Which Events Attract the Most Monthly Donors?
Regular monthly donors are the jewel in the crown of a successful fundraiser. Nonprofits rely on them not only to keep the lights on but to help plan for the future too.
Your fundraising event needs to add regular monthly donations to be genuinely beneficial. Here are some fundraising best practices for non-profits.
Is America Still Giving?
In 2020, Americans donated $471.44 billion to charities despite a worldwide pandemic and economic downturn. In fact, the nation’s top 100 charities reported a 10% increase in private donations during their most recently reported fiscal year.
The Giving Institute’s Giving USA Foundation named 2020 the highest giving year to date. They state, “Giving by individuals achieved its highest total dollar amount to date, adjusted for inflation, but it comprised less than 70% of total giving for only the second time on record.”
It proves no matter what, Americans still respond to local and national needs with a giving attitude.
“Happiness doesn’t result from what we get, but from what we give.”
Who Gives Monthly?
Nonprofit Source provides interesting charitable giving statistics into who gives and why.
Baby Boomers
Baby Boomers (1946 - 1964) represent 23.6% of the U.S. population, with 72% of those saying they give to charity. Almost half of the Boomer donors are enrolled in a monthly giving plan and make an average annual donation of $1,212. At the average age of 64, Baby Boomers are most likely to make recurring donations monthly, quarterly, or yearly.
Gen X
Gen X (1965 - 1980) Americans make up 20.4% of the population, with 49% saying they are enrolled in a monthly giving program. A total of 45% donate to crowdfunding fundraising campaigns, with an average annual donation totaling $732. They are most likely to fundraise on behalf of a cause, make a pledge, and volunteer their time.
Gen Y (Millennials)
For Americans born between 1981 and 1996, 40% say they are enrolled in a monthly giving program. Millennials make up a quarter of the U.S. population, with 84% donating an annual average of $481 to charity. Over 60% volunteer locally, and 55% attend fundraising events.
Gen Z
Gen Z is the youngest generation of working Americans (1997 - 2012). Over a third of this population has donated to charity, and 1 in 10 want to start their own charity. They prefer mobile apps for giving because they are digital natives. Volunteer experience is important as many are looking to build their resumés.
FundEasy creates software that makes events and fundraising simple for nonprofits.
The Benefits of Monthly Donations
There are advantages for both the donor and the nonprofit with monthly giving campaigns. When automatically taken out of an account, monthly donations are incredibly convenient for the donor.
By giving monthly, donors witness the real-time effect of their funds on the organization. They feel invested in the mission and stay connected through regular donor emails and information about the nonprofit’s growth and progress. Monthly donors become a community in and of themselves.
The consistency of regular monthly donations frees up time for the nonprofit by not having to constantly pursue new donors each year. By using fundraising software for nonprofits, your organization saves time and money due to less administrative work.
With FundEasy fundraising software, your organization can create an online donation form to register monthly donors, send branded automated thank-you emails, efficiently process payments, send receipts, and more.
Plus, monthly donors give 7x more than a one-time donation and are 43% more likely to upgrade their recurring gift amount. Retention rates for monthly giving are often over 80% after one year.
“It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.”
Successful Events to Attract Monthly Donors
Every fundraising campaign should include a request for regular monthly donors. Some campaign ideas are more successful in garnering regular donors than others. Learn how to engage donors with motivating campaigns that get them to commit monthly.
Hybrid Event Fundraising
The future of fundraising is hybrid events. Hybrid fundraising involves both an in-person and online campaign strategy. The beauty of running a hybrid event is your organization has a better opportunity to reach every demographic age group.
For a successful hybrid event, you need reliable nonprofit event management software that easily integrates online giving with your in-person event. FundEasy offers stress-free event management software with branded, customizable web page templates.
To encourage both online and in-person participation, use a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign along with your 5k walk/run, banquet, or game night.
In-Person Events
In-person events allow you to directly reach your most loyal donors as well as new ones. You can recognize and thank donors personally for their generosity and build a strong community of like-minded participants.
You can invite current monthly donors to bring guests to an in-person event. As people share their testimonies and well-known speakers passionately present your cause, request monthly commitments from new participants and suggest previous monthly donors upgrade to a more significant gift.
Attendance is complete event management for in-person and virtual events
Use FundEasy’s Attendance software for no-hassle registration and communication for your event. Get a quick check-in process for both in-person and virtual events. If you are hosting a banquet, use customized registration to collect information such as seat requests, meal choices, and food allergies.
Use the time-saving table assignment wizard to lay out the entire banquet room and assign guests to specific tables. Empower your table hosts to manage all guest details, such as the contact information and meal choices of those they’ve invited.
FundEasy’s app will check in guests, record no-shows, register walk-ins, and fill open seats faster. For ticketed events, you can see which guests have paid online and easily record checks or cash payments. Allow attendees to cover processing fees, so 100% of their registration fee goes to your organization.
FundEasy lets you customize your registration form to gather whatever guest information you need, and send automated confirmations, reminders, thank yous, and follow-ups to any group.
