Retention

Check out the Committed Donor Infographic.

If the problems of acquisition and retention are related and severe, and the financial imperative to fix them so clear, then why are the trend lines getting worse, not better? Why aren't more donors giving a second gift?

Every nonprofit, large or small, has one thing in common. All suffer, in some degree or another, from donor attrition. Once you know where your biggest “leakage” is occurring, you can focus on strategies to plug some holes.

"Attrition" is a fact of life at nonprofits, but what you do now can increase the number of first-time donors who remain loyal in the new year.

Your donors are going to be bombarded by fundraising messages between now and Dec. 31. On the radio, in the mail, on billboards — the encouragement to "give now before Dec. 31" will be hard to miss. How can your message stand out and result in donations?

You can't change the economy, but you can do your best to keep your fundraising on track. Here are five steps for fundraising in a recession and making the most of the year-end.

Are some fundraisers "in love" with their donor bases but not all that fond of the individual donors? Maybe that explains some of the disservice I've seen lately.

Nonprofit organizations in the U.S. were better at retaining donors and shored up their net losses in donations in 2010, according to the latest report of the Fundraising Effectiveness Project (FEP). The FEP, a report of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy at the Urban Institute, compares gains and losses of donors and donation amounts. The FEP indicates year over year growth by comparing how many new donors are acquired with how many stopped giving, and the donation levels of each.

How are you showing your donors that you are grateful they have stuck with you through some of the most economically challenging times that most of us have experienced?

Three fundraising professionals shared 30 ideas for fundraising success at Fund Raising Day in New York. Here are ideas 21-30.