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Nonprofit donor segmentation strategy may matter far more than most fundraising teams realize. New donor behavior research reveals that geography, household income, gender, trust, and communication preferences can dramatically change what motivates someone to give!

Mary Crogan, Vice President of Brand Marketing at Bloomerang, returns with a deeper look at Bloomerang's ‘Giving Signals’ research with The Harris Poll. The original study surveyed more than 1,000 donors and several hundred fundraisers, then examined donor responses across demographic groups rather than treating supporters as one giant audience. The result challenges one of fundraising's most persistent habits.

“There’s no such thing as the donor,” Mary says. “And the data proves that.”

Consider geography. Only 45% of Midwest respondents expected to give more, compared with 62% in the West. Midwest donors were also considerably less responsive to identity and belonging language, suggesting that messages emphasizing concrete needs, transparency, and measurable outcomes may perform better with that audience.Trust creates another major business implication. The West registered 86% trust in nonprofits' effective use of funds, while 62% expected to increase giving. As Mary puts it, “You need to treat transparency as a fundraising activity, not just a compliance moment.”

The data also challenges assumptions about major gift messaging. Among households earning $150,000+, 41% looked to third-party ratings compared with 29% overall. These high-capacity donors behaved more like evidence-driven buyers, responding to ratings, audited outcomes, measured impact, and proof—not simply another moving story.

And donor trust does not develop identically. Women reported stronger responses to transparency, matching gifts, and proof of gift impact—with 93% citing information about their gift's impact—while men showed greater responsiveness to peer recommendations and preferred communication channels.

The operational takeaway: segment, survey, test, measure, and adjust before assuming one appeal speaks to everyone.

Key Takeaways:

Build fundraising segments around meaningful donor differences instead of relying on one universal appeal.

Treat transparency and closed-loop impact reporting as revenue-building activities.

Test concrete outcome messaging versus belonging-oriented messaging by geography.

Give high-capacity donors evidence: ratings, audited results, ROI, and measurable impact.

Use peer and ambassador voices where personal endorsement strengthens trust.

Survey your own donor base before turning national demographic patterns into fundraising assumptions.

00:00:00 — Why There’s No Such Thing As “The Donor”
00:01:46 — How Bloomerang Studies Donor Behavior
00:04:24 — What 1,000+ Donors Told Researchers
00:05:47 — Why Midwest Fundraising Messaging Is Different
00:09:48 — Trust Sits Upstream Of The Ask
00:12:16 — Income Changes What Motivates Donors
00:13:27 — The Ethical Edge Of Urgency Messaging
00:14:34 — The Problem With One-Size-Fits-All Appeals
00:16:31 — What High-Capacity Donors Actually Want
00:19:30 — Men, Women And Different Paths To Trust
00:23:10 — Turning Donors Into Trusted Ambassadors
00:25:15 — Survey Your Own Donor Community
00:27:02 — Segment And Test Before Your Next Appeal

#NonprofitFundraising #DonorEngagement #TheNonprofitShow

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits!
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Nonprofit leadership transition planning should begin long before an executive announces a departure! Erin Rodenbiker and Joan Brown of Third Sector Company explain why professional interim leadership can help nonprofits protect mission continuity, strengthen operations, and prepare for a better permanent hire.

For many nonprofit boards, “interim” still sounds like emergency management — somebody brought in because something went wrong. Joan challenges that assumption with three remarkably simple words: “Everybody leaves.” Leadership transition is not a possibility to avoid discussing. It is an eventual organizational reality worth planning for. Instead of scrambling after a resignation, retirement, sabbatical, or founder departure, nonprofit leaders can determine in advance when an interim executive makes sense, who has decision-making responsibility, and what the organization needs during the transition.

Erin adds another important reality: “In reality, these tools can only get you so far. You need a person.” Succession plans, guides, and policies matter, but someone must still lead staff, maintain direction, communicate with stakeholders, and move the plan into operation.

The numbers discussed are revealing. Third Sector Company describes a network of approximately 800 people trained for transitional leadership, while Erin notes that an interim assignment may span roughly six to nine months, depending on the organization.

Most importantly, the interim is not there simply to “keep the lights on.” Joan says a successful engagement should leave the nonprofit positioned to attract, hire, and retain the right permanent leader. That begins with assessment: policies, HR records, organizational gaps, staff realities, board alignment, and the conditions the next executive will inherit.

