Donor Stewardship: Why It’s Important + 3 Strategies

Whether you work for a nonprofit, association, or other fundraising organization, you likely know that donor engagement is essential to advancing your mission. Supporters want to contribute to organizations that not only do good work in the community but also make them feel like an integral part of their efforts and achievements.

Donor stewardship is a major aspect of engagement for every nonprofit. Every type of gift—large or small, monetary or in-kind—deserves a heartfelt thank-you from your team, plus additional follow-up messages to keep your organization on donors’ radar.

Benefits of Donor Stewardship

Every organization’s donor stewardship approach will look slightly different depending on its audience and needs. However, the main advantages of a well-executed stewardship strategy are the same across the board:

• Improved retention rates. According to DonorSearch’s donor retention guide, “Although stewardship and retention are separate steps in the traditional donor management lifecycle, they actually overlap. If donors know that your organization is grateful for their contributions, they’ll be more likely to give again.”
• Higher donor lifetime values. Not only are donors more likely to give again when they feel appreciated, but they’re often motivated to contribute larger amounts over time. They also might get involved with your nonprofit in other ways, such as volunteering, attending events, or advocating for your cause, providing more value to your mission.
• Increased supporter loyalty. Donors will be more compelled to stay engaged with your organization when they feel valued through stewardship. They may even spread the word about your mission and work to their friends and family, helping you attract more potential supporters!
• Better organizational reputation. If your nonprofit stewards its supporters well over time, word will spread in your community, helping your organization become known for caring about its donors and communicating clearly and personally with them.

Keep these benefits in mind as you develop your nonprofit’s strategic plans and fundraising calendars so you can prioritize stewardship in these activities and maximize the results for your organization.

Best Donor Stewardship Strategies

To develop an actionable stewardship plan for your nonprofit, let’s walk through three useful strategies for any size organization.

1. Show Appreciation According to Donors’ Giving Levels

Expressing gratitude for contributions promptly and personally is at the core of effective stewardship. As Winspire’s donor stewardship guide explains, “When choosing recognition methods, the main thing to keep in mind is that the size of your nonprofit’s thank-you should match the size of the donor’s gift.”

Here are a few possible appreciation methods organized based on donors’ giving levels:

• Small gift: Thank-you email with attached donation receipt, text message for mobile contributions, end-of-year mass mailing thanking all low-level donors for their support.
• Mid-size gift: Handwritten thank-you note, phone call from one of your organization’s leaders or board members, tangible donor gifts like branded merchandise or a gift card.
• Major gift: Invitation to a donor appreciation event, annual report mention, social media shoutout, inclusion on a donor wall, naming rights to an area of your facility.

When your nonprofit receives in-kind donations, choose an appreciation method based on the gift’s monetary value. For example, a donor who contributed a few canned goods to a food bank would deserve recognition for a small gift. However, someone who donated a pickup truck to help the team transport food around town might be recognized for a mid-level or major contribution, depending on the organization’s major giving threshold and the truck’s Kelley Blue Book value.

2. Plan Follow-up Cadences

After donors give, keep your nonprofit top of mind by regularly following up with them. For first-time, low-level supporters, automate a welcome email series triggered by submitting your donation form. Set it up to send one or two emails a week in this order:

• Email #1: Thank-you note personalized with the donor’s name and donation amount.
• Email #2: Overview of your nonprofit’s mission, current initiatives, and major achievements.
• Email #3: Update on the specific impact of the donor’s gift, including relevant stories and data to make the results more concrete
• Email #4: Upcoming opportunities to get involved with your mission, such as volunteer opportunities, events, or advocacy campaigns
• Email #5: Encouragement to make another gift and keep up with your nonprofit through other recurring communications, such as social media or your monthly newsletter.

For larger-dollar donors or repeat supporters, use what you already know about them to tailor your follow-ups to their interests. For instance, if someone who won a prize at your most recent live auction later makes a monetary donation, one of your follow-up emails might have a subject line like, “[Donor Name], mark your calendar for our next live auction!” to encourage them to attend another event they’ll likely enjoy.

3. Collect and Analyze Data From Your Efforts

To understand the impact of your nonprofit’s stewardship activities, make sure you have systems in place for tracking and analyzing data before you start. Some key metrics to monitor include:

• Open and click-through rates for each email in your welcome series, which can help you hone their content and timing.
• Donor retention rates year-over-year or campaign-to-campaign, calculated by dividing the number of repeat donors by the number of total donors for the year or fundraiser.
• Number of donors who engage with your nonprofit in multiple ways after giving, so you know if your recommendations for volunteer, event, and advocacy opportunities were effective.
• Supporter satisfaction with your stewardship strategies, which you can measure by sending out surveys a few weeks after your initial round of recognition and follow-up. (Pro tip: Asking supporters for feedback about any of their experiences with your nonprofit—stewardship-related or otherwise—shows that your organization values them and therefore is also helpful for retaining them!)

Store all of your collected stewardship data in your nonprofit’s database so you can easily reference it as you continue improving your plans for recognizing and following up with donors.