How To Get More Monthly Givers with Erica Waasdorp

Summary

Episode Summary: How To Get More Monthly Givers with Erica Waasdorp

In this insightful episode of Nonprofit Nation, host Julia Campbell engages with Erica Waasdorp, the president of A Direct Solution and a recognized expert in monthly giving and donor retention. Together, they explore effective strategies to attract, retain, and maximize the impact of monthly donors for nonprofit organizations.

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1. Introduction to Monthly Giving

Julia Campbell introduces the episode by emphasizing the significance of monthly giving programs in providing sustainable financial support for nonprofits. She welcomes Erica Waasdorp, highlighting her extensive experience despite her relatively young age. Erica is renowned for her books Monthly Giving, the Sleeping Giant and Monthly Giving Made Easy, and her practical approach to donor retention.

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2. Evolution of Monthly Giving Programs

Erica Waasdorp reflects on the transformation of monthly giving over the past three decades. “When I first wrote my book in 2012, like monthly giving, the Sleeping Giant, it was only mail and phone” [03:13]. She notes the significant shift from traditional fundraising methods to digital and social media platforms. The advent of online tools has made it easier and more cost-effective for nonprofits to cultivate and maintain monthly donors.

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3. The Importance and Benefits of Monthly Donors

Erica underscores the long-term value of monthly donors, citing a Neon One study that reveals “the average lifetime of a monthly donor is eight years” [06:00]. This longevity translates to substantial cumulative donations compared to one-time gifts. Monthly donors often exhibit higher loyalty, are more likely to upgrade their giving levels, and contribute to legacy gifts through wills, thereby offering sustained support to organizations.

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4. Overcoming Myths and Misconceptions

A prevalent misconception addressed in the episode is the fear that monthly donors might cannibalize major one-time gifts. Erica counters this by explaining that monthly giving complements rather than competes with larger donations. “If a major donor says, I can’t write a thousand-dollar check, but I can do a hundred dollars a month,” Erica illustrates, demonstrating how recurring donations can lead to significant long-term contributions [13:50].

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5. Strategies for Acquisition of Monthly Donors

Erica provides actionable strategies to attract more monthly givers:

• Integrate Monthly Giving Options: “Adding a ‘Give Monthly’ button on the homepage… it doubled the number of monthly donors,” Erica shares [11:48]. Simple additions like this can significantly boost monthly donor acquisition.

• Launch Focused Campaigns: Utilizing specific times such as awareness months or holidays can enhance campaign effectiveness. For instance, a Valentine’s Day drive with postcards, targeted emails, and social media outreach successfully exceeded goals by securing 65 new monthly donors against a target of 50 [21:18].

• Leverage Multiple Channels: Ensuring that all communication channels—emails, social media, and websites—consistently promote monthly giving options increases visibility and accessibility for potential donors.

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6. Retention and Engagement of Monthly Donors

Retaining monthly donors is crucial for sustained fundraising success. Erica outlines key practices for ensuring donor loyalty:

• Personalized Communication: Sending handwritten thank-you notes or personalized messages makes donors feel valued. “No matter how they came on board… making sure that my $10 a month gift is valued,” Erica emphasizes [16:58].

• Consistent Impact Reporting: Regularly updating donors on how their contributions are making a difference reinforces their commitment. Erica cites an example where a donor receives monthly stories showcasing the tangible impact of their gifts [19:01].

• Stewardship Programs: Combining retention efforts with stewardship ensures that donors remain engaged and connected to the mission. Erica mentions organizations that excel in this area, such as Best Friends, which effectively cultivates monthly donor relationships through virtual events and personalized upgrades [19:03].

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7. Conveying Impact and Donor Motivation

To address donor hesitations about the perceived insignificance of small monthly donations, Erica advises nonprofits to shift their focus from large-scale metrics to individual stories:

• Highlighting Individual Impact: Sharing specific stories, such as how “a $10 a month donation provides a meal for a child,” makes the contribution feel meaningful and direct [29:20].

• Accessible Messaging: Erica recommends using relatable narratives that demonstrate how even minor, recurring gifts can lead to substantial change over time. For example, framing donations as part of a community effort where each contribution “makes a difference to this one young girl who’s now safe,” appeals to donors' desire to see tangible outcomes [32:37].

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8. Future Opportunities and Trends in Monthly Giving

Looking ahead, Erica identifies key trends and opportunities for the growth of monthly giving:

• Adoption of Modern Payment Methods: “The lifetime value of a Starbucks customer is $15,000,” Erica draws parallels to emphasize the potential of recurring contributions [34:11]. She advocates for integrating digital wallets and direct debit options to facilitate easier monthly donations.

