Fundraising teams often focus on retaining existing donors, but on average 10% of your donor base will naturally reduce through personal circumstances, so it’s important to continually reach new prospects and encourage them to become donors. Here are 5 ways to reach new prospects:

Relationship mapping & prospect research

Your new donors might be right in front of you! Being able to pull insights and potential pools of donors from your existing database is one of the most cost-effective and quickest ways to reach new donors. A powerful database and CRM can help you to find contacts through engagement with your activity or other demographic data while managing consent preferences. Using ToucanTech, you can search for related contacts using the friends and family vine, choose activities to filter by such as opening emails, attending events, or having an online profile, and share tailored communications with them. 

Keep the barriers to donating low

Making it as easy as possible for people to donate increases your chances of attracting new donors. You can lower the barriers to donating by offering more ways to donate, such as making a one-off donation online, setting up a direct debit, organising planned giving over a number of months or years, posting a cheque, or leaving a bequest. One of the main ways to encourage new donors is to celebrate donations of all amounts, by sharing the impact of a smaller donation and following up with a genuine stewardship plan that offer opportunities to increase or make another donation in the future. 

Create a fundraising board and encourage your leaders to make introductions

Your fundraising board or committee could have valuable contacts within their network that aren’t currently hearing from you. Ask them to think about their network of business and personal contacts, and potentially offer a personal introduction. Individuals who have been considering making a donation may take the next step if asked by a close friend, and they will have already built up a level of trust with your organisation through the link of your board member. 

Peer-to-peer fundraising

Peer-to-peer fundraising involves using an existing donor’s contacts to increase your supporter base; each donor can act as an advocate who can also add a personal touch to their ask. They can share your campaign on their own social media pages and ask their networks to consider supporting them. For an effective peer-to-peer campaign, focus on donors who are enthusiastic and have a strong social media presence, as well as those who may already be giving back in other ways, such as volunteering. 

Focus on your web presence 

Part of reaching new donors is enabling them to find you, so focusing on becoming more visible through your website and social media is important to build new relationships. Sharing resources, publishing content about beneficiaries, and creating a tailored fundraising page will enable donors searching to find more information about your organisation. 

Reaching new donors is easier with a smart fundraising management system. ToucanTech provides an all-in-one CRM, database, donor pipeline and comms software to help you find and maintain relationships with donors. To find out more, speak to a member of the ToucanTech team.