

Does your Donor feel Connected?

Why nonprofit donors leave »

https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140520191728-746287--infographic-why-donors-stop-their-support

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6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

• Connect often (1st 90 Days!)

• Be personal (SEGMENT via DB)

• Develop like a good personal friendship

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6 Key Retention Drivers (That can double lifetime value)

• Drip feed mission performance data

• Connect often (1st 90 Days!)

• Be personal (SEGMENT via DB)

• Develop like a good personal friendship

• Find & use numerous human connectors

• Always communicate what monies are doing!

Conclusion: So Strive For:

• Donor Satisfaction

• Donor Commitment/Engagement

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Retention Drivers

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Conclusion: So Strive For:

• Donor Satisfaction

• Donor Commitment/Engagement

• Donor Trust

• Donor Loyalty

Doubling your lifetime value = ?

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Questions?

Retention Based Fundraising

Date: 4/9/2015

Presenter: Wayne Robbins wayne.robbins@bloomerang.co