Metrics and Measuring*

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1. Acquisition Metrics

New Donors Acquired: Measures the number of new supporters within a period.
Cost per Acquisition (CPA): Optimal ranges vary by channel but aim for CPA to be lower than the first-year donor revenue.
Conversion Rate: Percentage of prospects who convert to donors; target 5–10% for digital channels and up to 20% for in-person events.

2. Retention Metrics

First-Year Retention Rate: Ideally, 40–60% for individual donors; for committed monthly givers, a rate above 80% is strong.
Overall Retention Rate: Goal of 70%+ for multi-year or monthly donors is common.
Lapsed Donor Re-engagement Rate: Track the percentage of lapsed donors (usually >12 months inactive) who give again, with targets of 10–20% depending on re-engagement campaigns.

3. Revenue and Gift Metrics

Total Funds Raised: Monitor as both gross and net revenue, with growth benchmarks based on historical data.
Average Gift Size: Measure by campaign or donor segment; trends in gift size provide insights into donor engagement strength.
Donor Lifetime Value (LTV): For regular giving, the aim is to keep LTV higher than acquisition and cultivation costs.
Recurring Gift Rate: High-performing programs have recurring gift rates over 25% of total giving.
Pledge Fulfillment Rate: Target above 90% to maintain cash flow and reliability of committed donations.

4. Engagement and Donor Experience Metrics

Email Open and Click-Through Rates: Ideal open rate is 20–30%, while click-through rates often average around 2–3%.
Event Participation Rate: Measures turnout for events compared to invitations; a strong rate is typically 20–40%.
Donor Net Promoter Score (NPS): Measures loyalty and likelihood of referring the nonprofit; higher scores (30–50+) are indicative of good engagement.
Complaint Resolution Rate: Ensuring >95% of donor complaints are resolved within a week can enhance loyalty.

5. Stewardship and Satisfaction Metrics

Donor Satisfaction Score: Collected through surveys, aiming for scores above 70% in satisfaction metrics.
Recognition and Response Time: Track time to send acknowledgments; best practice is under 48 hours for digital and within a week for mailed gifts.
Thank-You Rate: Aim for 100% acknowledgment for gifts over a set threshold to reinforce donor appreciation.

6. Operational Efficiency Metrics

Fundraising Return on Investment (ROI): Ratio of revenue to fundraising costs, ideally > 4:1; above 5:1 is considered excellent.
Fundraising Expense Ratio: Aiming for under 20% of revenue on costs is generally seen as healthy.
Database Accuracy: Measures data hygiene and updates, targeting above 95% accuracy for reliable segmentation and communications.
Staff Productivity: Revenue per fundraising staff member can help gauge efficiency; benchmarks vary widely but aim to see growth year-over-year.

7. Digital and Multichannel Metrics

Website Conversion Rate: Target 1–2% for traffic-to-donation conversions on fundraising pages.
Social Media Engagement: Track metrics like shares, comments, and conversions from social posts; performance varies by platform but high engagement suggests strong digital presence.
Mobile Optimization Rate: Aim for 100% of digital content to be mobile-optimized as mobile users increasingly donate via phones.

8. Major Gifts and Planned Giving Metrics

Major Donor Conversion Rate: Track the rate of prospects who make a major gift after cultivation; optimal conversion rates are around 20–30%.
Planned Gift Commitments: Year-over-year increase in planned giving commitments, with growth indicating a strong long-term donor pipeline.
Average Major Gift Size: Compare to previous periods; growth in average size suggests enhanced major donor relations.

9. Growth and Scalability Metrics

Year-over-Year Revenue Growth: Target at least 10% annual growth in total funds raised as a benchmark.
Fundraising Program Diversification: Track income sources (events, digital, grants, corporate) aiming for no more than 50% dependency on one source.
New Program Testing and Scale Success Rate: Measures percentage of pilot programs scaled up based on initial success; targets vary but aim to identify at least one new scalable program yearly.
Amidst all this activity, it's crucial that fundraisers take a step back and ask themselves a fundamental question: how do we know if our efforts are actually working? It's not enough just to measure. You ought to know what you're measuring and why.

Dreams are inspirational numbers, often set by the Executive Director or a well-meaning board. They have very little grounding in reality. Think of them almost like a wish list.
Goals: These are more specific than dreams, more grounded in reality. Goals are binary - you either hit them or you don't. They should be achievable (something people often forget) and time-bound.
Performance Indicators: These assess your individual or team performance towards the goals. They don't make or break a program, but they are important. For example, I might know that I need 100 phone calls a month to maintain my pace. This isn't a goal, but it is an indicator of how well or poorly things are going.

