What were the survey questions?

Who participated in the 2016 IDB survey?

155 organizations with budgets under $2 million participated in the 2016 survey. These organizations are from across the US:

Organizations include:

  • Mali Health

  • Manatee County Habitat for Humanity

  • Maplewood Area Historical Society

  • Mass Alliance

  • Memphis Black Arts Alliance

  • Mighty Writers

  • Missoula Writing Collaborative

  • Mobility Worldwide MO - Columbia

  • NARAL Pro-Choice NC

  • Natural Heritage Land Trust

  • Nature Center at Shaker Lakes

  • NC League of Conservation Voters

  • NC WARN

  • Neurofibromatosis (NF) Midwest

  • Neurofit Networks, Inc. dba Parkinson Wellness Recovery

  • Oak Park Regional Housing Center

  • Oakland Youth Chorus

  • Ogden Nature Center

  • Oregon Head Start Association

  • Patners for Youth Opportunity

  • Peace Community Center

  • Philadelphia Area Disc Alliance

  • Philippine American Foundation for Charities

  • Portage Park District Foundation

  • Project Help

  • Project: LEARN of Medina County (Ohio)

  • Purple Asparagus

  • Queen Anne Food Bank

  • Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project - QWOCMAP

  • Rain for the Sahara

  • Razom for Ukraine

  • Rebuild Africa, Inc.

  • The Reconnect

  • Resource Center for Women and Ministry in the South

  • Sadie Nash Leadership Project

  • San Diego Coastkeeper

  • Santa Fe Farmers' Market Institute

  • SeaShare

  • Seattle Community Law Center

  • Shoes That Fit

  • Sierra Service Project

  • Silver Spring (MD) Village, Inc.

  • Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

  • Snow City Arts

  • Sonnenberg Gardens and Mansion

  • Sound Rivers

  • Southside Community Kitchen

  • Southwest Boston Community Development Corporation

  • Spirit in Action International

  • SPOON

  • States United to Prevent Gun Violence

  • Street Youth Ministry of Austin

  • Student Action with Farmworkers

  • Students for Sensible Drug Policy

  • SunServe

  • TahDah Foundation

  • Tandem, Partners in Early Learning

  • Teen Success, Inc.

  • Thanks, but we don't want to be listed

  • A Time to Heal

  • Toxic Free NC

  • Triangle Land Conservancy

  • Turtle Island Restoration Network

  • Uneed2

  • United Through Reading

  • Voice of Care

  • Voices Together

  • Volunteer Center of Kern County

  • WakeUP Wake County

  • Washington Square Park Conservancy

  • Washington Wine Industry Foundation

  • The Welcome Project

  • Wild Utah Project

  • Winyah Rivers Foundation, Inc.

  • Workers' Dignity / Dignidad Obrera

  • Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation

  • Youth Orchestra of Greater Columbus

  • 24th Street Theatre

  • Act for Great Apes

  • ADDA-SR

  • Agape Asia Foundation

  • American Legion Post 101 - Somers, CT

  • Animal Welfare Society of New Jersey

  • Arise Citizens' Policy Project

  • Association of Nature Center Administrators

  • Bergen Volunteer Medical Initiative

  • Bettendorf Public Library Foundation

  • The Boys and Girls Club of Chaffee County Colorado

  • Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center

  • Brakebill Community Development Corp

  • Camp of Champions USA

  • Campaign for Southern Equality

  • Cascades Raptor Center

  • Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation

  • Cause Effective

  • CEA

  • The Center for Wisdoms Women

  • The Child & Family Network Centers

  • Clean Air Carolina

  • Clean Air: Organizing for Health and Justice

  • Coastal Watershed Council

  • College Settlement of Philadelphia

  • Colorado Sierra Club

  • Columbia Riverkeeper

  • Community Advocates for Family & Youth (CAFY)

  • Community Foundation of the Gunnison Valley

  • Community Foundation of West Kentucky

  • Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA)

  • CUESA

  • Dan's House of Hope

  • David Brower Center

  • Delaware Speech and Hearing Center

  • Detroit RiverFront Conservancy

  • Dismas Ministry

  • Dream Catcher Stables, Inc

  • Dream Come True Foundation

  • Eastern Shore of Virginia Habitat for Humanity

  • Eastern Shore Regional Library Foundation

  • El Pueblo, Inc.

  • Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association

  • Eno River Association

  • Executive Service Corps of Southern California

  • Families Together, Inc.

  • Farrington Nature Linc

  • Fayette County Association for the Blind

  • First Baptist Church of Holliston

  • Freedom Builders of America

  • Freshwater Future

  • Friends of North Creek Forest

  • GateWay Second Chance Foundation

  • Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa

  • GleanKY

  • Global Birthing Home Foundation

  • Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation

  • Grace Community's Resource and Empowerment Center, Inc.

  • Graceful Dynamics Consulting

  • Grassroots Institute for Fundraising Training

  • Greenbelt Land Trust

  • The Hope Project

  • Human Services Center Corporation

  • Idealware

  • Intermountain Impact Investments

  • International Essential Tremor Foundation

  • Jeannette Rankin Peace and Resource Center

  • John Bunker Sands Wetland Center

  • Jumping Mouse Children's Center

  • Kino Border Initiative

  • Lake Erie Nature & Science Center

  • Land Conservancy of West Michigan

  • The Land Trust of North Alabama

  • Laudholm Trust

  • LGBT Center of Raleigh

  • LIKEME Lighthouse-KC, Inc.

  • Linda Loring Nature Foundation

  • Literacy Connects

How many organizations of each size participated in the survey?

We had a good distribution of organizations across all sizes, including:

  • 41 with revenues under $200,000 (small)

  • 48 with revenues between $200,000 and $500,000 (medium)

  • 32 with revenues between $500,000 and $1,000,000 (large)

  • 34 with revenues between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 (super)

What's the median number of donors and average gift?

The median number of donors is 257 and the median average gift is $333. These numbers are significantly lower than the averages, meaning that there are more organizations reporting smaller numbers of donors or average gifts, but a few organizations with large numbers that are influencing the average.  

It seems like recurring donations fell in 2016? Is that the case?

The numbers are slightly down in many ways: percentage of individual donor revenue, average gift, and overall revenue. However, the number of donors giving recurring gifts is up from 9% to 11%. This could be an insignificant fluctuation in the numbers within the margin of error for this data poll. It may also be the a result of the increasing amount of credit cards fraud and donors having to re-engage with organizations to update their information.

How do recurring donations impact retention rate?

They don't! Retention rates seem to hover at 60% for organizations of all sizes, issues, and strategies. For those organizations who have recurring donation programs, the retention rate is 60.19%, for those without the retention rate is 61.76% - a negligible difference!

What is the breakdown by size of organization for online donations?

Organizational size has a limited impact on online donations, as can be seen below. The average organization raises 24% of their revenue online, 4 out of 10 of their donors give online, and the average online gift is $300.

Size  |  % Individual Donor Revenue Raised Online |  % of Donors Giving Online  |  Average Online Gift
Small      |  25%  |  40%  |  $335
Medium  | 26%  |  40%  |  $295
Large     |  24%  |  41%  |  $222
Super     |  18%  |  39%  |  $342
Average |  24%  |  40%  |  $300