Douglas Shaw
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD/CEO

Here at Douglas Shaw & Associates, we’ve learned that guessing about critical fundraising information is a sure-fire formula for poor decision-making. And since our client-partners rely upon us for good counsel, we find ourselves constantly looking into the treasure trove of information stored within their databases.

For example, if your organization has just acquired a new donor and their initial gift is $15.00, there is less than a 10% likelihood they will ever give a gift of $30.00. This basic fact is housed right there in your own database, but few seem to know it! And what’s even worse, many nonprofits expend significant amounts of money to acquire new donors well below this critical threshold!

I can’t tell you the number of times CEOs have called me and said, “Doug, I need your help! My income is dropping, and I don’t know why! I can’t get answers from my current fundraising agency!!” The truth is the answers are right there in your database . . . but you need to know what questions to ask and have the expertise to extract and interpret the data.

In this issue of Donor Focus, you’ll see how to assess the health of your donor file and unlock your donor insights, as well as the essential metrics to watch in digital donor acquisition campaigns and understanding the power of your data. All of these articles were written to provide you with insights into the data most relevant to you . . . your own donor file.

Thank you for being a part of what is right with the world!