Measuring Success In Fundraising Efforts

Welcome to the Future of Fundraising. When my team and I built the first fully autonomous fundraiser, we saw how digital labor could expand outreach and deepen engagement. Which is why now, in collaboration with our Innovation Partners, we are tackling one of the most persistent challenges in fundraising: scaling meaningful stewardship. The cycle of giving feels transactional for too many donors. They make a gift, receive a generic thank you email or letter, and then the next time they hear from the organization, it’s another solicitation. This unintentional pattern leaves many donors feeling like just another name in a database rather than a valued partner in the mission they support. Hundreds of our conversations about digital labor lead us to believe there is a solution to these challenges. Research tells us they are worth solving: Mid-level donors are often the most loyal donors, yet they receive the least personalized stewardship. In a study of mid-level giving, donors cited “lack of communication and feeling unappreciated” as a top reason for stopping their gifts. (Nonprofit Quarterly) Younger donors are making lasting connections to causes now, even if their giving capacity isn’t fully realized yet. Organizations that don’t retain these donors will lose out on major returns as they age into their prime giving years. (The Chronicle of Philanthropy) This is why we introduced the Virtual Stewardship Officer (VSO) as the next logical step in our mission to accelerate and transform philanthropy. Donors give because they care and they continue giving when they feel genuinely valued. Yet meaningful stewardship, personalized impact updates, heartfelt gratitude, and long-term engagement, is often reserved for top-tier donors making six- and seven-figure gifts. The VSO expands meaningful stewardship beyond top donors, using digital labor to create personalized touchpoints that acknowledge donor history, reinforce impact, and build lasting relationships. By scaling engagement, it ensures no donor feels overlooked, making long-term relationship-building and meaningful pipeline development sustainable for every giving level. Traditional stewardship models make it nearly impossible to engage donors in a truly personal way at scale. The VSO personalizes 1:1 stewardship to donors who give year-after-year, stretching their budgets to contribute in a way that is personally significant, even if it isn’t classified as a "major" gift; long-time supporters who have probably made their last large donation but remain deeply invested in the organization’s mission; first-time donors who, regardless of gift size, we want to retain; and more. These donors are often the backbone of an organization’s giving pipeline. The future of fundraising isn’t just about raising more money—it’s about ensuring every donor feels like their gift matters. With digital labor, meaningful stewardship is no longer just for a select few—it’s for everyone who chooses to give.

Partnerships have a honeymoon period. But you can't build a successful partnership strategy that way. A successful partnership strategy can't survive on starry-eyed excitement. It needs consistent tracking, review, and adjustment. Setting up a routine for regular partnership reviews helps ensure that every partner continues to contribute value and align with your goals. Here’s a straightforward guide to establishing an effective review cadence: DURING MONTHLY CHECK-INS: Monitor Engagement and Pipeline Health: - Partner Engagement: Are partners actively promoting your solutions? Monitor how frequently partners engage, share leads, or collaborate on content. - Pipeline Health: Review the current status of partner-sourced leads. Are they progressing through the pipeline or stalling? This provides a pulse on lead quality and pipeline velocity. (Pro Tip: Use CRM dashboards to quickly visualize monthly trends. A partner falling behind in engagement or lead generation can be flagged for extra support before the issue impacts quarterly goals.) DURING QUARTERLY CHECK-INS (Quarterly Business Reviews or QBRs): Assess KPIs and impact: - Revenue Contribution: Track revenue from partner-sourced leads. Are partners contributing to target revenue goals? Compare this against previous quarters to detect any patterns. - Deal Velocity: Examine the average time for partner-sourced deals to close. Faster deal cycles may indicate strong alignment with your audience, while slower cycles could highlight areas for enablement improvement. - Retention and Renewals: Review retention rates for customers acquired through each partner. Higher retention often suggests the partner is bringing well-aligned, high-value leads. (Pro Tip: Share a summary of the QBR data with the broader team and executives. Keeping everyone informed boosts alignment across departments and reinforces the value of your partnerships.) DURING ANNUAL CHECK-INS (Annual Pipeline Audit): Evaluate & adjust long-term strategy - Trend Analysis: Review metrics like partner-sourced revenue, pipeline growth, and retention over the year. Look for trends that show which partnerships delivered consistent value and which may need reevaluation. - Resource Allocation: Identify high-impact partners and consider how to deepen those relationships. This could mean exclusive training, co-marketing, or more dedicated support to further accelerate growth. - Forecasting and Goal Setting: Use annual metrics to set achievable targets for the coming year. Which partner types or industries contributed the most? (Pro Tip: Use insights from the annual audit to adjust your Ideal Partner Profile and refine your partner strategy. Trends from a full year’s data will guide resource allocation and pinpoint where to focus for maximum impact.) Anything you'd add?

