Katya's Non-Profit Marketing Blog
Getting To The Point

It’s not what your donors give you, it’s what you give them

In fundraising, we tend to focus on what we can extract from our donors.  Instead, we should focus on what we can give our donors: gratitude, social impact, good feelings.  The money will follow.

Think of your donors and how they feel.  It is a very personal, emotional choice to give away money to something you care about.  You as the organization these donors support want to handle those strong feelings of your donor with care. They have acted in a way that is deeply meaningful to them.  If the only way we react to their gift is with a tax receipt, we’re not only being rude, we’re being disrespectful.

It is far easier to keep and cultivate a donor than to go find a new one and convince them to care about your cause. That’s one reason to give thanks early and often in your online outreach.  Another is that your gratitude bonds the donor to your cause. And, because most nonprofits stink at online relationship-building, if you are good, you are going to stand out. 

Be extra nice to your donors today.