Today we’re going to be talking about the best way that nonprofits can help secure more recurring donations to their organizations. Here’s the good news: it’s probably a much simpler solution than you think! It doesn’t involve one-on-one meetings or a months-long process of building a tight relationship between your organization and the potential donor. In fact, the number one way to increase monthly donations is to add a single sentence to your donation page outlining why someone should give regularly to your organization (rather than just giving a one-time gift). We call this sentence a “value proposition.”
One of the reasons your nonprofit needs a value proposition is because not only are you competing with other nonprofits for people’s money, but also with for-profit companies. For-profit companies typically provide people with a very obvious return on their investment. In exchange for their money, customers get an item or a service from which they gain some benefit. What will someone gain by giving their money to your nonprofit on a regular basis? You need to make it clear to them.
There are several different tactics you can take when creating your nonprofit’s value proposition to obtain more recurring donations. One is to explain how your nonprofit will benefit from being able to rely on regular donations. You can mention that their recurring donation can help your nonprofit plan for the future more effectively or how it will allow your organization to spend less on fundraising and more on things that will further your cause.
Another tactic is to appeal to the potential donor’s sense of belonging.
Here are two unique value propositions that are currently on the websites of our nonprofit marketing company’s clients:
Roots Ethiopia: A global community of monthly donors who want to create lasting change in Ethiopia – one student and one mother at a time.
Institute of Food Technologists (IFT): Harness the power of this community to develop food that is safe, nutritious, tastes great, and feeds our growing global population.
You’ll notice that these two value propositions include the word “community.” This is very intentional on the part of these nonprofits. They want their recurring donors to feel like they are a part of something—that they belong to a group of people who value the same things they value.
At our nonprofit marketing agency, we encourage our clients to create an official group to which your regular donors can belong. Give it a name. Send separate emails to this group thanking them for being an integral part of your organization and telling them about specific things that their donations have helped to make possible. Give them perks on occasion, such as free access to paid content. Or even better, invite them to a VIP reception prior to an event so they can meet each other.
If you are having trouble coming up with a value proposition to put on your organization’s donation page, it might be time to talk with a nonprofit marketing agency in Nashville that specializes in helping nonprofits increase their recurring donor bases.
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