These can be leading (predictive) or lagging (indicative of past performance)
These might include metrics like donor retention rate, average gift size, response rate to appeals, or return on investment for specific fundraising campaigns. The exact KPIs you choose will depend on your unique goals and context, but the key is to focus on metrics that are directly tied to your desired outcomes. Vanity metrics like social media likes or website traffic may feel good, but they don't necessarily translate into more dollars raised. I'll say it again, only measure things that directly translate to more dollars raised.

10. Donor Journey and Engagement Quality Metrics

Time to First Gift (Lead-to-Donor Time): Measures how quickly new contacts convert to donors; aim to reduce this time as short lead times indicate effective engagement and onboarding.
Time Between Gifts (Inter-Gift Interval): Useful for identifying re-engagement opportunities; shorter intervals suggest stronger ongoing engagement.
Donor Journey Completion Rate: Tracks the percentage of donors who reach specific milestones (e.g., new donor onboarding completion, upgrading to monthly giving). Set targets based on historical conversion rates for each stage.
Welcome Series Open and Completion Rates: Measure engagement with a new donor welcome series; high completion (over 50%) suggests effective early engagement.
Cross-Channel Engagement Rate: Tracks donors interacting across multiple channels (email, events, direct mail, social); high rates suggest robust multi-channel integration.

11. Major Donor and Corporate Giving Specific Metrics

Major Donor Pipeline Conversion Rate: Measures progression from identified prospect to major donor commitment; aim for gradual improvement over time, targeting a consistent conversion rate of at least 20–30%.
Average Time in Major Gift Pipeline: Helps identify bottlenecks in cultivation; track time from identification to ask, with quicker times suggesting efficiency in major donor relations.
Corporate Sponsorship Renewal Rate: Measures the percentage of corporate partners who renew support annually; ideally, over 70% for established partnerships.
Matching Gift Utilization Rate: Track how many donors use employer matching; aim for 10%+ for organizations actively promoting matching gifts.

12. Planned Giving and Legacy Metrics

Legacy Gift Intention Rate: Track percentage of donors expressing intent to leave a planned gift; higher percentages (3–5%) suggest success in legacy cultivation.
Average Legacy Gift Value: Benchmark growth over time as increased values suggest strengthened legacy relationships.
Bequest Conversion Rate: Measures the percentage of legacy intents converting into realized bequests; aim for growth as legacy relationships mature.

13. Recurring Gift Metrics (For Sustainer Programs)

Monthly Giving Retention Rate: Key for sustainers; best-in-class programs retain 90%+ of monthly donors annually.
Upgrade Rate: Percentage of monthly donors upgrading their gift amount each year; aim for around 10% to indicate healthy upgrade potential.
Churn Rate: The rate of recurring donors who cancel each month; aim to keep churn under 1.5–2% monthly.

14. Campaign-Specific Metrics

Campaign ROI and Cost per Dollar Raised: Calculate by campaign for detailed cost efficiency insights; efficient campaigns should cost <20 cents per dollar raised.
Gift Velocity: Measures speed of campaign donations over time, especially useful during time-sensitive drives.
Campaign Conversion Rate (Specific Appeal to Donation): Percentage of donors responding to a particular campaign appeal; high rates suggest a well-aligned message.
Gift Frequency by Campaign: Tracks repeat giving within the same campaign; useful for annual fund or multi-appeal campaigns.

15. Volunteer Engagement Metrics

Volunteer-to-Donor Conversion Rate: Measures the percentage of volunteers who also give financially; aim for 20–30% depending on engagement.
Volunteer Retention Rate: Annual retention of active volunteers; ideal retention above 60% indicates positive volunteer engagement.
Volunteer Fundraising Contribution: Track the revenue generated directly by volunteers (e.g., peer-to-peer campaigns); aim for consistent year-over-year growth.

16. Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Metrics

Participant Fundraising Rate: Percentage of peer-to-peer event participants who fundraise; aim for over 70% for well-established events.
Average Funds Raised per Participant: Useful for comparing event performance; targets vary by event but aim for growth year-over-year.
Team Size Growth Rate: Measures growth in peer-to-peer team size over time, indicating a broadening network of participants.

17. Engagement Quality and Content Performance

Email Click-to-Conversion Rate: Measures email effectiveness at not only generating clicks but leading to donations; aim for 2–5%.
Content Share Rate: Percentage of digital content shared by followers, suggesting strong message resonance and reach.
Video Engagement Metrics: Track views, completion rates, and shares for video content; target high completion (50%+) for major video messages.

