Unlocking Insights: How to learn from Your Year-End Appeal Beyond Financials
Congratulations on wrapping up another year-end campaign! Whether you met your financial goals or not, your campaign results hold a treasure trove of insights. Fundraising is a marathon, not a sprint, and each step offers lessons that can refine your future strategies.
In this post, we'll explore how to dig deeper into your year-end appeal data. We'll focus on the non-financial victories and learn how to leverage these insights to refine your fundraising strategies. From identifying new donors to recognizing re-engaged supporters, every piece of information tells a story that can help you build stronger relationships and more effective campaigns.
Once you have buttoned up your data entry and stewardship, I recommend taking a deeper look into the results of your campaign, with the lens of “what is this information telling me - what is the story of our fundraising efforts?”
Here are some non-financial victories you might find in the data, or anecdotal when you reflect upon your campaign, and how you might leverage this information.
Identify New Donors and Understand Their Motivations
Were you able to attract new donors? If yes, what channels did these donors come through? (be sure to capture what inspires folks in your CRM, this information will be helpful down the road).
This information can tell you where your potential donors are showing up, and where you might want to continue putting effort moving forward. This is also an opportunity to ask yourself - how can I bring these folks closer to my organization?
One example that sticks out in my mind is a time when an online donation came in for a substantial amount from a donor that was not in our community. I was intrigued as to how they came to hear about our very local organization. I reached out to ask how they heard about us, and noting that they weren’t from the area. They indicated that they found our story on social media, were impressed by the work we were doing, and wanted to support the mission (a cause they were passionate about). We began a conversation that led to them increasing their gift year after year.
Recognize Who Your Advocates Are
Who helped spread the word that got some attention? Let those folks know how their advocacy impacted your results.
Advocates are considered folks who want to help share your story, and they can increase fundraising results exponentially. Folks who are doing this work on behalf of the organization should be recognized and appreciated - and the best way to do this is to let them know the impact they had. You don’t need to get into details, simply saying things along the lines of “Your email inspired 6 people to give this year, totalling $500 in new donations.”
Consider what tools they had to share your message - and asking them to share their story at a board meeting or other forum with volunteers to inspire others/show how easy it is to get the word out when you care about an organization.
Are you struggling with ideas for ways your Board members can advocate for your organization and support fundraising efforts? Click here to download “5 Things Board Members Can Do Right Now to Support Fundraising.” for ideas to get started.
Connect with Re-engaged Donors
When a donor re-engages, it is the perfect time to reach out and thank them personally, and welcome them back as a supporter, and check in to see what inspired them to give this year. This information can provide insight as to whether or not you are reaching your current supporters effectively throughout the year.
I often had donors get back to me to share things like “I really like what you are doing with xyz program this year.” or “Last year was not a good year for me, but this year I had more income to give.” This was so much more useful than assuming they hadn’t given because they didn’t like us anymore!
Have you noticed a pattern in your donor re-engagement? What does this tell you about your communication strategy?
Pay Attention to What Excited Donors to Give
If you offered different program areas or functions to support, are you noting which they chose as an area of passion. Were there areas of interest that spoke to more people than others? Did anyone write a personal note on their gift/remit slip that gives you more insight into their motivations?
Again, whatever bits of information you gather should be added to your CRM to create a good picture of who the donor is as a person. Your future self, and future staff will thank you.
Be Aware of Changes in Giving
Many donors budget and plan for the same gift year over year. That’s great! But if you compare a donor’s giving to previous year’s behaviors, and see something different, there might be a story there. If giving increased, maybe take a peek at what other involvement they had, what might be the story behind their increased giving. Or (I will always advocate for this) reach out to thank them and note the increase, asking if there was anything that inspired that increase. Do this in the spirit of wanting to understand what the organization is doing well, and what they can improve upon.
I used to tell the folks I worked with that each gift that came to us told a story about the donor. Everything from the way it was sent (check, mail, online, social media), to the timing, information they shared, or details like a change of address or name helps us understand and get to know our supporters better. I poured over everything from the remit slip to the envelope looking for any insights to help understand our donors and their motivations. This in turn, allowed us to see and connect with each donor as a person, rather than a transaction.
Please be sure to email me if you have specific questions about anything I’ve shared here, and follow me on social media for more tips and content to inspire your fundraising efforts.
