Monthly Recurring Fundraising for Schools and Nonprofits
How monthly recurring donations add more funds and less stress than traditional fundraisers?
Before we talk about the value of monthly recurring donations for your school fundraiser or nonprofit, let me ask you this question? What are some of the subscriptions that you use every day?
You probably have a streaming service like Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, or others. There are also specialty TV subscriptions like ESPN+. What about other monthly subscriptions?
Do you get a monthly box of clothing?
Do you get prepared meals delivered to your house to make it easier for you to have a healthy family dinner? What about your animal best friends? Do you get monthly deliveries from Chewy?
The point I am trying to make is that we live in a subscription world now. We are sort of obsessed with the convenience of our monthly subscriptions. In 2018, WMG reported that Americans grossly underestimated how much they actually spent on monthly subscriptions. Respondents estimated that they spent $79 per month on subscriptions.
When they actually did the calculations, they found the average was $238 per month. WOW!
What does this tell us about monthly recurring subscriptions?
We have come to know them and love them.
So, why shouldn’t your school or nonprofit seek monthly recurring donations just like a subscription model? Your donors are already using them and will most likely embrace it well because it is already part of their daily and monthly behavior.
The impact of monthly recurring donations is a huge bonus for any size nonprofit. A recurring donation model will help you raise more money. A monthly recurring donor gives 42% more than a one-time or annual donor. What would it do for your school if you were to generate an additional 42% more from each of your donors? How well would that help you reach your fundraising goals?
The Hello Donor Changemaker Initiative is a monthly recurring donation model to help your school fundraising or nonprofit fundraising goals. The model is simple and donors love the simplicity of the model.
The Changemaker Initiative allows donors to simply donate their spare change through our digital change roundup technology. Have you been to a grocery store or fast-food restaurant lately where they asked if you wanted to “round up your change” and donate to a nonprofit?
The Changemaker Initiative is the same concept. The difference is that you allow your donors to round up their change from every digital transaction they make with a debit or credit card of their choice. There is no need for a special app, URL, or special codes. They simply register their card and go about their normal daily routines.
Whenever they make a purchase with their credit or debit card, our technology will automatically round up to the nearest dollar and add up their donations. At the end of the month, the donor’s card is charged for the total amount of their monthly change and your nonprofit gets a deposit in your bank account. It is that easy.
The Changemaker Initiative is a new way to make giving easy and fun for donors. And, it is a huge advantage for your organization to meet and exceed your annual fundraising goals.
Here are 4 very important tips for kicking off any monthly recurring donation campaign.
#1 Ask first for monthly donations rather than one-time gifts
I hope when you learned that a monthly recurring donor gives 42% more than a one-time donor got you excited about monthly donations. When you consider your work effort, time, and expense in creating and launching a fundraising campaign, would an extra 42% in donations make your efforts so much better? We think so!
When you ask for the monthly donation first, you are leading your donors to your preferred method of receiving donors. Most donors give because they believe in your cause and want to help. When you tell them how you prefer them to give, they most often follow your lead.
With the Changemaker Initiative, the average change roundup donor donates $27 per month. By asking a donor to simply donate their change can lead to 100’s or 1000’s of monthly $27 gifts. Plus, they are not just one-time donations. Each and every month, your nonprofit receives its $27 donation.
Please note, $27 is the current average. All donors give different amounts based on their card usage. The average card user uses their card 70 times per month. Not all donors use their cards the same amount month after month.
But, the point is to ask your donors for a smaller, monthly recurring donation to maximize your fundraising efforts. After all, getting $25 per month from a donor is much better than a one-time gift of $100.
#2 Offer a very clear value statement
Unlike most subscription models, donors are not direct recipients of the use of your funds. They may be a parent whose children benefit from your school. Or, it may be a grandparent that wants to support their grandchildren’s education. Although your donors do not directly receive benefit from their donations, donors want to know where the funds are being used.
Be sure to have a clear value of the use of funds. The more specific your message, the more excited donors can get behind your efforts. If the funds will go towards new computers, let your donors know. If the funds are going towards a new department like a STEM or STEAM program, let them know. When donors feel included with your mission, they are more excited to give and tend to give more.
Plus, with a monthly recurring donation program, you want to keep them informed on your progress. Keeping them informed and included is extremely important and our key point #3 below.
#3 Make Recurring Donors Feel Special
Have you ever heard of the “Helper’s High?” It is an expression given for the warm fuzzy feeling that we all get when we support others. You see it a lot these days with people supporting others with a Go Fund Me. Or, when they rally around frontline workers with meals and greeting cards to help them feel appreciated for their hard work and dedication.
It is very common for people to want to give back. It has become an even more prominent element of people’s lives in the last 20 years. When we do good, we feel good. Our bodies literally release endorphins in our brain when we feel good about what we are doing.
One great way to keep donors informed and involved is to continually share your stories. Remind them regularly with monthly messages that tell them your progress. Share with them pictures, testimonials, or videos of how their donations are making an impact. Donors like to hear and see what their donations are doing for good.
Consistently telling your great stories is a great way to build community. When you build community, your donors feel included and continue to give. Think about your own giving and where you give. It tends to be to organizations where we feel included or part of the mission. Your donors are no different.
Telling great stories monthly helps maintain monthly donors. Do not treat your donors like a cold ATM machine. They want to feel included. You need to keep them informed and updated about your organization, your successes, and those who are benefiting from their donations.
Remember, out of sight, out of mind. You do not want to be left out of your donors' minds. They may decide to cancel their monthly donation when they don’t feel included and informed. Donors want consistent communication and they don’t want consistent asking for donations.
Let’s sum this article up easy for you, the reader.
Monthly donors give 42% more than one-time givers.
Ask for monthly donations first to encourage your donors to give monthly
Offer clear value statements or use of funds
Make monthly donors (well, all donors) continually feel special, involved, and informed.
At Hello Donor, our Changemaker Initiative is a Riskless, Productless, Contactless, and Endless (monthly recurring) program to help your school with your fundraising goals. Ready to learn more? We would be glad to share with you. Or, check out the links on the right side of this page and check out all the services we offer like our virtual kickoffs, personal fundraising Hubs for students, and our proprietary change roundup technology.