Most fundraising professionals know that having good info is the key to elevated income, stronger relationships, and extra profitable appeals. By analyzing the donor knowledge you’ve out there, you may be taught volumes about donor motivation and conduct, then use this info to information your fundraising strategy.
Donor knowledge will help you with segmentation, advertising and marketing, stewardship, and extra. Ideally, you’re working with a sturdy donor administration system that may observe all of your engagements with and donations from every supporter, each on-line and offline. This engagement info is likely one of the strongest instruments you’ve for driving your mission ahead.
Particularly, a handful of fundraising knowledge factors will help you observe efficiency, illuminate alternatives for progress, and set bold but lifelike targets.
At SalsaLabs, we equip nonprofits with the data-driven instruments they should work effectively and make good fundraising choices. We’ve helped 1000’s of profitable nonprofits perceive the fundraising metrics that are most important to crafting a successful fundraising technique. And now we’re sharing these suggestions with you.
On this article, we’ll discover the next 6 fundraising metrics:
- Fundraising ROI
- Donor Retention Charge
- Common Present Dimension Progress
- Share of Presents Matched
- Giving Capability
- Conversion Charge
For every one in all these key efficiency indicators, we’ll discover what it’s, why it’s vital, and how one can calculate it. Then, you’ll have the ability to leverage this info to maximise your fundraising potential transferring ahead. Let’s dive in.
1. Fundraising ROI
Your fundraising return on funding, or fundraising ROI, is a big-picture metric that captures the general effectiveness of your efforts. Basically, this metric reveals how a lot cash you raised for every greenback you spent on fundraising.
Your fundraising ROI ought to have in mind all of your fundraising prices, together with these for occasions, enchantment mailings, and software program options. For instance, whereas your nonprofit’s donor database helps you higher attain your viewers with appeals that resonate with them, it does value cash. Subsequently, you’d embrace this expense as part of your fundraising prices.
Whereas this metric is beneficial, don’t depend on it because the end-all-be-all technique of evaluating your success. The price to lift a greenback can range extensively based mostly on the maturity and dimension of your nonprofit in addition to the character of your trigger. Use it as a useful single indicator alongside different, extra detailed metrics.
Find out how to Calculate
To seek out your fundraising ROI, divide your complete fundraising value by your fundraising income. Be sure you embrace each expense to get probably the most correct image of the place you stand. The calculation appears to be like like this:
Fundraising ROI = ((Complete Funds Raised – Complete Fundraising Bills) / Complete Fundraising Bills) x 100
A optimistic quantity right here represents a optimistic return in your funding. If the results of that calculation is 70%, your fundraising returned $1.7 for each greenback spent.
Calculation: (($170,000 – $100,000) / $100,000) x 100 = 70. This represents a 70% RO.
If the quantity is destructive, like -25%, meaning you spent more cash than you raised.
Calculation: (($75,000 – $100,000) / $100,000) x 100 = -25. This represents a destructive 25% ROI, or a lack of 25% in your funding.
You possibly can calculate ROI for a particular fundraising marketing campaign or occasion, or use a yr’s price of information to find out an annual metric.
2. Donor Retention Charge
Your donor retention price refers back to the proportion of donors who give yr after yr. For the reason that value to accumulate a brand new donor is larger than the fee to retain an current one, retaining extra donors will enhance the sustainability of your fundraising efforts. Plus, retained donors sometimes give at larger ranges than first-time donors, so the next donor retention price is usually correlated with a bigger general fundraising yield.
To extend your donor retention price, it is best to deal with stewardship and relationship constructing. These are the elements that can encourage supporters to come back again time and again. Ensure your recognition program is up-to-par and that you simply’re frequently speaking the impression of your work and that half your donors play in that success.
Find out how to Calculate
Discover the variety of donors who gave this yr who additionally gave final yr, then divide that quantity by the whole variety of donors you had the earlier yr.. Multiply this quantity by 100 to get a proportion on your donor retention price.
In case you had 620 donors who gave final yr and this yr, and also you had a complete of 1,000 donors who gave final yr, your retention price is 50%. Calculation: 620/1000 x100 = 62%
In keeping with the Fundraising Effectiveness Challenge, the common donor retention price is round 43%. In case your retention price is under the trade common, take into account how you possibly can modify your outreach efforts to enhance responsiveness and engagement. Maybe that you must attain out extra (or much less) incessantly, or that you must modify the language of your fundraising letter to attach extra deeply with first-time donors.
3. Common Present Dimension Progress
This metric measures how your common reward dimension adjustments over time. After all, bigger presents are at all times higher for growing your general income, however the significance of this metric is about greater than merely your end-of-year complete.
This KPI will help you measure long-term enhancements (or lack thereof) in your fundraising technique. If this quantity stays stagnant, it’s a sign that your fundraising capability can also be remaining flat slightly than growing.
Find out how to Calculate
Discover the common reward dimension from the final two years—for readability, we’ll use 2020 and 2019. (Bear in mind—common reward dimension is the sum of donation greenback quantities divided by the variety of donors.)
For instance: in 2019 you acquired $200,0000 in complete donations coming from 5,000 donors which represents a median reward dimension of $40. (Calculation: $200,000 / 5,000 = $40).
Subtract 2019’s common from this 2020’s common, then divide this distinction by 2020’s common. If you multiply by 100, you’ll have the ability to see your % enhance. To cut back the variety of steps, you may enter the common reward sizes right into a % change calculator.
