Are your potential donors falling through the cracks?

Any person who expresses interest in your organization could become important to your organization, whether as a volunteer, donor, or advocate. Unless they hear from you after the initial point of contact, though, it’s unlikely they’ll become involved.

Are you missing out on potential supporters? Here are some common sources of names that may be falling through the cracks.

Names from past outreach events.

Has your organization ever had a table at a community outreach event? If so, you’ve probably collected the names of people who wanted to be added to your mailing list.

The contact form on your website.

If you receive messages via a contact form on your website, or if people write to a general info address, create a system for getting those names into your database. (Tip: If you’re using an LGL form for your contact form, you can map it so that the name data flows into your database).

Past event attendees.

Whether it’s from a past event or past volunteering orientation, there may be some sign-in sheets sitting in a pile.

Webinar registrations.

If your organization offers online trainings or info sessions, your webinar registrations will contain the name and email addresses of your attendees. You should be able to export this data and can then enter the data into your database manually or via upload.

Next steps

These names represent potential supporters! Once you’ve identified names that are falling through the cracks, make a plan for getting them into your database. Ideally, you’ll enter their names immediately, but try to enter them twice a month at minimum.

Of course, names in the database still won’t amount to much if they don’t hear from you. Communication is key to converting these names to donors and volunteers; make a plan to include them in your next newsletter mailing or program announcement. By reaching out, you’ll give them the opportunity to engage with your organization.