I do my best to stay on top of the latest fundraising and marketing data. It’s important to know what the current trends are and how that affects the communications coming from nonprofits to their audience.

And then I impart the data to you.

This article shares 45 nonprofit marketing stats and data points. I’ve taken five and shared my thoughts, expertise and best practices.

Segmenting digital campaigns produces up to 760% more revenue compared to non-segmented campaigns

Your monthly donors are not the same as your major givers as your annual supporters as your midsize… You get the picture.

If that’s the case, why are you sending the exact same campaign letter to everyone on your list?!

When you have a fundraising campaign, you can use the same basic framework and/or story for everyone. But the ask should be different, depending on which segment the individual belongs to.

This goes for both your direct mail packet and your emails.

Segmenting shows you know your donors and can personalize their experience. That helps raise more money, builds relationships and boosts retention.

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay


It can take 18-20 points of contact to reach a new donor for the first time

Just because someone subscribed to your enewsletter doesn’t mean they’ll give $10,000 right away!

In fact it can take awhile before your acquisition efforts pay off.

In the world of ecommerce it takes an average of seven touchpoints before a customer makes a purchase. What does that look like?

I need to buy a new backpack.

  1. I ask on Facebook for recommendations (and what to stay away from)
  2. I visit a few websites to look at different types and models of backpacks
  3. I find one I like. I go to Amazon to see if I can find it at a cheaper price and to read some of the reviews
  4. I decide not to buy but ads for that backpack “follow me” around the Internet. A few days later I click on one of the ads
  5. I go to the website, begin the checkout process but stop in the middle as I don’t want to spend that much on a backpack
  6. That abandoned cart is not going to stay that way for long. The business has an automated email sent to me 15 minutes after I stop my purchase. The email contains an offer: As a first time customer, a 20% discount on the backpack. (A similar email gets sent two hours and one day after I abandoned my purchase- three chances to get me to reverse my decision)
  7. I click on the email discount CTA, go back to the website and complete the purchase
  8. My new backpack arrives at my house 48 hours later.

Notice how many different things had to take place before I made the purchase. Your potential first time donors are exactly the same. You’ll have to use a multi-channel approach to reach them.

But once you reach them? To be convinced to donate, a potential donor needs to:

  • Know what your nonprofit does
  • Watch a video/read a story
  • Be exposed to impact data
  • Meet a beneficiary and a staff member
  • Learn about the problem in their community that you’re asking them to solve
  • See a quote/testimonial from a current donor

You have a lot of work to do just to get that first donation.

Facebook has 3.05 billion monthly active users. 65% of these users access the site daily and spend an average of 40 minutes per day on the platform

The average donor is 60+ years old. Know what their favorite social media platform is?

Facebook. Whether you like it or not, you have donors and potential givers hanging out there. And not just the older ones!

The problem with Facebook (and social media in general) is that it has become pay-for-play. Organic growth isn’t happening. You need to pay for ads to see growth, click thrus and conversions.

That of course means spend some money. I know, I know. For some organizations that’s a big no-no.

Lemme give you the yes-yes:

  • Your current and future supporters are hanging out on Facebook for a very decent amount of time every day
  • The Facebook ad platform is good and it doesn’t cost a lot per day to reach your target audience

It is definitely worth considering using Facebook ads to drive traffic to your site, encourage more people to sign up for your enewsletter, get people to attend events, mobilize people to donate.

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay


Only 68% of nonprofits use email marketing. Of those, 41% send newsletters monthly, 27% quarterly, 17% twice monthly, 10% weekly, 3% twice weekly and 2% daily.

Ugh.

I love email as a fundraising and marketing platform. It’s great because it provides one-to-one communications with an individual.

The fact that a third of organizations don’t use email? Not surprising, considering that the majority of nonprofits in the U.S. are very small with small budgets. It’s tough for one person to do everything.

But once you’re sending…

I always advise my email clients to send MORE emails, not less.

  • No it won’t upset your subscribers. (I’ve heard that so many times from ED’s and Board members. It’s just not true.)
  • On average people read one in four emails. So if you send weekly, they’ll read one a month. Obviously the goal is to get them to read more.
  • Sending quarterly or monthly means you’re out of sight, out of mind. People never hear from you!
  • Speaking of which: People WANT to hear from you! Have a lot of younger donors? From the Classy “Why America gives 2022” report: Younger donors are 2.5 times more likely to prefer email updates from orgs at least bimonthly compared to older donors who prefer a less frequent cadence
  • One study asked, Who likes getting email marketing once a week? 66.5% of millennials, 63% of Gen X and 58% of boomers.
  • I’ll say it again: People want to hear from you via email!

That does NOT mean that every email should be a fundraising ask or a content dump with 19 stories. You have to plan out your content and make sure you’re sharing a variety of engaging content which will cause people to want to open more than just the occasional email.

Also keep in mind overflowing inboxes. The more emails you send, the more opportunities you’re giving people to open, read, click and take action.

Send more emails, not fewer.

74% of new subscribers expect a welcome email after joining a newsletter and these messages have an average 202% higher open rate than traditional email campaigns

I am always happy to subscribe to a nonprofit’s enewsletter. I love reading what each organization is up to, their impact, events, goings on etc.

Unfortunately, many nonprofits don’t bother sending a welcome email. Or if they do it’s more businesslike, rather than a warm, friendly, welcoming email.

Just above I mentioned people’s overflowing inboxes. It’s not a given that someone will subscribe to your enews. So if they do, welcome them properly.

Most new subscribers anticipate getting a welcome email and they’ll open it. You get to start a conversation right from email number one!

In fact, not only should you automate a welcome email but you should prepare a welcome series. This is a series of 3-6 emails which introduce new subscribers to your organization. The goal is to provide the information people are seeking so that in the final email of the series you can ask for a small donation.

Work on your welcome email and welcome series. New subscribers want to read them!

Looking to keep your supporters informed about the impact they’re having in their community? Email is a great platform for doing that! Check out my email services and let’s work together so email boosts your organization’s fundraising and marketing efforts.