18. Digital Channel-Specific Metrics

Organic vs. Paid Traffic Ratio: Higher organic (60%+) indicates strong brand presence and search visibility; paid campaigns are useful but often costlier to sustain.
Click-through Rate on Paid Ads: Look for above 1% as a baseline for paid ad effectiveness.
Social Media Follower Growth Rate: Track monthly and annual growth across platforms, aiming for steady increases as a signal of healthy audience expansion.
Online Gift Form Abandonment Rate: Percentage of visitors starting but not completing the donation form; target a reduction over time to maximize digital donations.

19. Brand and Public Awareness Metrics

Unaided and Aided Brand Recall: Measures brand visibility and recall in the community; aim for improvement year-over-year.
Media Mentions: Track the volume and reach of media mentions, with growth indicating stronger brand visibility.

20. Staff and Board Engagement Metrics

Staff Turnover Rate in Development Roles: Track turnover to ensure stability; aim for less than 10–15% turnover annually.
Board Fundraising Participation Rate: Percentage of board members actively fundraising or giving personally; 100% participation is a strong goal.
Staff Training Hours on Fundraising: Measures investment in professional development; higher hours correlate with better outcomes.

21. Data Integrity and CRM Metrics

Database Growth Rate: Track monthly or annual growth in donor records; steady growth signals effective acquisition efforts.
Duplicate Record Rate: Percentage of duplicates in the database; target under 2% for efficient data management.
Data Completeness Rate: Percentage of donor records with critical data points (email, phone); aim for at least 80% completeness.
Having the right measurements separates excellent fundraising programs from their [[Competition]]. Measuring and evaluating the success of your fundraising program is not just a nice-to-have - it's an essential practice. Without clear metrics and a robust evaluation process, you're essentially flying blind, making decisions based on gut instinct rather than data-driven insights. You're also missing out on crucial opportunities to learn, improve, and adapt to changing circumstances.
Report this data to everyone in the organization in real time. People should know what the most effective strategies are, so they can benchmark themselves against them. Don't just leave this reporting dashboard out there in the ether - make sure everyone on your team can see it.
Conducting regular analyses of your donor data to uncover insights and trends that can inform your strategies and tactics. For example, segmenting your donor base by giving level, frequency, or recency can help you identify opportunities for targeted upgrades or reactivation campaigns. Analyzing the lifetime value of different donor cohorts can help you prioritize your acquisition and retention efforts. And conducting surveys or focus groups with your donors can yield valuable insights into their motivations, preferences, and perceptions of your organization. A/B test, and then test again. Don't let complacency get in the way of your learning.
Benchmarking your performance against industry standards or peer organizations can also be a valuable way to gauge your relative success and identify areas for improvement. Call your friends at other organizations and ask them for their benchmarks. Use what's useful, discard the rest.
Fundraisers don't tend to like measurement, because it makes them transparent and accountable to stakeholders. That's why it's especially important that a fundraising leader must demand it of themselves and of their team. No one likes this, but everyone knows its importance.
Start small and build over time. You don't need a fancy dashboard or a team of data analysts to get started. Begin by tracking a few key metrics that are most relevant to your goals, and gradually expand your evaluation efforts as your capacity and sophistication grow. Remember, the perfect is often the enemy of the good. It's better to have some data and insights than none at all.
Ultimately, measuring and evaluating fundraising success is about more than just hitting your revenue targets or impressing your board. It's about ensuring that every dollar you raise is being used as effectively and efficiently as possible to advance your mission and create meaningful change in the world. By embracing a data-driven, outcomes-focused approach to fundraising, you can not only optimize your own performance, but also demonstrate the tangible impact of your work to the donors, partners, and beneficiaries who make it all possible.
Remember that every data point represents a real human being who has chosen to invest in your mission. Honor that investment by always striving use the data you have to provide the best possible donor experience.
Donor Segmentation Data: Effective segmentation is key for targeted campaigns. Detailed insights on donor personas, engagement history, giving patterns, demographics, and donation frequency can guide tailored communications, boosting retention and lifetime value.
Donor Lifetime Value (LTV): Understanding the lifetime value of different donor segments helps in budgeting for acquisition and retention strategies. LTV analysis should include detailed historical donation data, campaign effectiveness, and churn prediction models.
Conversion Funnel Metrics: Tracking each stage from awareness to donation allows identification of friction points. Metrics might include traffic sources, click-through rates, drop-off rates, and conversion times, enabling optimization of each touchpoint.
Retention and Churn Rates: Retaining existing donors is often more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. Monitoring monthly, quarterly, and yearly retention and churn rates (and their causes) allows for proactive retention strategies and targeted re-engagement efforts.
Attribution Modeling: Knowing which channels drive donations is critical. An attribution model (last-touch, multi-touch, etc.) that assesses the impact of social media, email, events, direct mail, and other campaigns helps allocate resources to the most effective channels.
Predictive Analytics: A predictive model for donation likelihood, amounts, and timing can help determine the best moments to ask, maximizing conversion rates and average gift size. This might include machine learning algorithms to predict outcomes based on past donor behaviors.
Campaign Performance Metrics: Examining ROI on each campaign, including reach, conversion rate, cost per acquisition, and average donation size. Such metrics enable A/B testing and iteration for improved performance.
Fundraising Event Analysis: Data on event attendees, donation volumes, and engagement rates during and after events, along with follow-up effectiveness, can help determine which event types and formats yield the best results.
Social Proof and Network Effects: Analyzing the impact of donor networks, referrals, and social proof effects can illuminate ways to leverage existing relationships and advocacy, potentially building organic growth through ambassadors.
Cost per Dollar Raised (CPDR): Tracking this cost metric per campaign type (digital, events, direct mail, etc.) enables a clear view of efficiency. Segmenting by type allows resource allocation toward the most cost-effective methods.
Major Gifts Pipeline Health: Monitoring the pipeline for large donors, including metrics on qualification, solicitation, and stewardship, ensures a consistent flow of potential high-value contributors.
Recurring Donation Patterns: Monthly giving data on average retention rate, donation size, and growth trends in recurring giving programs can guide sustainable income planning and influence the prioritization of subscription-style giving.
Data Hygiene & Duplicate Management: Ensuring clean, up-to-date data with minimal duplicates or incomplete profiles. Quality data means improved insights and more precise targeting.
Responsive Reporting: Real-time dashboards that show key fundraising metrics, year-over-year performance, campaign-specific insights, and donor retention analytics can empower rapid adjustments and allow data-driven decision-making in real-time.
Market Trends and Comparative Analytics: Benchmarking against similar organizations or industry averages on metrics like CPDR, LTV, or retention rates can reveal areas for improvement and competitive positioning.

