Start with Stewardship
In our first two Back-to-School blogs, we tackled Major Gifts & Mid-Level giving to maximize your donor relationships and revenue.
Today’s topic is on stewardship. Arguably the most important, and unfortunately most overlooked stage of the donor relationship.
Why Stewardship is a Key to Success
We all know that it’s harder and more expensive to acquire new donors than it is to keep existing donors happy, so why is so much energy put into the ask, and so little into stewardship? Ask yourself if your organization spends as much energy on stewardship as you do on solicitations. If not, your turnover ratio is likely too high. You’re likely spending money and human resource capital on acquiring new donors, and losing out on the incredible lifetime value that well-stewarded donors bring.
Donors give their hard-earned money because your mission and impact matter. They are making a difference in this world, and feel proud. If you don’t make absolutely sure your donors know the impact of their gifts, and how deeply you appreciate their generosity, they may have “Buyer’s remorse” and feel their money wasn’t well-spent.
Well-stewarded donors, on the other hand, feel joy. They love knowing they are making an important difference. They feel proud. They spread the word to their friends. They give more. They become your major gift and planned gift pipeline for the future.
I could list hundreds of reasons to create a world-class stewardship program, starting with the simple fact that it’s the right thing to do. But there are a few key reasons you can’t ignore:
The cost of acquiring new donors is high. The cost of keeping donors is low.
At some point in the philanthropic journey, donors narrow their charity list. They give more to fewer organizations. They will eliminate the groups that don’t make them feel special and focus on those that do.
Well-stewarded donors move up the giving pyramid to mid-level, major and planned gifts.
Many planned gifts are revocable, so pay special attention to these supporters and continue your stewardship throughout their lifetimes.
Who should you steward?
Of course you should steward all your donors. But not the same way. It’s not feasible to have a staff person call every $10 donor to say thank you. And your stewardship program should become more robust and more personal as donors move up the giving pyramid.
So segment your donor population into groups:
Planned giving donors
Major gift donors
Mid-level donors
Donors with capacity who are not yet giving mid-level or major gifts
Recurring monthly donors
One-off donors
How should you steward each group?
Create a pyramid in which each level gets a bit more personalized communication in your stewardship (for a free sample, email me at hollisconsulting@icloud.com).
Everyone giving a mid-level gift or higher and everyone with the capacity to give a major gift regardless of the current giving level (groups 1-4 above), should get a personal thank you call for every donation.
Groups 1-3 should have a staff person assigned as their personal point of contact, should be invited to gatherings or virtual speaker-series events, and should receive an impact report each year. Be sure the impact report talks directly to the donor and how their donations helped achieve the impacts you’ve had.
Groups 1-2 should receive a personal, tailored report on how their specific donation made a difference. They should be visited or called at least once a year by a development, program or executive staff person. They should receive thank you notes or calls from Board members or other volunteers each time they give. These donors are making your work possible. Make absolutely sure they know it!
This year has brought a great deal of uncertainty with COVID-19, temporary shut-downs and high rates of unemployment. But many organizations have faired well, with their donors even increasing gifts to help make it through these uncertain times. Be sure your donors know it matters. And as we continue to face uncertain economic outlooks, your well-stewarded donors will continue to amaze you. And when life is back to normal, your major and planned giving pipelines will be full of loyal prospects ready to join your next fundraising campaign!
Questions? Email me at hollisconsulting@icloud.com. You can find all of my blogs at https://Linkedin.com/in/piper-hollis.