Alex Aggidis is Head of Growth Marketing at Fundraising Everywhere. She leads on brand, creative development, marketing planning and strategy. Alex worked as a fundraiser for over 10 years in the UK charity sector, across Corporates, Major Gifts and Product Innovation, before specialising in Individual Giving. During her time at Scope, Alex and her team won 3 Gold and 1 Silver DMA awards across 4 separate categories. Alex won a place as a ‘rising star’ to speak at SOFII’s ‘I Wish I Though Of That’ and won 2nd place overall. Before joining Fundraising Everywhere Alex was Interim Head of Individual Giving at Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
In the world of fundraising, Individual Giving remains a critical pillar of support for charities of all sizes. But as we move towards 2025, the landscape is shifting, presenting both challenges and opportunities for fundraisers.
As economic uncertainties linger, donor expectations evolve, and digital engagement grows, as fundraisers we must adapt and innovate to ensure our strategies remain effective.
But, as we know, this stuff isn’t easy. And fundraisers are tired. It feels a bit like we’re at the foot of the highest mountain, and, despite our efforts, the summit remains just beyond reach.
The Current State of Individual Giving Fundraising
In recent years, Individual Giving has experienced a bit of a rollercoaster. Economic pressures, driven by factors such as inflation and the cost-of-living crisis, have placed strain on donors.
Many supporters are finding it harder to maintain the same level of giving they once did.
Fundraisers are now trying to manage fewer regular gifts, regulatory changes, increased donor fatigue, and a competitive environment in a context where the need for support is higher than ever.
The rise of digital engagement also means that fundraisers must navigate new tools and platforms, while donors expect seamless, personalised experiences.
In addition, transparency and accountability are at the forefront of donors’ minds. They want to know how their contributions are making a difference and increasingly seek a direct connection with the causes they support.
The Difficulties Facing Fundraisers Today
1. Donor Retention: Keeping donors engaged over the long term is a significant challenge. With more charities competing for attention, fundraisers are grappling with how to stand out and nurture meaningful relationships.
2. Shifting Donor Demographics: The older generations, historically the most reliable supporters of individual giving, are beginning to step back from active donation, while younger generations are emerging as potential donors. However, their giving habits are different—they prioritise impact, demand digital convenience, and expect deeper connections with the causes they support.
3. Budget Constraints: Many charities are operating on tighter budgets, with less capacity to invest in innovative campaigns or technology upgrades. This makes it harder to keep up with donor expectations and fundraising best practices.
4. Digital Transformation: While digital tools offer immense potential, they also pose a steep learning curve. Understanding how to harness the power of digital platforms to create a cohesive donor experience is a challenge that fundraisers are increasingly facing.
Preparing for 2025: What Fundraisers Should Be Thinking About
To succeed in 2025 and beyond, fundraisers need to think ahead, strategise, and invest in areas that will future-proof efforts. Here are a few areas to start:
- Deepening Donor Relationships: Fundraisers should focus on personalisation, using data-driven insights to offer tailored experiences. This could mean segmenting donor communications, offering exclusive updates, or providing more opportunities for feedback and involvement.
- Diversifying Channels: Fundraisers should explore multi-channel approaches, using email, direct mail, paid social, telephone, SMS, dialogue, and even emerging technologies like AI to reach different donor segments.
- Emphasising Transparency: Donors want to know exactly how their money is being used and the impact it’s having. Clear communication, frequent thanking and reporting are key to maintaining trust and ensuring long-term support.
- Focusing on Emerging Donors: Engaging millennials and Gen Z requires adapting to their preferences. This includes creating more interactive digital experiences and offering easy, mobile-first donation options.
The Solution
Fundraisers may feel overwhelmed by the current situation, but you don’t have to tackle challenges alone, help is at hand.
By joining a community of fellow fundraisers, you can tap into a wealth of shared knowledge, advice, and support. Platforms like Fundraising Everywhere offer access to a global network where you can connect with peers, share insights, and collaborate on solutions to common challenges.
Additionally, you can find free resources dotted all around the internet, webinars, guides, and forums. Linkedin, for instance, has a whole host of peers and experts ready and waiting to connect with you. We also have a weekly newsletter, that shares fundraising tips, insights and support.
Here at Fundraising Everywhere, we also have the 5th edition of the Individual Giving Conference, coming up on October 17th 2024. Its been expertly curated to address the very pain points discussed in this blog, and equip fundraisers with the tools and strategies you need to thrive.
With 3 rooms; insights & people, acquisition and retention, there’s something for everyone across the whole Individual Giving space.
Including sessions like:
How To Raise £1 million In 6 Weeks
Speaker: Anna-Leigh Purland. Learn how Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex raised the £1M to buy a new lifesaving helicopter in just 6 weeks, via a multi channel campaign including warm mail, door drops and press ads.
Supporter Welcome Journeys: Top Tips to Build Strong Donor Relationships
Speaker: Claire Donner, More Onion. Learn how to design a welcome journey that turns new supporters into your biggest advocates. With over a decade of insights from More Onion, Claire will guide you through practical steps to refine your current approach or start fresh.
How Action Tutoring Saves Time And Energy With AI
Speaker: Molly Cottrill, Senior Fundraising Coordinator at Action Tutoring. In this session, discover Action Tutoring’s AI journey, learn how they are using generative AI, and their plans are for safely using AI going forward.
Growing Your Peer To Peer Campaigns – Engage More Donors And Raise More Money
Speaker: Muna Hussen, UK Country Lead at Raisely. This session will take the confusion out of exactly what you need to do, to deliver on great peer to peer campaigns!
Building Your Stewardship Programme From The Ground Up
Speaker: Paul Taylor, Senior CRM Specialist at JustGiving. In this session, JustGiving’s Head of CRM, Paul Taylor will take you through planning, building, crafting and sending the perfect email.
Individual Giving Conference will provide practical, actionable takeaways to help you navigate the unique challenges of 2024 and beyond.
Whether it’s learning how to deepen donor relationships or understanding the latest in digital innovation, this conference offers the insights fundraisers need to stay ahead.
As we look to 2025, it’s time to rethink traditional approaches, embrace innovation, and equip ourselves with the tools to succeed.
