Standout Supporter Engagement Strategies for New and Mature Nonprofits

One of the most important steps a nonprofit can take is developing a strategy for engaging with and stewarding supporters at all stages of their relationship with the nonprofit. Supporters come to your organization because your purpose resonates with them, and there are actions you must take to initiate that support and cultivate the relationship going forward. But what does this look like and what actions can you take to develop a standout supporter engagement strategy? We’re here to help. We’ve developed a guide that outlines the key steps your nonprofit organization should take to attract, steward, and retain donors whether you are just starting out or have been supporting your community for years.  

In this guide, we dive deeper into the following elements of supporter engagement including strategies you can implement for success: 

Promote Your Purpose 

The first thing you should do when developing a supporter engagement strategy is ensure your community is aware of your organization and your mission. It can be challenging to develop a supporter base if your community isn’t aware of the great work you’re doing. Raise awareness for your nonprofit through your website, social media, email newsletter, and events. If you’re a new nonprofit, take the time to establish these tools for your organization to ensure you can connect with your community. If you’re a more mature nonprofit, work to refine your strategy for these various tools and platforms to ensure you’re reaching the right audience.  

Donor Management 

Once you have established a strong foundation for your work, think about how you’ll manage donor information. As people learn about your organization and become donors, you need to have a management system in place to ensure you can cultivate those relationships going forward. While newer nonprofits may establish their database using a spreadsheet, it’s important to think about a more sophisticated platform as your organization grows. Consider investing in a donor management system like Network for Good to better manage and utilize your donor data.  

Donor Stewardship

Now that you have a donor management process in place, it’s time to engage with your donors and steward those relationships. In this guide we outline four steps you should take to craft a winning donor stewardship strategy: identify donor giving levels, identify the best stewardship activities for your organization, develop your stewardship plan, and evaluate and adjust your plan. Download the guide for a deeper dive into these steps.  

Donor Retention

Just planning how you engage with donors isn’t enough, you need to keep donor retention in mind every step of the way. In this guide we review how to calculate your donor retention rate so you can establish a baseline and determine how to weave donor retention into everything your organization does.  

Donor Reengagement

According to the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, donor retention is down across the board. That said, it’s important to have a reengagement strategy in place to reactivate lapsed donors. Having a donor management system like Network for Good will allow you to track supporter activity and easily engage with donors on a regular basis.

Interested in learning more about each of these elements of a standout supporter engagement strategy? Download our eGuide today to learn more!  

Published: March 28, 2023