FROM FIRST GIFT TO FAITHFUL PARTNER 

How to Build and Cultivate Relationships with New Donors  

By Ruston Pierce
Fundraising & Capitol Campaign Manager | Fortify Foundation

One of the most difficult parts of fundraising in Christian schools is creating efficient processes for identifying and cultivating new donors.  Building relationships with new donors is a key element of fundraising success. Sometimes we celebrate a new donor who steps forward, but we don’t do the necessary next steps to cultivate that donor for future giving.  Nurturing that connection into a long-term partnership is where organizations find lasting sustainability and growth. Let’s discuss strategies for cultivating and keeping new donors.

First, pray.  As a staff and/or administration, pray that God will bring people to your school who are like-minded in your mission who have a desire to support and grow your school.  Pray that you will have the ability to listen well to these new donors, and that their passions will come out in conversation.  Pray their hearts will be yoked with the mission of your school, and that your conversations will show the donor where they fit into the mission.

It’s time for your first meeting with a potential new donor.  Make them feel welcome.  People need to feel they are a part of your school.  Sometimes the donor will show up to the initial meeting with an idea for a gift already in their mind.  Occasionally they will even show up with the gift.  When a donor contributes for the first time, it’s essential that the interaction is warm, personal, and appreciative. Send a thank-you email or letter within 24-48 hours of receiving a donation or after an initial meeting. Personalize it by using the donor’s name and referencing their gift amount or designation.  Mention something from the meeting that stood out to you, so they know you were invested in them.  

Depending on your resources, follow up with a welcome package that includes stories of impact, your mission, and ways they can stay involved. A brief personal call from a board member or staff can also leave a lasting impression.  Most importantly, continue to meet with them.  Do not ever meet with someone once, and then not again for the rest of the school year.  Track your meetings and communications with every donor to make sure you don’t have individuals lose connection over time.

To cultivate meaningful relationships, you need to understand who your donors are. Begin by collecting and analyzing data such as:

• Demographics (age, location, profession)
• Giving history and preferences
• Interests and motivations

Mention and/or follow up on these details each time you meet or communicate with donors.  Show personal interest in them and their preferences so they don’t feel like a number in your system.  People know the difference between a transaction and a legitimate relationship.  As you meet with them ask for their feedback on specifics about the school.  Give them a platform to share their thoughts.  Knowing what matters to your donors allows you to tailor your outreach and engagement strategies.

Effective donor cultivation relies on regular, meaningful communication. This doesn’t mean constant solicitation—it means sharing stories, updates, and opportunities for involvement.  Show the donor where they fit into the mission of your school.  Let donors see how their gift is making a difference. Provide updates about how funds are used, your progress toward goals, and any challenges you’re facing. Transparency builds trust. Tailor messages to different donor types—new donors, recurring donors, major gift prospects—so your outreach feels relevant.  Communicating with donors is one of the few times your school can communicate directly to a constituent in the way the constituent wants to receive communication.

Your donors want to feel like a partner in your mission.  They don’t want to be a transaction.  At any point if they feel like you are using them for their money they will stop or reduce giving.  Involve donors in ways that create a sense of community and shared purpose. Create ways to bring them into your daily work.  Virtual town halls or behind-the-scenes tours can make donors feel connected.  Offer them opportunities to volunteer around your campus.  This is especially helpful for donors who want a more hands-on role in your mission.  Ask donors for input on initiatives, events, or campaigns. This inclusion fosters a sense of ownership and can lead to residual benefits you may not have expected.

Build for the future using ongoing communication and touchpoints.  A touchpoint can be a face-to-face meeting, email, phone call, text, or written communication.  Once a donor has given for the first time, your goal is to encourage a second and third gift. Repeat donors are far more likely to become long-term supporters.  This only happens through ongoing, consistent touchpoints.  Map them out.  You don’t have to feel overwhelmed with face-to-face meetings.  Use the digital tools and resources available to you as supplements for in person meetings.  However, in person meetings should never be fully replaced by digital options.  

Once you have cultivated a continuing relationship with a donor and they feel connected to your mission, steer them toward a recurring gift.  A high number of recurring giving should be the goal of every nonprofit.  It is easier to project budgeting and trend annual giving goals.  That predictability is invaluable for your school budgeting.  Don’t be afraid to explain that to donors.  Any business-minded person understands and appreciates why that is valuable.  

Here are some easy ways to encourage recurring giving:

• Provide easy ways for donors to become sustaining contributors
• Acknowledge the anniversary of their first gift
• Show the lifetime giving totals of recurring donors to reiterate how meaningful it can be
• Send hand-written notes or a phone call after every gift, even if it’s every month
• Create donor spotlights that recognize recurring givers and why it matters

Sometimes you have a donor who gives once but hasn’t returned with a second gift.  There could be a wide range of reasons for not continuing to give.  It’s important that we pursue people in a respectful way and find out why they don’t continue to give.  Once we know their reasoning, we can alter our communications and relationship-building with the donor to attempt to gain their support in the future.  Once we know the donor’s preferences, asking for another gift at an appropriate moment should feel like a natural next step in your relationship, not a sales pitch.

Throughout this article, we have continually mentioned touchpoints and communication tracking.  I’m asked all the time how I track touchpoints.  If you have a donor management system you have everything you need to track touchpoints.  It can be time-consuming, but it’s critical to keep your donor management system updated.  If you don’t have a management system, or a budget to purchase one, you can absolutely track touchpoints in a spreadsheet.  The point is to make sure you are tracking consistently.  Use whatever tools you must to make sure effectively managing donor touchpoints is a priority. 

Cultivating new donors is not a quick fix to a financial issue.  It takes time.  Giving from new donors should never be expected in a school budget.  This is a process designed for long term, sustained giving.  Cultivating new donors is not about short-term gain; it’s about building lasting relationships rooted in support of your mission. When you approach donor engagement as a two-way street—where listening, appreciation, and transparency are central—donors become partners in your mission, not just funders. By investing in relationship-building strategies, your organization can turn first-time donors into long-term Kingdom builders.