Individual giving - thanking donors

When boards and non-profit leadership talk about fundraising, individual donors are typically, and easily, talked around or even not thought about. Meanwhile, so many of us have donor retention rates under 40% and direct mail response rates are under three percent. I can see why many in our world don't see the intense value of individual donors, or even think that there is a way to increase the amount of individual giving for their non-profit.

Although I subscribe to the philosophy of donor-centered giving, I'm not even writing about that. I think many non-profits have a lot of work to do even before they start working within the ideas of being donor-centered.

Here's an example. A few months ago I attended a luncheon that was a fundraiser for a popular LA-based non-profit. It was my first time attending one of the events and I was blown away by what they presented, so much so that I made a donation.

First donation to them ever. I felt so good about being part of their incredible impact.

Time when by and one day we received their newsletter. It reminded me that I hadn't received a thank you letter or a tax letter yet. 

More time went by, and six weeks after I made the donation I received my thank you/tax letter.

Six weeks! Seriously? I couldn't believe it.

Even though I am now on their mailing list, I don't feel any more a part of them as I did before I made the donation.

I like what we do at the non-profit I fundraise for. Once we see a donation we call the donor to thank them. This happens within 24 hours of receiving the donation. Then a thank-you letter goes out within three days. Three days is the absolute latest it will go out, that's our goal. It doesn't mean that we don't do all we can to get the letter out earlier.

Individual giving can change your mission and impact. It's much more sustainable than corporate giving and even foundation giving. Growing your donor relationships will be totally worth your while. You can start by thanking them.

Thanks for reading.

A simple thank you

I frequently think about what Miss Manners would think about the decline in the use of thank you cards these days. Or thank you emails. Or calls.

I recently had a conversation with a person who I had donated a couple of tickets to an opera. They wanted to get a couple more tickets for their upcoming auction. I politely declined.

I clearly remember going back and forth with this person regarding a donation. All the time I took and the true generosity from our organization to theirs. They made money from the donation.

Yet the gift to them did not warrant a thank you note.

It's not uncommon. Unless you have donated to me or made time for me. Then you will be nicely surprised.

Thank you card's are so important. Especially if you are a fundraiser! Any time I meet with someone the first thing I do when I get back to the office is jot a quick note on our stationary and pop it in the mail. It's important to me that people I visit with know how grateful I am that they took time out their busy schedule to meet with me. Or that they decided to donate something to our auction.

And it only takes a few minutes.

The other great thing about thank you notes is that hardly anyone takes the time to write them, and as a fundraiser anytime I can stick out is great!

But the bottom line is that in our business, it's simply the right thing to do.

If you have agency stationary, use that. Every time I can get out our brand is good. If you do not have stationary, buy some inexpensive note cards or have some printed at FedEx Kinkos.

You will definitely not regret sending a thank you card!

Thank you for reading!