Emergency-to-Sustainer Conversion Email & SMS Series
A 90-day post-disaster nurture series that converts one-time emergency donors into monthly sustainers or child sponsors before they lapse — the retention bridge for the sector's leakiest acquisition channel.
Draft: pending review
This starter document is signed off by Nonprofit fundraising counsel (solicitation/consent) + CFRE before it ships. The guardrails below define that review.
What’s inside
- Days 0-7: gratitude + immediate impact proof, no second ask
- Days 8-45: 'the crisis isn't over' bridge from acute response to long-term recovery
- Days 46-90: the sustainer/sponsorship conversion ask with monthly-giving value proposition
- Conversion KPIs: emergency-donor-to-sustainer rate, 90-day retention, second-gift latency
Legal & ethical guardrails
The sector-specific compliance points this document must honor.
- Restricted-fund integrity: if the emergency gift was solicited for a specific disaster, conversion messaging must be transparent that monthly gifts support broader work
- Channel consent: SMS/email nurture must honor the donor's jurisdiction rules (TCPA in the US; ePrivacy/GDPR in the EU/UK)
- Do not overstate ongoing need in a resolved emergency to sustain urgency — a deceptive-solicitation risk
- Cross-border data protection for donor PII processed by overseas providers or field offices
Held for professional review.
The native DOCX and full working text ship only after sign-off by Nonprofit fundraising counsel (solicitation/consent) + CFRE on this exact version. The summary and review requirements remain visible in the meantime.
Not legal advice. Not legal, tax, or accounting advice. The Fundraising Co. provides educational fundraising materials and is not a law firm; nothing here creates an attorney–client relationship or substitutes for advice from professionals licensed in your jurisdiction. Laws and IRS rules vary by state and change over time. Review every document with qualified counsel before use.