It’s no secret that gaining more monthly donors will benefit a nonprofit. But the impact of monthly donors has long been underestimated. In addition to providing a consistent source of funding for your mission, monthly donors tend to give more than one-time donors. One fundraising platform found that the average monthly giver donates 47% more in one year than those who give one-time gifts. So how can you encourage donors to give monthly? We have five strategies for you. Keep in mind that the most successful monthly giving programs use a combination of more than one technique.
Create a page on your website about your monthly donor program.
First thing’s first, in order to gain monthly donors, they need to know you have a monthly donor program! Make your monthly donor page clear: tell people what their donation will fund and exactly how to donate. We love the monthly giving page of Girls on the Run South Louisiana. They give a clear call-to-action. They tell you exactly what their mission is. And they show you what you’ll help fund with fun photos. The key is to keep things simple and clear.
Offer benefits to monthly donors.
Benefits for monthly donors can be anything, from a free t-shirt to an exclusive volunteering opportunity. But the best benefits keep your mission at the forefront. If someone cares about your mission enough to give monthly, it’s because it’s a cause they truly support! We recommend benefits like the ones San Francisco Opera offers for its monthly donors. Because their donors clearly enjoy opera, they offer benefits like backstage tours and the ability to see a dress rehearsal performance. This works for two key reasons. First, you engage the donor by offering something they’re genuinely interested in. And second, you keep your mission top-of-mind for the donor.
Tell them how their monthly gifts add up and make a difference.
Charity: Water’s monthly donation program (called “The Spring”) has an email newsletter just for monthly donors. Their newsletter, “Good News,” sends an email to monthly donors that updates the donor on the amount they’ve given, and more importantly, the measurable impact that donation has made. (If you’re looking for help measuring your impact, start here!) With a monthly donor, even if they’re giving $20 per month, it’s consistent income for your mission and helps you know how much you can expect, so let donors know that you recognize and appreciate their continued support.
Have an annual event to thank donors.
If you’re looking to gain monthly donors at a certain level of giving, take a tip from Kids on the Move. Kids on the Move holds an annual appreciation luncheon, which monthly donors who give $100 or more monthly are invited to attend.
Make it easy to donate monthly online.
By far, the most important thing you can do to encourage monthly giving is to make it as easy as possible. If you’ve ever set up a subscription to a monthly service like Netflix or Spotify, you’ve seen that they make it simple and fast to enter your card information online and the rest is automatic. Many donation platforms allow monthly giving options. Even better, CAWC makes recurring donations the default so donors have one less button to click on the page.
Conclusion
Whether you have a church or an animal shelter, all nonprofits can benefit from a monthly donor program. According to the 2020 Global Trends in Giving Report, 57% of donors in the US and Canada were enrolled in at least one monthly giving program. This amount has increased over the last few years, so be sure your nonprofit doesn’t miss out on these dedicated supporters. If you need help creating great landing pages, social media campaigns, or email newsletters to give your monthly donor program a boost, reach out!
