Unfortunately, there will be times where fundraising teams will have difficulty raising money. They create more friction in the donation process, or make it harder for donors to give than they want to admit.
When organizations make it harder for donors to give, donors start to become fatigued with the process, which will result in less donations, or at least more infrequent donations.
What is donor fatigue?
Donor fatigue is a term that describes the decreasing level of interest, support and engagement from donors over time. There are various ways that donor fatigue can occur, and oftentimes this type of fatigue is due to continued solicitations for donations form the same donor lists, or potentially from a very long fundraising campaign with frequent solicitations.
These mistakes do cost nonprofits more than just financial gain. Mistakes like these can cost nonprofits repeat donors who now won’t give because it’s too hard, or they get too disengaged, or they become to distraught with the process.
Here are 7 mistakes that nonprofits make that increase donor fatigue.
Mistake #1: becoming ignorable
Bombarding your donors with emails, texts and other methods isn’t good for your customers.
Why? It becomes noise to them. So much more that it gets to the point of being ignored.
Ever heard of ask blindness?
I just coined it :)… It’s my version of ad blindness for nonprofits.
So what’s ad blindness? Ad blindness is where customers are “blind” to those ads on their devices, basically ignoring the ads’ asks, despite the fact that they are aware of those ads and where they are placed.
Ask blindness is when customers ignore or are “blind” to an ask for a donation, despite knowing and/or aware of the ask and what is being asked of them to do.
Donors ignore emails, calls or texts — consciously or otherwise — because nonprofits have trained them that their communications have become more noise.
And thus, are being ignored.
Try this instead: Respect your donors
Instead of giving donors more ammo to ignore your communications, respect them and their frequency preferences. Give them a much needed break from your organization’s communications.
Here’s how you do it:
Give your donors the option to temporarily opt out of your communications for 30 days. After 30 days, they get put back into the fold.
Put that option in your email footer, your preference center and your SMS/text messaging. When someone signs up to be snoozed, create a flow that marks them unmailable for 30 days, and when 30 days are up, removes that mark and brings them back to their respective lists.
It’s a simple tactical method that honors a donor’s preference and also helps revive a dwindling donor list. This tactic is especially great if you send lots of emails a month and notice a lot of donor fatigue.
What this shows about you:
This shows that you value their time of rest. Kind of like a Sabbath, you’re giving them some space from the plethora of communications and outreach coming their way. That rest can rejuvenate and invigorate their experience with you, and can help them get refreshed on the reasons why they donated to you to begin with.
What’s the potential impact?
Your donors will appreciate the rest and can help relieve some of the pressure and stress from being asked to donate on a relatively consistent basis.
Mistake #2: asking without knowing
Asking your donors without knowing them, their preferences, wants or needs is fundraising blind.
Think about it: if you’re a nonprofit and you don’t know your target audience, don’t look at their data, and don’t understand what makes them tick, then you’re basically spamming them with communications they may not want or need.
Try this instead: Target with donor data
Your results will be so much better when you target your messaging and methods of communication with donor data.
Here’s how you do it:
Use donor data, like topics of interest, email preferences, methods of communication, and frequency to segment and personalize your communications.
You can also use this data to write thought leadership content that is relevant to their wants & needs.
How do you collect this data?
Well, there are various ways to collect them. Your preference center, existing data (assuming the data is clean), surveys, phone calls from your team, events and other gatherings that allows you to talk to them in a more personal manner.
What this shows about you:
When you actually use what donors ask you to use, you’ll show your respect for them and their preferences. You’ll show your desire to be relevant and provide value to them, and your desire to build relationships instead of treating them like a transaction.
What’s the potential impact:
Including donor data to your communications reduces the annoyance and potential fatigue by respecting donor preferences and providing a value add service to them. That leads to higher donor satisfaction and encourages them to continue their support.
Mistake #3: hiding their influence
Obscuring a donor’s influence and return on their investments on your communications shows a lack of respect for their impact on your organization.
It means, stop hiding their impact. Stop downplaying their role in your organization. Make them proud by giving them exactly what their donations have produced: results.
Try this instead: Display their impact openly
By openly displaying the impact and results of their donations, you’re also openly displaying the value these donations bring to your organization. The more you do so, the more opportunities you give them to trust you and care about your organization.
Here’s how you do it:
Send regular updates to your lists with photos, videos, and stories of how their donations have made a difference to your cause. These could be something simple as individual updates on their giving and which projects have been impacted by their donations, or as robust as updates on the projects they have donated to and how much their donations have improved those projects.
Don’t hide their worth. Show that they’re valued for their impact, not just for their money.
What this shows:
You’re inviting them to participate and have a seat at the table, showing them the difference they’re making in their donations while continuing to build a stronger relationship with them.
What’s the potential impact:
You reduce future objections from donors when it comes to giving more money. You keep them interested and engaged in your brand, and you remind them of the positive outcomes their donations and participation have in your organization.
Mistake #4: donors become transactional
Treating donors like a transactional relationship instead of a personal one will never win you long-term business.
