Facing a declining donor base 20 years in the making, UJC/The Jewish Federations of North America is reframing its brand and the way its community of member federations works together.

By Abny Santicola

"I work closely with peers at other Federations across the country sharing our analyses and experiences with growing the donor base. At a meeting with my fellow federation marketing directors, I presented the idea of launching a 'cooperative database' where federations could swap names of people moving from our federation or another area," Sussman says. "It's much less expensive to reactivate a donor, even if they come from another area, than to acquire a new one. There's definitely a limited pool of potential new donors, particularly when you're working with a very targeted market like we are. It's very hard to find these people to begin with, and then once you find them, you have to convince them to become donors. Anyone who's given to a federation is more likely to give the next time."