Closing the Supporter Engagement Gap: An Opportunity For 2026
Unlimited access from £25.00 / month
Become a member to gain unlimited access to our extensive content library, packed with valuable resources and insights on fundraising. Plus, stay ahead of the curve with free entry to all our upcoming events.
Talk Details
What audiences seek has changed and the gap between what supporters want and what organisations deliver is widening. From 2019 to 2024, four million fewer people donated to charities.
Supporter experience is no longer just about making donors feel good; it’s essential to your organisation’s resilience and long-term value. Engaged supporters give again – they are 3x more likely to give again (CIOF) – and when they do give more, they give more generously, resulting in a 16% increase in contributions (Bain & Company).
So what’s getting in the way? In this session, Manifesto share what supporters are telling us they need from an experience, by introducing the four foundational needs that earn genuine engagement.
Key learnings from this session:
You’ll leave with a practical framework for evaluating and identifying where your engagement is breaking down, and how to redesign the moments that matter most to close your engagement gap in 2026.
Speakers
Lou Barton
Strategy Principal Consultant - Engagement at manifesto
Related Talks
Building a supporter experience manifesto and team behaviours
How Prostate Cancer Research and Thread Fundraising rebuilt a stalled supporter experience manifesto into practical, behaviour-led actions that teams can actually use day to day.
On the blower – retaining your supporters through calls
Discover how offline stewardship, especially phone calls, can strengthen supporter experience and emotional connection, with practical tips and insights from Helen Alderson.
Leading Customer Centric Change: Lessons from National Express and Beyond
In this session, Vinay Parmar shares practical leadership lessons from his experience at National Express, along with insights drawn from other sectors, to explore what it really takes to build a more customer centric organisation.
Getting it right for different audiences: a practical guide to inclusion in fundraising
This session explores how charities can create more inclusive supporter experiences by better understanding the needs of under-served audiences and making practical changes that strengthen long-term engagement and loyalty.