September 14, 2020
Why Retaining Your New COVID Donors Matters

Written by Jim Bush, Principal and President

This is Part II in the Winkler Group’s series on donor retention.

Donor retention is one of the easiest ways to raise exponentially more funds. 

Based on national averages, only 20% of new COVID-19 donors will give again next year.  If your nonprofit, hospital, arts organization, or university saw record numbers of new gifts this year, most of them will disappear in 2021.  Unless you take steps now to keep them coming back.

The Winkler Group works with organizations to turn new donors into long-term investors.  We can do the same for you.  Schedule a free 15-minute session with one of our experts and we’ll help make sure you don’t lose a single new donor.   

Why We Are Losing Easy Revenue

In 2017, hurricanes Maria, Irma, and Harvey ravaged Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico.  Wildfires raged in California and a devastating earthquake hit Mexico City.  Donors responded in droves and $6.008 billion in gifts were generated from new, upgraded current and previously lapsed donors [1]. 

By 2018, most of those new donors were gone. Why?  Because we, as development and advancement professionals, failed to make the case to those new donors that their gifts made a difference.

Why Donor Retention Matters

Donor retention is one of the easiest ways to raise exponentially more funds. 

By increasing donor retention just 1%, you can increase revenue by as much as $123,000—without finding a single new donor.  In the process, you’ll also deepen your pool of loyal donors and major donor prospects.

More Retention Tips

Kickstart your donor retention efforts with a free analysis by a Winkler Group expert.  In just 15 minutes, you’ll have ways to raise more funds without courting new donors. 

Instead of waving goodbye to your donors, spend some time making them feel special.  If you show them the love now, the long-term results will be substantial.  If you don’t, you will create a revolving door of donors and you’ll find yourself in a futile cycle that requires constant feeding.

[1] Giving USA 2018.