If your team is sharpening its focus on donor-advised funds, you’ve got good reasons to head in this direction.
According to the DAF Fundraising Report, giving increases 96 percent when a donor sets up a DAF. Imagine if all of your donors made this switch! The good news is, promoting DAF giving is easier than you think—especially with DAF Day just one week away.
Your opportunity on DAF Day
DAF Day is a national day to celebrate DAF giving and generate awareness around the power of DAFs. The first-ever DAF Day takes place on October 10th. On this day, nonprofits, donors, and DAFs will band together to unleash a wave of DAF donations to 501(c)(3) organizations nationwide.
Right now just 42 percent of nonprofits mention DAFs in their marketing. If your nonprofit is part of this group, now’s your chance to make a change.
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Now that you’re tracking toward October 10th, use this opportunity to build a broader DAF fundraising strategy. We sat down with nonprofit leaders to discuss actionable approaches to DAF fundraising that your team can leverage well beyond DAF Day. Our conversation included:
Brandolon Barnett, Head of Innovation & Philanthropy, Giving Compass
Tracy Waksler, VP of Growth, Candid
Tanya Gulliver-Garcia, Center for Disaster Philanthropy
Mitch Stein, Head of Strategy, Chariot
Put their tried-and-true advice into practice with these easy steps to grow your DAF donor community.
Step 1. Want more DAF donations? Start using one yourself
Just 17 percent of US adults understand what a donor advised fund is and why it’s beneficial. With a stat like that, it’s not surprising that many fundraisers don’t have their own DAF account—but when you don’t experience what it’s like to have and give from a DAF, you’re missing out.
The more you give from your DAF as a nonprofit fundraiser, the more you understand its benefits and can communicate them to your donors. Plus, giving via DAF can inspire new ways to improve the donor experience at your own organization.
The DAF Donor Satisfaction Survey revealed that 37 percent of DAF donors didn’t give from their DAF for their most recent donation. By becoming a DAF donor and experiencing the process of DAF giving firsthand, it’s easier to pinpoint why.
Understanding the sometimes frustrating and unnecessary steps in the process can help you streamline DAF giving at your own organization, which can lead to the boost in DAF donors and grants you want to see over time.
Step 2. Make DAF giving as easy as every other type of donation
On average, DAF gifts in the DAF Fundraising Report were 20 times larger than non-DAF gifts (even with major gifts over $25,000 excluded!).
While that’s great news, if donating to your nonprofit with a credit card is easier than giving from a DAF, you’re probably missing out on critical funds.
Historically, DAF giving has been clunky. First, a donor needs to leave the donation form or website where they were initially inspired to give to log in to a typically antiquated platform. Here, they’ll need to locate the organization they’d like to support by legal name or EIN, then answer several more questions. Next, the DAF manager creates a grant and distributes it to the donor’s designated nonprofit.
What’s worse, this dated process is just as frustrating for organizations as it is for donors. The time between submitting the grant request to the organization receiving the gift could take weeks, and the donor information the organization received is often incomplete, with no donor name or contact information.
If this process is all too familiar, it’s time to switch to DAFpay. When your nonprofit adds a DAFpay button to your donation forms, donors can give directly from their DAFs in just three clicks—without ever leaving your website.
It’s as easy as giving with a credit card or PayPal. And best of all, DAFpay gifts come with a donor’s name and email, so you can thank donors in real time and re-engage them whenever you like.
Step 3. Familiarize yourself with the types of DAF donors
Once you’ve improved your DAF donor experience, think about who’s giving DAF gifts. This information will serve as the foundation for your DAF-related content.
Non-DAF donors
Remember only 17 percent of US adults know what a DAF is, so chances are, many of your donors don’t know what they’re missing.
The first step to growing your DAF donor community is ensuring all of your donors know what a DAF is, along with its benefits.
Cause-driven donors
Donors who are very passionate about a specific cause often look to DAFs to reach their philanthropic goals.
Knowing the impact of their DAF is everything to these donors, and communicating their value to your mission will encourage them to give again and again.
Families
DAFs give families something special to rally around, because a DAF account takes on a new purpose for the parents who fund it when they can pass their values of philanthropy and giving with intention on to their kids.
Right now, many parents in your donor community are passionate about your cause. Make those relationships even more meaningful by inviting them to use a DAF so their children can join in.
Of-the-moment donors
Lots of donors are motivated by headline-worthy happenings connected to your mission. These donors typically give online, responding to the social media buzz around a particular event.
