What Asparagus and Donors Have in Common
Donor Acquisition Success Requires Patience & Consistent Stewardship
Like many in COVID times, I’ve been spending a lot more time at home. My husband has done the cooking and baking thing. And I got an itch I have never had before… to start a garden.
Knowing myself as a black thumb, I started slowly with a mix of three succulents for $5. They survived! Now I have 40-ish varieties of succulents, a handful of houseplants, and a box full of desert-adapted seeds that are growing into a variety of herbs and vegetables, including asparagus.
The asparagus caught me off guard because I didn’t do my research beyond “I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE asparagus” and the local garden blogger I follow said now is the time to plant it.
But here’s what I learned by reading the seed packet:
Asparagus takes 2-3 years from seed to first harvest
Once mature, the crop produces for 10-20 years
The harvest quantity and quality improves with age
Now, time will tell if I can keep asparagus alive for that long. I am a novice gardener after all. But I was immediately struck as to how similar growing asparagus is to acquiring new donors and keeping them.
Focus on long-term revenue
Admittedly, my $10 initial investment in asparagus plants is much smaller than a $10,000 acquisition campaign. But the principle is the same: Acquisition takes patience and the willingness to take a short-term loss for a long-term gain.
Experienced fundraisers know this and have the nerves of steel to stay the course, if allowed. They pursue long-term relationships with donors, not short-term transactions.
It’s the fad-happy boards and fundraising-adverse executive teams that believe there are shortcuts to riches. (I bet you’ve heard “but the ALS ice challenge …” or “everyone is making tons on Facebook” or even the dreaded “call Oprah.”)
But focusing on increasing short-term revenue is the pathway to decreased long-term revenue. The American Cancer Society learned this hard lesson when they cut their acquisition mailings and lost millions.
Steward donors to maximize your return
Now, if I carefully nourish and tend my asparagus, I will first enjoy delectable spears in the spring of 2023 or 2024. Similarly, an acquisition campaign will take 12-24 months to return the initial investment, on average.
But the payoff is going to be so delicious! If I keep watering and tending my garden, I will have asparagus every spring for at least a decade. And each harvest will be better than the last. I am already fantasizing about all the grilling, sautéing and pickling I’ll be doing.
Your newly-acquired donors will follow a similar path. If you consistently steward them with varied communications, they will become faithful supporters for years to come.
You will recoup multiples of your initial investment AND have more stable, predictable revenue. As the American Cancer Society says, “For every $1 we invest in direct mail acquisition, we bring in $7 over the course of three years.”
I can’t tell you exactly when your acquisition campaign will turn net positive or what your total return on investment will be. But you can calculate those with basic arithmetic. The folks at Bloomerang do a great job walking you through the process.
Truly successful fundraising requires a relational, long-term approach to your donors. If you take the time to meet their basic communications needs, their gifts will grow over time and nourish your organization for years to come.
Want to chat about whether an acquisition campaign is the right solution for you right now? Give me a call or email info@abejasolutions.com. I’d be happy to talk you through the pros and cons for your specific situation.
