The What & Hows of Fundraising Data: Post 2

Last week in our series we looked at what fundraising data to collect for your nonprofit organization. This week we dive into the first of the three hows of fundraising data collection - how do you collect it?

Fundraisers collect data during prospect or donor visits. This usually takes the form of call reports or notes that make their way into your donor management system.

The gift entry team gathers and enters information through appeal reply devices, phonathons, checks, and other forms of payment.

What are other, perhaps creative, and certainly economical ways to collect fundraising-specific data?

One of the best places to gather fundraising data is through a look at historical giving. This data gives you information on who donated, how much was given, to which initiatives, and through which appeals. Your data collection starts with making sure gifts have been entered correctly in your donor management system.

An organization’s online donation forms are often overlooked as data collection tools. In addition to basic contact information like address, email, and phone number, donation forms can be a great place to gather employment information or involvement with other nonprofit organizations.

Once you have an email address, you can research - responsibly and ethically - social media accounts associated with it. This research can provide information on a donor's or prospect's interests and hobbies.

Another easy fundraising data collection technique is surveys. With short surveys - via email, phone, or mail - you can ask donors and prospects for their thoughts and ideas about your organization. Challenged with how to show your donors appreciation? Ask them how they would like to be thanked with a short stewardship expectations survey.

Next week in part 3 of The What & Hows of Fundraising Data we'll look at storing the data you've worked hard to collect.