What the Fundraising 276: Unlocking Donor Motivation Through Behavioral Science with Kevin Schulman
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Dec 30, 2025 Kevin Schulman, founder of DonorVoice and behavioral science fundraising expert, explains why generosity starts with understanding values. He explores how behavioral science deepens donor insight. He describes testing for real incremental impact, personalizing by behavioral signals, and attracting donors by aligning messages to motives.
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Giving Is Not Just About The Ask
- Fundraising has been built on the false premise that people give because we ask, which created a volume-and-sameness model.
- That led to mass identical appeals, gimmicks like premiums and faux deadlines, and diminishing returns as acquisition got harder.
Measure Incremental Lift Not Just Attribution
- Use growth (revenue or donor count) as your fundraising North Star and measure true incremental lift from new tactics.
- Run split tests that include control groups who don't receive the new channel to see if bank account totals grow over time.
Evaluate Channels Over A Longer Runway
- When testing omni‑channel tactics like SMS, evaluate longer windows (e.g., six months) and compare bank-account totals between test and control.
- Don’t rely on platform click or short-term attribution; bank account balance is the ultimate metric.