In case your common donation in 2020 is $50, and your common donation in 2019 was $40, your common donation progress price was 20%. Calculation: ($50-$40) / $50 x 100 = 20%. Which means your common donation dimension grew by 20% over the past yr. Once more, any optimistic quantity right here means there was progress, yr over yr. A destructive quantity means your common donation per donor has gone down.
To extend this metric (and develop your fundraising), your group ought to deal with cultivating relationships with current donors and specializing in those that have the capability to present bigger presents over time. place to begin is conducting prospect analysis to determine potential mid-tier and main supporters, then creating an applicable stewardship technique for these supporters. fundraising CRM is important right here and will help you automate appeals with the precise ask quantities based mostly on earlier donations and even article intelligence algorithms based mostly on new revenue and demographic knowledge.
4. Share of Presents Matched
With a purpose to maximize the impression of donor generosity, take full benefit of matching reward packages. These packages are designed by companies which are dedicated to company social accountability to match worker donations at a sure ratio, often 1:1. Imagine it or not, many potential donors are unaware of those company philanthropy packages which might have a major impression in your annual income.
In keeping with Double the Donation, someplace between $4 and $7 billion in matching reward funding goes unclaimed yearly. By analyzing your proportion of presents matched, you may get a greater understanding of whether or not you may be leaving cash on the desk.
To extend this metric, deal with spreading consciousness about matching reward packages amongst your supporters. By including a search instrument in your donation web page, supporters will simply have the ability to test their eligibility whereas making a present. Alternatively, you may put money into automated matching reward software program that identifies potential match alternatives and automates advertising and marketing to seize as many of those matches as potential.
Find out how to Calculate
Discover the whole verified variety of potential presents matched, then divide this by the whole variety of presents acquired. This metric is most simply calculated in case you have entry to automated matching reward software program as a result of the answer can determine potential matches that haven’t but been secured. In case you assist extra of your supporters turn into conscious of matching reward packages, it is best to begin to see the distinction between potential matches and secured matches diminish, maximizing income.
5. Giving Capability
Whereas this quantity might not be a metric that’s immediately calculable or ready for you in your CRM, it’s a beneficial instrument to tell your fundraising efforts.
Giving capability is a measurement of the potential quantity that every of your supporters are capable of donate. Whilst you could not have perception into the contents of every supporters’ checking account, their previous conduct and private particulars can reveal sufficient to create a ballpark estimate of their giving capability.
This info will help you determine probably the most doubtlessly beneficial donors or main reward prospects. Then, your improvement crew can prioritize outreach accordingly and higher inform their ask quantities.
Nonetheless, it’s vital to notice that this metric doesn’t inform the entire story. It might probably present how a lot a donor might give, not how a lot they’re keen to present. For a extra holistic understanding of every supporter, take a look at giving capability alongside with one other key issue, often known as affinity to present.
Find out how to Calculate
Use out there details about supporters’ giving historical past, work affiliations, and extra to create an knowledgeable estimate of their complete wealth. You may additionally think about using a prospect analysis instrument or working with a screening service to entry a extra complete database of knowledge outdoors your individual CRM.
6. Conversion Charge
At its most simple stage, conversion price is a measurement of what number of donors took an motion when prompted by your group. Each the motion and the immediate might be outlined broadly—perhaps it’s how many individuals signed up on your e-newsletter after seeing a Fb publish, or perhaps it’s the variety of donations made after you despatched your year-end fundraising enchantment letters.
As a number of examples, you possibly can calculate a particular conversion price to guage the efficacy of:
- Your donation web page
- Your social media posts
- Your e-newsletter
- Your unsolicited mail outreach
It is best to use your engagement software program to calculate your conversion price and enhance it over time. Utilizing know-how like automation, A/B testing, and extra, you can also make smarter choices about which techniques generate one of the best outcomes. At Salsa, we name this technology-powered and data-driven strategy SmartEngagement.
Find out how to Calculate
Divide the quantity of people that took an motion (like donating, signing as much as volunteer, or registering for an occasion) by the quantity who acquired the decision to motion (like receiving an e mail or seeing a social publish).
For instance, you ship an donation enchantment e mail to 500 potential donors. 100 of them click on in your e mail and go to your on-line donation web page. Of these, 40 of them truly make a donation.
- The conversion price in your e mail is 8%. Calculation: 40/500 = 0.08 = 8%.
- The conversion price in your donation kind is 40%. Calculation 40/100 = 0.4 = 40%.
Totally different communication strategies will lead to various conversion charges, so use these calculations as a relative metric slightly than an absolute one. In different phrases, don’t examine apples to oranges! When evaluating your efficiency, search for an trade common that applies to the platform in query or on the identical metric over time with the intention to measure enchancment.
By harnessing the data out there in your donor database and different software program options, your nonprofit can elevate funds extra successfully. Calculate and observe these metrics over time to see how your technique evolves and improves. Bear in mind—you may solely obtain a purpose or cross a milestone in case you set one up!
In regards to the Writer: Gerard Tonti
Gerard Tonti is the Senior Inventive Developer at Salsa Labs, the premier fundraising software program firm for growth-focused nonprofits.
Gerard’s advertising and marketing deal with content material creation, conversion optimization and fashionable advertising and marketing know-how helps him coach nonprofit improvement groups on digital fundraising finest practices.
