- How quickly should you thank a new donor?
Answer: Within 48 hours
Notes and assumptions....
In 2011, Damian O'Broin, founder and manager of Ask Direct in Ireland made a presentation in The Netherlands, at the global IFC conference. He shared some startling research from McConkey Johnston International UK (now the Christian Fundraising Consultancy).
The research found that first-time donors who received a personal thank you within 48 hours were 4 times more likely to give again.
Yes: thanking in 48 hours = 400% improvement in renewal rates.
First-time donors are ardent. But that ardor cools fast if you don't sustain it.
It's like a campfire ignited by match from tinder. You nurse it. You feed it oxygen, blowing across it. A super-quick thanks does the same: it blows oxygen across an ardent new donor, keeping that new donor, keeping that small flame alive. Excited by your mission. Your vision. Your potential IN THEIR LIVES. At the very least, a super-quick thanks gets your organization past what often happens in the same 48-hour period: buyer's remorse.
Look, the standard for thanking in the nonprofit world has fallen so low that any unusual gratitude on your part will probably net you far more friends. As The Agitator reported in 2013, "A three-minute thank-you phone call will boost first-year [donor] retention by 30%."
The ghastly truth is that most charities thank poorly (if at all). They predictably, relentlessly, remorsefully, and (let's hope) unwittingly, UNDERwhelm their donors.
Be the "OVERwhelmer" instead. Your charity will reap rich rewards.