How to Get Donors for a Nonprofit

A lot of people who’d support your work have never been asked.

Not with a clear reason. Not by someone they know.

That’s most of the game.

A specific ask, from a real person, at the right time.

This guide shows you who to ask first, how to ask without pressure, and how to turn a first gift into a second one.

step 1Start with the people closest to you

New donors rarely start as strangers.

They come from the circles around your work:

• Your board — and the people each board member knows
• Volunteers, past and present
• People who came to an event, a tour or an open day
• Your vendors, landlord and local partners
• Neighbors of your building or program site

Ask each board member for 10 names.

Not people to pressure — people who’d care about what you do. That list is your first donor list.

Then invite them to see the work before you ask: a 30-minute tour, a volunteer shift, a short video from the floor.

step 2Make the ask specific

“Please support our mission” asks people to imagine what you do.

A specific ask lets them see it.

Here’s what to drop:

• “Every dollar helps” — helps with what?
• “We’re in crisis” — urgency that isn’t real wears out fast
• A matching gift that doesn’t exist
• Photos or stories of people who didn’t agree to be shown
• Three paragraphs before the donate button

And what to say instead:

• One outcome: “$25 stocks a family’s pantry shelf for a week”
• One real story, shared with permission
• One clear amount — and a monthly option
• Where the money goes, in one line

Use your real numbers. Never round the impact up. A donor who checks should find exactly what you said.

step 3Make giving easy on a phone

People will click your link from a phone, mid-scroll, standing in line.

Check your donate page like a stranger would:

• It opens fast on a phone, with the form near the top
• Suggested amounts are tied to what they do
• The monthly option is easy to see, not hidden
• The thank-you page says what happens next
• A receipt arrives by email right away

Then ask a friend who’s never seen it to give $5. Watch where they get stuck.

step 4Ask local businesses to sponsor something specific

Local businesses like being seen helping their own neighborhood.

So don’t ask for “a donation.” Ask them to sponsor a thing: a month of Saturday pantry hours, the Thanksgiving boxes, the walk-in fridge repair.

Start with a list of businesses near you:

The “Sponsored before?” column matters.

A business that has already sponsored something local knows how to say yes. Start with them.

step 5Write to each one — short and local

The email that works is short, local and specific:

One real detail about them. One specific thing to fund. One amount. One easy question.

And a thank-you they can picture — their name, where their neighbors will see it.

step 6Plan year-end giving in October

Many people give at the end of the year — around Giving Tuesday, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, and before December 31.

The campaign that works is planned in October, not written on Giving Tuesday morning:

1. OctoberPlan

   One goal, one story, one number. Line up a real match if a donor offers one.

2. Early NovemberWarm up

   A short update to everyone: what this year looked like.

3. Giving TuesdayThe ask

   One email, one post, the specific ask.

4. Mid-DecemberReminder

   “There’s still time” — only to people who haven’t given yet.

5. December 30Last call

   A short note for donors who want their gift in this tax year.

Notice the “only” in mid-December.

Never ask someone who just gave to give again that week. Thank them instead.

step 7Turn first gifts into second gifts

Finding a new donor is hard work. Keeping one comes down to three habits:

• Thank them within 48 hours — specific, not a form letter
• Have a board member call or write a note to every first-time donor
• Send an update about 30 days later: what their gift did, with no ask attached

Here’s that rhythm when your AI team handles the writing:

First-time donorsWorking

Find everyone who gave for the first time this month. Draft a thank-you and a 30-day update for each, and make a call list for our board.

Find first-time donors in this month’s export37/37

37 first-time donors this month. Each thank-you names the program they gave to; each update is set for 30 days after their gift.

I split the call list across your 5 board members — 7 or 8 names each, with one line about every donor. Want to see the thank-yous first?

First-time donors — board call list.csvSpreadsheet

Tell your agent what to do…

The calls come from people.

That’s the part donors remember.

What to do this week

1. 01
   Ask each board member for 10 names

   People who’d care, not people to pressure.

2. 02
   Write one specific ask

   One outcome, one amount, one real story.

3. 03
   Test your donate page on a phone

   Like a stranger would.

4. 04
   List 30 local businesses

   Then ask 5 a day to sponsor one specific thing.

5. 05
   Thank every donor this week

   Within 48 hours, by name.

Or hand the sponsor list and the emails to your AI team, and spend the week on the mission.

Questions