• Continuous Optimization: Ensuring that donation forms are up-to-date with the latest payment technologies can enhance donor convenience and retention. Erica stresses the importance of “activating everything you possibly could activate” to accommodate evolving donor preferences [34:11].

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9. Conclusion and Resources

In wrapping up the episode, Julia and Erica encourage nonprofits to take proactive steps toward establishing and enhancing monthly giving programs. Erica reiterates the simplicity of starting with small changes, such as adding a monthly giving button or sending personalized thank-you notes.

• Call to Action: “Just start,” Erica urges, emphasizing that even incremental efforts can lead to significant growth in monthly donations [37:41].

• Resources: Listeners are directed to visit Erica’s website at Direct Solution for her books, blog, and newsletter signup, providing additional tools and guidance for implementing successful monthly giving strategies.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Erica Waasdorp [03:13]: “When I first wrote my book in 2012, like monthly giving, the Sleeping Giant, it was only mail and phone.”

• Erica Waasdorp [06:00]: “The average lifetime of a monthly donor is eight years.”

• Julia Campbell [07:34]: “We're afraid of anything that we think might be an imposition, even though it's probably easier and a better experience for a donor.”

• Erica Waasdorp [11:48]: “Adding that button on the homepage… it doubled the number of monthly donors.”

• Erica Waasdorp [13:50]: “If a major donor says, I can’t write a thousand-dollar check, but I can do a hundred dollars a month.”

• Erica Waasdorp [16:58]: “No matter how they came on board… making sure that my $10 a month gift is valued.”

• Erica Waasdorp [19:01]: “Your monthly support makes this possible.”

• Erica Waasdorp [29:20]: “Your monthly gift makes a difference to this one young girl who’s now safe.”

• Erica Waasdorp [34:11]: “The lifetime value of a Starbucks customer is $15,000.”

• Erica Waasdorp [37:41]: “Just start.”

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Nonprofit Nation provides a comprehensive guide for nonprofits aiming to enhance their monthly giving programs. Erica Waasdorp’s expertise offers valuable insights into effective donor acquisition, retention, and engagement strategies, emphasizing the profound impact of consistent, recurring donations. Nonprofit leaders and fundraisers are encouraged to implement these strategies to build a stable and passionate community of monthly givers, ensuring long-term sustainability and mission impact.

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For more resources and to connect with Erica Waasdorp, visit Direct Solution. Don’t forget to subscribe to Nonprofit Nation on your favorite podcast platform to stay updated with the latest episodes and insights.

Transcript

[Julia Campbell]

It's almost the most wonderful time of the year. Giving Tuesday is just around the corner. And to celebrate, GiveButter is giving back $25,000 to nonprofits. GiveButter is the easiest to use, all in one nonprofit fundraising platform that brings together everything changemakers need to raise more, pay less, and give better. From free fundraising pages, events and auctions to a built in CRM, modern marketing features, and so much more. And this year, the five most engaging Giving Tuesday campaigns on GiveButter will each receive a $5,000 matching donation that you can use to multiply your impact. So get the full spread on Give Butter Gives back for Giving Tuesday and learn [e-mail] nonprofit nation that's givebutter.com nonprofit nation I'm so excited to see what you come up with onto the show. Hello and welcome to Nonprofit Nation. I'm your host, Julia Campbell, and I'm going to sit down with nonprofit industry experts, fundraisers, marketers, and everyone in between to get real and discuss what it takes to build that movement that you've been dreaming of. I created the Nonprofit podcast to share practical wisdom and strategies to help you confidently find your voice, definitively grow your audience, and effectively build your movement. If you're a nonprofit newbie or an experienced professional who's looking to get more visibility, reach more people, and create even more impact, then you're in the right place. Let's get started. Hello. Hi everyone. This is Nonprofit Nation. I'm your host, Julia Campbell. Very excited to be here with you. Today. We're going to talk about monthly giving and how to get more monthly givers, how to retain them, how to give them a fantastic experience, and even how to upgrade them to get even more revenue. My guest today is Erica Wazdor. Erica is a president of A Direct Solution, and Erica is a leading expert in monthly giving and donor retention. With 40 years of direct response experience, which is hard to believe since she's only 35, she's helped numerous nonprofits boost their revenue through successful monthly giving programs. And Erica's the author of Monthly Giving, the Sleeping Giant and Monthly Giving Made Easy. And she regularly shares her expertise through speaking workshops, publications, and her blog. So, Erica, welcome to the show. Welcome back to the show.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, thanks. Really excited to be back.

