The Nonprofit Communications Trends Report 2014 examines the donor retention/acquisition debate

The release of the 4th annual Nonprofit Communications Trends Report sees the reprise of an amazing collection of data that anyone in the nonprofit fundraising sector really should set aside the time to review and digest. The report is key because it’s far-reaching – collecting data from over 2,100 nonprofit professionals across the United States and also because it digs deep into the topics that really matter to us including goals & challenges, email marketing, social media, donor retention & acquisition and communication strategies.

What you will absorb instantly is both the complexity of options and opinions held by those employed within the various roles of fundraisers. One striking commonality throughout the report is finding the right balance of time to apply towards the many channels available which segues nicely into a recurring theme on our blog – planning and focus. In short, it’s not possible to take advantage of every single path to engage with supporters so selecting what works best for your organization ought to be at the heart of your decisions in 2014.

The report merits deep analysis and today in part one of that review I wanted to look at donor strategies and then in part two review some of the findings relating to communication.

Donor Retention/Donor Acquisition: All too often these two concerns are weighed against one another as an either/or statement or one versus the other which seems to be the wrong approach. As the report shows, if anything there seems to be a historical emphasis on acquiring new donors as the means to an end but this emphasis perhaps appears to be shifting.

It’s a fascinating debate but when the age-old wisdom suggests that the primary goal must be new donor growth to increase funding it takes a pivotal change in approach to shift energies away from that mission and toward donor retention as well. The fact is that the more senior ‘planners’ in the sector are suggesting that this is exactly what needs to happen. The best results and therefore harmony appear to be in raising the profile of donor retention strategies and encouraging/engaging with those who are already involved with your cause. Ideally it would seem that both paths need to be taken simultaneously.

In fact it’s fascinating to see the diverse opinions even within nonprofits when asked the following question:

‘Who believes donor retention is a top goal?’

Development Directors – 64%
Executive Directors – 34%
Communications Directors – 16%

graphic courtesy “Nonprofit Communication Trends report 2014”

You couldn’t ask for a much wider interpretation of thoughts which only reinforces the struggle of determining the optimal strategies concerning donor support which of course ultimately underpins everything that a nonprofit hopes to achieve.

Also telling in the report is that answers change and opinions tend to sway depending on the size of the organization as evidenced by the graphic to the right. For nonprofits with smaller budgets the emphasis is quite clearly leaning towards acquiring new donors as the top goal by a ratio of 2.5 to 1 and growing. At the other end of the spectrum the largest charities see donor retention as a rapidly growing priority, almost on equal footing with donor acquisition. Much of this may be due to having the required infrastructure in place at the different ends of the spectrum but it is telling to see such differing viewpoints articulated in the report.

As I mentioned the data brings to light many differing strategies and priorities each of which demand your attention but in part two I’ll look more at the results that relate to communication tools and social media.

If you’ve had an opportunity to review the report (which can be downloaded at the nonprofitmarketingguide.com site) I’d be keen to know your thoughts via the comments below.
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Miratel Solutions is a Toronto call centre, eBusiness, and letter shop mail house specializing in professional fundraising services including telephone fundraising, online fundraising, lottery services, donation caging, donation processing and other donor management services. We are committed to our CSR business values in all contact centre services and mail house operations and advancing the missions of the nonprofits we proudly serve.