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How to Keep Donors Engaged Over the Summer

By Margaret Hunter

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It’s summer and all your donors have vacations and relaxation on the mind. How do you stay relevant when your next gala is in the fall and your last auction was months ago? We’ve interviewed some of our top-performing nonprofits to pick their brains for their fundraising nuggets of gold. 


Don’t worry if you only do one event a year or haven’t employed any of these tactics yet. It’s never too late to start some simple donor engagement to stay relevant and keep your cause top of mind. Just a hint: it is a lot more simple than you think!


The first thing to remember is that your donors, however big or small their donation, were first impacted by your story, your mission. And your mission doesn’t take a break just because there is not an event or fundraiser going on. So, keep telling your story. Send out a newsletter, film a quick video update and embed it in an email, post on your social. Separate it from any ask. You are building and maintaining relationships, so this can be a time where you are keeping your “friends” in the loop and connecting on the thing that first drew them to you- your wonderful work and impact. 


Secondly, have you let anyone help you in a while? If not, you should! If there are opportunities to volunteer within your organization, now would be a great time to offer them. We know you CAN do it all on your own, BUT you don’t have to. Offering opportunities to help is a great way to engage your donors in the off-season. People want to help, but they won’t know how unless you ask. Be vulnerable and ask for help. People will feel even more connected to your cause. And the more connected they are, the more likely they are to give and spread the word. 


And thirdly, a slower season is a good time to take stock of the last year and spend some time writing meaningful and creative “Thank Yous” to donors, volunteers, and sponsors. This doesn’t mean just thanking the big spenders. Remember your goal is to keep the story alive and spreading and you need all your donors, big and small, for that. You can make it personal with a handwritten note, you can send photos of some recent successes or from your last event, and you can keep them looking forward to what is to come. Wherever you can add a personal touch, do it. When appropriate, ask questions, and be available to listen and respond. The key here is to communicate how much you value not just their financial donation but their relationship with the organization. This is how you not only keep a financial donor but speak to their heart as well. Their heart is what led them to your cause in the first place. 


Remember, in all your efforts, take care of your relationship with your supporters. Use your off-season to feed into your relationships as opposed to always being on the “ask” side of things. Take some time in your lull to do just that. 

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