10 Donor Stewardship Ideas + Tips to Power Your Purpose
Nonprofit donors are the cogs that keep the entire machine running, and that kind of influence shouldn’t go unnoticed. Still, many nonprofits let donors slip through the cracks by not acknowledging their contributions — which can be costly.
It costs about five times more to acquire a new donor than to retain an existing donor. Given the average donor retention rate of 35%, nonprofits miss out on a lot of revenue from lapsed donors.
This is why donor stewardship is crucial to every nonprofit’s success. By making your donor stewardship strategies stand out from other organizations, you can attract new supporters and strengthen your relationships with existing ones. In this guide, we’ll review winning donor stewardship ideas that make supporters feel a stronger connection to your cause.
Donor Stewardship FAQ
What is donor stewardship?
Donor stewardship is the process of extending a relationship beyond the donor’s gift. This means getting to know donors and deepening their personal investment in your mission through the following activities:
Recognizing donor contributions
Showing appreciation for donor contributions
Managing and growing donor relationships
What isn’t donor stewardship?
You’ve probably heard other terms referring to activities related to maintaining donor relationships, namely donor cultivation and donor development. However, these ideas aren’t interchangeable due to these key distinctions:
Donor cultivation involves attracting people unfamiliar with your nonprofit or mission to donate for the first time, rather than keeping donors engaged after they’ve already contributed, like with donor stewardship.
Donor development involves progressing relationships after an initial donation or interaction with your nonprofit. It’s largely focused on increasing engagement with or investments in your nonprofit, whereas donor stewardship maintains engagement at the current level.
Why does donor stewardship matter?
Donor stewardship is the backbone of long-term retention efforts, encouraging loyal contributors to maintain their support over the course of years. Done effectively, donor stewardship can provide your nonprofit with a long-lasting community of supporters (and, by extension, a solid financial foundation).
How do we plan our donor stewardship ideas?
There are a wide range of donor stewardship ideas that your nonprofit might take on, some concurrently with others. Staying organized throughout the process is crucial for allocating resources effectively and giving your donors the attention they deserve.
This is where a donor stewardship plan comes in. Create a standardized, structured plan that covers multiple activities, such as:
Communication type. Are you sending emails, calling on the phone, sending handwritten cards, or talking in-person to your donors? Be specific when detailing the type of communication and its purpose.
Phase in your donor stewardship cadence. Most nonprofits separate their actions into four phases: acknowledgment, recognition, reporting, and ongoing relationship management. This helps them optimize the donor journey at each phase.
Timeline. Some engagement activities are completed once and some recur over the course of several years—meaning your calendar can quickly become chaotic if you don’t set a timeline for each activity.
Type of donor. Designate which activities should be taken for new donors, recurring donors, major donors, and other categories of supporters.
Since every nonprofit is different, your nonprofit should rely on its own mission and financial goals as a source of truth. By using these criteria to organize your efforts, you can fine-tune your donor stewardship activities while using resources efficiently.
What do donor stewardship ideas look like in practice?
Take this example of a donor stewardship cadence for a fictional nonprofit called Playmakers for Progress that provides access to golf tournaments and clinics to children from underserved communities:
All donors
Initial contribution acknowledgment: Within 48 hours of receiving the donation, Playmakers for Progress sends a personalized email expressing appreciation. It can be a template, but the organization should fill it in with details specific to the donor, such as their name and donation amount.
Monthly update: Playmakers for Progress sends a monthly newsletter to all donors detailing how their contributions have supported its mission.
Mid-tier donors
Playmakers for Progress defines a mid-tier donor as someone who gives at least $500 annually. They show appreciation for these supporters by:
All ideas above
Entering them into a giveaway: The organization's donors are automatically gifted a team at the nonprofit’s upcoming charity golf tournament. The organization could also give away items such as equipment and tickets to golf events, as these are related to its mission.
Sending them handwritten notes: This extra touch of personalization can go a long way in making mid-tier donors feel appreciated. Playmakers for Progress sends handwritten thank-you notes to retained donors or those who have given at least $500 a year.
Major donors
Playmakers for Progress defines a major donor as someone who gives at least $30,000 annually. After the organization pinpoints major donors that require further stewardship, Playmakers for Progress shows appreciation by:
All ideas above
Offering a valuable in-kind token of their appreciation. For example, the organization might offer a membership to a luxury golf club network as a thank-you for their donation.
Recognizing them at a fundraising event, such as a charity golf tournament or an annual banquet.
Allowing them to sit on the board of directors or take other advisory roles. Allowing major donors to impact your mission directly is a highly personal demonstration of your respect and gratitude.
Donor Stewardship Dos and Don’ts
Start your donor stewardship off strong with these tips:
DO
Segment your stewardship efforts. Sometimes when nonprofits prioritize efficiency in stewardship, personalization falls by the wayside. However, with segmentation tools, you can send personalized messages to groups of donors based on shared characteristics, such as programs of interest or giving level.
Standardize data tracking in your CRM. In order for segmentation to work, you need to have a reliable dataset at your disposal. Set guidelines for which data you’ll collect and how you’ll collect it. Also, conduct frequent database audits so you can pinpoint and correct any discrepancies.
Work with other community organizations. Consider enhancing your donor stewardship ideas with the help of external organizations. Partner with a like-minded community organization that could complement your efforts, whether they contribute in-kind gifts for giveaways or sponsor donor appreciation events.
Be creative! Remember that wowing your donors makes your nonprofit stand out and can encourage them to continue their support. Choose donor stewardship ideas that uniquely cater to your community and mission (we’ll discuss donor stewardship ideas in the next section).