You spent $15,000 to acquire 100 new donors who gave an average of $75 each. Your 'successful' campaign lost $7,500. Here's the math your board presentation didn't include: Campaign cost: $15,000 New donor revenue: $7,500 Year one result: -$7,500 But acquisition is an investment, right? Let's look at year two. With your 45% retention rate, 55 donors won't give again. The remaining 45 donors need to average $167 each just to break even on your two-year investment. Now consider this alternative: Your database contains 200 lapsed donors who previously gave $200 annually. A $3,000 reactivation campaign targeting these former supporters could realistically bring back 40 donors at their historical giving levels. That's $8,000 in year one revenue from a $3,000 investment - a $5,000 profit instead of a $7,500 loss. The insight isn't that donor acquisition is bad. It's that donor acquisition without profitability analysis is expensive guesswork. Your most profitable growth strategy might not be finding new donors. It might be reconnecting with the ones who already know and trust your mission. The question isn't whether you can afford to invest in donor acquisition. It's whether you can afford not to measure whether that investment actually pays off. Because in fundraising, the most successful campaigns aren't always the ones that acquire the most donors. They're the ones that generate the most profit.

Your fundraising event raised $50,000. Success, right? Maybe. But maybe not. Standard event metrics often miss the full picture: - Dollars raised ÷ Attendees = $500/person But what about the value of relationships built? - Net revenue after expenses = $35,000 But how much staff time did it really take? - New donors acquired = 15 But did existing donors deepen their commitment? Even when resources are tight, some teams are starting to track: 📊 Relationship-based metrics - Meaningful conversations with major gift prospects - Signs of increased donor interest or trust - Referrals or introductions from attendees 📈 Long-term revenue indicators - Giving increases 6–12 months post-event - Retention rates of attendees vs. non-attendees - New names added to your major gifts pipeline 💬 Mission advancement signs - New ambassadors or advocates identified - Improved understanding of your mission (pre/post) - Compelling stories gathered for future use The most valuable outcomes of your events often don’t show up in the final revenue report. What metrics do you track to measure success beyond dollars raised?

"What's your fundraising ROI?" is the wrong question. Here's what smart nonprofit leaders track instead: • Cost per dollar raised (by channel) • Donor retention rate (by segment) • Lifetime value (by acquisition source) • Second gift conversion rate • Average gift growth year-over-year These metrics reveal the true health of your fundraising program beyond simple ROI calculations. The most valuable insight? Understanding which donors stay with you longest and increase their giving over time. What metrics have been most valuable for your organization's fundraising strategy?

The average partnerships team is leaving over 30% of their revenue potential on the table. Here’s the problem (and how one new metric can help you fix it): PROBLEM: The average partner manager: - Is managing 50 to 100 partners - Only knows core performance metrics on the top 20% of them - Spends 90%+ of their “relationship” time with these top 10-20 partners - Spends <10% of their time on the other 80% of their partners That’s why 20% of your partners are driving 80% of your partner revenue. It’s not because that other 80% of your partners are a bad fit. It’s not because you’ve squeezed all of the value out of those relationships. Most of them are probably a good fit. And it's likely they do have additional value to provide. But... they’re not getting enough attention (engagement, enablement, or value). HERE'S THE SOLUTION: Partner Health Scores. An objective scorecard, based on key metrics, that measures the health of each partnership. This could be based off of leads, deals, revenue, engagement, certifications, etc. Whatever metrics are relevant, and valuable, to your business and partners. This can be a game changer. HOW TO DO IT: 1. Determine what you consider to be a healthy partnership.  2. Create a scorecard based off of these metrics. 3. Score all of your partners. 4. Re-allocate resources. You may find that your partner managers are spending their time with the wrong partners. Partners that are doing great and don’t need as much attention. Partners that have not (and likely will not) produce despite getting lots of attention. Partners that have a lot of potential but have not been getting enough attention. And some partners that are just a bad fit. But there’s no way to determine this without an objective scorecard. HERE'S THE OUTCOME: Partner managers will optimize their time and maximize their relationships (read: MORE REVENUE). Partner executives will have a more accurate view into their team’s portfolios (read: BETTER MANAGEMENT). C-suite executives will love the data driven approach (read: STRONGER ALIGNMENT). P.S. Partner Health Scores can be a lot of work to manage and update. Luckily, EULER has custom Partner Health Scores built right into the platform. We show you the health of ALL of your partners, in REAL time, ANYTIME. DM me to find out more.

