First-time donors give for many reasons, and donor retention looks different for each donor behavior type. First-time gifts can come from anywhere and for a number of reasons! They often are made through an online giving campaign, or in memory or in honor of someone. A first-time gift may come when a donor reaches alumni status and feels now is the time to give back or a friend or family member asks the donor to make a gift, or because the donor feels a connection to your cause whether it be through a recent diagnosis or educational interest they have developed.
The important thing to recognize with all these gift types is the donor is waiting to hear from you how their gift made a difference—Was it needed? Was it used appropriately? Do you really need their financial support to continue fulfilling your mission? If the donor’s first-time gift experience is positive and you can provide appropriate and timely communication that tells the donor “Yes!” they made a difference, chances are, they will make another gift!
Today, we will explore the journey of a first-time donor from their first gift to the next ask, and work towards developing a first-time donor plan that will engage, inspire, and cultivate your first-time donors.
Our first-time donors are considered a “high-risk” donor behavior due to their likelihood to make one gift and never give again. New donor retention rate is astonishingly low at 20.30% compared with repeat donor retention rates that land around 60%. So, how can we reach first-time donors?
We first need to think about what causes donors to leave an organization. This information will help us develop a plan for first-time donors to continue giving in the future by ensuring we are eliminating as many variables for leaving as possible. Donors choose to stop giving for a number of reasons, some include:
· Too many solicitations
· Not enough (or any) genuine gratitude
· Lack of impact reporting
· Poor communication (quantity, quality, delivery, mechanism, incorrect data)
· Lack of personal connection
· Legitimate reasons out of their or our control
However, there are many things you can do to encourage donors to continue to give, year after year:
· Prompt and meaningful thank yous - and genuine communications
· Meaningful impact reporting
· Donors feeling part of a meaningful cause or community
· Positive relationship or interaction with faculty/staff/leadership members
· Given opportunities to see their gift at work
Statistics show us that acquiring a new donor costs seven times more than retaining the donor you already have at your organization. First-time donor stewardship should be a vital focus for your donor relations program. Developing a multi-touch, multi-channel approach that ideally includes one touch per quarter, and a minimum of one impact and one acknowledgment communication is critical in reaching these donors. Essentially, you have a 12-month honeymoon period to reach out to your first-time donors. You need a plan that follows these donors on their giving journey starting with the date of their first gift through to their one-year anniversary. By following the plan below, you will increase the likelihood of retaining this donor for years to come.
Below are examples of first-time donor communications that are not only welcoming—but also timely. They show the impact of that first gift, and follow donors throughout their first year as a donor to your organization.
These samples of first-time donor postcards and acknowledgments provide a great starting place for your first-time donor communications plan. The examples below are fun, informative, and clearly show your organization recognizes this is the first time the donor has made a gift. First-time donor postcards can be created once and used for several years since donors should only receive this the very first time they make a gift. This is a major bonus when planning for design time and mass orders.
ThankView presents another creative way to engage with first-time donors by showing them through quick videos the impact of their gift. Think outside the box with ThankView and other video platforms to create dynamic content that makes it clear the donor is receiving this special piece because they made their first gift.
One of my favorite first-time donor communications, and perhaps the most beneficial, is the anniversary email celebrating the donor’s one year anniversary of their first gift. This also serves as a great way to remind donors to give again, without including an ask.
Student and beneficiary or recipient phone calls also create an incredible way to individually thank all first-time donors. You don’t need a sophisticated telethon system, but depending on the size of your organization, having 2-3 people from your student alumni association or perhaps a patient or mentor who has benefitted from your organization's services spend a few hours a week thanking donors can make a huge impact. Below is a sample script you can use to thank first time donors:
Hello! This is (NAME) from (YOUR ORGANIZATION). We noticed you made your first gift earlier this month and I wanted to thank you for supporting (INSERT CAUSE). I am a (STUDENT/PATIENT/ INSERT RELATIONSHIP TO ORGANIZATION) here and I can tell you firsthand your gift is making a huge difference. Thank you and we hope you have a great day!
Of course you can personalize the text as much as you like, but it should always contain these elements: be short and sweet, acknowledge the donor’s first gift, and it should not ask the donor to give again.
There are a number of additional touches to use with first-time donors—including invitations to events or tailgates specifically because the donor gave for the first time, adding donors to newsletters or publications, and highlighting first-time donors on social media. The possibilities are endless, and after the one year mark, you are ready to ask the donor to give again. This will be the true test to see whether your first-time donor stewardship plan was effective. Please share with us your successes and let us know if you have any creative first-time donor touches that made an impact at your organization!
