When you have finished your fundraising efforts, do you collect and analyse your data?

As a committee you put so much effort into fundraising that it would be good to see it pay off beyond the funds it brings you.  To get the best out of it you need to assess and evaluate your results.

Why bother assessing your efforts?

Your primary reason is to measure your results.  Did you get the response you hoped for?

If you didn’t, you should be able to identify specific areas for improvement so that your next fundraiser will bring better results

When you know what results you are likely to achieve you can set far more specific goals and expect a certain level of success.

What should you assess?

  • Are you reaching the right people?
  • How many new donors did the fundraiser bring in?
  • Did you meet your dollar target?
  • Are the donations likely to be sustainable?  Will the donors keep giving?
  • Did one area bring better results than the average?
  • Was there a marked difference in response to different promotional methods? 

You should assess the process as well as your results. 

  • Did the organisation give you the support you needed?
  • Was your timing perfect?
  • How much did it cost you to raise the funds? Did the effort outweigh the return?

When you have gathered all your information you will be able to see where the gaps are in your campaign and where you have spent money for little return.  You will also see which parts of your campaign worked well and why.

Analysing your results is an important but often overlooked step in the fundraising process.  Make sure your not for profit organisation is paying attention.