How to deepen donor connections in a more cautious giving climate

At the beginning of this year, we hosted our 2026 Advancement Marketing Services Partner Summit. In conversations with advancement leaders from across the country, one central question stood out to me: how do we build and sustain meaningful connections with today’s donors?

Many leaders talked about the challenge of donors treating giving as a one-off transaction and how difficult it has become to retain them over time. Others shared a desire to move toward a more investor-oriented mindset across all giving levels. Together, these conversations point to a deeper (and necessary) shift in how advancement teams think about engaging alumni and donors.

In this blog, I’ll explore why building connections has become a central focus for advancement teams today and highlight a few areas where small shifts can make a meaningful difference.

Why connection matters more than ever

Connecting with today’s donors starts with communicating impact clearly and framing giving as an investment in the mission.

With rising costs and constant exposure to urgent needs in the news and on social media, donors are more cautious about how, where, and when they give. They want their support to align with a mission they believe in and to make a real difference.

In this environment, higher education can feel less urgent by comparison. That means advancement teams have to be more intentional about how we communicate impact and how donors understand their role in our work. When giving is framed as participation in making real change rather than a one-time transaction, it becomes easier to build deeper, more meaningful relationships and sustain support.

Three areas to strengthen your relationships with donors  

To build stronger connections with donors, advancement teams need to focus on a few key moments in the donor journey.

1. Use giving days to introduce donors to your mission

Giving days are one of the most effective acquisition tools in advancement, bringing new donors into your ecosystem at a scale that’s hard to replicate elsewhere. Industry benchmarks show that as many as 70% of first-time donors never give again, which makes it critical that giving days introduce donors not just to an institution, but to a mission they feel invested in.

Rather than positioning the day as broad institutional support, consider anchoring it around a clear, mission-critical priority. That might include helping students stay enrolled during financial disruption, expanding access to career preparation, supporting student mental health, or addressing basic needs like food or housing insecurity. This helps make the mission tangible and shows how the institution is responding to real needs right now.

It’s also worth being intentional about how impact is structured across giving levels. One level could help a student cover the cost of a required textbook. The next might fund an entire course or semester for a student. A higher level might underwrite a program so that every student who qualifies can participate. This helps donors connect the dots on what their donation amount makes possible and creates a stronger foundation for follow-up and stewardship.

2. Use stewardship and donor relations to keep donors connected to the mission

Stewardship is no longer just a courtesy after a gift. As EAB’s 2025 Advancement Leaders Playbook shows, concerns about declining donor counts have made retention and ongoing engagement central to long-term sustainability. Stewardship is where donors decide whether their support felt worthwhile and whether they want to stay connected.

Rather than broad updates or generic reports, consider using stewardship to show visible progress. Donors want to see what changed because they donated. That might be helping a student cover an unexpected expense to stay enrolled, expanding access to research initiatives, or stabilizing a critical support service during a period of need. The goal is to show how donor support moved the mission forward.

Effective stewardship also lays the groundwork for ongoing donor relations. Because impact doesn’t happen all at once, donors should be kept informed as work unfolds. Updates share what has happened so far, what’s still in motion, and what comes next. This continued communication helps donors stay engaged with the mission and reinforces the idea that their support is part of sustained, meaningful work rather than a one-time transaction.

3. Use leadership giving to deepen commitment to the mission

Leadership donors have the potential to contribute up to 40-50% of your fundraising revenue, which makes this stage of the journey especially important. This is when donors show they are both deeply committed to the institution and able to do more. 

Leadership giving works best when it’s grounded in progress donors have already helped make. Conversations can begin with what prior support enabled and where that work is headed next. This frames leadership giving as a continuation of impact rather than a new or separate request and makes it clear that the donor’s history matters.

Rather than centering leadership giving on recognition or dollar thresholds alone, each increase should be tied to a clear change in what the institution can deliver. One level might ensure a scholarship is fully funded year after year, the next might guarantee access to a high-demand program for every qualified student, and a higher level might provide the stability needed to expand that program long term. This helps donors understand how deeper commitment changes outcomes and makes increased support feel purposeful.

So much of our work in advancement today comes down to how we connect with people. In an environment where donors are more thoughtful about where they support, the way we help people understand our mission and impact really matters. When we take the time to show what their support makes possible and frame giving as an investment in real change, relationships deepen and become the foundation for steadier, more sustainable support.

Lurene Kubincanek

Managing Director, Partner Success

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