Building Donor Relationships That Last

So you acquired a new donor…now what?

Getting new donors in the door is only half the battle. New donor acquisition is an investment that can take years to see a return. Retaining those donors and successfully soliciting them for repeated giving is where their true value lies.

Whether a donor has been on your file for 10 days or 10 years, here are a few best practices you should adhere to when thanking donors for their gift.

Acknowledge the Gift Promptly

Each gift should be acknowledged as quickly as possible with a formal gift receipt for donors to keep for their records. For online gifts, this should be sent via email within 24-48 hours. For mailed gifts, ideally their gift receipt should be sent out within a week of receiving the donation (even sooner if possible).

The gift receipt should also be accompanied by a personalized thank you message—regardless of the gift size. The note should include the donor’s name and gift amount, emphasize impact, and clearly show appreciation.

The more personal the outreach, the better, as resources allow. For donors with higher giving levels or capacity, a phone call or handwritten thank you note in addition to a formal mailed acknowledgment letter can strengthen the donor relationship significantly.

The thank you letter should focus on just that—thanking the donor for their support. Do not include a direct ask for an additional donation. At most, include a pre-addressed return envelope in the package—you might see it come back to you with the donor’s next gift inside!

Report on the Impact of Their Gift

Engage donors more deeply by reporting what their support has made possible. This can be in the form of annual reports, newsletters, or impact reports. Be specific about what their gift has supported. Use donor-centric language, making it clear that these accomplishments were only possible with their help and support.

For instance, if your initial letter featured a matching gift offer, you could send out a communication to all who received it thanking them for helping you reach your matching gift goal. If your organization achieves a major victory in your mission, or hits a new milestone, let your donors know about it and thank them for helping you make it happen.

These stewardship/cultivation touches can include a soft ask or call to action, along with a return envelope for those inclined to support you further.

Invite the Donor to Give Again

If you don’t ask, you won’t receive! To build a robust fundraising program you need to give your donors ample opportunities to give. You can be selective about the number of appeals sent to special donor groups (sustainers, mid-level donors, etc.) but ideally all of your donors should be getting regular appeals to support your organization.

This goes for brand-new donors as well. While it may feel too soon to ask donors for another gift, research shows that a second ask within three months is key to converting them into repeat supporters (providing you’ve thanked them for their initial gift first).

For both new and existing donors, it’s essential that you maintain regular communication to engage them with your mission, report back on successes and challenges, and build your relationship with each donor over time.

Additional considerations for building an effective, streamlined communications strategy:

Segment your donors into groups by giving level and make a concrete communication schedule for each to include a mix of cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship outreach. Groups can be as broad as annual fund, mid-level, and major gift donors, to start. This schedule can serve as a roadmap to ensure all your donors receive consistent, effective communications from your organization throughout the year.
Stewardship and cultivation outreach can span multiple channels. Your communications schedule should utilize mail, email, and social media to maximize outreach. For higher level donors, incorporate phone calls and in-person meetings into their cultivation strategy.
Vary the types of content you’re sending to include:
- Donor surveys
- Event invitations
- Volunteer opportunities
- Brief notes or tokens of thanks and appreciation for support
- Rapid response emails with timely updates relevant to your mission (with or without an ask for support)
- Reports providing insider detail on the work donor support makes possible
- Personal stories from those who have benefited from donor support and testimonials from donors about why they support your organization
- Public recognition opportunities, especially for higher level donors