Start the Year Strong

Happy New Year everyone!
 
I hope you are excited about 2023.  It seems so strange that it is already 2023.  Oh well, I am excited though.  This month I want to focus on a few things.  First, this month's podcast is the Economic Outlook of 2023 with the Indiana University Kelley School of Business.  Second, I want to get you thinking about following up on those who have not yet given from last year. Third, I want to set the table for thinking about evaluating your response rates from last year.
 
Follow up to Follow Through
January and February are good months to follow up and follow through on your fourth-quarter invitations to give.  The fact that individuals did not give in the fourth quarter in response to your appeal does not mean that they have no interest.  We hear from many donors in the field that they often just forget to respond to an invitation to give.  They planned to follow through, but they needed to follow up.  With that in mind, let’s consider a “follow up so donors can follow through” strategy.  It is really simple.
 
1. Identify donors who did not respond to your fourth quarter calendar year appeals and target that group for personalized follow-up communication.
 
2. Resend these donors an invitation to give along with a personal letter, note or phone call, or email if other routes are not options.  Postcards are also growing in favor.   Let them know that you are thankful for their continued consideration of being a partner with you in the coming year and investing in those you serve.  Note that you are resending the invitation to invest in that partnership in case they have questions. Consider including an insert of your board, mission, and vision, and the theme for the coming year.  
 
3. Keep track of donors’ responses.
 
4. Thank donors as they give.
 
Follow up, so your donors can follow through.  Many organizations don’t follow up out of fear that donors will get mad.  If the donor is a transaction and your solicitation reflects that, you bet, they will get mad, not because you followed up, but because you are just resending a transactional appeal to them.  On the other hand, if you engage them as a relationship that matters, you engage them personally and you share an opportunity to make a difference.  That is about building relationships, not getting checks.  
 
Evaluation Follow up
The follow-up strategy is one part of the evaluation and follow-through of your fundraising program.  But in a more formal way, as you are considering the metrics of your fundraising program this quarter, I would encourage you to think broadly about the organization’s fundraising goals and consider each fundraising tool you are using in light of how it is facilitating your overall goal, not just how it performs individually. 
 
Research shows online giving is often prompted by a direct mail invitation or even an in-person meeting.  
In the survey, as many as 1 in 3 donors who give online use an organization’s website to give in response to a direct mail appeal.  And other studies have shown that as much as 50% of direct mail responses actually come through social media vehicles.  The direct mail just prompted the action. 
 
What does this mean for your organization?  Two things.  We have to be aware that we live in a world of cross-channel communication.  When evaluating the fundraising program, don’t silo your fundraising to look at just who responded to a direct mail appeal via mail but look at overall donation response and what types of invitations to give the donor received prior to making a gift. 
 
Second, we have to have websites that are easy to navigate and make it exceptionally easy to donate.  A donor should be able to access a donation form with one click.  The donation button should be displayed prominently on the home page.  Capture a donor’s home address in the online form, and don’t assume that a donor who gives online only wants to be reached via electronic communication in the future.
 
Remember, it all comes down to honoring the donor and their relationship with your organization as a vehicle to the cause.  It’s never just about updating the website to look good or creating fancy metrics for the sake of the evaluation, and we can’t ever forget that.
 
Warmly,
Jamie