TNow we know that having a monthly giving program is critical to sustaining a nonprofit organization, it’s now a matter of building the program. First things first, however, is to consider what cost this may be to the organization. Many organizations have member management systems robust enough to handle downloading credit card info or bank ACH info and retrieving it automatically once a month to collect a gift, record it, and either send a receipt, or track it for an end of the year tax letter. However, many organizations do not have that functionality. They will have to process the monthly gifts manually. Consider all the costs for this – staff time and money and any credit card fees. All organizations must consider what it will cost to market the program. But it is still worth considering. A net gain is almost always seen with any monthly program. Smaller organizations with many monthly donors can still see a net benefit, especially as systems become more familiar and streamlined. So what’s next? Here are pointers for a monthly giving program: Take the time to set it up well. Before you ask anyone to give, set up processes, set your goals, determine who you will ask first, figure how the marketing will be done, what changes are to be made to the website, etc. Plan it all first before asking anyone to join. Be donor-centric. Think what the donor wants and set it up that way. Make it easy, make it clear to understand, allow them the honor of being part of a special group, show them why it’s important to have them as a monthly donor. A word of advice from Erica Waasdorp, a Master Trainer for the Association of Fundraising Professionals – don’t just slap an extra check box on your website’s donation page for people to start monthly giving. Many times people mistakenly check the monthly giving box when they’d meant to check the “one time gift box,” and it creates all kinds of awkwardness to reverse that – not a great way to develop relationships. Make a separate, very clear statement about the value of monthly gifts and direct them to a separate page to set up their monthly donations. Giving this donor group a special name is really effective. Sending people to a separate web page with this name is more attractive to donors. Have the name be closely tied to your work – something like “Guardians of Transformation” for a nonprofit expanding LGBTQ+ acceptance, or “Adventurers” for one supporting Wilderness Trail Building – so donors know they have a special place in the organization’s heart. When setting up the donor page for a monthly donor, highlight the benefits of being a monthly donor – for both the organization, and the donor. Include a place to ask if a donor wants to contribute extra to pay for any credit card or bank fees. Also ask if they need monthly receipts or if an end-of-the-year tax letter is sufficient. This is a good place, too, to ask your donors how they wish to be listed in your annual report. Regardless of the donor’s response on monthly receipts, do at least send out an initial thank you and “welcome to the club” letter. It’s a good place to reiterate the value of their gift. Also let them know what to expect for the year – special events just for the group, other events to participate in, how often you will reach out to them, and if they will receive monthly receipts and/or a tax letter at the end of the year. Set up special marketing for your program. When ready to launch it, make a splash with press releases and request PSA space from local media. Create a campaign video that you can imbed into social media and provide teasers and links throughout your website directing people to the monthly giving page. Create a few events for your special group of monthly donors. Collect and tell stories about how monthly giving has made a difference to your organization – find real people who have been impacted. Create collateral material that you can distribute when your organization is in front of the public. It is also important that you train all your staff to be able to talk about monthly giving with reasonable comfort. They should at least know who to direct an inquiry to. Many organizations make their staff and volunteers their first candidates to participate in monthly giving, putting them at a higher status in the group. Seek out your most consistent donors first and ask them if they’d like to join – those who give regularly, whether once a year for many years in a row, or a couple times a year for several years. Seek out those donors who give consistently but the amount is irregular – they especially may benefit from the program due to cash flow issues. As new donors come into your organization with a one-time gift (it’s best to set a minimum amount, such as $200 or more), make sure their gift acknowledgement gives them the monthly donation option, giving an example of how their simple one-time gift, if spread out over time, can have positive benefits for both them and the organization. If possible, remind all donors on a semi-annual basis of the monthly giving option. Even though your donors like being part of a monthly giving group, they won’t need as frequent communication from you. Yes, stay in touch – but maybe quarterly, or every 4 months. Most donors feel badgered when communications are too frequent. Make the few times you reach out quality times – tell them about special events, tell them stories of how their gifts are making a difference, and most of all, say thank you! Short and sweet. . . . I love monthly giving programs! If I truly want to see sustainability for an organization, monthly giving is perhaps the best device to make that happen.
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