[Julia Campbell]

So let's just dive right in. Like over your career, your very esteemed career, you have witnessed the evolution of monthly giving programs. So can you share some of the things that you've observed and like what's going on with today's landscape?

[Erica Wazdor]

Wow. Great Question. So, yeah, I, I've been doing 31 years of monthly giving, believe it or not. So when I, when I came to this country, I in 31 years ago, I started in monthly giving, but before that I actually had experience with subscriptions in a prior life in the Netherlands. So it's kind of like what, what I'm seeing right now is obviously especially like the last, if you look at probably the last seven years, so much has changed. Like subscription giving. I mean, some people talk about subscription giving, right? Like as as opposed to monthly giving. It has really grown. The tools have really, I would say exploded. So like in, you know, when I first wrote my book in 2012, like monthly giving, the Sleeping Giant, it was only mail and phone. And there was a few organizations that were doing some face to face, you know, canvassing, street, street fundraising, but, and then a little bit of television in some cases. But the bulk of the organizations that, that was what they did. So it was much more expensive, expensive to generate multi donors now. I mean, these tools have really opened the door to make it a lot easier for nonprofits to find monthly donors and to ask them to do that. So the whole online social media, well, you know all about that, right? So it's like that has really, really made life a lot easier for nonprofits to ask for monthly gifts. But having said that, I'm still not seeing as much as I think could be done. It's almost like nonprofits and fundraisers tend to be, you know, like sort of these hamsters in the wheel and we kind of keep like, you know, turning and turning and turning and like, you know, trying to get new donors and then how do we keep them? And then, you know, but they tend to do that with sort of like old school processes as opposed to saying, okay, well hey, what are the donors doing? How are they living? What are they, how are they consuming? Right. So. Oh, okay. Well, they're, they like to pay things over time, especially younger people. Right. So how do, can we now apply that in fundraising? I'm seeing better approaches and more focus on monthly giving, subscription giving, but it's still not as much as I think it could be. And it's also like, you know, I work with organization all different sizes, small, mid size, large. And every organization tends to have this seesaw effect of short term money, long term investment into multi area, short term, long term, short term, long term. Right. And it's like, yeah, but we want retention. But then they're not saying, well, okay, what are some of the better retaining donors. Well, Guess what? They're, they're multi donors. So to give you an example, a lot of organizations are looking at, I can, you know, bring in a $50 donor, they make a one time gift, and then they're like, oh, why would I worry about bringing in a $10 a month donor? But then what they forget is. And you, you've seen the neon. One study, right? I mean, if you look at the fact that the average monthly donor, the lifetime is eight years. Eight years. Wow. Okay, so eight times $10 a month, times, you know, it's like, that's a lot of money. Right? And then if you, if you think about the fact that these dorms are really invested in your mission, they're loyal, they are going to make extra gifts, they are going to be able to be upgraded to higher levels, but they also leave you in their will. Right? So they're really, you know, investing in your organization. So you really have to think about that long term. But I, that's, that's a hard thing for a fundraiser sometimes to, to, to consider. It's like, oh, we really got to go look at that long term. I was, I was working with an organization recently and I said, all right, well, hey, let's see, what's the average value of a monthly donor? And it was $3,500. One monthly donor was worth $3,500. Okay, so wouldn't you want to get more of these $3,500 donors in the mix? Right. And you know, and they have a huge influx of new donors. So it's a matter of like, how can we now convert these new donors to become monthly donors?

[Julia Campbell]

Right, exactly.

[Erica Wazdor]

You have the tools. You just have to start asking. And I don't know, I don't know why nonprofits tend to be afraid of that.

[Julia Campbell]

We're afraid of anything that we think might be an imposition, even though it's probably easier and a better experience for a donor. I mean, I know as a monthly donor, there's no way I could write a check at the end of the year with everything going on with holidays and school and activities and things like that. So having this way that I give every month and just knowing that I'm making a difference every month for me. And I think a lot of people, it works really well for them, not just financially, but also, you know, their emotional awareness of helping out, even if it's just a little bit every month. And I've seen the trend. And we were talking before we started recording about the NPR affiliates, like the radio stations. And the one wbur, which is the Boston, Massachusetts based one, they're having their fundraiser right now. And what I notice this year is everything is geared toward monthly giving. I think they're calling them sustainers. I'm not really, I don't remember. But everything on their website, the pop up on their website, the donate page, all of their asks that they're doing, they're being very strategic in saying give monthly gifts. Like, it's interesting. It's very different from other things that they've done. And me as a current monthly donor, they are asking me to upgrade. So they've been, I don't know anyone else experience, but they've been very intentional in saying, oh, you give like $10 a month, can you give 12? Yeah, you give 15, can you give 17? And I think that's such a smart strategy. And I also just think it plays into the culture right now where everything is a subscription. Actually, my husband gets really mad that I have 25 streaming subscriptions. And what else do we have? Spotify and like every Amazon prime, like everything is a subscription base right now. So I think we're just hardwired to think that way.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah.