Key Takeaways:

* Treat executive transition as a predictable governance responsibility, not an unexpected crisis.

* Discuss interim leadership before a departure becomes imminent or emotionally charged.

* Do not automatically assign already-stretched staff or board members to run the organization.

* Begin an interim engagement with an organizational assessment before recruiting the permanent leader.

* Measure interim success partly by the quality and retention of the organization’s next executive hire.

* Use leadership transitions to challenge “we’ve always done it that way” and prepare the organization for what comes next.

00:00:00 Interim Leadership and Nonprofit Transition
00:03:01 Why Interim Leadership Still Carries a Stigma
00:06:30 Everybody Leaves: Planning Before the Crisis
00:08:09 Giving Boards the Language for Succession
00:10:03 When Leadership Transition Planning Should Begin
00:15:25 How Boards Explore Interim Leadership
00:16:16 Corporate vs. Nonprofit Interim Leadership
00:18:34 Turning Succession Plans Into Action
00:22:34 An Interim Is More Than a Caretaker
00:23:53 Why Every Interim Engagement Needs Assessment
00:25:19 The Advantage of an Outside Interim Leader
00:29:10 Making Interim Leadership the Norm

#NonprofitLeadership #NonprofitSuccessionPlanning #TheNonprofitShow

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits!
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How do fundraisers become nonprofit leaders? Moving from development into executive leadership takes more than raising money—it requires understanding the entire business of the nonprofit and becoming someone who can lead across departments, relationships, strategy, and mission.

On this Fundraisers Friday edition, co-hosts Julia C. Patrick and Tony Beall examine how nonprofit professionals can deliberately increase their professional value and prepare themselves for broader leadership.

Tony begins by pointing to one major advantage many development professionals already possess: relationships. Fundraisers work with donors, boards, community leaders, staff, and supporters, often developing credibility across an organization long before they enter the C-suite. But relationships alone are not enough. Future nonprofit leaders need to understand how the organization actually works: finance, operations, marketing, human resources, programs, and the processes that turn funding into outcomes.

As Tony reminds us, “Your team members regardless of their job title come to you with a lot of lived experience.”

The conversation also moves into communication, professional visibility, public speaking, LinkedIn, networking, body language, and thought leadership. Yet visibility comes with an important guardrail: “You have to maintain a level of humility in this work.”

The bigger career question may not be, “How valuable do others think I am?” Instead, it may be: How am I becoming the strongest leader I can be for the work I want to accomplish?

There is a fitting backdrop to the conversation: this marks the 1,600th edition of The Nonprofit Show, seven years into an ongoing exploration of the business decisions that make nonprofit missions possible!

Key Takeaways:

* Fundraising relationships can create a strong foundation for future nonprofit executive leadership.

* C-suite readiness requires knowledge beyond development, including finance, operations, HR, marketing, and programs.

* Understanding program delivery makes fundraisers stronger storytellers with donors and investors.

* Leadership communication includes tone, timing, word choice, and nonverbal signals.

* Public speaking and professional visibility can expand influence when paired with humility.

* Professional value should be built around contribution and impact, not external validation.

00:00:00 The Nonprofit Show Reaches 1,600
00:01:21 Escalating Your Professional Value
00:03:14 Why Fundraisers Can Become Nonprofit CEOs
00:06:16 Learn the Business Beyond Fundraising
00:10:25 Leadership Across Operations and Programs
00:11:20 Understand How the Mission Actually Gets Delivered
00:13:59 Communication as a Leadership Skill
00:17:25 What Your Body Language Communicates
00:18:45 Public Speaking and Professional Visibility
00:20:05 Thought Leadership Without the Ego
00:23:44 LinkedIn, Networking and Professional Presence
00:26:16 Who Determines Your Professional Value?

#NonprofitLeadership #FundraisingCareer #TheNonprofitShow

Find us Live daily on YouTube!

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Find us Live daily on X: @Nonprofit_Show

Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits!
12:30pm ET 11:30am CT 10:30am MT 9:30am PT

Send us your ideas for Show Guests or Topics: HelpDesk@AmericanNonprofitAcademy.com
Visit us on the web:The Nonprofit Show