11 ways to improve donor relations in 30 days

Investing time and resources into improving donor relations is vital for the health of your nonprofit. When your donors have the opportunity to engage in your mission and feel that their contributions are valued and recognized, you will see greater investment in your organization—more donations, recurring gifts, and other forms of community support. 

In this guide, we’ll explain the importance of building strong donor relationships and share tactical steps you can take to improve relationships with donors now and into the future.

What is donor relations?

Donor relations, or donor relationship management, refers to the activities and strategies that nonprofit organizations use to attract new donors and maintain strong relationships with current ones. 

Unlike donor stewardship, which may have a narrower focus on post-gift activities, nonprofit relationship management covers the entire donor journey, from initial contact and donor cultivation to stewardship and beyond. 

What are the “4 pillars of donor relations”?

One of the easiest ways to improve donor relations is to follow the four-pillar approach. This framework from the Donor Relations Group encourages nonprofits to consider different stages—or pillars—as they plan their donor engagement activities.

Pillar 1: Acknowledgment

To grow meaningful relationships with your supporters, you first need to recognize their contributions. This first pillar calls you to focus on formally acknowledging donations, volunteering, and other contributions in various ways—for example, with a personalized donation receipt, an automatic thank-you message, or a gift agreement.

“Acknowledgments should be timely, and receipts should be sent within 72 hours.” – Lynne Wester, Donor Relations Group (aka the Donor Relations Guru)

Pillar 2: Stewardship

Stewardship is all about communicating with donors about the impact of their contributions. Your nonprofit organization should look for ways to keep donors informed, share updates, and maintain transparency around how funds are spent.

Pillar 3: Recognition

It’s not enough to simply acknowledge a donation and provide an update on projects. To truly maintain supporter loyalty, you also need to show deeper donor appreciation. Donor recognition comes in many forms, from physical bricks in a donor wall to a personal thank-you letter from your executive director.

Pillar 4: Engagement

Your organization wouldn’t be where it is without your donors. This final pillar focuses on providing your supporters with unique access, information, and experiences to deepen their engagement with your mission—like a behind-the-scenes tour, a fireside chat with your leadership team, or a members-only group. 

More to explore

Moves management: Five stages of an effective donor life cycle →

Why is donor relationship management so important?

Fostering relationships with donors is essential for maintaining your organization’s financial stability, especially if most of your funding comes from individual contributions. Engaged donors are far more likely to give again and again, and recurring donors give 42% more per year compared to one-time donors. More money means that your nonprofit can cover operational costs, launch new program initiatives, and support more people within your community. 

Improving the way you communicate with donors doesn’t just help your financial status, though. Investing time and effort into your donor communications delivers other benefits too—like increased loyalty, a more engaged community, and greater insight into your donor base.

11 ways to improve donor relations 

Even small, grassroots organizations can invest in their donor relations strategy and see a huge impact. To improve your overall donor experience, consider introducing the following tactics over the next 30 days—some can be completed in this time period, while others you’ll be able to take the first steps for success down the road. Either way, you’ll be making great progress on your donor relations strategy.

1. Write a welcome series ✍

Many first-time donors may know very little about your organization when they make their contribution. To keep them engaged, move them into an automated email sequence where they can learn more about who you are and what you do. 

A sample welcome series may look something like this: 

• First email: A custom message thanking the individual for their contribution and offering a quick overview of your mission. This email should arrive in your supporter’s inbox on the day they donate.
• Second email: A breakdown of how individual donations are spent and their impact, as you might find in your annual report. This email should arrive 2–5 days after the first email.
• Third email: A quick overview of ways to get involved including upcoming events, opportunities, and programs. This email should arrive 2–5 days after the second email.

⭐ Pro tip: Set up an easy workflow in Givebutter Plus to automatically enroll your new donors in a welcome sequence.

“Workflows make it easy for us to take our donors on curated journeys that are relevant to their unique interests and giving style. They make keeping in touch easy and systematic.” – Jeanette M., Director of Strategic Development & Communications, Arlington Thrive

2. Build donor profiles 💁

Storing data within a donor database or nonprofit CRM allows you to automatically track all donor interactions, including texts, phone calls, and emails. Plus, you can store contact information, past event attendance, or even the date of their first gift. Over time, you’ll establish a donor profile, so you can send more personalized communications.

