This is installment number three of seven in my series on fundraising myth busters. By now I hope you’ve had a chance to check out the first post on donor acquisition, and the second on brand advertising and direct response fundraising.
Today we’re going to look at yet another hotly debated topic. Solicitation frequency.
Myth #3
Increasing solicitation frequency will reduce revenue
What we know (the below stats are from Russ Reid’s 2010 Heart of the Donor study)
- 38% of all donors in the U.S. give to multiple nonprofit organizations
- 42% of all donors in the U.S. spread their giving not just to multiple organizations, but to multiple causes as well
- Limiting solicitation frequency will most certainly reduce donor complaints. But…there’s no proof that it will have a positive impact on an organization’s long-term revenue
What we did to validate this hypothesis
- Two nonprofit organizations increased their solicitation frequency (doubled), and we measured the resulting year-over-year impact on revenue
What we learned
- In the first case, the organization went from five to 10 solicitations, and year-over-year revenue increased 123%
- The second organization increased from three to six solicitations, and year-over-year revenue increased 110%
Increasing solicitation frequency had an overwhelmingly positive impact on revenue growth in both of these instances. Don’t be afraid to add a solicitation or two to your annual line up. As this case shows, you stand to make a lot more money for your cause if you do!
