Tapping Donors’ Desire to Be Part of a Group Can Pay Off Big, Study Says

Title: Relationship Fundraising: Where Do We Go From Here?

Organization: Rogare, the fund-raising think tank at the Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy, Plymouth University

Many charity supporters crave a sense of belonging, and “making a donor feel like a part of a unique or distinctive group” can help maximize gifts from repeat donors, the study suggests. The identity that donors derive from their giving — being a “Greenpeace supporter” or a “child sponsor,” for example — could be the “next big thing” that drives relationship fund-raising, the researchers state.

Fundraisers know personal relationships with donors are essential to build long-term relationships and win ongoing financial support. However, fundraisers may be missing out by failing to understand that donors seek different things from nonprofits as their support increases, according to this yearlong review of the theories of relationship fund-raising and of best practices.

Fundraisers could have more success in retaining donors if they are more diligent about applying social psychology theories to their work, according to Ian MacQuillin, director of Rogare, and Adrian Sargeant, director of the Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy, who co-wrote the report.

The study involved canvassing senior fundraisers, reviewing existing literature, and collecting case studies and was sponsored by Bloomerang, a fund-raising software company, and Pursuant, a consulting firm.

Among the other findings:

• A donor’s relationship with an organization evolves over time. To acquire a supporter, a charity needs to arouse passion for a cause. But to keep that supporter on board, the focus needs to shift toward serving the donor’s needs. As the report states, long-term engagement between a nonprofit and a contributor gradually becomes about “not what charities do for their beneficiaries but what charities do for their donors.”
• How donors are treated by a charity and its representatives is key to whether or not they stay involved. According to the report, “Donors who are ‘very satisfied’ with the quality of service they receive are twice as likely to make a second gift as those who are merely ‘satisfied.’” More charities, the report suggests, should measure and track donor satisfaction.
• In predicting future giving, past is not necessarily prologue, the study says. Rather than using previous giving as a measure of how much donors will give in the future, fundraisers are urged to get donors to focus on how much they would like to contribute to a charity in the future and how much impact those gifts might have. That approach, the report says, has greater potential to boost giving.