If you’re seeing lower donor engagement rates or struggling to re-engage lapsed donors, you may be feeling frustrated with the nonprofit sector as a whole. It may feel as if these changes and new challenges are unavoidable and that you’ve run out of ideas. While the problems you’re facing are very real, the good news is that there are solutions. To help you tackle some of these problems that feel like nonprofit sector-wide issues, we’re busting some of the myths that may be holding you back. Here are the four myths we’re dispelling and problems we’ll help you solve:
From taking a critical look at your marketing strategy to identifying missed opportunities to maximize donations, our solutions will help you begin to see progress again. If you’re ready to bust those pesky fundraising myths and start making changes, let’s get started.
While it’s very true that direct mail can’t be your only form of marketing or outreach, this doesn’t mean that it’s completely ineffective. In fact, Getting Attention’s 2021 nonprofit marketing guide still recommends using direct mail as one of your marketing channels.
In today’s nonprofit marketing environment, a multi-channel approach that utilizes a variety of outreach methods is crucial for success. For example, in addition to direct mail, you should have an excellent website, robust email campaigns, and a social media presence. This helps you to better target different segments of your audience. Your new supporters in their 20’s might respond better to social media posts or emails, but your long-term donors may still be interested in receiving mailers from you.
Even for younger audiences, a handwritten or hand-signed thank-you letter delivered by mail is still a nice personal gesture that they may also appreciate in lieu of an automated email. So, direct mail is not dead, but it does matter how you choose to utilize it in order to make the best use of your time and resources.
As we mentioned, a multi-channel marketing strategy is essential for reaching the various segments of your audience, but that doesn’t mean that you should be putting the same effort into every platform available to you.
In order to decide which platforms are worth your time and how you should prioritize them, you need to consider:
If you are hoping to expand your marketing efforts but don’t have the financial resources to create ads or promote organic posts, Google Ad grants can be an excellent way to better afford effective marketing efforts that may otherwise be out of reach. This can allow you to use your marketing budget for other channels that are also useful for your organization.
Despite economic concerns due to the pandemic, donors have actually been more generous. In 2021, overall charitable giving in the United States increased by 8.9% on a year-over-year basis, according to the Blackbaud Institute Index. While this is great news, you may be scratching your head if you’re not seeing this trend at your own organization.
Here are a few reasons you may be experiencing fewer donations:
Your donors are still out there, ready to make philanthropic contributions. However, it’s up to you to properly engage and convince them of why your organization is the one they should give their hard-earned money to. Check your strategy for some of the blind spots we identified and begin making changes.
If you’re seeing donor response and engagement rates go down, it may not be because they don’t want to hear from you. Instead, the issue may be how you are communicating.
For example, if you send nearly identical emails with unengaging subject lines, your communications may not be sticking out to supporters in their overflowing inboxes. It’s worth taking the time to examine your existing communication and marketing methods for areas that could use a face-lift. Here are a few tips for ways to improve any type of communication:
If your current communications are in great shape but you still wish your donors were more engaged, trying out a new form of communication entirely can be helpful. Nonprofit text messaging is a great way to quickly and efficiently reach out to donors. It also allows you to have a little more fun — try using emojis, gifs, or even memes. Your donors will be looking forward to messages from you in no time!
The positive news is that the whole nonprofit sector is far from doomed — there is still an abundance of generous individuals out there who are more than happy to donate to a worthy cause. However, you may be hindering your own progress by not identifying your weak points. With an honest look at your strategy and what you can improve on, you should be in good shape to improve your fundraising efforts and get back to seeing success.