Rossi’s Roundup: Competing for attention, earning trust and building 2026 momentum

Every touchpoint with donors should reinforce their identity as part of your community and affirm that their actions matter. Do they feel known? Do they feel needed? Fill those gaps with stories, celebrations and timely announcements. 

Remember, we live in an attention economy. Your competition includes Netflix, TikTok, Instagram and constant news videos. Donors are choosing between your email and 150 other unread messages. They’re deciding between your Facebook post or ad and a friend’s latest photos. Always lead with irresistible emotion, not information—while providing real value with the goal of earning trust. 

At the end of this email/post, you’ll find a checklist of key considerations to help you plan for 2026. Take some time to reflect on them and let me know if you think of other items.  

🌐 Meta is killing off the external Facebook Like button. Next year will see the end arrive for two of Facebook's external social plugins. The platform's Like button and Share button for third-party websites will be discontinued on February 10, 2026. 

֎ Gemini 3 vaulted over its competitors in the AI chatbot race, surpassing ChatGPT and other models in industry benchmark tests. 

💸 Americans are on a year-end shopping spree. Despite hand-wringing over tariffs and a wobbling economy, shoppers are spending money where they see value.  

☕ Time to grab your soda, coffee or favorite beverage and catch up on this month’s highlights, insights and studies. 

1. FEP 2025 Q2 Quarterly Benchmark Report 🎯 

For the first time in several years, the latest Fundraising Effectiveness Project (FEP) data suggest that nonprofits may be approaching a turning point in donor participation. 

While overall retention steadied, the donor acquisition pipeline remains a concern. The report found a 10.7% drop in new donors and a 10.2% decrease in new retained donors—individuals who gave for the first time last year and returned this year. Meanwhile, repeat donors—those who have given in consecutive years—now account for more than 60% of total fundraising dollars. 

The FEP report found that smaller organizations—particularly those with budgets under $1 million—saw modest (more than 4%) growth in dollars raised, while the largest organizations (those raising $5 million to $25 million annually) experienced a 12.2% decline. 

Among cause areas, environmental and animal organizations exhibited the strongest performance in both average and median growth.

2. Giving USA Special Report: Generations and Giving 2025 🙌 

The Giving by Generation report uncovers how Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z are redefining what it means to give, volunteer and make change. 

• Boomers give at the highest average levels, but Millennials and Gen Z are showing rapid growth in contributions. High-earning Millennials and Gen Z donors give significantly more than their generational peers. 
• The ongoing “Great Wealth Transfer” will see Millennials inherit the most wealth by 2048. Women, especially daughters of Boomers, will receive a significant share ($30 trillion by 2035), influencing philanthropic priorities and approaches. 
• One area of consensus emerges: All generations show a preference for occasional giving over monthly commitments. Even Gen Z, which had previously leaned toward recurring donations, now indicates a stronger preference for giving occasionally rather than through monthly pledges—a notable shift from just two years earlier. 

3. Donor Perceptions of AI 2025 🤖 

What was once defined by uncertainty and fear of dehumanization has become a more thoughtful balancing act between curiosity and caution. 

Donors now approach AI with a sense of conditional optimism. They see its potential to strengthen fundraising, sharpen operations and demonstrate impact but expect the same rigor and responsibility they demand in every other part of nonprofit life. Familiarity has replaced novelty; interest has replaced anxiety. 

At the same time, trust remains the deciding factor. Donors continue to draw sharp boundaries around data use, fairness and authenticity, but they’re more willing to reward organizations that are open about their approach. Transparency has shifted from reassurance to requirement, and accountability is now part of what makes a nonprofit credible. 

The question for 2026 is no longer whether nonprofits should use AI but whether they can use it responsibly. 

Download the 2025 report here. 

4. 5 Forces Shaping the 2026 Nonprofit Fundraising Outlook 🔮 

Tim Sarrantonio offers five predictions of how nonprofits can prepare for 2026 with clarity and steady decision making:  

1. Grassroots Energy Will Outpace Institutional Strategy 
2. Belonging Will Become the Core Driver of Engagement 
3. Economic Strain Will Shape Generosity Beneath the Surface 
4. Artificial Intelligence Will Become Routine, but Equitable Adoption Will Determine Who Benefits 
5. ‘Rebuilding’ Will Replace ‘Return to Normal’ as the Sector’s Main Narrative 

Tim closes the article stating organizations that stay grounded in equity, communicate with clarity and adopt technology responsibly will be better positioned to earn trust and build durable relationships. 

5. How to Create Multichannel Donors Who Give More Often  🔀 

Multichannel donors are incredibly valuable. They give more frequently and are more likely to stay with your organization than single-channel donors. This is because multichannel donors are simply individuals who immerse themselves in your mission and engage with your content across various channels. 

Here are three key ways nonprofits are making multichannel donors: 

1. Using a Multichannel Welcome Series 
2. Using Channel-Specific Offers 
3. Co-Targeting Acquisition Campaigns 

When someone only hears from you via email, your organization exists in a single dimension of their life—the dimension of their inbox, competing with hundreds of other messages. When they see your Instagram story in the morning, receive your email at lunch and read your direct-mail piece after work, you've woven your mission into multiple moments of their day. 

6. Optimizing Fundraising Under New Federal Tax Law 🏛️ 

Beginning in 2026, tax changes will impact how donors across all income levels approach their contributions. The most significant change affects 90% of taxpayers who take the standard tax deduction. Starting in 2026, these donors can deduct up to $1,000 (individual) or $2,000 (couples) for cash charitable contributions, even without itemizing. This means that promoting tax benefits in every donor appeal becomes relevant again. 