[Julia Campbell]

And what if, I mean, you brought.

[Erica Wazdor]

Up a good point, actually. It's like, and you know, when I talk to nonprofits too, it's like, okay, well, first of all, I asked him, like, are you giving monthly yourself?

[Julia Campbell]

Okay.

[Erica Wazdor]

And then plans go up and sometimes no. And then the other thing is like, yeah, pick a couple of organizations that you say, wow, I think they're doing a great job in monthly giving. Right. And NPR and public TV stations, they've been doing this for a while. They're doing an amazing job because they see the power of these long term donors. Right? So they see the retention. Right. So they see that they're valuable donors. Right? So, but yeah, pick a couple of organizations that are doing a great job in monthly giving and then join them with five or ten dollars a month and see what the experience is. Right. I mean, you know, so because that's. And, and it's like, well, oh, okay, well, if they can do it, why can't you? Yes. Right. So because again, 10, 20 years ago you didn't have the tools, but now you have the tools. You do, you have it. You reach out to your donors. Well, throw in a monthly giving ask. Right? So that's like one of the things, for example, it's a new trend right now that I'm seeing, you've probably seen it is if you go in your book A hotel, right. And you've just booked and say thanks. I mean, you know, and then you get this little ad. It's almost like an ad from, hey, would you consider like supporting, you know, the animals. Yes, the aspca. Right. And then you just click on it and then it goes to a monthly giving page. So after checkout option, that's something that's becoming more and more common. So again there's lots and lots of opportunities there and all you need is a monthly giving page. Right. Which you already have. Right. So and obviously a little bit of money for, for this particular type of advertising. But, but yeah, it's, there's just so much that you can do now with the tools. I mean you have social media while driving to your side. I mean you have emails drive them to. And you know, a lot of times I, I even talk about, it's like, okay, start with the button.

[Julia Campbell]

Start with a button.

[Erica Wazdor]

I mean one of my clients, they did a test where they had a donate button on the homepage and give and then they added a give monthly button on the homepage. Do you know what that did? It doubled the number of monthly donors.

[Julia Campbell]

Just by giving the option. Because people don't even know necessarily just.

[Erica Wazdor]

By adding that button on the homepage. So it's a button, people, you know, it's not like you don't have to write extensive copy. I mean, you know, it's not expensive, you know, so and the same with like adding a button in your email, you know, so it's like giving, you know, if you see what World Vision does is they're, they're act, you know, they're calling it like a subscription now, but every email that they send out, it has this give monthly button on the, on the bottom of it.

[Julia Campbell]

So subscription for good. I think World Vision was, I saw an ad actually I was streaming something and I saw an ad and I thought that was so interesting. Like you have a subscription for this, you have a subscription for that, but do you have a subscription for good? And I love that language, I think.

[Erica Wazdor]

But it's a button in their email, right? So again that you don't have to worry about like calling it something special. It's like just like consider give monthly. Right? It's, it's a button in an email.

[Julia Campbell]

Okay.

[Erica Wazdor]

The reality is it's not going to hurt your one time gifts. Okay. But you get, are you going to get oodles and oodles and oodles of new monthly donors by just adding a button? No, but you're Going to get some and you're going to start planting the seed. Oh yeah, I've seen that. Yeah. You know what? I'm thinking about it. Oh yeah, I really want to help. You know, let me, let me consider a monthly gift right now.

[Julia Campbell]

Talk about that. Let's talk about some of the myths. So you just mentioned one, that monthly donors are going to sort of, if you turn a major donor into a monthly donor, it's going to cannibalize their gifts or something or they're not going to give as much. But I think the data shows otherwise. So can you talk about that myth?