DON’T
Ignore donor feedback. Your donors have unique perspectives that your team might miss. Ask for feedback biannually or quarterly to better understand your donors’ motivations and tailor future stewardship ideas.
Wait too long to acknowledge donors. Configure your communications management system to send a donation receipt and general thank-you right after a donor contributes as confirmation that you received their gift. Then, send a more personalized thank you message within 48 hours so your donors feel prioritized and valued.
Set generic or undefined goals. Use the tried and true SMART framework to set goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based. With that in mind, make sure your nonprofit’s purpose is at the center of every decision you make to mitigate mission drift over time.
Overlook small gestures. When it comes to donor relationship maintenance, a little can go a long way. For example, a simple, five-minute call to a mid-tier donor congratulating them on their retirement could make their day and inspire them to sign up for your upcoming fundraising event in their newfound free time. Build these everyday interactions into your donor stewardship plan — you might be surprised by how much they can pay off.
Top Donor Stewardship Ideas
Our Favorite Donor Stewardship Idea: Leverage in-kind gift-giving.
Why it works: Donors aren’t expecting to receive anything from the nonprofits they contribute to. However, you can exceed that standard by providing unforgettable tokens of your appreciation.
Examples: Experiences, event tickets, custom merchandise, collectors’ items
Why this is our top donor stewardship idea: Limited resources often cause nonprofits to overlook the opportunity to strengthen donor relationships through gift-giving. However, by working with a community partner like the Dormie Network Foundation, you can source in-kind gifts worth thousands for donors, such as a Dormie Network membership.
How to get started:
Research different partners and what types of in-kind gifts they could provide.
Complete a consideration form or make a pitch demonstrating why your nonprofit deserves in-kind gifts.
Based on the amount of gifts you receive, outline criteria for which donors can receive them.
2. Host stewardship events.
Why it works: Celebrating your donors with stewardship events is a win-win: your donors get to attend a fun event in their honor, while your nonprofit gets insights from them that can inform future stewardship strategies.
Examples: Meet-and-greet with nonprofit staff and beneficiaries, donor appreciation day, donor hall-of-fame induction, one-on-one coffee chat
How to get started:
Brainstorm stewardship event ideas that make sense for your nonprofit given your donor base’s demographics and preferences.
Poll donors on which events they’d like to see most.
Plan and host the event.
Collect feedback from attendees so you know what went well and where you can improve.
3. Use interactive digital channels.
Why it works: Some think it can be challenging to communicate emotions through a screen, but you can connect with donors quickly and affordably through these digital channels.
Examples: eCards, social media, email newsletters, video, social media posts
How to get started:
Determine the digital channels your donors use the most
Create digital content that resonates with donor interests
Send it out and record donor responses
4. Conduct informal, “unplanned” outreach.
Why it works: While donors serve your nonprofit financially, they want to be valued as individuals. Contacting donors outside of fundraising appeals makes your organization feel more genuine.
Examples: Handwritten notes, phone calls, in-person meetings, and emails simply asking the donor how they’re doing
How to get started:
Research which donors have big life events coming up
Determine how you’ll reach out (e.g. by a handwritten note, phone, email, or pre-arranged meeting)
5. Create a specific donor stewardship report.
Why it works: Laying out all of your stewardship activities and strides shows your commitment to strengthening your donor community.
Examples: Pamphlet (similar to an annual report), quarterly newsletter
How to get started:
Highlight how you’d like to present the information and how often you’d like to send it.
Build the report into your content calendar.
6. Offer exclusive opportunities throughout fundraisers.
Why it works: Offering special ways for donors to support your cause keeps them engaged and fortifies the connections they feel to your team, beneficiaries, and mission.
Examples: Offer behind-the-scenes opportunities at fundraising events, early registration, prime parking access, additional entries in giveaways and auctions, limited-edition donor merchandise
How to get started:
Brainstorm different opportunities that you can add to your fundraisers.
Add the opportunity to your fundraising plan.
7. Form a donor advisory committee.
Why it works: Your donors are passionate about your mission by default, so letting them have more say about your initiatives via an advisory committee deepens their personal investment in your cause.
Examples: Strategic planning committee, donor relations committee, fundraising event coordination committee
How to get started:
Decide what type of advisory committee you need
Look for donors in your database whose skills and interests align with your needs
Reach out to them individually about joining
8. Make your gratitude evergreen.
Why it works: Leaving a lasting legacy can be difficult to visualize, but by recognizing donors in a permanent way, you can help your donors make their mark on your nonprofit.
Examples: Donor hall of fame, funds or capital projects named after donors, naming rights for areas of your organization’s facility
How to get started:
Brainstorm a list of the most influential donors
Get their permission to be recognized permanently
Honor them with a ceremony
9. Establish a legacy circle.
Why it works: A legacy circle is an exclusive group for donors who have given consistently for a certain period of time. Donors will love the opportunity to learn new perspectives about your mission and make friends.
Examples: Recurring giving circle, major donor circle
How to get started:
Set criteria for who can join the legacy circle
Decide what the legacy circle will look like and offer
Invite eligible donors to join
10. Expand ways to give back.
Why it works: Similar to the advisory board, your most loyal donors are always in search of new ways to interact with your nonprofit. You can keep them engaged with these different activities that contribute to your purpose.
Examples: Volunteering, peer-to-peer fundraising, serving on the Board
How to get started:
Ask donors which additional ways of giving back they’d prefer
Create marketing materials specifically for existing donors that highlight how to give back in new ways
Wrapping Up
Now that you have a solid foundation in donor stewardship ideas, you can start brainstorming your own. By following these tips and working with your team, supporting partners, and donors of all giving levels, you can curate unforgettable donor stewardship opportunities.