Thanks to professional development and continuing education, many nonprofit fundraising teams have a solid understanding of high-level fundraising analytics. They know what their data can reveal, from donor segmentation to lifetime value calculations. However, having this knowledge is only half the battle; turning insights into actionable strategies is a common challenge. Traditional data analysis methods are time-consuming, often leaving fundraisers with little time to act on their findings.
This is where AI-powered tools like Xpress Analytics come in. Instead of spending hours or days running manual calculations in Excel or deciphering complex dashboards, users can interact with their data using natural language or leverage pre-built insights. This simplifies and accelerates the data analysis process, freeing up time for fundraising teams to focus on strategy and execution. With these tools, teams can turn raw data into meaningful actions that drive increased giving.
Key Analytics Metrics
Historically, many nonprofits receive 80% of their donations from just 20% of their donors. Recently, however, for many organizations, that ratio has been shifting to 90/10, likely due to a growing wealth gap and changes in tax policy. Understanding how much of your funding comes from a small percentage of donors can help you mitigate risks and strengthen relationships with your most valuable supporters.
Breaking down data into manageable segments based on Recency, Frequency, and Monetary (RFM) giving patterns can highlight important trends for campaign planning. These insights can even predict which donors are most likely to respond to appeals at certain times of the year. This allows teams to craft targeted campaigns that resonate with specific donors, maximizing engagement and results.
Typical clustering and segmentation analysis groups donors by how long they've been donating, when they last gave, how often they give, and how much they've contributed. This can guide your team in determining how frequently to solicit donations and how much to ask for, while also estimating potential returns based on past history. By studying these groups, you can identify new donors who resemble your most valuable supporters and target them for mid-level and major gift opportunities.
Retention and Donor Loyalty
Retention is critical to maintaining a healthy donor base. Long-term donor data can be used to track those who consistently give year after year, providing valuable insights for strengthening donor loyalty.
For example, a nonprofit could create a recognition program for donors who have given for five consecutive years or more. This could even include donors who gave for ten years in total, accounting for disruptions like the COVID-19 pandemic. Such programs deepen donors' emotional connection to the cause and encourage future gifts.
Lapsing donor analysis can also help identify those at risk of disengaging, enabling nonprofits to implement timely re-engagement strategies before donors are lost.
Donor Scoring for Major Gifts
By scoring donors based on changes in their annual giving over time, you can identify individuals who consistently increase their donations. These donors may be ideal candidates for mid-level or major gifts and could be invited to join exclusive “support societies” or recognition groups, further strengthening their connection to your organization.
More advanced strategies involve correlating factors like donor geographic locations or constituent codes with giving patterns. While these approaches require more complex analysis, AI-powered tools can easily handle the math, helping identify strong candidates for increased giving.
Streamlining the Process with Xpress Analytics
These types of data analysis are often familiar to fundraising teams, but the manual effort required can make them challenging to implement. For instance, most of these analyses are not well-suited for tools like Excel, and most fundraising software does not include standard reports to expose this information.
Xpress Analytics offers a solution by providing a library of pre-built insights that teams can immediately leverage without having to start from scratch. This combination of easy interaction and ready-made insights allows nonprofits to move from data overload to actionable strategies quickly and efficiently.
Achieving this level of efficiency enables fundraising teams to focus on building relationships and creating compelling campaigns instead of getting bogged down in complex data analysis. The result is an overall boost in productivity and impact, allowing teams to dedicate their time to the activities that matter most.
