In partnership with The Improve Group, Charities Review Council (the Council) conducted a 2019 donor survey to increase Minnesota’s knowledge about donors and charitable giving. As an organization that partners with both donors and nonprofits, we wanted to gain a deeper understanding of what inspires donors to give (or not give) and the tools and resources they needed to feel confident in their giving decisions.
At Charities Review Council, we partner with hundreds of nonprofit organizations that are committed to building their internal strength through our Accountability Wizard® nonprofit review process. Since launching the Accountability Wizard® in 2005, we’ve gathered data on nonprofit needs and have used that information to create relevant and meaningful tools and resources, like the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Toolkit. With years of great data and input from our nonprofit partners, we decided 2019 was the year to take a closer look at our donor partners and what they needed in order to feel confident in their giving decisions.
The Donor Survey
With support from The Improve Group, the donor survey was administered online from February – June. With additional support from our Meets Standards® nonprofit partners and capacity-building allies, we shared the survey online via social media, e-newsletters, and emails. With a great response from donors all over the state, we gathered data on giving trends, donor values and behaviors. After closing the survey, we partnered with The Improve Group to look for common themes in the results. As a group, we reviewed the quantitative and qualitative data.
What we found was both surprising and yet very much in-line with what we know to be true; donors give with their head and their heart, often leading with their heart to support causes they care about.
This year, we’ll be sharing an in-depth look at our survey results and key takeaways in hopes that the data will inform your work and donor relationships as much as it has informed ours. Stay tuned for more on the donor survey results, coming soon! Don’t miss a post. Click here to subscribe.
Is your nonprofit looking to conduct a study to better inform your work? If so, contact The Improve Group at info@theimprovegroup.com to learn more about the wide variety of services they provide.