Major donors face new challenges. Help them explore multi-year pledges or gift-timing strategies to maximize benefits greater than the new deduction floor. 

Focus your messaging on immediate impact: “Your DAF gift can provide immediate support to our mission.” 

The estate tax exemption permanently doubles to $15 million per person ($30 million per couple), making legacy giving even more attractive for wealthy families. 

The nonprofits that thrive will be those where fundraisers effectively segment the donor base, communicate clearly about tax benefits and maintain focus on mission impact. 

7. Neuro-Philanthropy: From Dopamine to Oxytocin ⚕️ 

Neuro-Philanthropy: the science of giving that begins in the brain, matures in the heart and endures through community. 

Philanthropy has long relied on urgency and emotional spikes to drive donations—the dopamine “spark” that motivates first gifts. But sustainable giving comes from oxytocin, the neurochemical of trust and belonging. When nonprofits nurture relationships through gratitude, transparency and shared purpose, donors move from making a transaction to forming an identity connection. 

Sector data shows that while only 20% of first-time donors give again, retention climbs above 70% once donors make a second gift—a neurochemical shift from excitement to attachment. 

The article calls for a shift from hunting for conversions to farming for connection—cultivating an orchard of donor relationships that grows year after year. Dopamine may spark generosity, but oxytocin sustains it, and legacy giving completes the arc of belonging. 

Visit gosumec.org/givestudy to learn more about The GIVE Study, a year-long exploration of recurring and relational giving. Final results will be released in partnership with Givebutter in Q1 2026.  

8. How to Thank an Often-Overlooked Type of Donor 💌 

You might be wondering why a second donation to your nonprofit warrants a special thank you. Short of a bequest, the second gift is an occasion that tops just about all other occasions in the life of a donor—and should be acknowledged as such. In other words, it’s one of those “hidden” donor moments—and a powerful one, to boot. 

How momentous of an occasion is the second gift, really? 

The average retention rate of a first-time donor, as you know, hovers around 20%. This rate is so dismal that many fundraising experts don’t consider these still-fickle friends as donors. They may simply be “impulse givers.” 

This isn’t to diminish the grace and generosity behind a first donation but, rather, to reinforce that a second gift isn’t a sure thing. 

Once you’ve proven to your new donor that your organization is worthy of their continued generosity and they move from impulse giver to make that second donation, their retention rate increases to 60%. 

9. Economic Headlines 📊 

Still without guidance from the government on economic data, the data understudies (ADP, Challenger, and the University of Michigan) stepped in to deliver a mixed-to-dim outlook on the current state of affairs as concerns over high AI costs and lower relative revenue dominated the market narrative.

The U.S. labor market defied expectations in September, adding 119,000 jobs, according to a report delayed nearly seven weeks by the government shutdown. At the same time, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.4%, the highest level in four years. 

The divergence between solid economic growth and weak job creation created a particularly challenging environment for policy decisions, Fed officials noted in their October meeting. 

Higher-income households remain supported by strong stock market gains. Investors’ rosy feelings about their stock market gains are powering spending—but it’s a different story for everyone else. 

American consumers in September reined in spending on tariff-hit categories like vehicles, electronics and clothing.

A survey from the Conference Board found consumer confidence decreased to 88.7 in November, from 95.5 in October, below economists’ expectations of 93.2. 

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Center for Microeconomic Data today issued its Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. Total household debt increased by $197 billion to reach $18.59 trillion in the third quarter, according to the latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. 

Visit the RKD Resources Website Page for more insights and tools. 

📝 Here are some wrap-up items to consider before end of year:   

• Are all your organizations thank-you letters (print and autoresponder) updated?   
  • Have you marked your calendar to continue updating these important stewardship correspondence items monthly or bi-weekly? 
  • Do you have new thank-you cards ready so those donors you handwrite a note to next year will see something different? Some of your donors are sentimental and save your notes. 
• Is your stewardship plan finished and ready to launch?  Audit your program and identify a few new areas to implement videos, thank-you calls or text messages. 
  • Do you have a donor survey in your plans for 2026? 
• Run global changes on your database that you or your team has put off and correct those names and addresses you have in a stack. That’s right, merge duplicate records, unclutter your codes, catch up on any NCOA changes. 
• Have you thought about updating your voice mail? Could it be more inspiring for those donors who listen and leave a message? 
• What is your plan timeline in 2026 to survey, verify and update first names in your database so you can begin to address donors by their first name correctly?   
• Do you have a check and balance on all website pages to make sure they are up to date?  
  • A website optimization plan in place?  
• Are you investing in evergreen digital media? (Please tell me you are …) 
• How about regular check-ups on your SEO? 
• Are you planning to update your SOP (standard operating procedure) data guidelines to make sure they are correct? Make sure they include how you’ll code the gifts below:  
  • Code donor-advised funds (and be specific on which type, i.e. some are foundation, some are corporate, etc.) AND how are you crediting/soft-crediting the donor or institution?  
  • Code cryptocurrency 

If there’s anything you need as you wrap up the year (or get ready for the next!), we are here and happy to help.  

We hope your end of year is wrapped in success, good health, joy and time to relax and celebrate the good things that have happened in 2025. 

Thank you for trusting the RKD team to serve as an extension of your mission!