Typically donor walls honor the major financial contributors of an organization, and to serve as an incentive for potential donors to contribute.
As consultants, we ask you to take donor recognition a full leap forward. Donor recognition is more than a reward for those donors you have or a perk for just your major donors. Done right, donor recognition is a motivating force to encourage the whole community to give. When it includes the right story, the right statement of purpose and positive indicators of accomplishment, it will broaden and enhance giving. It is a public vehicle for communicating the validity of giving, thereby motivating others to give.
To accomplish these broader goals, donor recognition must be more than a list of donor names. It must be designed to represent the organization, just as any branded experience would do. It must include meaningful stories and an invitation to give. Donor recognition has the potential to be a 24/7 ambassador for fundraising… when it meets its full potential.
