Gifts from individuals: increasing the lifetime value

The quickest way to raise more money from individuals is to increase the amount your existing donors are giving you. This is often referred to as maximising the ‘lifetime value’ of a donor. It costs a lot more, both in terms of time and money, to recruit new donors, so it’s important to look after the ones you already have.

Larger voluntary organisations will often have a lifetime value plan that takes donors on a journey through different ways of giving that relate to their interests. For example:

Figure 6 The donor is recruited, perhaps at a community event. It is a face-to-face point of contact with a volunteer or staff member. They might be asked to make a donation at the event, but their details will also be taken so that the charity can get back in touch with them in the future Show description|Hide description A photograph showing a smiling lady in a sports top taking a clipboard and pen from another lady, apparently signing up to something. Figure 6 The donor is recruited, perhaps at a community event. It is a face-to-face point of contact with a volunteer or staff member. ...	Figure 7 After the event, they will then be contacted and asked to sign up to become a regular donor, perhaps by describing ‘X amount per month will allow us to do Y’ Show description|Hide description A photograph of a woman reading a letter. Figure 7 After the event, they will then be contacted and asked to sign up to become a regular donor, perhaps by describing ‘X amount per...
Figure 8 Once the person is signed up to a regular amount, the charity will then offer other opportunities to give such as: one-off appeals (for example when there has been a disaster that the charity is responding to); opportunities to buy merchandise (Christmas cards is the classic example); and becoming a volunteer fundraiser themselves, perhaps taking part in a sponsored challenge (such as a marathon) or organising a community fundraising event (such as a coffee morning) Show description|Hide description A photograph of three jubilant women in matching striped tops 'high-fiving' each other at the end of a charity fundraising race. Figure 8 Once the person is signed up to a regular amount, the charity will then offer other opportunities to give such as: one-off ...	Figure 9 At some point, the donor might be asked whether they feel able to increase their donation and will be introduced to the idea of leaving a gift in their will Show description|Hide description A photograph of a hand holding a pen and signing a document titled ‘Last Will and Testament’. Figure 9 At some point, the donor might be asked whether they feel able to increase their donation and will be introduced to the idea of ...

The trick to maintaining and maximising the loyalty of existing supporters is to think about two things:

• their motivation for giving

• their ability to give more.

You can try to work these two things out based on the information you have about the donor. For example, do they have a job? Where do they live? Are they involved in any hobbies? How did they first get in touch with the charity? Charities developing major donor programmes (i.e. when they’ll be asking for large amounts of money from an individual) often use wealth-screening companies to find out as much as they can about potential donors. Providing opportunities and information that are tailored to the motivation of those able to give more is most likely to generate more money.

Increasing the lifetime value of a donor has to be underpinned by strong marketing and communications. For instance, the organisation will need to keep in touch with donors, keep them informed about what the charity is doing and show them how their support is making a difference. This doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. Many charities communicate effectively with their donors using social media or emails.