On September 16th, the Fundraising Effectiveness Project (FEP) released the findings from their 2013 survey. For the first time in five years, charity respondents saw positive gains in giving, but still continued to lose donors faster than they gained them. Erik J. Daubert MBA, ACFRE, a key contributor to the FEP report, will join us to discuss the data from a fundraiser's perspective and explain why understanding donor retention is so vital to every fundraiser.

1. Why The FEP Donor
Retention Data Is So
Vital To Every Fundraiser

2. Your Presenters
Erik J. Daubert, MBA, ACFRE
Chair, Growth in Giving Initiative
Affiliated Scholar, Center on
Nonprofits and Philanthropy
The Urban Institute
Jay B. Love
CEO and Co-Founder of Bloomerang
• 30 Years of Technology Leadership
• Former Founder & CEO of eTapestry
• AFP Board Member
• AFP Ethics Committee Chairman
• Center on Philanthropy at IU Board Member

3. What is the Growth in Giving Initiative?
• The Growth in Giving Initiative is a set of charitable
giving research projects involving many nonprofit and
for profit partners.
• Our goal is to understand and challenge the United
States philanthropic sector to provide more resources
to the nonprofit organizations working to answer the
challenge of serving our nation. (2 percent of the Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) for the last 50 years)
• Many Projects:
– Fundraising Fitness Test, Fundraising Analytics, Research,
Convening, Database, Indices, Training and Education, FEP
Canada, and More!

4. What is the Fundraising Effectiveness Project?
• Our work has been most known to date by the
Fundraising Effectiveness Project or FEP, which
helps nonprofit organizations measure and
compare their annual growth in contributions
by gains and losses in giving.
• Nonprofits increase net growth in giving by
maximizing their gains and minimizing their
losses. (Improving Retention)

5. How Do Many of Us Look at Fundraising?
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Did We Make Our Goal of $X?
Is Our Board Satisfied?
Does Our Budget Continue?
Is Our Mission Fulfilled (Enough?!)?
Is My CEO Content (Enough!?)
Other?

6. Let’s Look at a Few Key Areas of the
Fundraising Effectiveness Project…
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Donor Retention
Gift Retention
Upgrades
Downgrades
Lapsed Donors

7. And Let’s Talk About What You Can Do
About Some of These…
• Donor Retention
• Gift Retention
• Upgrades

8. Donor Retention
• Donor Retention is defined as the donors you
KEEP versus the donors that you lose each
year or set of years.
• You want to keep your donors…not lose them.
• The FEP measures how well you do at this
effort! 

9. Important to Understand that All
Donors Are Not Created Equal…
• Who can You Not Afford To Lose?
• Which Donors Can You Most Effect Positively?
• What Strategies Can You Devise for:
– MAJOR Donors
– Midsize but VERY IMPORTANT donors
– Smaller Donor Groups

10. What Strategies Can I Use in My
Development Efforts?
• Define Which Donors You Can Not Afford To Lose.
(Example - $5,000 and up Donors)
– Develop Real and Personal Relationships
– Regular and PERSONAL contact
• Understand Which Area You Can Have the Most Impact
with from Your Efforts. (It might be $2,500 - $4,999 or
it just might be another giving level…)
– Determine who has the most potential
– Look at how you can connect with them in meaningful
ways (Personal solicitation, group gatherings, personalized
mailings, one visit per year, special invitation events, etc.)

11. Gift Retention
• Gift Retention is defined as the GIFTS you
KEEP versus the GIFTS that you lose each year
or set of years.
• You want to keep your GIFTS…not lose them.
• The FEP measures how well you do at this
effort! 

12. Important to Understand that All
Gifts Are Not Created Equal…
• Which GIFTS Can You Not Afford To Lose?
• Which Areas of GIFT RANGE Can You Most
Effect Positively?
• What strategies can you devise for:
– MAJOR GIFTS
– Midsize but VERY IMPORTANT GIFTS
– Smaller GIFT RANGE Groups

13. What Strategies Can I Use in My Development Efforts?
• Define Which GIFTS You Can Not Afford To Lose. (Example $5,000 and up Gifts)
– Develop strategies that personalize and help the donor to understand
the value of these gifts
– Regular and PERSONAL contact
• Understand the True Meaning of “Stewardship” (“Thank and
Report Back – without ASKING”)
• Develop a stewardship plan that is specific and appropriate
for each GIFT level…Where there is POTENTIAL – Do MORE!
• The “10% Rule”

14. UPGRADES
• Upgrades are defined as the GIFTS you GROW
BIGGER each year or set of years.
• You want to UPGRADE your GIFTS when you
can!
• The FEP measures how well you do at this
effort! 

15. Important to Understand that All Donors
Are Not Created Equal…
• Which GIFTS can You UPGRADE?
• Which Areas of GIFT RANGE can you most
effect positively if you can UPGRADE them?
• What strategies can you devise for:
– UPGRADING MAJOR GIFTS
– UPGRADING Midsize but VERY IMPORTANT GIFTS
– UPGRADING Smaller GIFT RANGE Groups

16. What Strategies Can I Use in My
Development Efforts?
• What are You Doing to Bring Donors CLOSER to YOUR
ORGANIZATION?
• Define Which Gifts You Are Most Likely to UPGRADE
(Example - $250-$499 Donors)
– Understand that Not All Donors Will UPGRADE. For Annual
Campaigns, about 20% is a good metric for number of gifts…
– Develop a Real Strategy that Can Work for Your Budget and
Organization
• Who Can Help You? (Volunteers, board, committees, family, etc.)
• Design a plan that makes your dreams (and those of your donor)
become reality!

17. Here is the address for downloading the
newest “Fundraising Fitness Test” for use
in measuring your own performance!
www.afpnet.org/fep
We hope that you will use these tools to
improve your fundraising efforts!

18. 2012 FEP Data on Donor Retention Rate
Donor Retention Rate
was 39%
Donor Attrition
was 61%!

19. Yes, your eyes read correctly:
More than SIX out of every TEN
Donors from the previous year did
NOT donate at all the next year!

22. Donor Retention Best Practices »
“A 10% improvement in
retention can double the
LIFETIME value of your donor
database!”
– Dr. Adrian Sargeant,
Bloomerang Chief Scientist

23. Defining Lifetime Value »
“The total net contribution that a
customer/donor generates during
his/her lifetime in your database.”

24. Calculating Your Retention Rate »
# of Donors in Current 12 Months
(from the previous years pool)
divided by
# of Donors in Previous 12 Months

26. Retention Begins With The Thank You!
Above Average Gift Amount
At or Below Average Gift Amount

27. 5 Acknowledgment Principles
(Drastically Improve First Year Donor Retention)
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48 Hour Rule
Fully Map a Track for Each Segment
Be Different Than the Rest (Handwritten!)
State Exactly What the Monies will Fund
Call or See in Person as Often as Possible

28. Questions?

29. Erik J. Daubert, MBA, ACFRE
Chair, Growth in Giving Initiative
Affiliated Scholar, Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy
The Urban Institute
daubert.erik@gmail.com

30. Next Webinar:
1/17 - 3pm EST
Claire Axelrad
Social Media
https://bloomerang.co/resources/webinars