[Erica Wazdor]

Well, again, I, I kind of shared it earlier already. It's like, look at the fact that a monthly donor has a light, you know, an average lifetime of eight years. I mean, again, if you look at some of the organizations like the NPR and PTV stations that have been doing monthly giving for even longer than that, they're seeing some monthly dollars that are giving 20, 25 years. So again, so the lifetime value is there. If you just look at and calculate that. So look at, okay, not just looking at like the, the once a month or donation, but what is that on an annual basis? What is that like after five years? What is that after eight years? Right. All of a sudden people are saying, oh, I had no idea that hundred monthly donors are worth $300 a year, $30,000. Okay, on an annual basis. Right. 100 monthly donors over $30,000. Well, now if, what if that's eight years, that's $180,000. So the same with major donor. If a major donor says, look, I want to give, you know, I can't write a thousand dollar check per se, but I can write a hundred dollars. I can do a hundred dollars a month. Now you've already generated $1,200 a year. Right. But if you look at it over time, so, and again, just because you make them a monthly donor doesn't mean that you can't ask them for other purposes.

[Julia Campbell]

Exactly.

[Erica Wazdor]

You can send them extra gift ask, you can invite them to events you can ask them for to support your capital campaign. Right. So there's lots and lots of it. And one of the organizations I think does a really, really good job with this is Best Friends. They do an amazing job with by email, like cultivating me as a monthly donor. They do virtual events. I mean, they're asking me for extra gifts, they're asking me for upgrades. So those are great organizations that again, see the power and don't worry too much about, oh, am I going to downgrade somebody. Right. So because you're, you're upgrading somebody, they become an investor in your organization, so.

[Julia Campbell]

Exactly, exactly. And if you're communicating the impact of the gift consistently, oftentimes what I think is like, it's a test for people. Yes, they're kind of testing out an organization. They're saying, oh, I'm going to give $10 a month, but they could give more. And then they see what happens. So let's talk about that. So I do want to talk a little more about acquisition, but now I want to move to retention. So if you have a monthly giving program up and come up and going, you have a handful or maybe, hopefully a few dozen or maybe hundreds of monthly donors, what are some practical steps that we can take to ensure that these monthly donors stay engaged and committed?

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, so that. That's another great question. So one of the things, and again, when I started out in monthly giving 30 plus years ago, it was like, oh, we can't touch them once they give, don't do anything with them. Right.

[Julia Campbell]

Don't bother them because then they might unsubscribe.

[Erica Wazdor]

So the reality is, and you know, I'm actually working with a group of other consultants right now on looking at retention and stewardship and that combination and how that impacts retention. And what we're seeing is that those organizations that are as personal as possible. So that. Right. Personal note when they come on board. Right. No matter how they came on board. So if they gave online and started a monthly gift, they get like a little handwritten note with the contact and like a person's name. If you have any questions, please contact us. Right. So the donor's like, wow, this is great. I'm going to hold on to this. And wow, they actually sat down and valued my $10 a month gift. Right. So you really need to do that for any amount. Not just like saying, oh, I'll do it when I have $50 a month. No, just like do it for any monthly gift. Right. And if you don't have the staff, well, maybe there's some volunteers or board members who are willing to help out with those personal notes. Right. But by golly, do it. Okay, so that's one. And then again, just think about like, this is a donor who's invested. What is some of the things that I would want them to know, know how can I get them, keep them up to date on how their gifts are making a difference. Because when you look at what's pro. The problem with retention is that people say Nobody ever tells me that my gift is making a difference. Right. So how do you now do that? By telling them in an email saying, wow, your monthly gifts are making a difference. And the reality is again, this one, one organization that I support, for kids sake, they do an amazing job. Every month I get like a little story. You've made this possible and thank you for your continued monthly support. Right. And that's a story that they're also sending to other donors, but they just made a tiny variation in the email saying, thank you so much. Your monthly support makes this possible. Right.

[Julia Campbell]

Just so people are seen.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, it's just like, oh, okay, yeah, this is great. Okay. Yeah, they're telling the story. And again, you know, just like you got to make it doable. Right. For especially I know people are like, well, do I need something special? No. Start simple, but make it personal. So if somebody joins online, obviously your tools will send the thank you messaging. But make sure that you check what that thank you messaging says because sometimes it's very, very generic. Right. So make sure that you make that as warm fuzzy as possible. If you haven't looked at it in a while, send them a personal note, pick up the phone and leave a message. Is great if you have the time for that. Right. Again, more personal. Wow. I'm blown away by your $10 a month gift you just made. Right. So make it personal. And then look at your communication plan. Where can you just make a tiny version for that goes out to your monthly donors that makes them feel extra special. So again, it doesn't have to be a brand, a very special newsletter. It doesn't have to be something totally special. It doesn't have to be a chotchky. It doesn't, you know, like it's just like they want to know that their gift is making a difference. How are, how are they doing that? What, what are you telling your other donors? Use a variation of that. Keep it doable. Right. So keep it doable. Keep it doing. Keep it doable. Yeah.

