Always Be Collecting Data.
On your journey as a fundraiser, always be on the lookout for little bits of data to save.
Here are just a handful of data points I’ve collected over the years, all a result of head-to-head tests…
- Thanking donors at the beginning of an e-appeal caused fewer of them to give.
- Putting gift ask amounts in ascending order caused people to give more.
- Removing distractions from a giving page caused increased conversion.
- Adding a “faux reply card” to the back of a printed newsletter caused a 15% increase in net revenue.
Collect a bunch of little data points like these and you’ll develop what I’d call “fundraising intuition.” But it’s intuition trained with data, not personal opinions.
It helps you make decisions with high likelihood of success.
It makes you valuable because when people ask for your opinion they’ll receive evidence-based answers, not feelings.
Always Be Collecting Data.