Nicole Tafoya is the Deputy Director of Annual Giving at MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, where she is responsible for the strategic development and implementation of the organization’s annual giving program. Her work focuses on maximizing donor acquisition, retention, and growth, while partnering closely with the Vice President of Community Engagement and the development team to advance MAZON’s diverse fundraising strategies. Nicole has extensive experience in development roles at organizations including Mem Global (formerly Moishe House), the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, and Columbia University. She is passionate about creating seamless, data-driven philanthropic experiences, and has deep expertise in audience segmentation, integrated multi-channel direct response campaigns, CRM analytics and optimization, and donor stewardship systems. A member of the Donor Relations Group’s 2024–2025 Distinguished Leaders Program and a mentor to emerging fundraising professionals, Nicole is dedicated to advancing the field of philanthropy. She holds a Professional Fundraising Certificate from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from the University of Southern California.
Economic Uncertainty, Donor Hesitation, and the Critical Role of Data
Today’s nonprofits face a challenging landscape. Donors are navigating a complex economic environment, balancing their desire to give with the realities of financial constraints. Recent data from Dunham + Company revealed that of the 14% of donors planning to reduce their giving, 38% cited personal financial constraints, and 27% pointed to inflation’s impact.
This trend is further supported by Giving USA’s study highlighting that donor sentiment weakened in 2024, primarily due to economic challenges affecting personal finances. Factors such as stock market volatility and inflation contributed to this decline in confidence.
With rising economic uncertainty, a growing need for individual donors within the nonprofit sector, and the fact that donors often support multiple organizations (with the average donor giving to 3-5), it’s more important than ever to have a development team focused on personalized, relationship-driven, responsive fundraising.
In focusing on responsive fundraising, it’s crucial to recognize the role that data plays in driving success. By leveraging data, organizations can more effectively target, build, and sustain relationships with their donors.
How to Start Using Donor Data (Without Getting Overwhelmed)
The mention of “data-driven strategies” can provoke anxiety for fundraisers. Many envision complex systems, specialized staff, or disjointed technology platforms. The truth is much simpler: you can start using the donor data you already have today to become more responsive.
Think of data as simply information that helps you understand your donors better. You don’t need sophisticated algorithms or a data science degree to begin making more informed decisions about your fundraising approach.
Four Steps to Start Using Donor Data Today
1. Identify what you have
Look at the donor data you already possess, whether it’s in a CRM, spreadsheets, or any other platform. Understand what information is already available, such as donation history, frequency, communication preferences, and engagement patterns. You might be surprised by how much you already know about your supporters.
2. Segment your donors strategically
Take stock of your donors and create meaningful segments based on various attributes. Group them by giving level, frequency, recency, acquisition source, or areas of interest. You don’t have to get too granular at first, just enough to create targeted messaging for different donor segments. Even simple segmentation can dramatically improve your fundraising results by ensuring the right message reaches the right donor at the right time.
3. Launch a small, segmented campaign
Create your first campaign, and start small with segmentation. When we first started segmenting, I ran a traditional mailing list, and then manually removed people who hadn’t given in several years. It was a tiny starting point, but it worked. Over time, we added more sophisticated tools, including AI, to help streamline this process. But for me, it all started with an Excel sheet and a dream.
4. Test and adapt
Test, measure, adjust, and adapt. Look at how your campaigns perform and use the data to adjust. Start small and iterate…data will tell you what works and what doesn’t. Recognize that not every strategy will work, and that’s okay, you’ll find what does.
Remember, every major nonprofit data strategy started somewhere simple. The difference between organizations that successfully use donor data and those that don’t isn’t resources, it’s the willingness to begin and a diligence to continue.
Personalization at Scale Starts With Data
Personalization is a crucial element of responsive fundraising. Every donor should feel that the organization understands them and that their contribution plays an important role in its success. To deliver this kind of personalization at scale, we must rely on data-driven segmentation strategies.
Segment your donors based on past engagement and giving behaviors. Analyze past interactions to craft messages that resonate, ensuring each interaction feels personal, even if you’re engaging large groups.
Implement a “closed-loop system”: Gather, track, and analyze data. Use it to segment lists and monitor success, then learn, refine, and improve over time. Data analysis should constantly be a work in progress.
Here’s what this approach could look like in practice:
An organization notices a group of donors who have consistently supported education-focused campaigns over the past two years. Ahead of launching a new scholarship fund, the team creates a segment specifically for these donors. They send a tailored email that references the donor’s shared interest in expanding access to education and invite them to be among the first to support the new initiative. The response rate from this group will likely be significantly higher than average, given the personalization to the passion and interest of the donor.
This personalization isn’t just about addressing donors by name, it’s about recognizing their history with your organization and acknowledging the specific ways they’ve chosen to engage in the past.
From Push to Pull: A Better Way to Engage Donors
The traditional “push” approach in fundraising, sending one-to-all communication to donors with the same messaging, is shifting toward more subtle, sustainable “pull” strategies. Data is key in this transition, as it helps nonprofits understand when and how to engage donors most effectively.
Use data to track behaviors and identify the best times to engage with each donor. Look at email open rates, actions taken on your site, or engagement in prior campaigns to decide how to approach them.
This approach focuses on engaging donors based on their demonstrated interests and behaviors rather than strictly organizational needs. It’s about listening to what donors are telling you through their actions, then responding accordingly.
Listening With Data Leads to Stronger Relationships
The responsive fundraising framework revolves around four key actions: Listen, Connect, Suggest, and Learn. Data is the foundation that makes truly listening to your donors possible at scale.
When we talk about “listening” in fundraising, we’re referring to more than just reading donor emails or having conversations at events. True listening means systematically tracking, analyzing, and understanding donor behavior to identify patterns and preferences.
By integrating data into your development strategy, you’re setting yourself up for more effective engagement, better decision-making, and improved donor retention. The power of data can transform your fundraising efforts and help you create long-lasting relationships with your supporters.
Start small, focus on what you already have, and remember that every data-driven fundraising program began with a single step. Your donors are already telling you what they care about through their actions, it’s time to start listening.
