Susan Brekelmans, CFRE
Senior Consultant
A goal we frequently see in RFPs is “broaden the donor base.”
It’s not surprising that many nonprofits are concerned about the health of their supporter community and donor pipeline. We’ve all seen the dire numbers—declining donor participation, the concentration of mega-gifts, falling retention rates for donors who give smaller amounts.
Here are some of our tried-and-true strategies to help our clients find and keep new donors—broadening their donor base and building a pipeline of supporters.
1. First, get back to basics: build a system to cultivate and renew.
We worked with an organization that had a solid one-year retention rate of 27%, compared with industry benchmarks of 19% to 20%. More than a quarter of those who gave in one year gave again the second year, inspired by the organization’s impact.
Unfortunately, our analysis showed that this inspiration wasn’t sustained: only 8% of donors continued giving three years on. Compare this with data from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project showing that “just under 60% of repeat donors (i.e., those who gave last year but not for the first time) gave again in 2025.”
This organization had room for improvement! We asked the team to commit to a set of cultivation and renewal communications that worked for their small size: a mid-year stewardship piece as well as an email introducing the annual report; and three basic, two-page appeals, each with a single story about a client, donor, or staff member. Stay tuned—we will share results in a future newsletter.
2. Revive your lapsed donors.
Is it cheating to look in your database for “new” donors? Maybe, but it’s also more cost-effective to renew a relationship with someone who previously supported you than it is to make a new connection.
First, let’s look at why a person stops giving. According to the Give.org Donor Trust Report 2023, affordability was the top reason cited by survey respondents in all age segments. We can’t do much about that. However, the other top reasons people said they stopped giving have to do with communication: survey participants said they didn’t feel connected to the charity approaching them or didn’t trust the organization. Gen Z participants said they didn’t feel like they had been asked to give.
Before you fire off an information-packed message, analyze your lapsed donors to determine why they have stepped back. If possible, ask some of your inactive supporters to complete a survey: “We miss you! Please tell us why you paused your giving.” Then, create a special appeal just for them. Focus on the impact they can have through you—show them how other donors like them are making a difference and invite them to rejoin this community.
3. Invite new supporters to act and learn first.
To build a “warm list” of truly new potential donors, invite people to act before giving. By completing an online opinion survey, signing up for a newsletter, adding their name to a petition, or sending a message of encouragement, supporters self-select into your mission. It’s a way to advance them from a passive audience member to a participant.
Design a full donor journey from that point of acquisition to a gift request and stewardship. An email welcome series, a mail follow-up, and social media ads are all options to stay visible and communicate your impact—before you ask for a gift.
Try different ways of getting in front of potential donors. You don’t need to be on every social media platform, though. Pick two or three. If you’re not sure which to choose, survey your donors, or run some experiments to see where you get the best response. Depending on your budget, you might try grassroots referrals from your board and current supporters, online advertising or paid social media campaigns, borrowed or traded lists, or your own ticket buyers or event attendees (see below for more).
Experiment with different kinds of outreach. According to the Giving USA Special Report Generations and Giving, Gen Z donors like to subscribe to nonprofit email lists and enjoy hearing about program updates, new initiatives, and client stories. Millennials and Gen Z donors respond to solicitations via text messages or social media. People of all ages increasingly consume information through video. Whatever you do, track it! You need to be able to understand who is engaging with you so you can focus on those most-likely prospects.
4. Convert your customers and event donors.
People who attend your events or use your services are already “insiders,” to a degree. We’re talking about ticket buyers, class or workshop attendees (and their families), run/walk/golf participants, etc. You’ll likely have more success converting these folks to donors than you will with a purchased list.
Top tips:
- Practice relentless capturing of contact information before, during, and after an event.
- Create excitement and share impact before the event, whatever it is, and get people used to hearing from you.
- Promote your cause and your impact at the event: posters, QR codes, opening speakers, brochures.
- Offer opportunities to make a gift at the event.
- Immediately after the event, thank people for attending.
- Follow up within a week or so with a message about the impact of the event. Offer next steps for connection: ask people to complete a short feedback survey and then invite them to a cultivation event.
- Ask for a gift only after you have made an effort to build connection.
In addition to mass communication tactics, try more for personal connection. One of our clients conducts a personal follow-up campaign after their annual summer camp. Staff and board members research every single parent and guardian on LinkedIn, documenting their linkages with people already close to the organization, and establishing a LinkedIn relationship with each family.
5. Ask for a recurring gift first.
If you’re already under the spell of a monthly giving guru (Harvey McKinnon, in my case) you’re probably already investing in monthly giving. If not, look at the data for a reason to get started.
A significant percentage of donors prefer to make automated, recurring gifts. For example, the Generations and Giving special report shows that 55% of Gen Z and 59% of Millennial donors prefer to give monthly. Yes, the 2024 data showed a shrinking preference for recurring giving compared with the 2022 data, but loyal monthly donors can still be the core of an organization’s sustainable philanthropic revenue. A special report on recurring giving from Giving USA, reporting on data through 2022, shows that monthly donors are more loyal, more likely to leave a bequest in their wills, and have impressive lifetime value.
Where does this fit with acquisition? Offer monthly giving as an option for your first-time donors and make the entry-level monthly gift affordable. Don’t hold monthly giving in reserve and promote it only to those who have already made a gift. Use your impact data to show the multiplied effect of a modest monthly gift.
6. Be a philanthropic partner to your donors.
It’s not just about why people give, but how.
Across generations, most donors prefer digital giving, and they expect it to be fast, intuitive, and mobile-friendly. If your donation process creates friction, you risk losing the gift altogether.
Beyond the transaction itself, donors are using a growing range of giving vehicles. Donor-advised funds (DAFs) continue to rise, especially among mid-level and major donors. If you’re not actively promoting DAF giving—or making it easy to initiate a grant from your website—you may be missing opportunities already sitting in donors’ accounts.
For donors age 70½ and older, qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) offer a tax-efficient way to give directly from an IRA. But these gifts don’t happen without clear communication. Donors need to understand the option before they’ll use it.
Finally, foster and value different kinds of involvement. We know that people who volunteer are more likely to give, and give more. For some people, giving of their time, talent, and testimony is a prelude to making a financial commitment. Make sure your supporters know you value their contributions, regardless of how they are made. Becoming a philanthropic partner to your donors and working with them to share different vehicle options is one of the best ways to earn donor trust and, in turn, raise more funds for your mission.
The takeaway: expand the pathways to give. Make your donation page a hub—one-time gifts, recurring gifts, DAFs, stock, QCDs—and pair each option with simple, donor-friendly guidance. When you reduce friction and increase choice, you make it easier to say yes.
To Sum Up the Best Tactics for Broadening Your Donor Base
Broadening your donor base isn’t about finding new tactics, throwing them at the wall, and seeing what sticks for now. It’s about doing the fundamentals—consistently and well.
At its core, this work comes down to communication and capacity.
Strong communication builds trust, demonstrates impact, and invites donors in at the right moments. Capacity—your systems, staffing, and strategy—ensures you can do that work reliably over time.
Many organizations know what they should be doing but lack the infrastructure to do it consistently. The good news: both can be built. With the right approach, you can create a donor experience that attracts new supporters and keeps them engaged for the long term.
Benefactor Group has dedicated experts in fundraising communications and capacity building to help you get there. We’d love to connect.