4 Ways to Keep Donors Engaged Through 2021 (Without Asking for Money)

Most of the work that goes into building conversion funnels for your digital campaign is to drive supporters to donate online, but after election day, most campaigns ignore them until an end of quarter deadline rolls around.

Donors are your campaign’s most valuable digital asset. More than any other online supporter, they are most committed to your campaign. They’re also many times more likely to donate to your next election than a new supporter. 

The single most important thing for maintaining your online donor relationships is maintaining high email deliverability through a good sender reputation. This means sending emails frequently, not just every 3-6 months. At a minimum, you should be sending to some portion of your list weekly. 

Here are four ways to keep in touch with your online donors in between elections.

Updates

Donors understand that getting additional donation requests is part of the process, but they stay on your email list to get updates about the campaign. Keep them active and engaged by providing content-based updates alongside soft asks and the occasional hard ask. 

Surveys

Ask your supporters for their opinions about timely topics through surveys. Having a survey link that generates clicks is an easy way to increase your engagement and enhance your sender reputation. 

Redirect respondents to a donation landing page after they’ve finished and your survey becomes a soft ask. You’ll also have data for segmenting your list and you can create content based on the survey results. 

Personalization

Personalizing your emails to top supporters is another important tactic for keeping them engaged between election cycles. You can send personalized thank you emails on the anniversary of their first donation, wish them happy birthday, or share news specific to their region.

Impact

You couldn’t do what you do without your donors. Make sure they know that with content designed to highlight your impact. From passing bills to securing funding, these are newsworthy items to share with your list. 

The key is always keeping in touch with your donors via email. Find the cadence that’s right for your campaign, but ensure there’s the right mix of updates, soft asks, and hard asks.