FundEasy has helped world-changing nonprofits raise more than $1 billion
Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
A hybrid fundraising event employs online fundraising too. With FundEasy’s Peer-to-Peer software, you can control the images and messages of your event. Create secure, mobile-friendly web pages with custom registration forms, sponsor information, and more.
Most donors like to give online, and we make it easy for them by integrating FundEasy with payment portals like PayPal and WePay. Donors can be confident their online donations and sponsorships are secure.
After giving, your donors receive automatic receipts and can see the real-time impact of their donations with our animated Fund-Meter. Every gift fills the thermometer a little higher.
Peer-to-Peer is powerful software that equips others to fundraise on your behalf.
Give current supporters the ability to promote your event with a personalized fundraising page, which can be posted on various social media sites. Their friends and family can give directly to your organization from anywhere.
Peer-to-Peer lets you send professional, branded email invitations to your entire list at once or invite people one at a time. Peer-to-peer fundraising builds credibility and brand awareness. It is the perfect way to reach an audience you would never have connected with otherwise.
You can also inspire a little healthy competition by featuring top individual and team fundraisers on both your event page and individual pages.
“No one has ever become poor by giving.”
Successful Marketing Encourages Monthly Donors
Make an Impact Statement
As your nonprofit looks to the coming year, an end-of-year fundraising campaign is an excellent way to add monthly donors. Show donors the tangible benefits of their monthly giving.
Give several examples of what their donations can provide and allow them to choose which project they prefer. For instance, “Just $29 a month feeds a family of 4 for 30 days,” or “Your monthly donation of $59 provides a complete medical exam for a refugee family.”
By asking donors for a specific amount that provides an actual service or product, donors get a mental picture of the help they are providing. They become more committed to your cause and recognize the greater need.
Crowdfunding is project funding made simple.
As the year progresses, engage donors by providing regular updates. “We’ve fed 282 families so far this year because of your generous monthly gifts,” or “Because of your monthly commitment, 300 refugees have received the healthcare they need.”
FundEasy’s crowdfunding setup lets you start and share your campaign in less than 10 minutes. Easy crowdfunding for nonprofits lets many individuals donate smaller amounts to meet a larger fundraising goal. Use FundEasy’s Fund-meter so participants can see the progress and success of your campaign.
Your donors can use a direct link to your Crowdfunding page to get the word out quickly. You can easily share it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, websites, or by texting, email, and even QR codes.
Donors immediately receive a receipt once they have given, and their donations are directly deposited into your organization’s bank account. We even offer the option of a 0% platform fee and let your donors make an optional gift to cover the cost.
Create a Community
Give your group of regular monthly donors an identity. Everyone wants to be a part of something special so create a unique community exclusively for regular donors.
Be sure to give the group a memorable name. Words like “Partners, Companions, Allies, and Friends” can help create a group identity.
Offer exclusive benefits to those in this group. Your monthly donors regularly commit to you, so it is only natural to give more to them.
Provide them with a special “partners-only newsletter” that offers in-depth testimonials from people who have been deeply touched by your nonprofit. Or, include stories about your staff members and their reasons for being committed to your organization.
Offer monthly donors a slight discount on tickets to your annual banquet or a free t-shirt for your next 5k. With FundEasy’s Peer-to-Peer software, you can collect real-time registration data, including responses to custom questions like t-shirt size.
Be sure to create a members-only Facebook Group to add to the exclusivity.
The Psychology Behind the Price of a Monthly Donation
There is more than knowing when or who to ask for monthly donations. You also need to know how much to ask. According to DefineFinancial, there is a definite psychology behind knowing how donors view giving.
We have been conditioned over the years to associate a better value when costs end in numbers like 7 or 9. A $19 donation looks more reasonable than a $20 one. Besides, we can easily calculate that 12 x $20 is an annual donation of $240. It isn’t as easy to calculate when it is $19, but we know it is cheaper.
Psychologists have also found that when a person is offered three choices overall, they tend to choose the middle one. So, when asking for monthly donations, consider offering three options such as $19, $29, and $39. More likely than not, the majority of donors choose $29.
Stress-free fundraising is minutes away with FundEasy!
Choosing the Right Fundraising Software
At FundEasy, we value human interaction. Do you prefer talking to a human when deciding which fundraising software is best? We understand. Contact us, and we promise you will speak to a live person.
We want you to choose the subscription that is right for you. Together, we can review our plans and discuss your needs. Our goal is to equip you with the proper tools to raise more funds so you can do more good.
If you know what you are looking for, sign up online. We have three convenient plans. You can start with a smaller plan and always upgrade later. You can pay for your plan monthly or pay an annual fee and receive two months free.
Now is the time to easily plan your most successful and professional event. Give FundEasy a call.
If you'd like to learn more about our Peer-to-Peer, Attendance, or Crowdfunding products, please reach out! We'd love to chat.
Also, if you haven't joined already, we have an exclusive Facebook Group just for our customers! If you are a current FundEasy Customer and would like to join, go here to learn more and request to be added!
Madison Hull
This article was inspired by our customers and written to encourage your fundraising efforts. Although we work with nonprofits and events daily, our team members are not Event Consultants. We encourage you to consult with your event consultant, executive team, and/or affiliate organization before making any major changes to your events.
