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Re-engaging Former Donors: 4 Expert Communication Strategies

Your nonprofit likely focuses a significant amount of energy on retaining donors. Fostering relationships with current supporters is vital to maintaining reliable revenue streams that keep your mission moving forward.

But inevitably, you will lose donors from time to time. Supporters stop giving for all types of reasons, many of which are outside of your nonprofit’s control (such as economic downturns).

Luckily, there are a few strategies your nonprofit can use to re-engage these former supporters and win back their support. Let’s take a look at four expert tips. 

1. Personalize outreach as much as possible. 

Personalized messages stand out, showing former donors that you’ve taken the time to get to know them. Here are a few ideas for impactful personalized outreach: 

– Send a handwritten note. According to Bloomerang, you can use your donor database to track donors’ past event attendance, volunteer participation, sponsorships, and gift amounts. Reference these past interactions in handwritten letters addressed with each person’s name. Ask them to get in touch with your nonprofit if they have suggestions for steps you can take to regain their support.  If you don’t have time to handwrite notes, adding just one handwritten sentence to the bottom of an appeal is another tactic that can yield positive results. 

– Call the donor. In the age of digital communications, phone calls can be an unexpected personal touch that cuts through the noise. Call former supporters to express gratitude for their past involvement and let them know about upcoming fundraising opportunities to get involved in. If you don’t connect live, make sure to leave a voicemail — your sentiment will be conveyed even though you didn’t have a chance to connect. 

– Schedule an in-person meeting. This is especially impactful for former major donors who you likely have stronger personal relationships with. Invite former donors to a coffee chat or lunch. Make sure they know ahead of time that you plan to talk about why they decided to stop giving so they don’t feel caught off guard. 

You can also personally invite past donors to upcoming events that align with their interests. For example, perhaps a certain donor has attended your fundraising 5K in the past but didn’t attend last year’s event. Let them know about your upcoming 5K and offer a special former attendee incentive to encourage them to participate. 

2. Send a survey to understand their point of view.

Send surveys to former supporters to ask why they originally gave, what has stopped them from giving recently, and what your organization can do, if anything, to get them to donate again. 

Create tailored surveys for different donor groups. For example, you may develop surveys for former major donors, mid-tier and smaller donors, and corporate partners. This ensures that you can ask questions that are specific to each group’s interests and motivations. 

In the surveys, you may ask former corporate sponsors if there is anything your nonprofit can do to better showcase their business, or ask former major donors what your organization could have done to better show its gratitude. 

Compile survey responses and note common trends to develop a plan to better meet donors’ needs in the future. 

3. Remind them of their impact.

Show former donors that their support really does make a difference. Emphasize their impact in the following ways: 

– Thank them for their past contributions. Show former supporters how their donations helped further your mission in multiple tangible ways. For example, let them know their $1,500 donation helped fund a scholarship for a college student for one semester. 

– Highlight any changes or new strategies that your nonprofit is using to make an even greater impact. For example, you might have recently purchased a new piece of equipment with the help of donors’ gifts that makes your community gardening efforts 10 times more efficient. Former donors will appreciate updates on how your organization has evolved since they last donated. 

– Invite former donors for a tour of your facilities. They can view your mission in action or see your donor recognition wall in person to understand how much your nonprofit values donors’ involvement. 

When lapsed supporters see that their donations continue to help people in tangible ways, they’ll be more inclined to renew their support. 

4. Invite them to engage in other opportunities. 

Lapsed donors may still not be ready to give again, and that’s okay! Show them that you appreciate all forms of support, not just donations. 

Invite them to participate in opportunities like volunteering, peer-to-peer fundraising, and advocacy or digital influencing

Engaging in these activities can remind supporters of their passion for your mission, which can eventually encourage them to donate again. 

Above all, ensure that your former donor communications are upbeat. You want to build a nonprofit brand that celebrates and welcomes all supporters, no matter what phase of the donor journey they are in.