This summer, we hosted the 2025 DonorPerfect Conference—our annual free, two-day virtual conference that brings you the latest news, pressing topics, and best practices in nonprofit fundraising. This year’s conference convened over 20 sessions around the theme of Connection: speakers offered strategic insights and practical tools for building intentional, authentic relationships that deepen donor engagement and drive impact. Fundraising expert Mallory Erickson said it best in her opening remarks:
“Donor connection is about human connection.”
WATCH MALLORY’S TALKCouldn’t make it to the 2025 DonorPerfect Conference? Or simply want to follow up on a missed connection? Have no fear: in the sections that follow, we highlight key lessons from this year’s conference that will ignite your fundraising efforts in 2025 and beyond. Read on!
Authentic donor engagement
Effective fundraising is about building meaningful connections—and connection begins with people, not processes. Our speakers explored the human side of fundraising, emphasizing the importance of finding alignment with your values, your purpose, and your donors. How do we build trust with our donors and our community? How can we tell stories that resonate and inspire?
“Alignment determines your assignment.”
– Floyd Jones
Here are some of the talks that inspired us:
- Mallory Erickson and Floyd Jones offered moving personal anecdotes that demonstrated how investing in our relationships—and staying true to our passion—can lead to lasting impact.
- T. Clay Buck explained why an effective donor retention plan must be built on shared values rather than impersonal exchanges.
- Tammy Zonker challenged attendees to reconnect with the why of their work and embrace bold, audacious goals.
Fundraising operations to drive nonprofit growth
Impactful donor engagement may begin with authentic connection, but—as we’re all too aware—the growth of a nonprofit organization relies on a strong operational foundation. Several sessions addressed practical tools for ensuring long-term stability: strategic planning, effective board governance, and data-informed best practices. When an organization has these solid building blocks, it is better poised to adapt and grow well into the future.
“Create the things you know you can sustain.”
– Robbe Healy
Speakers shared actionable ways to balance financial health, donor-driven initiatives, and competing stakeholder priorities:
- Robbe Healy discussed how to leverage donor demographic data, board member engagement, and volunteer commitment in times of crisis or uncertainty.
- Michael Blanton shared tips for aligning fundraising practices with financial strategies to drive healthy growth.
- Joe Scanlan offered strategies for communicating with board members about the ways AI can align with your organizational mission and transform impact.
Staying connected with tech
The right fundraising technology should complement and enhance the human work of relationship, not replace it. As advances in AI, machine learning, and data analytics continue to reshape the nonprofit sector, several sessions addressed how integrating digital tools into an organization’s daily workflow and donor engagement strategy can deepen connections. When nonprofit organizations are intentional and aligned in their approach to fundraising tech, their missions—and the people they serve—can thrive and grow.
“Governance and evaluation are the key pillars that we need if we want to do good with AI.”
– Meena Das
We heard from speakers on digital best practices and mission-informed integrations:
- Vanessa Chase Lockshin outlined the dos and don’ts of writing attention-grabbing emails, from subject line to postscript.
- Meena Das offered a compelling example of how responsible, equity-informed governance and rigorous evaluation are essential for connecting AI with your nonprofit mission.
- Sarah TeDesco demonstrated how predictive and generative AI can work with, not against, time-tested prospect screening methods to save time and improve accuracy.
- Matthew Montoya walked us through how data-driven digital marketing tools like Constant Contact can help you tailor your storytelling to particular audiences—and boost donor engagement as a result.
Tapping into recurring giving
Recurring giving is more than just a reliable source of revenue for your nonprofit. It’s also an expression of alignment in values and trust in your mission. A donor who gives on a consistent basis—monthly or quarterly, say—is committing to a lasting partnership that will help sustain (and grow) your nonprofit organization in the long term. These sessions offered practical strategies for shifting organizational mindset, making impactful first impressions, and updating our donation asks to inspire recurring giving—and deepen connection.
On average, recurring donors give 42% more than one-time donors. DonorPerfect Online Forms make monthly giving an easy way for donors to support your mission year-round.
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Here are a few important recurring-giving takeaways:
- Josh Bloomfield emphasized the importance of setting the emotional groundwork to effectively engage a devoted donor: appealing to heart before dollars, connection before conversion, and delight before data.
- Dana Snyder showed us how simple changes to the language on our landing pages and donation forms can reframe monthly giving as an opportunity for ongoing impact, belonging, and personal stake in your mission.
- Sean McClellan demonstrated how to leverage your fundraising CRM to identify monthly giving prospects, report on data-informed campaign goals, and design simple and effective donation forms to boost your monthly giving program.
No matter the size of your nonprofit organization, the strength of your fundraising depends on the strength of your relationships. This year’s DonorPerfect Conference offered key frameworks and best practices for building donor connections that will grow with your organization. We hope you’ll join us next year!
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The secret to building deep, lasting connections? A nonprofit CRM that works for you. DonorPerfect’s robust integrations, smart automations, and customized reporting and analytics put your donor data to work, so you can focus on what matters: your mission, and the people who help it thrive.
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