Donor Stewardship Tips

If you are already working to engage your board in your Washington County Gives efforts, then you should also utilize them in your stewardship goals! If you have rallied your Board members to be peer-to-peer fundraisers for Washington County Gives, they should also be engaged in thanking those donors who contributed to their individual campaigns! Share our Donor Stewardship resources [link to sample thank you templates] with your Board members at your next meeting or host a get together specifically targeted to training your Board in the wonderful ways of Donor Stewardship!

Showing genuine, timely, and regular donor appreciation is a huge part of maintaining strong relationships with your supporters! A “thank you” message following a donation for Washington County Gives should be your standard practices. On your Washington County Gives profile editor, you will be able to create a custom “Thank You” message during your Washington County Gives profile completion process. However, the gratitude should not stop there! Hand-written thank yous and thank-you calls can be even more impactful and everlasting! In addition to the standardized thank you message that is included with your donor’s online donation receipt, consider sending out a more personalized message a few weeks to a month after Washington County Gives.

This email should include your donor’s name and other personalized features. Tell them how their gift is changing or improving the services you provide as a nonprofit. If possible, show them the impact their gift is making with concrete images or stories.

Donor Stewardship and the gratitude that you show for your donors does not begin and end with Washington County Gives. Rather, it is about starting a dialogue with your donors that makes them feel as though they are a concrete part of your organization and community.

You can start this dialogue by asking your donors how they prefer to be contacted (phone, email, text message, etc.) and then proceed to contact them in that way. Showing initial respect for their preferences will go a long way.

Keep the dialogue going with creative ways to show continued and sustainable gratitude throughout the year.

Ask your donors for feedback and be a responsive and active listener by monitoring your social channels and emails to keep track of popular suggestions. Make sure you follow up with your donors and inform them of how you are using your feedback to move forward.

After Washington County Gives schedule regular touch points on your annual calendar to ensure that you are staying constantly engaged with your donors.

• Make it a point to share images and updates on projects that your donors’ contributions are directly helping to fund.
• Organize reminders to reach out to your supporters on special dates, like anniversaries, birthdays, or major milestones for your organization.