1. Donor Appreciation:
Experiences They Will Never Forget
Lynne M. Wester
@donorguru

2. Why is Stewardship Important?
• If a donor is stewarded properly he or she is more
likely to continue to give
• 93% of individual donors would definitely or
probably give again the next time they were
asked if a charity thanked them promptly, in a
personal way and followed up later with a
meaningful report on the program they had
funded.
• 64% would give a larger gift
• 74% would continue to give indefinitely
» (Source: Penelope Burke – Donor Centered Fundraising)

3. Drive the Point Home
• 61% of donors would increase their donations
if they had greater access to information
about an organization’s performance and use
of their funds
» (Source: Adrian Sargeant – Robert F. Hartsook Chair in
Fundraising, The Center on Philanthropy at the University of
Indiana)

4. What We Think Donors Want
• Gifts
• Plaques
• Certificates
• Donor Honor Roll

5. What Donors Really Want!
• Access
• Information
• Experiences

6. What Type of Access?
• To Leaders
• To Facilities
• To Services

7. What Information is Most Important?
• Impact Reports
• Insider Information
• Evidence-based measures
of progress, outcomes
and impact

8. Experiences They Will Never Forget
• Tours
• Events
• Meetings with Beneficiaries