The Essential Guide to Improving New Donor Retention
First-time donor renewal is critical for improving your long-term fundraising success.
Here are some facts to consider:
Getting new donors is more expensive and more difficult than ever.
First year donor renewal rates are low—averaging 29%.¹
Even a 10% increase in donor retention can increase the lifetime value of the donor database by 200%.²
All that is to say, how you respond to a donor’s first gift is of vital importance.
How do you do it? How do you increase first-time donor renewal rates? Whether a donor’s first gift came online, via direct mail, through peer solicitation, or at an event, these tried-and-true recommendations can make a powerful impact on your organization’s donor retention.
Follow these steps:
Send a thank you email ASAP!
Make a thank you phone call.
Mail a thank you letter.
Send first-time donors your most recent Donor Impact Report.
Wealth-screen all new donors.
Ask for a second gift.
Include a personal thank you note for first-time donors in the next appeal.
Let’s start with the thank you email.
Five Maples’ client, Natural Resources Council of Maine, achieves a 70% renewal rate for first-time donors, the highest we know of. Part of their process is asking for a second gift within 60 days of the first gift.
Our analysis of 113 recent mailings for organizations small to large show that additional gifts in the same year – the 0 years lapsed row in the following table – account for more than 28% of giving in the annual fund. Asking for multiple gifts in the same year is essential for both new and current donors.
Step 1: Send a “Thank you” Email ASAP!
Remember that the aim of these suggestions is improving first-time donor renewals. Every detail matters. If you have a donor’s email address, it offers you an immediate and personal contact. It is worthwhile to set up a system to thank donors via email in addition to other avenues.
Email communication also provides an easy one-click opportunity for donors to connect to your organization through your website and social media, access click-to-receive resources such as e-newsletters or premiums, or opt-in for alerts and notices.
Brevity is key. Be quick and to the point.
Online gifts will have received an auto-thank-you built into the gift processing system. A second, more personal email will reinforce your personal gratitude and let the donor know their support was noticed.
Step 2: Make Thank You calls
Thank you calls on the telephone are proven to increase donor retention rates. By a lot!³ So why not include calls in your program? You will have to determine your organization’s ability to make thank you calls and formulate a plan. Board members, staff, or volunteers could make the calls. Perhaps you can only make calls to donors who give above a certain level.
Planning for the most effective thank you calls:
Have a script written in advance.
Begin by introducing yourself and your role within the organization.
Assure them at the outset that this is not a solicitation, but rather you’re calling to say “Thank you!”
Reassure the donor that they made the right decision.
Remind them of how much their gift will accomplish.
Thank them sincerely.
Leave a number so they can call back if they so desire.
Remember that many calls go to voicemail. Be prepared to leave a message. But those who do answer will usually be gratefully surprised they are being thanked. The call doesn’t need to be long.
Phone script for thank you calls
“Hello, [donor’s name]? This is [your name] with [your organization]. I’m NOT calling to ask for anything. We received your gift—I’m just calling to personally thank you. I hope now is an okay time to talk. Do you have a few minutes? [Pause]
It’s important to me and all of us here to let you know that your gift makes a difference in helping further our work. We … [Mention a few examples of impact: 2-3 value propositions related to what donations make possible]. [Pause]
We are deeply appreciative of your decision to support [your organization]. [Pause]
I don’t want to take up too much of your time. Thank you for taking my call … and for supporting our work! Have a wonderful [day/evening/weekend].”
Step 3: Put a Thank You Letter in the Mail
Don’t allow time to lag. Your donor needs acknowledgment—fast! Let them know their gift was received. It was put to the use for which it was given. And, the gift AND the giver are very much appreciated.
Many organizations mail thank you letters within 24 hours of receipt of gifts. Within 48 hours is probably a good practice. Make it happen within a week, at the very least.
The elements of an effective thank you letter are illustrated by this example:
Thank the donor sincerely and profusely.
Reaffirm your organization’s mission.
Let the donor know about the impact made possible by their donation.
If possible, include a testimonial.
Have the President, Executive Director, head of fundraising, or other appropriate leader within the organization sign the letter.
A personal touch makes an emotional connection. These extra steps can make a big difference:
Sign the letter by hand.
Include a handwritten postscript.
Address the letter by hand.
Handwrite the signer’s name above the return address on the envelope.
Options you might also consider for your thank you letter or package:
The thank you letter can contain a formal gift receipt, but be certain the letter itself does not read like a receipt—this is a letter sincerely saying “Thank you!” We suggest putting the formal gift information at the bottom of the page.
You might ask new donors a few questions via a brief checkbox list to better understand their personal interests and connection to your cause. In this case, you’ll include a reply envelope.
You could give them an opportunity to sign up for your organization’s e-newsletter or to receive event announcements.
If you plan to call them to introduce yourself and thank them, let them know in a P.S.
