Foolish Nonprofits

Unbelievably, it's come to this. If you work for a nonprofit and it doesn't thank its donors promptly and impactfully, that nonprofit is...FOOLISH!

There! I've said it (and I'm not taking it back).

We talk to far too many nonprofits who purport to have their "stuff" in order. Lately, oh say, the last year or so, more and more of them are slacking off in thanking their donors properly.

While some do thank them promptly, they don't put much effort into explaining the difference the donor's gift has made or is making. In other cases, the impact is clearly spelled out, but not sent to the donor for weeks (or even months) after the gift is received. Yes, even months (I can imagine that there were a few gasps at the last sentence).

That's when they come to us and say they don't understand why they're losing so many donors or that they desperately need new donors to replace the ones who don't give anymore.

To be clear--this is bad, bad, bad and for more reasons than I care to get into in this post.

What does your thank you strategy look like?

Is your advancement office excellent, good, fair or lousy at thanking, welcoming properly, and reassuring donors that their gifts have been safely and gratefully received and wisely used? If your answer is anything less than excellent is that something to be proud of?

And then we wonder why donor retention is so poor. What a shame! It's the fall appeal season everyone! Generous donors both new and recurring are going to be sending in their gifts of support.

Your biggest challenge, in fact, the fundraising arm of any nonprofit's biggest challenge, is keeping your supporters loyal.

Are your donors pleased with how you welcome them (new donors), thank them and report back to them?

My guess is that for a surprising number of you reading this, you wouldn't want to say the answer publicly.

If you have a part to play in retaining donors at your organization, are you doing everything you can to make sure donors feel thanked, welcomed, informed, and perhaps most importantly, pleased with how effectively you're communicating the difference they are making to those you serve?

If not, maybe we should talk.