Charity Navigator’s Kevin Scally Talks Recurring Giving Stats and Trends
Donors don’t just give to any organization. They do their research. I’ve seen statistics showing anywhere from one-third to three-quarters of prospective donors go to the organization’s website or check out charities’ backgrounds, missions and ratings on watchdog sites, like Candid (formerly known as Guidestar), Charity Navigator, and Charity Watch. I reached out to Charity Navigator after seeing some stats […]
Best Practices for Recurring Donor Receipts
Last year, proposed Mastercard regulations and deadlines for subscription provided quite the scare for nonprofits. One of the regulations would have mandated providing recurring gift receipts every month — at least online. Another regulation would have required making it easy for the donor to find contact information on those receipts, in case the donor wanted to cancel or […]
3 Recurring Giving Predictions for 2023
A new year. New opportunities. A renewed focus on donors, mission and impact. To kick off 2023, here are my top three recurring giving predictions for 2023: 1. Offering Donors the Easiest Way to Give The No. 1 reason why monthly donors give is because they want to help, so it’s up to you to […]
Recurring Gifts Rocked It on Giving Tuesday
The results speak for themselves. Giving Tuesday 2022 saw a 15% increase in dollars raised compared to 2021 with $3.1 billion in total. Wow. If you rocked the results for your Giving Tuesday campaign, congratulations. If you didn’t, there’s always next year and end of year. If you don’t ask, you’re certainly not going to get it. […]
10 Things I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving, Part 5
As a fundraiser, your life is not easy. There are days when you wonder why you’re doing it all. There are days where you’re just Zoomed out. You can’t possibly think about yet one more event, one more direct mail campaign, one more Giving Tuesday or other giving day campaign. The stress is huge. There […]
What Can You Do for Donors During Thanksgiving Week?
It all comes down to the mindset of no gift is too small. No gift should ever be overlooked, especially during these difficult financial times. If someone sends you $5 in cash, they may not be able to do more, but they want to make a difference with what they can afford. I know you […]
10 Things I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving, Part 4
I’ve shared six of my top sustainer giving lessons so far. Today, I’ll get to the heart of sustainer giving, and probably the hardest lessons for nonprofit leadership. 7. Be Patient and Think Long-Term If you talk to those organizations that are most successful with sustainer giving, they all have a long-term focus. I know […]
10 Things I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving, Part 3
I hope you’re enjoying this list of things to focus on when it comes to sustainer giving. So far, I’ve shared four things I’ve learned. Some I had to learn the hard way but certainly they can benefit any and all fundraisers. Here are lessons five and six. 5. Challenges Are Opportunities A prime example […]
10 Things I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving, Part 2
In a previous article, I shared the first two things I learned during my 30 years of working on sustainer programs. Most of this is not rocket science, but it’s important to keep in mind when you’re looking to grow or retain your sustainers. Here are my next two lessons. 3. Operations Is Your Friend When […]
What I Learned From 30 Years in Sustainer Giving
I recently had the pleasure to present a keynote at Sustainers Day, organized by the Direct Marketing Association of Washington. It was a packed house, filled with nonprofits of different sizes and sustainer experiences. I always learned that rather than a how-to session, a keynote was meant to be inspirational in nature. So, I reflected on […]
