With online charitable donations steadily on the rise, it is more vital now than ever to make your organization as online donor-friendly as possible.
A major component of success in that market relies on your nonprofit’s ability to properly acknowledge the donations you receive.
Online donations, in particular, present a unique opportunity for cross-platform acknowledgement.
In order to effectively show your gratitude to your web donors you have to be keyed into the potential pitfalls of online fundraising.
Web-based interactions are noncommittal in nature. The combination of the lack of interpersonal connection and the ease with which someone can participate and forget make online donor retention a tricky beast.
If you are going to target online funders, you have to first be prepared to acknowledge them in a way they would expect and then go further to anticipate a method of thanking them that exceeds expectations.
As a nonprofit fundraiser, you need to find a way to make the rather impersonal world of online donating feel personal. People donate continually to the organizations that they feel most connected to.
The donor has already taken the first step in the relationship by contributing. Your thank you is the perfect opportunity to reciprocate and deepen the connection.
Before we move on to the “how” of online donor acknowledgement, I want to first briefly mention the two main means of donating.
- The first channel is through an organization’s website. This is a direct approach and leaves the door open for how you choose to handle follow-ups. The donor who uses this method is already familiar with your cause.
- The second donation channel involves “giving sites.” These websites, like Network for Good, aggregate various types of nonprofits. Therefore, it can be expected that a donor through this site might not be as familiar with your mission.
Both options are good to use, but the respective audiences should play a role in how you acknowledge your donor. When sending a thank you to a donor who used a “giving site” it is important to remember that the donor’s knowledge of your organization is probably less than that of a donor who donated directly through your website.
An acknowledgement is a great opportunity to close that information gap.
To help you maximize the effectiveness of your thank yous here is a list of seven tips to remember when acknowledging online donors.
Tip #1: Thank quickly and often.
This tip is perhaps a bit obvious, but its importance cannot be overstated. Donors who are not appreciated do not stick around.
There are a few methods and systems for going about thanking your supporters. Whether the donor has given directly through your website or through a “giving site,” two things should automatically happen.
The donor should receive both an automated thank you and a donation receipt.
There are often options in your fundraising software to add an acknowledgement to the receipt. However, it might show added care if you were to keep these responses separate. From there it is your organization’s prerogative to determine if a step such as a thank you call or mailed letter is needed.
These added steps can certainly make the donor feel appreciated, but always keep in mind who your audience is and if multiple thank you avenues would seem considerate or overboard. I’ll address an option for striking this balance in tip number two.
Tip #2: Let the donor dictate his communication preference.
Are you worried that you are overwhelming your supporter with information? Are you worried you are not interacting enough? Rather than play a guessing game, why not just ask?
Many email providers give you the option to allow the donor to choose how frequently she wants to communicate. If you are unsure of a donor’s preferred method of contact, you could send out a quick survey.
The basic thinking behind this approach is simply that more information will lead to a better relationship.
You always want your donors to be excited to hear from you and clarifying their preferences is a great start.
Tip #3: You should always keep a dialogue going.
If someone decides to help you meet your fundraising goals and you thank them properly, you will have a good start to a hopefully longstanding and productive donor-organization relationship.
At that point, it is up to you to find a way to transition the donor from a one-time participant to a longtime ally. The best way to do this is by following up. After your initial thank you, continue communicating by sending emails with further info and updates about the organization.
Just remember, vary the message content. People will get frustrated and start ignoring emails if they feel they are redundant.
Tip #4: Quality over quantity.
One excellent email every two weeks will get you a lot farther with a donor than three hastily written messages a week.
Tip #5: Diversify the way you use media.
A donor of yours is likely a donor for other organizations as well. In order to standout, make some innovative decisions regarding donor communications.
A client who regularly receives thank you notes would be pleasantly surprised by a personalized video. The trick to varying media types (emails, videos, letters, infographics, phone calls, etc.) is to find what plays to your organization’s strong suits.
This answer will be different for everyone, but by alternating how you communicate you keep the donor more interested. A donor who knows exactly what an email will contain is less likely to open it than one who is intrigued.
Use mystery to your benefit.
Tip #6: Create a donor appreciation page
Creating a donor appreciation page is a great way to show your gratitude and publicly acknowledge your donors.
This page will be a special place on your website that recognizes businesses, individuals, and foundations that contribute.
It is a simple step that demonstrates thoughtfulness and care.
Tip #7: Social media is your best friend.
The benefits of donor acknowledgment on social media are two-fold:
- First, it is a great way to thank your supporters and make them feel part of your organization’s community.
- Second, thanking donors on social networking sites helps to inform more prospects about your cause and in return generates new followers.
There are no set standards in regards to online donation acknowledgment. The platform is still relatively new, and as such it is still evolving.
Although the online facet of donation is fairly young, thank you correspondence has always been a major part of the fundraising world. Many of the practices of the analog donation community logically extend to the online community.
If you keep the mantra “thank more than I ask” in mind while pursuing your fundraising goals, you will be off to a good start.
The post Quick and Dirty Guide to Online Donor Acknowledgement appeared first on NonProfitEasy.