Those of you lucky
enough to have attended an international fundraising conference will
hopefully agree with me: despite facing unique environmental challenges in our
respective markets; despite having a very different understanding of what
constitutes food; despite speaking different languages – including our American
friends who are yet to discover English – we find it immensely valuable to
share our fundraising learnings. I’ve gleaned much more from this experience
than I expected. I really didn’t expect so much information to be transferable
across borders.
I’d like to share
some of the donor stewardship take-aways. None of them are new, but it’s very
helpful to be reminded of their potential and to know that their effectiveness
is universal. With any luck you will see some value in these. I’d be keen to
hear your thoughts.
1.
Encourage charities to collect all
data – including complaints and questions
o
Donors who phone or mail with a grievance
or question are often passionate supporters and details of their communication
with the charity should be recorded and used
o
For example, preferences for particular
premiums, areas of the charity’s work, reasons for supporting, a grandchild’s
name etc.
o
Complaints and questions can and should be
followed-up with a low involvement action designed to engage them further with
the cause
o
We could design an off-the-shelf survey
with questions about their satisfaction with the experience and thank them for
their concern
2.
Encourage response by re-sending the donor
the premium they were recruited on
o
This is the premium that is most likely to
motivate them – particularly true with lower value donors who are more likely
to be those most incentivised
o
Use as an anti-attrition tactic – perhaps
on the anniversary of their recruitment
o
Premiums are consumable items which need
to be replaced after a period of time
3.
Use the welcome pack to outline what the
mailing cycle will be
o
If a donor understands the process and is
encouraged to be part of it, will it increase loyalty?
o
It might make donors feel that they’re not
obligated to respond. If they don’t feel obliged they might be less likely to
feel harassed and therefore more encouraged to read the letter (and
subsequently donate)
o
Would this strategy improve long-term
value?
Very keen to hear
your thoughts.
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