Category Donor Relationships

Originally published January 4, 2016 on LinkedIn as “How my shoe and bike guys can help your charity”

Updated September 2026

Some of the best donor care I’ve seen came from businesses that treated me well when I bought a pair of sneakers, some bike parts and a pair of cycling shorts.

Great customer service is available to every charity, whatever its size. Here are three lessons I’ve borrowed from retailers who got it right.

1. The personal touch

I love Converse Chuck Taylors. One Christmas, I couldn’t find the pairs I wanted for my kids in local stores, so I ordered online from a small shoe shop in British Columbia.

Their emails had personality. They thanked me warmly, kept me updated and shipped everything on time. When the box arrived, there was a card inside with a handwritten “Thanks Conor!” It took them seconds. It made my day, and I told people about it for months.

At your charity: Have your team or volunteers handwrite “Thank you, [name]!” on receipts and cards. Give your automated online thank-you a voice that sounds like your people. If you can, hold a regular thank-a-thon where staff and volunteers call donors just to say thanks.

2. Constant contact

One winter, I ordered pedals and studded tires from an overseas bike parts retailer. The first emails were standard. Then the updates started – shipment notices and almost daily tracking. “Your package has arrived at London Heathrow” meant nothing in practical terms, and I loved getting it. When customs fees were assessed, I knew within minutes, paid right away and was back on my bike within hours.

Information feels like care. Keep people informed, even when the news is small.

At your charity: Send regular updates from your team, especially if you fund research or grants. “Our funded researcher has assembled her team and begins testing next month” is real news, and donors rarely hear it. Your donors are investors in your mission. Give them progress reports.

3. Fix problems quickly

I once ordered cycling shorts online from a big outdoor retailer, and the package disappeared in the mail. My email didn’t get a quick answer, so I sent a direct message to their social media team. They replied fast, offered three options – ship a new pair, pick up in store or wait – and made sure I was happy with the result.

People will talk about how you handled their problem. You get to shape what they say.

At your charity: Tax receipt season brings calls. Replace “let me look into that and get back to you” with “thank you so much for giving – let’s find your receipt together.” Offer to email a replacement on the spot, or invite the donor in to pick one up and meet your team.

Choose to be great at this

Every charity can make these choices: to keep donors informed, to build care into every stream, to solve problems quickly and to treat donors as part of the work. None of it requires a big budget. It requires deciding it matters.

Try this

Order something small online from a business you admire. Save every message they send you. Then compare it, message by message, with what a new donor receives from you.

Be well.

Originally published May 20, 2016 on LinkedIn as “Don’t hate your donors. You need them.”

Updated September 2026

No charity sets out to push donors away. But small habits – the ones that save a little time or feel like the way it’s always been done – can leave donors feeling forgotten.

Almost everything in fundraising has been studied. Before you launch a plan, spend a few minutes looking for what the research and benchmarks say. Then look for these five habits.

1. Emailing without a rhythm

I subscribe to emails from every charity I support. Many still send at random – a hard ask one week, a long digest the next, then nothing for a month.

For a sense of what’s normal: M+R’s 2026 Benchmarks report found that nonprofits sent an average of 50 emails per subscriber in 2025 – about four a month, most of them fundraising messages. The right number for your donors depends on your cause and your audience. What matters most is a steady, predictable rhythm that gives people something to look forward to.

1. Segment your list. A volunteer in Toronto doesn’t need the event email for Calgary.
2. Split your content. Replace the monthly digest with a few short emails, each telling one story.
3. Keep a schedule. If the research update goes out every Wednesday afternoon, keep it there. Watch your own open data to find your best times.
4. Design for phones. Most people will read your email on a small screen. Test it on yours before you send.
5. Use their name. I once received a thank-you email that called me “Donor.” It rhymes with Conor. It isn’t Conor.
6. Send good news with no ask. Everyone has that one friend who only calls when they need something. Share a happy update, thank people for making it possible and leave a quiet link to give.

A note on consent: registered charities have an exemption under Canada’s anti-spam law (CASL) for messages whose main purpose is fundraising. Your other messages still need consent, and every message should make it easy to unsubscribe.

