Why Data is Key to Driving Fundraising Success

How do you find out what makes your unique donors "tick"?

Do you think you know your donors?

Think again. You probably know a few things about some of your donors.

Each donor has his or her own:

• Story
• Passions
• Interests
• Reasons for giving
• Circumstances

Understanding these differentiators is key to customizing messaging and asks. 

So how do you learn more about what makes your donors "tick"?

My friends at Donor Search offer demographic and interest information at no additional cost as part of their data screening services for nonprofits.  Most other wealth screening companies charge extra for these "appends".

Once you get your database screened and view the results, you can then create segments (think existing major donors, other donors, prospects) and drill down by creating modes in an Excel pivot table to determine the truly important factors. You can cluster by age, geographic location, political giving, interests, etc. The interests part is where the real insights can occur.  For instance, I had a client who assumed most of their donors were Caucasian males over 50 who were conservative both politically and religiously.  Were they shocked when they found about 30% of their best donors were female, 50% of their best were registered Democrats or Independents and 20% weren't protestants? You bet.

Did it change their messaging and ad buys? Of course. Now their website reflects much more diversity and doesn't message with a subtext of conservative thought.  They've had greater success ever since.

If you happen to contact Donor Search, please let them know you heard about them via this post.