Get Your Donors Off the Sidelines and Into the Game. Engage your donors!

Tom Iselin
Jun 29, 2016
3 min read

Updated: Dec 13, 2025

Engaged donors make loyal donors, and loyal donors make generous donors. Learn how now!

Get Your Donors Off the Sidelines and Into the Game. Engage your donors!

Did you ever play on a sports team where you felt invisible?

I did.

In sixth grade, I was the smallest kid on my baseball team. Compared to the other boys, I looked less like an athlete and more like a kid borrowed from the wrong age group. The bat felt oversized. The uniform swallowed me. My cap never stayed put.

And I spent a lot of time on the bench.

What my coach didn’t see was everything happening off the field. I was practicing hitting, throwing, and fielding several days a week in pickup games at a park near my house. I was improving. I was committed. I was ready.

I just wasn’t being invited into the game.

Now here’s the real question:Is it possible some of your major donors feel the exact same way?

When Donors Want to Play but Stay Benched

Many donors are more than checkbooks.

They have:

Skills
Influence
Networks
Time
Experience

And yet, too often they’re treated like spectators—asked to give, thanked politely, and then kept at arm’s length.

They care deeply about your mission.They want to contribute more.They just don’t know how—or haven’t been asked.

Why Donor Engagement Changes Everything

Here’s the progression every nonprofit leader should understand:

Engaged donors become loyal donors
Loyal donors become generous donors

That’s not theory—it’s reality.

When donors are involved in meaningful ways, they deepen their emotional connection to:

The mission
The people served
The outcomes created

That emotional connection is what sustains giving over time.

The Common (and Costly) Mistake Nonprofits Make

Many organizations follow a familiar pattern:

Ask for a gift
Send a thank-you
Share occasional updates via email

That approach may inform donors—but it doesn’t involve them.

And donors who aren’t involved eventually drift away.

This leads to:

Higher attrition rates
Lower lifetime donor value
Confusion among nonprofit leaders wondering why support is slipping

Information Is Not the Same as Involvement

Email updates and newsletters have their place—but they are not engagement strategies.

Involvement means:

Inviting donors into experiences
Asking for input
Offering meaningful roles
Recognizing individual strengths and interests

Not every donor wants this—but more and more do, across all giving levels.

Your Role as the Coach

If you want donors off the sidelines, you need to think like a great coach.

That means:

Learning what each donor is good at
Understanding how they want to contribute
Encouraging participation
Aligning their efforts with your mission
Celebrating wins together

When donors feel like part of the team, they show up differently.

They don’t just give more—they stay longer.

Key Takeaways

Many donors want deeper involvement, not just updates
Engagement leads to loyalty, and loyalty leads to generosity
Information alone does not create connection
Treat donors like team members, not spectators
Great nonprofit leaders act like great coaches

Summary

Some donors are sitting on the sidelines—not because they lack interest, but because they haven’t been invited into the game.

Your job is to notice them.Learn their strengths.Invite them to participate.And help them contribute in meaningful ways.

When you do, your nonprofit doesn’t just survive—it wins.

Tom Iselin

Rated One of America’s Best Board Retreat

and Strategic Planning Facilitators

About the Author

Tom Iselin is recognized as one of America’s leading authorities on high-performance nonprofits. He has built nine sector-leading nonprofits and two software companies, written six books, sits on multiple boards, and has been rated one of America’s Best Board Retreat and Strategic Planning Facilitators. His work on nonprofit strategy, board leadership, and culture has been featured on CNN, Nightline, and in Newsweek.

Tom is the president of First Things First, a firm specializing in board retreats, strategic planning services, fundraising strategy, and executive coaching for nonprofit CEOs.

Board Retreats & Strategic Planning

If you’re looking for a board retreat facilitator or strategic planning facilitator who has been in the trenches and understands real-world nonprofit challenges, Tom can help your board gain clarity, build alignment, and create an actionable plan that improves performance and impact. His sessions propel organizations to the next level of performance and impact . . . and they're fun!

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