And how would someone treat a donor as such? By focusing too much on the financials.
Most nonprofits are too concerned about money, and at times this perspective shows in their communications. Ensuring that your donors feel wanted for more than just their finances is essential to retaining them and keeping them happy.
Try this instead: Find other meaningful ways for donors to give and contribute
Expanding your repertoire to include other non-transactional ways for donors to participate is just what they need to feel like they belong in your organization.
Yes, nonprofits still need donors and their donations. But you don’t have to be too entirely focused on it that everything you say reeks of “give us money.”
Here’s how you do it:
Engage donors to contribute in other ways, such as volunteering, helping at events, or even as a brand ambassador in their sphere of influence.
Event galas, or even as simple as meetups, coffee town halls and such can be a great way to hear the organization’s progress while actively (think physically) participating in its progressive efforts.
You’re not treating your donors as just dollar signs and numbers with volunteer or event participation; you’re actively getting them involved in the day-to-day activities that bring emotional value to their financial gifts.
What this shows about you:
You empower them to be involved in other areas of your cause, making the physical, mental and emotional involvement just as meaningful and powerful as the financial.
What’s the potential impact:
Less transactional, more relational relationships reduces the pressure for donors to always give money. Not only that, it diversifies their engagement and keeps them involved in other meaningful ways.
More importantly, they’re not seen as mere walking bank accounts. They have mindsets, emotions, and intellectual capabilities that are and should be valued.
Mistake #5: giving is a burden
If you’re making it hard for donors to give, then chances are, they will most likely give less and less in the future.
If you’re making donors work too much to contribute, you’re making it a burden to contribute.
And when it’s a burden or a chore, they will stop giving.
Try this instead: Make donor fundraising fun again.
Fundraising should have less friction, which will reduce organizational donor churn.
And what better way to reduce that churn and friction by making contributing fun, exciting and joyful.
Here’s how you do it:
Combine fundraising and entertaining events like charity converts, game nights, auctions, and any other event that lets donors “experience” the causes they are supporting while showing them the human side of the organization.
What this shows about you:
You’re prioritizing the full donor experience, inviting their emotional, mental, and intellectual side to feel and enjoy your cause.
Getting your donors to have the full experience of your brand makes your organization, your mission and your cause more valuable to them.
What’s the potential impact:
A good break from the traditional appeals helps give donors a refreshing and rejuvenating experience, which makes it increase their willingness to give and reduce their objections.
Mistake #6: ignoring donor feedback
Not giving donors ample ways to give their feedback or provide comments won’t help your organization understand what works or what doesn’t, particularly when it comes to satisfying and/or retaining donors.
Plus, when a donor provides helpful comments or feedback about your brand or your methods of communication, ignoring them is not wise nor is it ideal.
You should do all that you can to ensure that your donors stay as happy as possible throughout their experience with you.
Try this instead: Empower them to use their voice
Empowering your donors to use their voice and give their feedback about you and your brand is essential to the health of any nonprofit fundraising strategy.
You should always try to include their feedback in your organization strategy, as their donations do help keep your organizations afloat.
Here’s how you do it:
Survey your donors regularly to gather insights, such as:
- What they enjoy about your brand
- What they find overwhelming about your brand or the donation process
- How they prefer to be engaged
- What they think of your campaigns
- How you can improve from their points of view
You can include these surveys in your automation streams, lifecycle emails, fundraising calls, major donor meetings, etc.
What this shows about you:
You value their opinion and their feedback. Your willingness to listen andhear what they have to say to make your brand better will speak volumes to them.
What’s the potential impact?
The data from surveys can help you know your donors better and what they understand and know about your brand. You can use these insights to improve your messaging, increasing their satisfaction with your brand while reducing donation fatigue.
Mistake #7: excluding donors from having ownership
Sometimes, donors need to have more than just a distant voice. They would actually prefer to have a true voice in the organization.
A “skin in the game,” so to speak.
On behalf of their perspective, if they’re giving thousands of dollars to your organization, they would want to ensure that their donations are making a dent in certain parts of the organizational causes.
Try this instead: Involve your donors in some decision-making process
By involving your donors helping make decisions in specific projects, you are doing more than just empowering them to donate. You’re giving them a chance to own part of the organization that matters to them; a chance to bring their donations together with projects that drive their passion.
Here’s how you do it:
Create a donor committee or an advisory panel to give donors that “skin in the game” ownership. They can have a say in how their funds are used or which projects to prioritize. Not every cause has this luxury, mind you, but those that do should consider if this panel is worth creating.
What this shows about you:
More than just feedback, you value their insights and participation in how decisions are made in your organization. It shows what topics or projects truly matters to them.
What’s the potential impact:
This type of ownership makes donors feel like they’re partners rather than just bank accounts, empowering them to participate more often while deepening their relationships with your organization.
Final thoughts
Getting donors to donate isn’t always easy, but sometimes nonprofits make it even more difficult when the causes are self-inflicted. With these suggestions, fundraising teams can help reduce the friction and improve their relationships with donors.
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