Rule #23: “Acquiring new donors is a continuous process, and NEVER optional.”

Isabelle Munoz,
Consultant, Client Services

As a consultant, I’ve often asked colleagues how a particular ministry is doing, only to hear the dreaded words: “They’ve eliminated their acquisition program.” Gulp.

My reaction is usually dismay, and of course I ask my colleague, “Why?”

“Too expensive,” she replies. An answer we, as consultants, know all too well. There’s no ignoring the fact that acquiring and reactivating donors can be costly. When a consultant proposes this to a ministry, development staff know: It’s daunting to look at red numbers on a spreadsheet and willingly invest significant dollars without seeing an immediate net return. Anxiety sets in. Some staff may even say, “How do I explain this in a board meeting?”

Within the last year, my team executed an acquisition and reactivation mailing for a large organization. A mail piece reached a lapsed donor of several years. When the donor received the mailing, they not only responded to the ministry—they wrote the ministry a $10,000 check. This donor felt so moved that they sent their largest lifetime gift, and the ministry gained a new major donor! Something that would not have happened had this acquisition mailing not been deployed.

Your acquisition program is indeed a powerhouse. Yes, new donor acquisition is costly. But it’s even more costly to cut off the pipeline carrying donors into the heart of your organization. If you want to safeguard your ministry’s future, invest in new donor acquisition and reactivation.

Read the next rule here . . .

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