![\"Donor](\"https:\/\/www.spave.io\/hubfs\/Donor%20Stewardship%20Signs_Feature.jpg\")
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<\/span>Donor stewardship\u2014the practice of engaging and building relationships with your nonprofit\u2019s donors\u2014is one of the most important aspects of <\/span>fundraising<\/a><\/span>. <\/span>Proactive stewardship strategies help you not only retain donors but also upgrade their support and dedication to your organization over time.<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n However, finding the most effective stewardship strategies for your nonprofit can be a process that involves trial and error. If you\u2019re unsure of what warning signs to look out for that mean you need to shift your approach, look no further. <\/p>\n <\/span><\/span>We\u2019ll explore signs that your donor stewardship strategy could need adjustment and strategies to get your relationships back on track. Don\u2019t be alarmed if you see these trends in your nonprofit\u2019s data<\/a>, as it\u2019s a natural part of the fundraising process!<\/span><\/p>\n When you spend so much time and effort on acquiring new donors<\/a>, it can be discouraging to see a large portion of those donors don\u2019t give again. While it\u2019s normal for many of your donors to lapse\u2014the average donor retention rate is only 35%<\/a>, after all\u2014an especially high number could mean it\u2019s time to revisit your donor stewardship efforts. <\/p>\n <\/span>First, try to determine why you could be losing more donors than usual. Some common reasons donors lapse include:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re not sure why donors are leaving, consider sending a survey to donors who recently lapsed to ask them directly. This feedback can help you zero in on which stewardship strategies need improvement. <\/p>\n <\/span>Strategies to retain more donors<\/span><\/p>\n The key to successful stewardship is understanding your donors and what matters to them. Once you know details like their favorite programs and communication preferences, you can implement strategies that take these into account.<\/p>\n <\/span>If donors\u2019 main concerns were appreciation and seeing the proof of their impact, for example, you could try the following strategies: <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Tailor these ideas to your audience to cultivate stronger donor relationships, increasing the chances they stay invested in your organization long-term. Ideally, you want to improve your stewardship efforts before you start actively losing donors. One sign that indicates donors could be at risk of lapsing is lower online engagement levels. <\/span><\/p>\n This isn\u2019t always the case, especially if your donor base doesn\u2019t normally engage with your organization online, but you should investigate if you see engagement levels decline. You may notice that donors aren\u2019t opening your emails, your website has high bounce rates, or you aren\u2019t getting much interaction on social media<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n Lack of online engagement could mean your donors are losing interest in your nonprofit, or your messages simply don\u2019t hold their attention. In the long term, this could hurt your relationships and cause donors to lapse.<\/span><\/p>\n Strategies to increase online donor engagement<\/span><\/p>\n Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to encourage donors to connect with your nonprofit online. Start with the following tactics, and build your strategy from there: <\/span><\/p>\n As you revisit your digital marketing strategy, consider ways traditional tactics can support online stewardship. For example, Meyer Partners\u2019 direct mail fundraising guide<\/a> recommends adding QR codes to direct mail so recipients can easily access your nonprofit\u2019s website, social media profiles, or event registration pages. <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Another clear sign that donors could be feeling less engaged is a lack of participation in your involvement opportunities. Fundraising events<\/a> and volunteer outings are valuable times for your board and staff to connect with donors face-to-face, so increasing participation should be a priority. <\/span><\/p>\n Before you update your event marketing strategy, make sure that you\u2019re offering involvement opportunities that interest your donors. Send out a quick survey asking donors what their favorite events have been, what kind of events they\u2019d like to attend in the future, and what your organization can do to improve your involvement offerings. <\/span><\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve gathered feedback to ensure your events and volunteer opportunities will interest donors, consider the following strategies to increase participation:<\/span><\/p>\n To explore how Spave can transform your nonprofit’s fundraising efforts, try it yourself! Download the app today:<\/a> App Store<\/a> | Google Play<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 3 Signs Your Donor Stewardship Efforts Are Underperforming Donor stewardship\u2014the practice of engaging and building relationships with your nonprofit\u2019s donors\u2014is one of the most important aspects of fundraising. Proactive stewardship strategies help you not only retain donors but also upgrade their support and dedication to your organization over time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2],"class_list":["post-229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-for-nonprofits"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devsiteomg.com\/spave\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/span><\/h1>\n1. High numbers of lapsed donors<\/span><\/h2>\n
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<\/span><\/p>\n2. Low levels of online engagement<\/span><\/h2>\n
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3. Decreasing event and volunteer participation<\/span><\/h2>\n
Strategies to increase donor participation<\/span><\/h3>\n
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