Some DAF donors appreciate having funds on hand to contribute to disaster relief, while others embrace the ability to make a donation when the political climate drives an urgent need.
Your organization can appeal to these donors by sharing how it’s responding to current events on social media as they unfold. But in addition to quick-hitting, highly visual content, you’ll want to mention they can give via DAF and make that process as easy as possible.
Step 4. Understand how donors see your nonprofit
A whopping 97 percent of DAF donors engaged in some form of research before making a donation. And with so many online scams these days, who can blame them?
Put yourself in a donor’s shoes—what do you see when you research your organization? Is it easy for donors to verify your mission, work, 501(c)(3) status, and compliance with federal and state obligations?
In addition to reviewing your website, it’s important to check your profile on Candid. This database, formerly known as GuideStar, is a trusted third-party resource for donors seeking verification.
It only takes minutes to review your Candid profile, so check it out to make sure the information is complete, accurate, and current.
Step 5. Create a DAF-focused content stream
Just because your donor has a DAF doesn’t mean they’re using it. In fact, a recent study showed that a staggering 37 percent of DAF accounts go untouched in any given year.
It’s your team’s job to remind DAF donors about the powerful tool they have at their fingertips.
There are two ways you can do this:
First, meet donors where they give and highlight DAF giving in all of your donation forms—adding a DAFpay button makes that as intuitive as possible.
Second, take a proactive approach by distributing DAF-related content the same way you would for any other fundraising campaign.
Not sure how to go about DAF-centric content? Here are some themes you can easily tailor to each donor type and your mission.
And don’t stop at text-based posts. You can translate any of these content themes to video, which is the perfect medium if you want to stand out on crowded social media feeds.
Non-DAF donors: Let everyone in on the best way to give
POST 1: THE 101 EXPLAINER
This post is a simple definition. Consider including a link to this detailed DAF 101 page here.
This post is available for you to use in the DAF Day Marketing Toolkit! Get access to it when you sign up for DAF Day here.
POST 2: QUICK HIT BENEFITS
Donors need to understand the why behind DAF giving. You can share the benefits in a text-based carousel and a video with DAF donors sharing why they like giving this way.
This post is available for you to use in the DAF Day Marketing Toolkit! Get access to it when you sign up for DAF Day here.
POST 3: EVERYONE’S INVITED
For decades, DAFs carried sky-high minimums that barred most donors from having one. Let them know the times have changed with this quick announcement.
Cause-driven donors: Be hyper-specific about the tangible impact of their DAF gift
Give donors the ability to connect their DAF dollars to direct impact. Feature photos of who they’ll help or have the recipients of their generosity share about just what their gift means in a video.
Example copy: Your $1,000 DAF donation equips 5 students with laptops & internet access from freshman to senior year. Give opportunity in just 3 clicks: [Add a link to a donation form with a DAFpay button here.]
Try it with your mission using this formula: Your [GIFT AMOUNT] DAF donation [VERB/WHAT IT DOES] [RECIPIENT/WHO IT HELPS] [HOW IT HELPS THEM]. Give [WHAT THE GIFT’S ULTIMATE OUTCOME IS] in just three clicks: [DONATION FORM LINK]
Families and couples: Share the joy in giving together
Families and couples who give jointly are excited to share about their favorite hobby. Ask DAF donors who give in groups if they’d like to be featured in a social media post and on your website.
Example copy: Meet the parents inspiring a new generation of philanthropy through DAF giving. “We order the pizza and the
kids pick where we should give.” Hear the Lantz family’s story: [Link to a blog post or video spotlighting the featured DAF donors]
Try it with your donors using this copy: Meet the parents inspiring a new generation of philanthropy through DAF giving. “[QUOTE FROM PARENTS ABOUT GIVING TOGETHER.” Hear the [LAST NAME] family’s story: [Link to a blog post or video spotlighting the featured DAF donors]
Of-the-moment donors: Drive maximum impact through the power of gift-matching
When donors respond to a newsworthy need, they want their efforts to count. Let them know how to do the most good by leveraging their DAF to rally others around their cause.
Example copy: Creating a fundraiser? 84% of donors are more likely to give if you match their gift. Match with your DAF: [Add a link to a donation form with a DAFpay button here.]
Invite your donors to attend our next webinar that’s especially for them
The DAF Day Countdown Is On:
A Last-Minute Prep Session for Nonprofits
Wednesday, October 2nd at 12:00 PM
Just one week left until the big day—but don’t stress, we’ll help you get set! In this session, we’ll cover a list of to-dos you’ll want to complete in the coming days and discuss your questions and ideas for a hit campaign.
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