2. The form letter

I keep a stack of form letters in my home office, as a reminder of how charity used to be done.

An automatic receipt emailed five minutes after an online gift can be generic. What follows should be personal – a phone call, a handwritten card, a short video from someone on your team. That’s where donors feel the love.

3. Forgetting to say thank you

Sometimes a thank-you takes longer than it should. Most donors understand, as long as it arrives within a few days and it’s sincere. Aim for 48 to 72 hours.

What donors don’t forgive is silence. I’ve made significant gifts, one-time and monthly, that were never acknowledged at all. No card, no call – not even a form letter. That silence ends relationships.

4. Missing the milestones

Very few charities celebrate their donors’ milestones. Set up queries in your database for:

1. Anniversaries – at least at one, five, ten and fifteen years. Welcome your new donors, and honour your loyal ones.
2. Giving milestones – when a $20 monthly donor passes $500, $1,000 or $5,000 in lifetime giving, that’s a big deal. Tell them how much it means.

5. The silo

I once took part in an event for a Calgary cause. After that, I stopped hearing about their shelters and women’s programs. I’d been moved into the “event participant” list, and my emails shrank to a handful of event reminders a year. Getting back onto the right list took real effort.

Imagine a restaurant that only offers you the shrimp scampi you ordered last time – no menu, just scampi. Let your donors see the whole menu. Donors who find more of your work to connect with stay longer and give more, and that’s good for them and for you.

Try this

Sign up for your own emails with a personal address, and make a small gift online. Keep track of everything you receive over the next 90 days. You’ll see your charity the way your donors do.

Be well.

Sources

1. M+R Benchmarks 2026, Email Messaging – https://mrbenchmarks.com/email-messaging/
2. CRTC, Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation: frequently asked questions – https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/com500/faq500.htm

Originally published September 11, 2023 on knowgood.ca as “Adapting to Evolving Donor Behaviour”

Updated September 2026

Giving in Canada is changing. A decade ago, about one in five tax filers claimed a charitable donation. In 2023, it was closer to one in six. The people who still give are giving generously – and they are hearing from more causes, brands and platforms than ever before.

For charities, that means the relationships you already have are precious. Here is where I would focus.

Keep telling stories

Keep telling stories, even to people who have paused their giving. A donor who hasn’t given in 12 months is still part of your community. Keep showing them what their past generosity made possible and what your team is doing right now.

For most organizations, I recommend telling more stories and asking less often. Build a calendar that carries a steady rhythm of updates, with a few well-timed asks. Two things to remember:

1. If you don’t engage your audience, someone else will.
2. If you stop talking to people the moment they stop giving, they notice.

Make stewardship personal

Every thank-you matters more when fewer people are giving. Follow your stewardship plan fully – the calls, the cards, the updates. Equip the people making those calls with a story, a specific impact fact and a couple of good questions. What you hear back will shape your next year.

Show who you are

People give because they believe in what a charity does. Their values shape their choices, too – where they shop, who they work for and which causes they trust.

Many donors care deeply about equity and inclusion, and they notice whether a charity lives those values. Let your communications show it. Introduce your team. Share how you make decisions, how you pay and treat your people, and how you are accountable for your spending. Show how equity shapes who you serve and how you serve them. Feature the community members who shape your programs, in their own words and with their permission.

A caution here: keep your stories anchored in your charitable purposes. CRA expects a registered charity’s activities to serve its stated purposes, and your communications should reflect the work you are registered to do.

Stay with the people who stay with you

When giving gets harder, the charities that do well are the ones that stay present, grateful and honest with their communities. That work is steady, and it is within reach of every team.

Be well.

Sources

1. Fraser Institute, Generosity in Canada: The 2025 Generosity Index – https://www.fraserinstitute.org/studies/generosity-in-canada-2025-generosity-index

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Since about 2013 or 2014, Conor has been sharing ideas, thoughts, and experiences on LinkedIn. Some of his pieces are well-written articles, while others more closely resemble stream of thought pieces.

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The Fundraiser, The Miser

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Increase your revenue by applying these cycling rules to your charity

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How my shoe and bike guys can help your charity

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