The TL;DR 2023 In Review: Key Insights to Shape Your Future Fundraising Strategy
By Nick Ellinger, Chief Brand OfficerÂ
These days, you could have AI summarize Moore’s 2023 in Review report. But what’s the fun in that? You would miss both the human touch from deep insights into the charitable sector and bad jokes!
So, here were some things that jumped out at me as we assembled the 2023 Year in Review:
- In mail, it’s the volume. Per piece mail revenues increased at the same rate as inflation. However, because volume decreased, mail revenues decreased.
- In digital, it’s also the volume. Total digital revenue increased 7% (16% on average for Moore Digital clients [air horn sound]). However, the makeup of that revenue also changed—organic web giving was down 9% while giving from digital advertising was up 74%. In digital, as in mail, you had to spend more to make more.
- It’s especially the volume by subsector. Veteran services organizations saw the largest changes, with a 12% increase in revenue per name and a 13% decrease in overall revenue – the largest of any decrease. The difference is exclusively because they had the largest drop in mail volume.
- Organizations shifted strategically. Faith communities, for example, saw revenue growth of 8.3% while sectors like Environmental and International Affairs faced declines. This isn’t random—it reflects where organizations leaned into their mail and digital investments.
- GivingTuesday insights matter. GivingTuesday continues to grow year over year, but in 2023, the big players saw the biggest increases. The mean organization saw a 20.3% jump in donation volume, but the median only saw a 3.1% lift. The takeaway? The bigger your presence, the more you stand to gain. Heading into GivingTuesday 2024, scaling your efforts to maximize returns is crucial.
- Mobile donations are taking over. In 2023, 43.8% of online donations happened on mobile devices, up from 41.5% the previous year. Streamlining mobile giving is essential for capturing fast, impulse-driven donations, especially during year-end.
- Sustained giving slowed, but average gifts rose. The proportion of new sustainers has dropped for two consecutive years, but the average gift among sustainers increased by 8.5%. The shift indicates a trend toward fewer, higher-value monthly donors. It also likely reflects what we are asking for and an opportunity to broaden monthly giving to smaller monthly donors.
- Testing is your secret weapon. Across the board, organizations that tested their messaging, creative, or audience selection saw better results. Whether through direct mail or digital campaigns, small adjustments—backed by data—make the difference between good and great performance.
- Mail simplification is paying off. Many organizations simplified their mail packages in response to rising costs. The successful ones used digital print technology to increase personalization to maintain engagement and revenue while cutting back on excess materials. We’re seeing this trend continue
- Mail is part of omnichannel, not an island. In 2023, 10% more revenue came from donors who switched from mail-only to digital-only transactions than from those who did the reverse. And smart orgs matched their digital revenues back to mailings to find that donors (especially younger donors) are influenced by mail but transacting online. Your donors are increasingly cross-channel, and your fundraising should be, too.
As we head into late 2024 and 2025, adapting to shifts in donor behavior—like AI search, the end of cookies, election impacts, and rising ad costs—will be crucial. Learn how to apply these insights by registering for our upcoming webinar, Nonprofit Insights: What Worked in 2023 and What’s Next, and get actionable strategies for the year ahead!
