Annual Giving
An Annual Giving Program That Pays Dividends
Annual giving campaigns are the perfect way to raise revenue for your organization. They are also the perfect way to damage your donor relationships. Sound counterintuitive? It is.
Historically, annual giving campaigns have been a numbers game. How many phone calls can we make for the lowest cost? How many conversations to make $X? How many “nos” before a “yes”? Planning a fundraising campaign shouldn’t be a math equation. This means you need to stop thinking about your donors as numbers and dollar signs.
Donors are people, not numbers.
Most annual campaigns aim to perform at a 4 – 5% conversion rate. Considering our annual giving campaigns aim to perform around 15%, the industry standard is low. It’s time to raise your expectations.
A Relationship-First Approach to Annual Giving
At Donor Compass™, we believe in relationship-first fundraising. This means that our goal above all else is to protect and deepen the donor relationship. We promise to do no harm. So, how do we raise funds while deepening the relationship? In our 27 years of talking to donors, we have perfected our methodology.
Each conversation is built around why your donor supports your cause. When a donor verbalizes their connection, it immediately deepens it.
After discussing their why, we incorporate your Case for Support. A strong Case for Support is essential for a successful campaign. You should have one prepared, but our team can help you craft the messaging in the most effective way. As we make the ask, we strategically connect the Case for Support to your donor’s why. Scripted conversations do not allow for this flexibility and impact. Finally, we thank them for their time and continued support, even if they do not choose to donate.
This methodology may sound simple. But it’s effective because it prioritizes the relationship over the ask. And unfortunately, many companies do not understand the importance of this approach.
Your donors choose to support you. Even if they do not donate today or this year, that does not mean that they will not donate again in the future. By plowing through phone calls, bargaining with your donors when they say “no”, and having transactional conversations, you are damaging the relationship.
Benefits of a Donor Compass™ Annual Giving Campaign
DC Analytics can curate a list of top prospects
Protects and deepens your donor relationships
A proactive integrated mail and phone approach encourages giving
Our in-house team of Donor Relationship Specialists handle each call with care
Ensures your donors do not feel like a number on a list
Receive the best return on investment
When you partner with Donor Compass™ we can help you identify the right donors to include in your annual giving campaign. By using the power of DC Analytics, you can run a more targeted campaign for a fraction of the cost. Mailing letters and brochures isn’t cheap. Why would you want to mail 25,000 donors, when you could mail 12,000 donors and receive the same results?
When you partner with Donor Compass™ you receive high-impact results from a team that puts you first. We make you feel like our only client.
“We recently partnered with Donor Compass™ to complete two annual
giving phone campaigns. The service from Donor Compass™ was, as always,
excellent. Gail was wonderful to work with on the DC Analytics™ part and
Katelyn and Jessica provided great service when running the campaigns.
We say in our office that we feel like their only client … and we were
more than satisfied with the results. We are already planning another
campaign next year.”
Nicole Kitson, Calgary Health Foundation
We are the experts in donor-centric fundraising
Donor Compass™ started 27 years ago as the first direct response fundraising vendor to introduce a planned giving program. We found our success through relationship-first fundraising, not by playing the numbers game. Starting the planned giving conversation can be challenging. But our Donor Relationship Specialists do it every day. How? Because they focus on the relationship, not the ask. They know that with each conversation and genuine interaction, they are deepening the relationship and inching closer to a relationship gift. The key is patience. And the same goes for annual giving. Stop damaging your donor relationships for a short-term gain. Let our Donor Relationship Specialists foster meaningful relationships, and trust us, once a donor feels connected to your cause, they will give whenever they can.
Stop damaging your donor relationships and start building connections that pay dividends.