Donor behavior is changing: 3 Tips for Fundraising in 2025



Donor behavior is changing

Read time: 4-5 Minutes

There’s a treasure trove of data and insights about fundraising out there.

The big question is: What do we do with it, as changemakers, fundraisers, and nonprofit leaders?

I’m all about turning insights into action.

In this issue of Changemaker Mondays ☀️ ☕ 🌍, we’re going to take a look a one of the latest reports on fundraising and giving trends and translate it into manageable, practical actions you can take in 2025 to boost your fundraising efforts.

2025 – Let’s DO THIS! ☕☕☕

Changemaker Mondays is brought to you by:

Maximize Your 2025 Fundraising with Click & Pledge!

As the new year begins, nonprofits have a prime opportunity to drive donations. Click & Pledge offers an all-in-one fundraising platform with tools like custom donation forms, peer-to-peer campaigns, text-to-give, and video fundraising to engage supporters and drive donations.

Click & Pledge’s highly customizable platform aligns with your brand and offers real-time data tracking. With fair, transparent pricing and no long-term contracts, their team is here to support you every step of the way.

Ready to elevate your fundraising?
Sign up for a free demo and use my referral code to get $25 off:

Let's start with a little poll:

Maybe you will be, by the end of this newsletter. 🤓

Here’s the deal.

The Fundraising Effectiveness Project (a project spearheaded by Association for Fundraising Professionals) shares insights on donors, giving, and fundraising regularly.

In their latest report, they sounded the alarm on a continuing trend.

Here’s what that looks like based on the latest 2024 Q3 data:

You see it, right? 👀

Fewer individuals are donating (even if those who are donating may be giving a little more).

The biggest change in donors was in micro donors – those who give in amounts under $100.

This is a problem for a few reasons:

  • Even though micro donors are giving in small amounts, they make up the largest percentage of donors overall (over 50%). So a drop in these donors = a big drop in overall donations.
  • If there are fewer small donors, then more nonprofits are competing for large donors (large donors who give over $5,000 make up less than 3% of all donors, according to the full report). This could mean fewer nonprofits receiving donations.
  • Giving should be accessible to all sorts of people, even if they aren’t wealthy philanthropists. 💗 This data seems to suggest that fewer people believe charitable giving is within their reach. That’s not good for the health of a community-minded society.

As much as it can feel like we’re doing social impact work in a bubble sometimes, the truth is, trends happening in the country and the world do impact our efforts. When there’s an economic downturn or, say, pandemic, it tends to influence our outcomes.

But we aren’t completely without power. 💪

Based on this latest report, here are a few actionable strategies to consider for your fundraising efforts this year:

1. Give Love to your Repeat Donors

It’s easier and more cost effective to keep the donors you have than get new donors.

And those repeat donors - those who know and love your cause - make up the largest portion of a typical donor base (40.1%).

How can you ramp up your stewardship efforts?

Do you have a regular time on your calendar to share impacts and updates with your donors? Have you created a process for personalized donor thank you's? Or how about a “town hall” where you share the latest updates with supporters during a short virtual meeting?

Here’s one idea 💡 you can steal:

One of my favorite things to do in my organization was host our annual “Thank A Thon” 🙏. It was a day we brought our Board and staff together to write and call donors, just to say thank you. There were NO donation requests that day – only gratitude. Not only did donors love it, but it was a fun way to engage our Board in fundraising efforts.

2. Create a Strategy for Small and Micro Donors

Since Small ($101-$500) and Micro donors (under $100) account for over 80% of all donors, it’s critical to find ways to retain and attract these givers. Especially because these smaller donations are often an entry point for more or larger giving later.

Try digital campaigns on email or social media focused on targeting this group. The key here is messaging your campaign to showcase how those smaller donations make an impact on your organization. For example, “$25 feeds a family for a day”.

You can also invite these donors to become recurring monthly givers 📅 at these lower levels - $50, $25, $15, or even $5 – because over the course of a year those donations add up, and recurring donors are more likely to be retained year after year!

3. Create Specific Opportunities for Mid-Level Donors

Mid-sized donors – those giving $501-$5,000 - are the next largest donor group at nearly 15% of donors.

In my experience, many generous people are willing to give at higher amounts if they can grasp how those donations will matter to you.

