Dallas-based Pursuant is looking to help nonprofits maximize their fundraising efforts.

The local fundraising agency has launched new features to its donor engagement platform GivingDNA, allowing nonprofits to predict which potential new donors to approach while unlocking access to a “new generation” of donors using cryptocurrency.

“In today’s economic uncertainty, continued acquisition of new donors is just as important as retaining and stewarding the donors we have,” Ryan Carpenter, VP of Client Success at GivingDNA, said in a statement.

Building out the donor base

Ryan Carpenter

Founded in 2001, Pursuant calls its GivingDNA platform an all-in-one fundraising analytics, data visualization, and wealth profiling tool, providing insights to nonprofits that help them target, engage, and influence donors. Leveraging the technology, nonprofits can streamline fundraising efforts by predicting which donors would be most likely to give.

One of the new features to the platform helps target what it calls philanthropic non-donors—those that are actively supporting other nonprofits. Using GivingDNA, nonprofits that aren’t actively getting support from those donors already will be able to better understand those donors’ giving behavior in order to better align their messaging.

“This segment is prime for conversion as they have familiarity with your organization,” Carpenter said. “By leveraging this segment, you can better understand donor motivations and customize your case to their interests and draft your appeal accordingly.”

The other addition to the GivingDNA platform targets cryptocurrency donors. Calling it a “game-changer for the industry,” the team says the new feature will allow nonprofits to determine whether there’s a need for them to accept crypto payments and identify donors that align with their mission.  

“Crypto cannot be ignored anymore, and we want to make it easier for marketers to target and serve those with this asset,” Rebecca Gregory Segovia, general manager of GivingDNA, said in a statement. “This exciting new feature will help fundraisers identify crypto donors already in their files and open channels for those donors to make a greater impact in the organization.”

Rebecca Gregory Segovia

A changing giving landscape

Pursuant sees the new features helping nonprofits navigate the changing giving landscape highlighted in its 2022 Giving Outlook, which was released late last month. In it, the company says philanthropic giving grew by 4% in 2021. However, when adjusted for inflation that growth is less than 1%. Heading into the end of this year, the report says that it’s seeing an increase in the average gift size, even while donor retention is down 10%.

For nonprofits to continue to attract donors, the report notes a number of “imperatives for growth,” noting that “fewer donors are giving more each year.” Among them, the report recommends diversifying the donor base, using new tracking and personalization tools for direct mail, and driving online giving through new ways to donate like cryptocurrencies and NFTs.

“Winners and losers will emerge based on how well a nonprofit can position itself as a charity of choice,” the 2022 Giving Outlook states. “The actions that we take today to connect with constituents—leaning in to both new strategies as well as the tried and true—will determine where organizations emerge. Knowing when to activate fundraising teams and tools at the right time will make the difference.”

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