How to use your lapsed donor data to strengthen your fundraising plan

Lapsed donors don’t just represent potential renewed support for your organization. They also offer valuable insights that you can use to evaluate and strengthen your fundraising plan.

What is a lapsed donor?

A lapsed donor is someone who contributed to your organization in the past but hasn’t made a gift within a defined recent period, like the last 18 months. The time period that defines a lapsed donor can differ from one organization to another.  (Little Green Light users can define this time period by customizing your Giving Status definitions).

What does a fundraising plan have to do with lapsed donors?

A fundraising plan is an important tool for a fundraiser, as it helps guide your work. But it isn’t supposed to be rigid. Your fundraising plan is most effective when you regularly review and modify it, so it should be treated as a living document, as fundraising expert Sandy Rees says. And you can examine your lapsed donor data to discover opportunities to strengthen your fundraising plan.

Consider the following example: You notice a high number of lapsed donors who made their first (and only) gift while attending a fundraising event last year. Have they heard from your organization since then? If not, it’s likely your fundraising plan didn’t include a follow-up strategy for the event. But all is not lost. This is a great opportunity to re-engage those donors! You can send your next newsletter to this group of donors and include a brief note thanking them for supporting your past event. Then, incorporate them into your future communications and solicitations. Going forward, get into the habit of including a follow-up strategy for any events in your fundraising plan.

The reality is, there are many reasons a donor may lapse. Sometimes, it’s due to life circumstances such as a change in finances, like needing to pay college tuition, or possibly a change in interest. Other times, it’s because the donor hasn’t been engaged by your organization. The good news is that when the latter is the case, you can do something about it.

When you document acknowledgments, mailings, and other interactions with donors in your donor management system, you make it possible to understand how your fundraising operations may be effective in retaining donors, or where gaps in your fundraising plan make it easy for donors to lapse. Once you examine your lapsed donor data, you can make a plan to modify your fundraising plan accordingly.

Conclusion

Life happens. That’s just as true for your donors as it is for fundraisers. Don’t beat yourself up if certain donors haven’t heard from your organization and they’ve lapsed as a result. Use that information to strengthen your fundraising plan in the future. And, it’s always a good idea to make sure your plan includes targeted outreach to re-engage lapsed donors.