Once you have your donor management system set up, be sure to: 

• Create personas: Identify any patterns that can guide upcoming marketing materials for your target audience.
• Segment your donors: Donor segmentation allows you to personalize your communications to individual groups, whether you’re sending an email, letter, or text message.  
• Collect interests and insights: Use custom fields, tags, or notes to store extra insights about your donors, so you can send thoughtful and relevant messages.

‍3. Turn on the spotlight  🔦‍

Set an organizational goal to highlight three new donors over the course of 30 days. Encourage your staff and board members to get creative in how you recognize these supporters and analyze which methods are most effective. Remember to speak to the individuals first to find out how they’d most like to be appreciated.

Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

• Create a welcome package: Mail a welcome package to new major donors, featuring the story of your organization, a handwritten thank you card, and a small gift.
• Piece together a video montage: Take photos of your new beneficiaries at fundraisers or volunteer events and show them in a video montage at your next event.
• Host an open house: Invite all new supporters to your nonprofit's office—offer a tour of your building, throw a happy hour, and introduce your internal team. 

More to explore

15 donor gift ideas your supporters will love →

4. Personalize your communications 🎨

Anyone can send a generic outreach email, but you want yours to feel like it was specifically written with your donor in mind. To do this, look for ways you can personalize each message and delight your donors with your knowledge and care.

Here are some ways to personalize your messages:

• Add your donor’s name: A quick and easy way to add personalization is to use merge fields to automatically add your donor’s name to emails and other messages.
• Highlight their contribution: Include a mention of how much they’ve donated recently or share an update on a specific project they helped fund.
• Use the right software: If you choose a CRM system that integrates with your fundraising and marketing software (like Givebutter), you can use the donor data you hold to personalize emails more effectively.

5. Write or update your donor relations plan 📝

Testing out new ideas is great, but ideally, you want to be doing this from a place of strategic thinking. Craft a solid donor relations plan or review your existing one so you can organize your efforts and work more effectively. 

While you won’t be able to carry out the entire plan within 30 days, you can finalize your strategy and get started.

As part of your donor relations plan, include:

• Goal: Decide what your overall goal is (e.g., increase donor engagement by a percentage) and how you’ll measure it over time.
• Budget: Assign a budget to your plan and activities, so you can make smart financial decisions.
• Donor relations activities: Include a list of all the activities you’re planning—including some of the ideas on this list.

⭐ Pro tip: Use the task management feature in Givebutter Plus to help your team stay on top of your donor relations to-do list.

6. Hire for a donor relations role 🤝

Donor relations is a big responsibility that requires a lot of skilled effort to run effectively long-term. If you have the budget, consider hiring a dedicated team member as your donor relations manager or coordinator.

When you’re hiring for this role, look for the following qualities:

• Curiosity: Your donor relations expert should be driven to collect and explore the data behind your donors, their decisions, and how you can encourage giving.
• Enthusiasm: An effective donor relations manager spends a lot of time interacting with your supporters, so they should be passionate about your mission and building relationships.
• Organization: Managing donor relations involves lots of challenges and moving pieces, so an eye for organization is a must. 

7. Share an exclusive donor benefit ✨

Your supporters mean a lot to you, and you have the opportunity to show them your gratitude in a unique way. Introduce benefits donors can become eligible for through specific events or milestones—like a donor’s anniversary or a special campaign—to create a sense of exclusivity.

Some of our favorite donor benefit ideas include:

• Discounts on your online store: Offer a limited-time discount to new and existing donors to encourage further purchases.
• VIP access: Give your donors access to an experience not available to the public.
• Personal recognition: For major donors, offer the chance to be publicly named as a contributor to a project or program.

8. Host a supporter celebration event 🎈

Celebrate your community of supporters with a donor appreciation event in their honor. Collaborate with your supporters to create the kind of event they’re likely to attend and enjoy.

Here are some different events you could host:

• Themed event: Plan a seasonal event or one themed around a particular interest, style, or era.
• Annual celebration gala: Make your donor appreciation event an annual tradition.
• Casual donor appreciation event: Regularly host casual events like an afternoon tea or coffee catch-up.

9. Send a personalized email

Your supporters want to feel like you’re writing to them directly, especially when you’re sending a message of appreciation. Take some time to craft and send thank-you letters or emails to supporters when they join, when they donate, or just when you’re thinking of them.

