A few years ago, my father-in-law passed away. In a conversation with my mother-in-law, she mentioned one of the hardest parts following his death was having to stop giving to the ministries they supported for years. She loved what those ministries did and got a lot of joy from being part of the team that empowered them to do their work. On top of the grief of losing her husband of almost 50 years, she had to make the very difficult choice to stop a large portion of her giving. Being curious about how other ministries follow up with non-current donors, I asked how these ministries reached out after she stopped giving. She paused and, with tears in her eyes, said none of them contacted her.
If you see an interruption in someone's normal giving pattern, reach out. Don't be that field worker that causes a grieving widow more tears because you were "too busy" (or too scared) to call about a lapse in giving. You're not a "debt collector" (as the Enemy would like you to think); You're a person who notices others and checks up on them when something changes. People usually don't want to stop giving. So, when they intentionally stop giving, usually something big has happened (death, loss, stolen credit card, furloughed from work, hospitalization, etc). There are also times when people unintentionally stop giving (ex: credit or debit cards expired). They don't even know their giving has had an interruption. We show these disruptions in giving as "suspended gifts" or "non-current donors." And it's valuable and encouraging to the supporter when you reach out promptly.
Here's how:
These conversations are encouraging because they’re a way to communicate care and concern to your supporter.
If you can, reach out by phone. If you can’t, maybe a Zoom, FaceTime, or Skype call? If that’s not possible, go for text or email.
The main thing you’ll want to communicate is:
You can even leave this on a voicemail. The key is to be heartfelt and concerned about them as a person. Some people honestly forget to send in their gift and are glad to put it in the mail right away. In that case, ask if they need a new giving envelope (you can email gift services and ask them to mail one to the donor). Some people have to stop giving (usually for financial reasons), and they are embarrassed to call and tell you. Your call gives them an opportunity to talk about it with you and gives you an opportunity to minister to them, thank them for their faithfulness, and pray over them. I had one field worker reach out to a non-current donor and discovered they were going through cancer treatments. It turned into an incredible opportunity for the field worker to minister to and pray for their donor.
No matter what, please take this opportunity to affirm their partnership, thank them for what they have been able to give, and let them know they are still a very valuable member of your ministry team. For many who are in a season where they can no longer give financially, they actually want to know other ways they can help you. It’s a human-nature thing… when we are forced to take something away, we long to replace it with something of equal value. So, please give your supporter this chance. Remind them of the other ways they can help you in ministry (prayer team, volunteer, connect you with others) and ask them if one or some of those seem interesting. Some will really like the idea of helping to “replace” their financial support by introducing you to others who might want to give.
Lastly, I’d encourage you to write out a quick script before calling. This will help you organize your thoughts and reduce anxiety during the call (or voicemail).