But what has it meant for regular giving in particular – the lifeblood of the sector?
The Access Group’s charity payments specialist Rapidata, has monitored and reported regular giving trends since 2003.
In March 2020 it revealed an immediate jump in the regular giving Direct Debit cancellations rate coinciding with the start of lockdown, before a quick return to a more usual rate in April. New supporter sign-ups dipped too and have remained low.
To gain further insight, Rapidata went out to the sector. It invited a range of charities to share their experiences, asking how they adjusted their fundraising during the pandemic to help them drive donations, mitigate attrition and protect regular giving. It also asked for their thoughts on this vital income stream’s future.
Survey insights
Among its findings were significant increases in the use of digital, phone and mail, with some two-thirds of responding charities reporting changes to how they communicate with supporters, and a renewed focus on supporter stewardship.
The full results are presented in a new report available as a free download – Navigating Times of Crisis to Protect Regular Giving – alongside additional sector insight and case studies from senior fundraisers at ClientEarth, Prostate Cancer UK, Marie Curie, Starlight Children’s Foundation, Pancreatic Cancer UK, and WaterAid.
Importantly, the report offers key lessons to help charities prepare for future crises, with a checklist of practical points for better protecting regular giving.
Scott Gray, Rapidata lead, and head of payments for The Access Group, comments,
“The challenges of the past few months have seen charities work extremely hard to strengthen that all-important relationship with regular supporters through a greater focus on stewardship and an increased use of digital and other channels.”
“The insights shared in this report provide valuable lessons for the future. While we hope to avoid a repeat of the Covid-19 crisis, with another recession looming it’s critical that charities prepare both for this and for other future crises by learning from each other and taking action to mitigate risk and protect regular giving income.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------