Here’s how you can make your thank-you feel special for individual donors:

• Thoughtful message: Write from the heart and show genuine appreciation and interest.
• A direct contribution they’ve made: If you can, reference their specific donation amount or a project they’ve supported and share an update on your progress. 
• Current events: Share a news article or new report that’s relevant to your mission to give them a deeper insight into your work. 

10. Create a donor loyalty program 🎟️

Another way to show your support for your long-time donors is to create a loyalty program that rewards their ongoing commitment. Whether you offer perks, discounts, exclusive merch, or something else, it’s a worthwhile investment to grow your community and increase donor retention.

Here are some donor loyalty program tips to get you started: 

• Get your donors involved: Ask your donors what they’d most like to see in your loyalty program, so they’re excited to sign up and earn points.
• Make it easy to join: Streamline the process so your donor loyalty program is simple to join and makes earning points or rewards effortless.
• Promote your program: Tell your supporters all about your loyalty program and highlight it as a benefit to potential donors to encourage participation.

More to explore

Discover the 6 best donor engagement software to boost retention →

11. Send a poll or survey 📊

Your supporter base can help you find the right approach for donor relations—sometimes, all you need to do is ask! Send out a poll or survey to your supporters to gather their insights and suggestions for future activities and interactions.

Here are some of the ways you can use polls or surveys with your donors:

• Ask for feedback: See what donors thought about your recent fundraising event: There’s something you can learn from each event, so don’t be afraid to ask your supporters about their experience.
• Gather ideas for a future project: Ask your most loyal supporters for inspiration on how to tackle or promote a new project.
• Get opinions on potential themes: If you’re planning a fundraising campaign or event, why not ask your donors to select their favorite option from a poll of choices?

Even more donor relations best practices

The tips above will give you a great starting place for improving your donor relations. If you’re looking for further insights, here are some best practices we’d recommend following: 

• Set a communication cadence 📧 Let your supporters know how often you’ll stay in touch, like sending a monthly newsletter or a quarterly report.
• Be transparent 🧊 Communicate openly about your organization's activities and impact to build trust.
• Get creative with recognition 📥 There are many ways to publicize your supporters' involvement in your organization. Consider adding donors' names to a virtual wall or creating a giving society.
• Create a better donor experience 💛 Always look for opportunities to make the donor experience smoother, more personal, and more enjoyable. One of the easiest ways to do this is by streamlining the process with fundraising and donor relationship management software like Givebutter.

⭐ Pro Tip: Watch our webinar with the Donor Relations Guru on how to increase donor retention for even more ideas! 

Your final step: Supercharge your donor relations with Givebutter 

The right donor relations strategy can strengthen relationships and boost recurring donations. Through acknowledgment, stewardship, recognition, and engagement, you’ll start building a loyal supporter base in no time. 

If your goal is to improve the donor experience and find new ways to engage with your supporters, you’ll love Givebutter’s all-in-one fundraising and donor relations software. From monthly giving tools and easy engagement features like email and mailings, plus a built-in CRM, Givebutter brings together everything you need to grow relationships and ensure no donors fall through the cracks. 

Ready to take the next step? Sign up for your free Givebutter account today to get started.

Donor relations FAQs

Wondering how to maintain donor relationships?  Here are some of the most frequently asked questions, along with the answers you need.

What is another word for donor relations?

While the donor relations definition is similar to that of donor stewardship, the latter is a subset of donor relations and has a narrower definition. Donor relations includes all the actions you take to acknowledge and engage with your supporters.

What are the steps in donor relations?

When it comes to donor relations steps, it’s a good idea to split your activities out so they cover all of the four pillars of donor relations. Major donor relationship planning should include acknowledging gifts, sending a thank-you message, communicating how the contribution will be used, and engaging further to grow loyalty.

What is the donor relations process?

The donor relations process covers every step and activity involved with engaging your donors. It begins with accepting and acknowledging their first gift and continues through sending regular emails and hosting donor appreciation events.

What does a donor relations person do?

A donor relations person knows how to cultivate donors, effectively guide the process, and build strong connections with supporters. Their specific responsibilities vary based on their title.

A donor relations coordinator's role may involve donor research, donor prospecting, event planning, coordinating communications, and running LYBUNT and SYBUNT reports. A donor relations director's role could include major gift management and overseeing a major donor engagement strategy.