Metrics should be clearly defined, organized, and easily accessible for team-wide understanding and consistent use.

Create a “Metric Glossary” with definitions, calculation methods, and relevance for each metric.
Develop a user-friendly dashboard for a single view of all key metrics.
Host regular Q&A sessions to clarify metrics and answer team questions.
Real-time data should be available to support timely decisions and proactive adjustments.

Invest in a real-time data integration platform (e.g., dashboards or CRM plugins) for immediate visibility.
Set up alerts for metrics that fall below targets, allowing team members to respond immediately.
Make the dashboard accessible on mobile for flexibility.
The team expects data to yield actionable insights, highlighting trends and enabling strategic adjustments.
Provide regular analysis of emerging trends with suggestions for action (e.g., “Retention is falling in Q3; here’s why and how to improve it”).
Implement predictive modeling to identify likely donors for targeted engagement.
Conduct quarterly strategy workshops based on trends.
Metrics should align with team goals, and benchmarks should be clear to measure success effectively.

Create visual benchmarks and goals directly on dashboards (e.g., green/yellow/red indicators).
Offer comparative metrics vs. similar organizations or previous years.
Include “stretch goals” and scenario plans for exceeding standard benchmarks.
Data should be consistently accurate to ensure the credibility of the metrics tracked.

Conduct bi-monthly data audits to eliminate duplicates and maintain accuracy.
Set up automated error alerts for unusual patterns (e.g., sudden donor drops or unexpected spikes).
Provide refresher trainings on data entry and hygiene best practices.
The team expects continuous learning opportunities to interpret and use metrics effectively.

Host monthly training sessions on using metrics strategically and sharing case studies.
Provide access to online courses or certifications on data analysis or CRM mastery.
Invite external experts for quarterly workshops on innovative fundraising metric strategies.
The team expects reporting to be flexible for different audiences and transparent in methodology and source data.

Develop templated reports that team members can customize for specific audiences (e.g., board vs. operational team).
Include a “source data” reference for each report, so team members can see the raw data.
Offer self-serve reporting options for easy, ad hoc reports.

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