High-net-worth donors are acting more like venture capitalists. Not in the sense of writing checks for the next unicorn but in how they evaluate nonprofits: The shift: A 2023 Bank of America study found that 85% of high-net-worth donors now “expect measurable results” from their giving, compared to just 47% a decade ago. Another Bridgespan survey showed that nearly 70% of major philanthropists look for scalable models and evidence of impact before committing funds, almost identical to the screening criteria VCs use with startups. In other words: your nonprofit is being “pitched” just like a startup. What this means for you: Donors are no longer satisfied with: • “We served X families this year.” They’re asking: • “What’s the cost per outcome? How do you scale? Who’s on your leadership team? What’s your theory of change?” These are due diligence questions straight out of a VC’s playbook. The playbook shift for nonprofits: 1. Metrics over anecdotes → Replace “heartwarming story only” with “story + unit economics of impact.” 2. Growth narrative → Share not just what you did last year, but your roadmap for 3–5 years. Think in terms of market expansion (communities served), not just annual fundraising goals. 3. Board = Advisors → Highlight how your board members function like startup advisors, unlocking networks, capital, and credibility. 4. Risk transparency → Just like startups disclose risks in their decks, nonprofits that are candid about challenges gain trust with major donors. Why this works: Data shows that storytelling + data posts on LinkedIn outperform by 27% in engagement compared to generic updates . The same applies in fundraising. Pair the emotional “why” with hard “how” metrics, and you’ll unlock six- and seven-figure checks. With purpose and impact, Mario

🚨 Hot take: DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE IS NOT OPTIONAL, IT'S CRITICAL! 🚨 This morning at 5 AM, I'm doom-scrolling Facebook (we've all been there), and I spot a donation opportunity for a well known, national organization I'm passionate about supporting. They urgently need funds. I'm in! But then... ❌ Default to 1x donation option (psst... you could have had me at monthly) ❌ Manual entry for ALL my details (at 5 AM? Really?) ❌ Credit card as the sole payment method ❌ No digital wallet option ❌ No recapture or offer to remind me to come back later to finish my donation. Now, maybe I'm the odd one here, but I don't keep a credit card by my bed, but my digital wallet? Always ready! Nonprofits, listen up! 🔊 The stats don't lie: 📊 Digital wallets can boost conversion rates by up to 35% (PYMNTS) 📊 18% of online shoppers abandon carts due to complicated checkouts (Baymard Institute) 📊 Offering multiple payment options can increase conversions by up to 50% for nonprofits (NextAfter) Your supporters WANT to help. But in 2024, if you're not optimizing: ✅ Recurring donation options ✅ Streamlined form filling ✅ Multiple payment methods (Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, etc.)✅ Or recapturing opportunities You're leaving money on the table. 💸 The tech is out there (I can give you some suggestions). The solutions exist. It's time to prioritize your digital infrastructure. Because when donating is as easy as a couple of taps, everyone wins. Your cause gets funded, and supporters like me can act on that 5 AM generosity/rage impulse! Who else has faced similar frustrations? Please reach out if you have questions, need referrals, or want to share your thoughts on donation conversions and what is holding us back. This should be one of the easier problems to solve. #NonprofitTech #DigitalTransformation #FundraisingTips #UXMatters

My favorite partner slide of all time. Jay McBain’s “Partner Value Iceberg” captures what most dashboards miss. At the top? The two metrics that get all the attention: • Sourced leads • Sourced resell But underneath the surface is where the real magic happens: • Implementation quality • Product feedback • Blocking competition • Expansion support • Integration stickiness …and 15 other hidden growth levers. This iceberg is a strategy filter. If you only measure the top, you miss the compounding value that makes partnerships scale. Want the proof? Partner-attached deals consistently win at a higher rate than deals without a partner involved. That’s not anecdotal, I have been measuring it for years. (partner win rates versus direct without a partner specifically) I’ve stopped asking, “Did the partner source it?” Now I ask: “Are we measuring the impact of partner-attached deals the way we measure sourced pipeline?” Because partner win rate is one of the most important metrics every partner leader should be using. What other “below-the-surface” metrics should make it onto more dashboards?

Some nonprofits obsess over the wrong numbers. Open rates. Social likes. Event RSVPs. And then wonder why 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘵 and donors are disappearing. Here’s the truth: 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺. I call them 𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀. They look good in a dashboard. But they don’t move the mission. Here’s what high-performing organizations track instead: 𝗗𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Because keeping a donor is cheaper—and more powerful—than chasing a new one. 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 Because a second gift turns interest into belief. 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 Because impact multiplies when donors stay, grow, and refer. 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 Because sustainability matters more than the hype of “big numbers.” 𝗗𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗵 Not how many saw it. How many felt it. Shared it. Acted on it. Data should serve decisions, not just presentations. The best fundraisers don’t just measure what’s easy. They measure what 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱?