Whether you're a non-profit company or running an event where donors and sponsor will be in attendance, I'll bet your bottom dollar that you should try out a donor survey.
Donor surveys can be tremendously useful in planning a fundraising campaign to raise the maximum amount for your project.
Look at this statistic:
- Direct mail generates 78% of donations for non-profits organizations. – AllianceBusinessServices
Does that shock you? It shouldn't. Here are some others:
- 67% of Americans prefer print over digital. – B2Cprint
- 70% of Americans find direct mail advertising more personal than online ads. – AllBusiness
Print is preferred; print is personal.
Customers like to feel like their opinions and business is valued and appreciated. "Want to keep your customers (donors) loyal? Ask their opinion... then act on what you learn."
Survey Question Ideas
- Are you aware that our organization is investing in?
- What do you think are the most important benefits of this investment?
- Are you concerned about any health risks associated with this investment, or anything that might be caused because of it?
- Do you see any competitive advantages of this investment over our prior technology/environment, etc.?
- Do you know whether any of our direct competitors already use?
- What are trends/issues/challenges you foresee that could affect our organization? (both positively and negatively)
- Is there anything else at this time you recommend we look into for a possible investment?
Surveys are great ways to be able to inform, clear up misconceptions and point out benefits they might be unaware of. This gives you talking points about the value of their donations they may not be aware of.
For example, if a private high school is investing in a turf field, some might be unaware of benefits, such as reduced maintenance costs to the school, lower water usage, and reduced use of agricultural chemicals. Or perhaps donors have misconceptions about the health hazards of artificial turf based on their knowledge of older turf products. This allows you to discuss advances in technology and alleviate potential concerns before misconceptions can derail your fundraising efforts before they get started.
Print or Digital
Surveys can be presented either by print to be returned at the end of the event or sent out through a mailer. Surveys can also be sent out by email, however don't overlook the statistic from the top. 78% is quite a large chunk.
The issues and questions for each survey will be different for every organization, but what stays the same is how a simple survey can provide critical insights that can improve your messaging and get that project funded more quickly!
