What practical strategies can you employ to achieve your goals?
As the objectives of individual giving fundraising shift, charity fundraisers need to think differently about how they achieve them.
In a previous blog looking at individual giving fundraising objectives, we discussed the evolving priorities for UK charities, from income growth to acquisition and retention. In this blog we look at practical strategies to achieve these goals, drawing on insights gathered from leading fundraisers during The Lowdown webinar looking at individual giving insights and trends, and our own expertise.
Growing income and acquiring supporters
According to a recent survey by Woods Valldata of 166 UK charity individual giving fundraisers, income growth was their primary objective closely followed by supporter acquisition. Whilst clearly distinct objectives, they are also interconnected requiring targeted strategies so that one might deliver the other.
In The Lowdown, a follow-up webinar to the survey, Alice Herzog of IRC highlighted the importance of diversifying acquisition channels, such as cash giving, face-to-face fundraising, and telemarketing. Diversification helps charities reach broader audiences while mitigating the risks associated relying on a single channel.
But it’s not just getting more people supporting your charity that is important. It is reaching the right audiences so that you can build relationships in the longer term as well.
Data-driven approaches are crucial for identifying and targeting high-potential donor segments. Nesha Kandiah from RNIB shared during The Lowdown webinar how her team uses tools like ACORN profiling. These tools help to focus face-to-face lottery recruitment efforts on areas with a higher likelihood of attracting donors who will not only play the lottery, but stay with lottery and RNIB longer thereby increasing their life-time value and helping more of RNIB’s beneficiaries.
Retention strategies that work
Whilst acquisition is essential to bring in more support and income to charities, retention remains a vital part of the fundraising mix. It’s the other side of the coin in delivering increased income. It starts on one side with attracting the right supporters in the first place. And on the other side, we must retain them.
Getting the right supporters in, and then retaining them will create increased loyalty, people who will give longer and eventually become advocates for your charities. But this level of engagement doesn’t happen overnight. Individual giving fundraisers must nurture supporters.
As part of The Lowdown webinar, Jenni Roberts from RNLI emphasised the importance of treating supporters well and inspiring them to give again. She reiterated that personalised communication and meaningful engagement with supporters are key to fostering loyalty.
Ultimately, supporters want to know that their support is making a difference, and that they are valued as part of making that happen.
Leveraging innovation and digital tools
Today’s fundraisers are embracing innovation especially in the digital space. Advances in technology mean that not only are the channels we use to communicate with supporters changing and developing, so to are the ways we communicate with those supporters. We can tailor channels and messages to specific supporters, and AI can ensure that messages are highly relevant and personalised to that supporters’ interests and motivations.
Digital tools also support retention by providing insights into donor behaviour and preferences. Automated stewardship programs and data analytics can help charities deliver personalised experiences at scale, something Sequoia spoke about at a recent Woods Valldata webinar.
Breaking down silos for better results
Collaboration across teams is essential for maximising fundraising potential. As Jenni Roberts noted during The Lowdown webinar, integrating fundraising channels and breaking down silos allows charities to create more cohesive supporter experiences. For example, RNLI’s cross-departmental efforts now align legacy programmes, retail operations, and individual giving strategies to increase their overall effectiveness.
This isn’t necessarily an easy thing to achieve. Although teams can do more together to break down the siloes, a fully coordinated approach needs to be driven from the top. Goals and targets need to be shared, rather than separated, and successes should be jointly acknowledged rather than belonging to one team.
By fostering a culture of collaboration with clear communication channels and targets between teams, charities are able to create a more seamless and rewarding experience for their supporters.
Tailoring strategies to charity size and needs
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to individual giving. Your goals will be determined by your charity size, mission, beneficiaries and culture. You might be in the early stages of building your individual giving programme, or you may be managing a mature and established programme.
Your objectives and the products, channels, tools and techniques you employ to achieve them will be determined to a large degree by these factors.
What doesn’t change is the need to raise money to support your cause.
- So, if you’re a smaller charity just starting out on raising income through individual giving, you may benefit from focusing on building cash programs to establish a donor base
- If you’re a larger organisation with an establish IG programme, you might be focusing more on how you can invest in diversifying income streams and supporter base, whilst nurturing existing supporters.
- If you’re a regional charity you might be looking at more ways to retain existing loyal supporters based on close connections with local communities.
Find a partnership that delivers for you
Achieving individual giving goals requires a blend of innovation, collaboration, and data-driven decision-making. Whatever you do, data is a great place to start. Having the insight and intelligence based on your supporter profile and knowing what products and channels work for you is invaluable.
If you’re not sure where to start, why not get in touch with the team at Woods Valldata. Not only do we offer leading fundraising services for your cash and regular giving campaign activities, we have data strategy expertise in house, and through our sister company, Sequoia Insights, to help you create practical approaches to meet your fundraising goals.
Let’s discuss how we can help your charity navigate the changing landscape of individual giving fundraising. Contact us today to learn more.