If you don’t already have messaging outlining how donations of this size can make an impact for your cause, now is the time to develop said messaging. 💬

Try highlighting how giving at this level is an invitation for donors to engage more deeply with your mission, and structure giving opportunities around that invitation. For example, you might start a “community champions circle” for donors at this giving level, or showcase a few specific projects that could be funded with those amounts (New fridge for your food bank? Laptops to increase team capacity? 💻).

Make sure you’ve got your plan for sharing impacts and communicating regularly with these donors, too, of course.

In summary:

Data is a tool 🛠️, not destiny. It’s meant to inform us and challenge us to be agile. The changemakers who are able to adjust their strategy with new information will thrive in 2025!

💲

Funding Opportunities

  • Letter of Inquiry due January 16, 2025: The Longview Foundation supports K-12 education projects in the U.S. that help build global perspectives and understanding. Typical grant range $2,500-$30,000.
  • Due by February 1: The Looking Out Foundation provides small grants ($1,000-$5,000) to US-based nonprofits supporting youth, public health, women, the environment, the arts, hunger and homelessness.
  • Due by February 19: The PIG Difference grant supports efforts to restore, conserve, and protect America’s most important habitats. Typical grant range $1,700-$6,500.

📅

Events & Programs

  • Keep an eye on my Changemaker Cafe events page for upcoming events and video replays of past webinars (where available).

    Need an event speaker or workshop trainer in 2025?
    Learn more about my offerings here.

Enjoy this week's newsletter? You might find this video helpful, too.

3 more ways I can help you

  1. I have lots of free content for you! Check out my library of 250+ educational videos on nonprofits, social entrepreneurship, fundraising, and more on my YouTube channel. If you like what I'm trying to do, help me reach more people like you - who want to make an impact - by subscribing to the channel and sharing it with a changemaker friend! 😁
  2. Need extra support to build or grow a nonprofit or social enterprise? Enrollment for my Changemaker Accelerator membership is temporarily open! Learn more and join or get on the waiting list to get an alert next time we open!
  3. Need a speaker or training workshop for your social impact event? I'm currently booking 2025 speaking engagements -- check out my speaking and workshop opportunities to learn how I can help you make your event inspiring and actionable!

Hey, Changemaker!

I'm Amber, writer of the Changemaker Mondays newsletter! I'm a nonprofit founder, speaker, and social entrepreneur on a mission to equip you with the tools you need to create positive change where ever you live -- whether you're starting a nonprofit or socially-conscious business, looking for a social impact job, or leading a volunteer project in your city. Don't hesitate to connect (socials below), or reply to this email if you ever have any feedback on how we can make Changemaker Mondays the best newsletter for supporting changemakers in the world!

113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205
Unsubscribe · Preferences

Amber Melanie Smith

I am on a mission to equip nonprofit and social impact changemakers with the tools and resources to grow their impacts. Join me and over 73,000 changemakers on my social impact-focused YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/ambermelaniesmith!

Read more from Amber Melanie Smith

Top 2025 Nonprofit Trends andHow to Prepare: Part 2 of 2 Read time: 4-5 Minutes As we count down to 2025, we’re covering the rest of our Top Nonprofit Trends and the actions you can take now to prepare for these changes. Welcome to our last issue of Changemaker Mondays ☀️ ☕ 🌍 for 2024! Changemaker Mondays is brought to you by: Maximize Your 2025 Fundraising with Click & Pledge! As the new year begins, nonprofits have a prime opportunity to drive donations. Click & Pledge offers an all-in-one...

Top 2025 Nonprofit Trends andHow to Prepare: Part 1 of 2 Read time: 4-5 Minutes The world is constantly changing. For nonprofits, that means staying on top of new developments in fundraising, staffing, and more. In this issue of Changemaker Mondays ☀️ ☕ 🌍, let’s cover some of the top trends expected to influence nonprofit and social impact work in 2025. We’ve got a bit to cover, so this will be Part 1 of a 2-part newsletter article – I’ll share a handful of trends below, and the next will...

Using video to promoteyour cause: 5 Tips Read time: 4-5 Minutes Did you know? Research shows that using video is one of the most effective tools causes can use to inspire donations. It makes sense – videos feel more personal and can inspire trust. I read one study that said over half of people who watched a nonprofit video went on to donate. In this issue of Changemaker Mondays ☀️ ☕ 🌍, let’s talk through a few tips for using video to raise awareness about (or money for) your cause....