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Build Your Fundraising Metrics Dashboard: Free Template Inside!
Imagine embarking on a road trip without a map or GPS. You'd be driving aimlessly, hoping to end up at the right destination. This is exactly what fundraising feels like without tracking metrics. When you track your fundraising metrics, they act as your GPS, guiding your decisions, showing you the best routes, and alerting you to what's not working. Metrics ensure you're always on the right path, making informed decisions that drive your mission forward.
This blog will be your roadmap, guiding you through the essential metrics to track and showing you how to create and use a powerful dashboard to make data-driven decisions. Get ready to unlock the full potential of your fundraising campaigns and drive your mission forward.
For a step-by-step walkthrough, watch our recent webinar on Mastering Fundraising Metrics.
Types of Metrics
With so many different types of metrics available, it can be overwhelming to decide which ones to focus on. To ensure you have a balanced and holistic view of your organization, it's essential to categorize these metrics effectively. Here are the three categories you should concentrate on:
- Metrics the Board Wants to Track: These are the high-level metrics your board is keen to see each quarter. Examples include total funds raised, fundraising ROI, and donor retention rate.
- Management Metrics: These metrics help you and your team understand the day-to-day impact of your initiatives. Examples include average gift size and donor conversion rate.
- Benchmarks in Your Industry: These metrics allow you to compare your performance against industry standards and trends.
By breaking metrics into these categories, you can see how each serves a different purpose but all contribute to a complete picture of your fundraising success.
Examples of Metrics
Now that we’ve categorized the types of metrics you should track, let’s dive into some specific examples and how they are calculated. While there are many metrics you could track, focusing on these four will give you a strong start in understanding the health of your organization. For a comprehensive list of metrics you can consider tracking, see our Master Fundraising Metrics List in our Fundraising Metrics Toolkit!
Free Fundraising Metrics Toolkit
Learn how to effectively track and analyze fundraising metrics, gain insights into the key metrics that matter most, and unlock the power of data visualization.
Here are the key fundraising metrics that need your attention:
1. Donor Retention Rate
- What it is: Percentage of donors who give again the following year.
- How to calculate it: (Number of donors who donate this year ÷ Number of donors who donated last year) * 100
- Example: If 122 out of 234 donors from last year gave again this year, your retention rate is (122 ÷ 234) * 100 = 52%.
Why it matters: Retaining donors is far more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. A high donor retention rate indicates that your organization is building strong, lasting relationships with supporters, leading to sustainable income streams. Learn more about donor retention strategies
2. Donor Lifetime Value (LTV)
- What it is: Prediction of how much revenue a single donor will generate over their lifetime with your organization.
- How to calculate it: Length of time a donor remains active * Average donation * Frequency of donations
- Example: If a donor gives $25 monthly for 4 years, their LTV is 25 * 12 * 4 = $1,200.
Why it matters: LTV helps you understand the long-term value of your donors. It highlights the importance of nurturing donor relationships over time, which can lead to significant revenue and support. Learn more about calculating donor LTV.
3. Average Gift Size
- What it is: The average size of donations received.
- How to calculate it: Total dollars given ÷ Total number of gifts
- Example: If major donors made 35 donations worth $30,000 in 2019, the average gift size is 30,000 ÷ 35 = $857.
Why it matters: Knowing your average gift size helps you tailor your fundraising strategies. It enables you to set appropriate donation levels and craft targeted asks that resonate with different donor segments.
4. Donation Growth Rate
- What it is: Annual overall rate of growth in donations.
- How to calculate it: ((Donations amount this year – Donations amount last year) ÷ Donations amount last year) * 100
- Example: If you received $170,000 in 2018 and $220,000 in 2019, the growth rate is ((220,000 – 170,000) ÷ 170,000) * 100 = 29%
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Why it matters: This metric shows whether your fundraising efforts are yielding results. A positive growth rate indicates that your strategies are effective and that you’re gaining traction year over year.
Creating a Dashboard to Track Metrics
Now that we’ve identified key metrics, it’s time to create a dashboard—a powerful data visualization tool that consolidates and displays the status of your fundraising metrics. A well-designed dashboard provides a snapshot of your current performance and helps you identify trends, spot issues, and make informed decisions.
Key Elements to Include in Your Dashboard:
Metric Name: Clearly label each metric for easy reference.
Definition: Describe what each metric measures and how it’s calculated. This ensures everyone understands the metric and its relevance.
Why It Matters: Explain the importance of each metric to your organization. This helps contextualize the data and highlights its significance.
Time Frame: Indicate the time period each metric covers (e.g., monthly, quarterly). Consistent review periods are crucial for accurate trend analysis.
Measurement Method: Detail the source of the data (e.g., CRM, accounting systems) and any calculations used. This ensures consistency and reliability.
Benchmark: Include industry benchmarks to compare your performance against similar organizations. This provides context and helps gauge your performance. Industry benchmark reports: FEP Benchmark Reports, M+R Benchmarks Studies, NextAfter Benchmark Reports.
Goal: Specify the targets your team is striving towards for each metric. Clear goals drive focused efforts.
Analyze Metrics Using Your Dashboard
Once your metrics are set up in a dashboard, the next step is to analyze these metrics over time. Collecting data is one thing, but making sense of it and using it to drive your strategy is where the magic happens. Here’s how you can do that:
Track Trends: Start by looking for trends in your data. Are your key metrics moving up, down, or staying flat over time? Look for patterns or seasonal changes.
- Example: If you see donations always spike in December, that’s a trend you can plan for.
Compare Periods: Compare your metrics across different time periods. Look at month-over-month, quarter-over-quarter, or year-over-year changes to see your growth or decline.
- Example: Compare your ‘Total Funds Raised’ this quarter to the same quarter last year to see if you’ve improved.
Identify Volatility: Check how much your metrics fluctuate. If they are all over the place, it might mean instability, while low volatility can show consistency.
- Example: If your ‘Donor Retention Rate’ is all over the place, investigate why some months are better than others.
Correlation Analysis: See how different metrics relate to each other. If one metric goes up, does another follow? This helps you understand what drives your success.
- Example: You might find that an increase in ‘Email Open Rate’ correlates with an increase in ‘Total Funds Raised.’
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Taking Action: Your Next Steps
Now that you understand the key metrics to track, it’s time to put this knowledge into action. Follow these steps:
1. Download Our FREE Resources
Learn how to effectively track and analyze fundraising metrics, gain insights into the key metrics that matter most, and unlock the power of data visualization.
2. Streamline with Keela
Let Keela handle everything for you. With our extensive library of metrics, you can create a customized metrics dashboard that automatically tracks all your data from your CRM. Gain deep insights into your fundraising performance, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions with ease.
