An online petition in 2003 pushed the Human Rights Campaign into the world of online fund- and friendraising. And the organization never looked back.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

HRC solved that problem by going to a monthly giving model with its street-canvassing and door-to-door campaigns, requiring long-term commitments from its street-acquired supporters.

The result: The organization now is acquiring 12,000 to 15,000 new monthly donors annually.

“While we had a difficult time getting people [who originally made a donation on the street] to make that second gift and stay with us long-term, getting them to sign on as monthly donors has made it much more financially valuable to us,” Grams says.