[Julia Campbell]

I've seen organizations do like a monthly donor spotlights and I worked with one organization in Boston on their social media and we did a few monthly donor spotlights and they actually gained monthly donors from that because people strategy and it's a great acquisition.

[Erica Wazdor]

Strategy. Yeah, I mean Charity Water was using one of their monthly donors as an and you know, somebody who invited the other potential multi donors. Right. So yeah, I mean you bring a good testimonials. Ask your donors why are they giving monthly. You know, do a little survey after the first month and say, why are you giving monthly? And then you might be blown away, but why are they saying that? And then you have a monthly donor spotlight that you can then use for acquisition. Right. So yeah, donors love hearing from other donors. So it's a great, it's a great acquisition strategy actually.

[Julia Campbell]

So I love that. Well, let's talk about acquisition strategy. You, you've talked on your blog about launching drives or mini campaigns to boost monthly giving. So can you share a little bit either through examples or share how can we create these drives? What are the elements of these mini campaigns to boost monthly giving?

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, I mean, and you, you actually talked about like how NPR is doing exactly that right now. So. And I mean, you know, the public TV probably they have their quarterly pledge drives and they.

[Julia Campbell]

Yeah, and they also have our dedicated attention because we're listening to the radio.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, but, yeah, yeah, but you know, so I think it's, it's more like if you look at your communication strategy for the year and saying how often do you reach out to your donors? Okay, well can you build in like one or two or even four points in time where you can say, okay, well these two weeks or this whole month, September is monthly giving month. Okay. That's like when we're going to do a sustainer drive and we're doing an email. We might do a postcard or a mailing. We might even do some phone calls if you're like calling your donors. Right. And your social media posts all lead to, we want to bring in some so many new donors, so many new multi donors by the end of the month. Right. So those organizations that are really focused on all of their channels lead to monthly giving for that particular period of time are more successful. So one of the organizations that I worked with, they did a Valentine's Day campaign. So they did a postcard to their donors and then they did a series of three emails all leading up to we're looking for 50 new monthly donors by Valentine's Day. And then they ended up like getting 65. So again it was like it was three emails and a postcard. Okay. And then some social media support as well. That was also driving there. But again it was just a very focused campaign. I think a lot of organizations could look at like, I know giving Tuesday is one option, but I think there's so many other giving days during the.

[Julia Campbell]

Year and cause an awareness days.

[Erica Wazdor]

Cause awareness days. Right. So again, you know, like I'm working with one organization right now in September is, is Lupus month and a Lupus awareness. So we're doing a September Sustainer drive postcard, couple of emails. Yes. And social media. So I don't know what the results are yet, but that's one of the. One of the things that you can consider is like, is there a day or a month that fits your organization where you can say, hey, I'm really looking for new monthly donors? And again, you know, like, just, just. But I think it's. It's more like once you're committed to that. You can't ask a donor to commit to you if you're not committed to it. Right. So I think that's the. That's the key. So what do you get to lose by trying a campaign? What? Try one, see what happens. Right. You know, and then you may do it again. I mean, some organizations that have been growing for years, that's what they do. I mean, International Justice Mission, every September was their sustainer month. Right. And they would reach out to try to get new monthly donors. They would reach out to existing monthly donors to try to upgrade them. So those things work. I think monthly giving is something that you always want to consider. Where can you plant the seeds? Where can you ask that option? And again, you can have a button in every email. Right. So it could be part of your banner or your. Or your shell or wherever, your template, whatever you use it. Right. So what do you got to lose by doing that? But having these very focused sustainer drives are even more powerful.

[Julia Campbell]

Yeah. What do you think of asking someone to be a monthly donor right after they make their. Their first gift? So I, like, I've seen this happen to me. I think it's fine. It's actually helped me become a monthly donor to a couple of different organizations. Like the Human Rights Campaign.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yep.

[Julia Campbell]

I think I made like a rage donation, which I do a lot. Like something in the news that I just made a donation. And then I did get an email that said, thank you so much. Here's four ways you can help us. And one was, you know, sharing social media. Call your legislator. I think another one was like, go to our website. And the fourth was become like, join our monthly giving circle. I know a lot of organizations might be uncomfortable doing that, but what are your thoughts on that?

[Erica Wazdor]

So, I mean, I think it's a great idea. Again, so those organizations that have a welcome email series. Right. And you have the tools. Right. So the first email says, thank you for your gift. Right. And then the second email could say. And then you could say, well, she check us out on social Media. Right. And then the second one could say, would you consider, you know, a monthly gift? Because that would really help more on an ongoing basis. Help us prepare for emergencies, whatever your mission is. Right. What do you have to lose by asking that? You have said thank you. Right. Okay, so you've done that. Also, it's not a tasking thing per se. Right. You know, so because I know some organizations go, we can't be tasking. Right. Thanking.

