How to Retain Uneasy Donors
Fundraisers are having a tough time giving comfort to donors who feel unsettled watching wild swings in the stock market and the looming potential of tariffs’ effect on inflation.
“Anxiety has always been the enemy of philanthropy,” Laura MacDonald, author of The Endowment Handbook: The Complete Guide to Building a Resilient Cause, told my colleague Rasheeda Childress. “Anxiety is the enemy of most economic models.”
Donor panic could not come at a worse time for nonprofits that have lost federal funding. When donors don’t feel confident, they are reluctant to give, say MacDonald and other experts.
Still, that doesn’t mean donors will stop giving altogether. Even in times of economic turmoil, organizations can maintain relationships with donors that lead to gifts, says Debra Faulk, a former nonprofit executive who now works with donors as a chartered adviser in philanthropy.
Faulk, MacDonald, and others offer four tips to help nonprofits strengthen ties with supporters and keep the organization’s mission top of mind with donors.
Keep engaging donors. Nonprofits that don’t prioritize donor outreach are more likely to get an anemic response in times of heightened need, she says. Organizations should keep talking to donors to know what they’re thinking.
“This is the time to check in with them, ask them how they’re doing, get a sense of the level of anxiety they’re feeling,” MacDonald says. “‘How are you doing at this time? What are some of the things that are still important to you? Have those changed as a result of your economic circumstances?’”
Make a plan. The news cycle is moving at a breakneck pace — think of the flip-flopping on tariffs. Assemble a small team that includes a board member, the CEO, a program chief, and fundraiser, and work together to draft a contingency plan along with talking points to respond to donors’ questions.
“I would implore every nonprofit right now to have what I call a ‘changing landscape plan,’ because the landscape is changing fast,” says Angela Barnes, managing director at Carter, a fundraising consulting firm.
Don’t assume everyone is hurting. Despite the economic turmoil, MacDonald reports an uptick in donors who are interested in making gifts from appreciated retirement assets through a qualified charitable deduction.
“If I could avoid it, I wouldn’t be asking for a big gift today unless the donor was sending me signals that they’re resilient in the face of this market,” MacDonald says.
View challenges as opportunities. Organizations might consider matching programs that leverage donors who aren’t feeling as much economic pain, says Adam Nash, CEO of Daffy, a DAF sponsor.
“Working with your strongest donors to convert their donations into matching campaigns can be a great way to add urgency and appeal to your 2025 fundraising,” Nash says. Daffy allows its DAF holders to make matching gifts from their funds.
For more insights on how you can reassure your supporters and keep them close to your cause, read the rest of Rasheeda’s article.
