How can I maintain relationships with my donors?

Every donor, be it an individual, a donor agency, a foundation, or a CSR (corporate social responsibility) arm, looks for feedback from the non-profit or charity. Feedback in terms of knowing how important they are for you, how appreciated they are, and what it gives them to stay connected. A sense of appreciation, a feeling of contributing towards a social cause, and regular and meaningful communication would result in the maintenance of lasting relationships with your donors.

Here are 10 interesting ways to help you maintain mutually beneficial relationships with your donors:

Show appreciation

Whenever a donor contributes to your cause, make sure that you respond with appreciation. That said, appreciation can mean personalized emails, a thanks note on your website and/ or social media pages or a personalized letter. You may tweet a thanks note with the donor’s name, or post a thanks note on your Facebook page, tagging the donor. This appreciation would mean a lot to the donor, while it also has the potential to get more donors, for his/ her friends will see the good deed and would be motivated to do so too.

Respond to their queries promptly and value follow-up

Donors are not mere suppliers of funds; instead, they are a valuable asset to your organization. It is important to value your donors as partners and to make them feel valued. So, make sure you respond to their queries promptly and follow-up with them on regular basis. This will also help in converting one-time or regular donors into recurrent ones. You may set up a hangout or chat session for this, or create a simple system for feedback through your website or social media accounts. The key is in ‘being prompt’. Read More