[Julia Campbell]

That's a Lynn Western term.

[Erica Wazdor]

Right. But again, that's like in a welcome email series, it's to start, you know, asset option for the second and third one of the things. And again, kind of like what this, this example that we just had or like on checkout. Right. Some organizations that are advocacy folks asking the donor to sign a petition. And then as a thank you for signing the petition, then you can say, would you now take the next step and consider a monthly gift? So that's another option. Right. Next, after. You know them, I know them. They're great. They do a lot of testing. They have seen that the sooner you can convert donor to give a monthly gift, the longer they're going to stay with you. Again, the more money they're going to raise and again, the more invested they will be. So don't be afraid, don't wait too long. Right. So yeah, so look at that first month. So if you get a donor in the mail, send them a thank you letter and then within the first month send them an invitation to become a monthly donor.

[Julia Campbell]

And that's how we need to look at it. An invitation.

[Erica Wazdor]

It's an invitation, right. They can say no, but they could also say yes. And guess what? Now you've just given them the opportunity to invest a little bit more. Right. And again, now you've generated a donor who's going to retain twice the rate than they would otherwise be. Especially if you look at retention for new donors. Right. So you work so hard to bring in new donors. If you can convert them to make a monthly gift within that first month or within the first three months of joining of making their first gift, your retention rate goes up to like 80, 90%. Right. As opposed to 20. So don't be afraid of inviting your donor to consider a monthly gift. I think that's really what it comes down to. And yes, do it as soon as possible. I mean, I work with a religious organization and they have a pretty substantial number of monthly donors. And we have a welcome kit and every welcome kit for new donors has an ask for monthly gifts in it. And it works like a charm. And then they even have a thank you letter for donations for donors during the year if they make an extra gift. And then we invite them to consider becoming a monthly donor. And that too works. Right? You're not going to grow if you don't ask. So what are some opportunities that you have to ask them to consider, to invite them to become one? They don't.

[Julia Campbell]

I do. I love that wording invite. I think it's so important because they are becoming part of a special group of people. And people what I think the regular layperson, the regular donor, they don't know what we know. They don't understand the impact that monthly gifts have on budgeting and planning ahead, planning for emergencies, really being able to create a vision and build on it, because you know that there's revenue coming in. And I think there's a misconception often that small gifts don't make a difference. So what are some ways that nonprofits can really convey the impact of these small recurring gifts? When, you know, so much is being said about Mackenzie Scott giving away billions of dollars, and people are like, oh, what is my little $5 a month going to do?

[Erica Wazdor]

That's kind of a general fundraising thing. You see that, too. And like, there's some of these organizations that say, yeah, but I want to say that I'm working in 55 countries and that we're, you know, helping 50 million people. And it's like, okay, but by doing that, you're not telling donors that you need them because you're basically telling them that you don't need them. Right? So I think that's kind of like. So. So I think, and I know it's hard for some organizations, like, stop talking about the big numbers. Right. Again, you know, everything we read and see and experience and test is that it's about the one donor and the one story. So, you know, it's the starfish story about like, hey, I'm throwing one starfish back, and, hey, I made a difference to that one. Right? I made a difference to that one. Right? So you're never going to be able to throw all the starfish back in the sea, but you did make a difference to that one, right? So I think that's kind of the. The one donor can make a difference to one person. So I think we have to sort of like, almost like, especially the. The bigger organizations that. Yeah, but our donors want to hear that. No, no, no. The donors don't want to hear that. The donors want to hear how they are making A difference or how they can solve a problem. Right. So stop talking about the big numbers, you know, so. Because it doesn't, you know, and you know, I have these, these. You probably have those conversations constantly too. It's like, no. So sharing the story about this one boy or girl, the community of monthly donors, I mean, you can, you can kind of say that you're part of this community of monthly donors. You are making a difference to, you know, this young boy who's now able to learn to read or this young girl who's now, you know, safe or, or whatever it is that your mission is. But make that smaller too, than, than, you know, maybe your branding committee wants you to look at. Right. So I think that's like, think small with that. You don't have to think big because again, if you're like, oh yeah, you know, all of our multi donors are, are generating xyz, you don't really have to worry about like amounts or whatever because then it's like, oh, well, if you're already raising $50 million, well, I don't think my $25 a month is going to make a difference. Right, so. So yeah, so make it, make it small. Smaller. Yeah.

[Julia Campbell]

Make it like more accessible.

