Your charity needs money. Donors know this, because it is true of every other charity. What they don’t know, and what can separate your charity from others, is what you’re planning to do with that money.

•  Where is the money going to go?
• What will it buy?
• How will that work when it gets there?

These are the kinds of details donors not only care about. It’s the information they can latch onto. The more context and understanding a donor has about their donations’ impact, the more invested they can become.

To make this make the most sense, you need a narrative. A story. A beginning, middle, and end to make the journey of donation one that captivates imagination and compels action. Craft a story that creates a sense of belonging that makes donors feel like they are part of the team, and pivotal to your mission. This can work at any and all scales, whether locally, regionally, or globally. In any modern plan to deliver more donations, the story is the start.

With the story solved, your next need is a good donor experience. Remember that word. Experience. That is how you should imagine the donation process. If you think of it as a form or something else that you have to do, drop-off is inevitable.

Modern donors are used to a couple of clicks being all that separates them from the latest streaming series or a new pair of jeans. Too much work will mean they lose interest and your charity lose out.

Some key points to remember in this regard are as follows

• Keep steps and clicks to a minimum
• Make it branded, but don’t over-bloat with content
• Ensure you include multiple donation methods and a regular donation option
• Keep the content of your donation page in line with what made people go there in the first place

If the process feels too long, too cumbersome, or too confusing, people are likely to click away. Speed and simplicity are the stars to steer your ship by in this setting.

The same people who are occasional digital donors may well be habitual ecommerce shoppers. Their experience with the latter shapes their expectations of the former. What they expect is modern and efficient payment methods.

Things like Google Pay, Apple Pay, and payment methods that take advantage of autofill options offered by more and more web browsers and other online systems.

Providing methods like these that are optimised for quick payments are not only more efficient, they’re also more comfortable. Donors feel like they are dealing with systems they recognise and understand, which puts them at ease and makes them more ready to be generous.

One off donations are an excellent starting point.

Regular donations offer long term stability, and help to make donors feel part of a powerful team.

There are many well established ways to do this, most notably a BACS Direct Debt system – something that many other commercial subscription services use in similar ways. However, unlike many of them you can go one step further with detailed tailoring of how you make this work. By offering customers options on the specific regularity of the donation (monthly, quarterly, which day of the month etc) and the specific amounts involved, they can feel like the process is focused on them first and the charity second. A key component of modern donation culture.

Modern donors are like snowflakes. Not because they are fragile or small or brittle. But because no two are ever entirely alike.

Your approach to donation campaigning should take this into account.

Modern successful donation campaigns are targeted and tailored to make the most of the specific subset of the public you are hoping for best response from.

Segmenting your donors based on demographics, donation history, and engagement levels allows you to create tailored experiences that resonate with each group. Personalisation can include offering customised donation amounts, sending targeted messages, and even showcasing specific projects or outcomes based on the donor’s interests. This level of customisation helps strengthen the relationship with your donors, as they feel like their contributions are valued and aligned with causes they care about.