Step 4: Send First-time Donors Your Most Recent Donor Impact Report
Follow up with results. Donors want to know: Why did my donation matter? What did it accomplish? Whose life was changed? Why should I contribute again? A Donor Impact Report is a tremendous way to alert donors to the impact of their generosity.
Inclusions for a successful first-time Donor Impact Report package:
The most recent Donor Impact Report.
A personal note (or even a post-it note) thanking the donor, and saying, “I thought you would enjoy reading this Donor Impact Report.”
A soft ask in the form of a reply envelope. Tom Ahern has shown that donor impact reports can raise serious money.⁴
The Donor Impact Report adapts success and impact stories from newsletters, profiles, and interviews, directly linking contributors to the mission they support. Instead of explaining all the organization has achieved, the Donor Impact Report celebrates an organization’s work while positioning donors as the heroes who are making it happen.
We recommend breaking the Donor Impact Report down into several emails sent out over a couple of weeks to the donors who have provided their email address. All of your donors should receive a Donor Impact Report at least twice a year.
Step 5: Wealth-screen All New Donors
Wealth screening analyzes your pool of prospects and donors to determine their respective capacities to give. It can help you determine who to approach for major gifts or for sustaining/monthly gift appeals, planned or legacy giving, or giving to particular projects. Wealth screening helps you determine the give that is most beneficial to your donors.
Example of donor wealth screen report
If the screening indicates a donor has capacity and propensity to give, you will want to:
Verify the screening results.
Code the donor accordingly in your database.
Visit them to say “Thank you” in person.
Invite them to visit your organization.
Whatever their wealth rating or propensity to give, you’ll want to assess their affinity before rushing to higher asks. Use your communications and resources to strengthen personal relationships and their affinity to your organization and its mission.
Get to know your new donors, learn what motivates them and find an appropriate way to engage them. Don’t rush to get answers to all your questions. Let them get to know you as you communicate with them about the aspects of your mission that are most relevant and meaningful to them.
Step 6: Ask for a Second Gift
Ask for a second gift within one to three months of a donors’ first gift. We admit, this is controversial. Donors have replied to surveys saying they don’t want to be asked again soon. But it is well known that their survey preferences differ from their actions.
Fundraising authority Jeff Brooks has found that donors who give again soon have higher life-time value.⁵ Much to his surprise, fundraising guru Alan Sharpe found that asking for the next gift with a reply card and envelope in the thank you letter raised a lot of money⁶ and our clients who include a reply envelope in the thank you letter can see up to 5% of their annual fund coming from these envelopes. The same result is reported by the legendary Roger Craver.⁷
Five Maples’ client, Natural Resources Council of Maine, achieves a 70% renewal rate for first-time donors, the highest we know of. Part of their process is asking for a second gift within 60 days of the first gift.
Our analysis of 113 recent mailings for organizations small to large show that additional gifts in the same year – the 0 years lapsed row in the following table – account for more than 28% of giving in the annual fund. Asking for multiple gifts in the same year is essential for both new and current donors.
You’ll receive a few complaints, and will most likely have one or two board members who feel uncomfortable with this approach. Mark any incoming complaints as ‘solicit once’ in your database.
The easiest and most cost-effective process: send a Donor Impact Report or Postcard (Step #4 above) in-between each solicitation mailing, with a reply envelope, and ask all donors again in your next regular appeal mailing. And if they gave for the first time in the fall mailing, be sure to ask them in the end-of-year mailing, even if that’s only one or two months away. Don’t be shy!
Step 7: In Your Next Appeal, Include a Personalized Note in the Letters to Your First-time Donors
A personal note tells donors they mean more to your organization than a name in a mailing list. It says they are more important to you than the gift they give. Don’t have time to write so many notes? We can print the handwritten note during letter production—it will look just like handwriting.
First-time donors are special! Reinforce your gratitude for the donor’s choice to support your mission and your organization. Let them know they are now part of your special tribe. They’re the heroes!
1 “2016 Fundraising Effectiveness Survey”, Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Urban Institute, afpfep.org/reports
2 Jay, Elaine, & Sargeant, Adrian. Building Donor Loyalty: The Fundraiser’s Guide to Increasing Lifetime Value, Jossey-Bass, 2014
3 Burk, Penelope. Donor Centered Fundraising: How to hold on to your donors and raise much more money, Cygnus Applied Research, 2003
4 Ahern, Tom. Raising More Money with Newsletters Than You Ever Thought Possible, Emerson & Church, 2009
5 Brooks, Jeff. How to get that critical second gift, Blog Post August 31, 2011, FutureFundraisingNow.com
6 Sharpe, Alan. Donation Thank You Letter Second Ask, Blog Post, November 6, 2014, FundraiserHelp.com
7 Craver, Roger M. Retention Fundraising: The New Art and Science of Keeping Your Donors For Life, Emerson & Church, 2014
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