[Erica Wazdor]

More accessible. Yeah. Yeah. And again, you're helping one person. And what's, what's $10 a month do for, for a kid who can't, you know, doesn't have food at home before she goes to school. Right. So. And I think again, food. Food banks are doing an amazing job by making those smaller increments. Right?

[Julia Campbell]

Yeah, like 10. I saw one on Facebook. The Greater Boston food bank said $10 equals a lunch. Something like $10 equals one lunch and 25 equals dinner for family. Things like that. And I think that makes it more accessible and tangible.

[Erica Wazdor]

And again, if you look at like in the animal world and you know, like just, or even like, hey, 19 hours a month, that's 63 cents a day. Right. So again it's like, oh, yeah, that doesn't sound like a lot. Right. So it's so just like think about, think small when it comes to these things. So don't.

[Julia Campbell]

I just heard the lifetime. So the lifetime value of a Starbucks customer is $15,000. And I thought, that's definitely me. And where could that money be going when I read that study? So as we wrap up the neon one study on recurring giving, I will put it in to the show notes. Everyone should grab a copy. I know that, you know, you are on the forefront of looking at the future of Fundraising. What do you see some of the biggest opportunities for monthly giving sort of in the next few years, in the next decade.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah. So, so one of the things is, and you know, like, and, and I'd love to ask her, like, are you using checks, Julia? Are you still using checks?

[Julia Campbell]

I have to, I have to. For the friends of the pto, because that's all they take. But everyone else takes Venmo and digital wallets. Yeah.

[Erica Wazdor]

So that's where I think month, you know, one time giving is going, but also monthly giving is going. Right. So, so if you're like so direct debit taking monthly gifts for bank account, that is your ultimate when it comes to retention. So take a look at your forms and see if you have activated everything you possibly could activate. Right. So because, because all of those tools, they're always updating. Right. So but you may not have like gotten the latest version or maybe your finance person gets that information and doesn't pass it on or, you know, so. Or your IT people get it and they don't pass it on, you know, so make sure that your forms accept like direct debit, that your forms can handle Venmo and PayPal and, and digital wallets. Right. So I think that's why we make sure that that is optimized and that you continue to optimize that. That's really important. But also because checks are going away. If you're asking donors, especially those organizations that do a lot of direct mail and telemarketing, even if you're asking them to fill out a form to start a monthly gift and you're asking them for a first month check or avoided check. Well, guess what, if you don't have checks, how is a donor going to do that? Right. So you need to make sure that you ask for the bank account information and the routing number. I'm seeing that changing. More and more organizations are adding that to their forms now again, you know, continue to ask for credit cards on your forms. You know, so some organizations are worried about that and it's like, well, no, you got to give donors the choices. Right. So how do they want to pay? Well, give them that. I think that's a bit. That's a big trend. I'm hoping that the trend will be that more and more organizations will generate more monthly donors that are going to support their missions because we got to stop the hamster wheel.

[Julia Campbell]

Erica, this has been fantastic. Thank you. You have a wonderful newsletter that you send out and a fantastic blog. Where can people find you? Sign up for your Email, newsletter, get copies of your books.

[Erica Wazdor]

Yeah, it's a direct solution. So it's a direct solution. Singular.com and yeah, sign up for my blog, download some, you know, monthly donor roadmap or, or, you know, tax letters in January, you know, things like that.

[Julia Campbell]

So yeah, awesome.

[Erica Wazdor]

Sign up for my newsletter. Yeah, great.

[Julia Campbell]

Well, thank you so much for being here. This is fantastic. I will put all the links in the show notes for everyone so you can grab copies of that. And I'm just so thrilled. I'm excited. Non profits, you can do this. It's coming up on year end when this is this episode is going to be released. So I would love to hear from you. We'd both love to hear from you. Do you have a monthly giving program? Are you starting one? Are you inspired? What have you learned? What's really resonated with you? So feel free to send me an email. Send Erica an email, connect with us on LinkedIn and share your wins and get start. Just start.

[Erica Wazdor]

Just start. Start with one thing. A button.

[Julia Campbell]

All right, thank you so much. Well, hey there. I wanted to say thank you for tuning into my show and for listening all the way to the end. If you really enjoyed today's conversation, make sure to subscribe to the show in your favorite podcast app and you'll get new episodes downloaded as soon as as they come out. I would love if you left me a rating or a review because this tells other people that my podcast is worth listening to and then me and my guests can reach even more earbuds and create even more impact. So that's pretty much it. I'll be back soon with a brand new episode, but until then, you can find me on Instagram @JuliaCampbell77. Keep changing the world, you nonprofit unicorn.