The Membership Revenue Index for the three-month period ending May 31 showed a 1.5% decrease in Membership revenue compared to the same three-month period in 2023 — the first such decline in the last 12 report periods. For much of last year, revenue growth was driven by high-dollar giving, as new donor declines persisted. The High-dollar Gifts Index shows a more modest 1.9% increase this period and did not offset a 16.4% decline in new donors.
These moderate Membership revenue declines occurred in both TV and Radio in equal measure. Only stations of medium size (15,000–40,000 12-month donors) saw a lift in revenue at 1.3%. This group of stations also experienced the strongest growth in high-dollar gifts at 5.5%. Smaller stations had a 1.5% increase in high-dollar gifts, and large stations had flat results.
The New Donor Index decline of 16.4% is the largest in the last 12 report periods, with all station types and sizes experiencing steep declines. TV and Joint licensees had a new donor decline of 14.7% after periods of strong new donor growth since the launch of Passport. As reported last month, other CDP reporting is showing year-over-year declines in new donors acquired by Passport for the past three months, emphasizing the danger in over-reliance on one acquisition source.
Radio, long leaning on pledge drives for new donor acquisition, is experiencing ongoing declines in new donors, nearing 30% in this most recent three-month period. New donors acquired by traditional (phone-in) Pledge were down by 10% year-over-year, and new donors acquired online during Pledge declined by nearly 25%.
New donor challenges are having obvious impacts on both overall sustainers and even high-dollar gifts for Radio. After a strong showing in high-dollar gifts in the last report, Radio experienced a decline this time of 2.4% in gifts of $500 or more. This is likely related to declines in new donors giving at higher levels, which are most often acquired through Pledge.
Sustainers are also seeing disquieting trends in Radio. Flat for most of last year, this period saw a 2.6% drop for Radio in the Sustainers Index.
TV and Joint licensees continue to see strong growth in overall sustainers as Passport continues to drive new sustainers and conversion of current and former donors to sustainer giving. Though Passport acquisition may be experiencing a period of declines, the Passport Users Index showed growth. However, at 3.7%, growth was slower than in prior periods.
The March–May 2024 period certainly presented challenges compared to the same period of 2023, as the two pillars of stability and growth (sustainers and high-dollar gifts) that the system has relied on for some time started to show weariness in the ongoing battle against new donor declines. Stations are seeking to support these donor segments with a thorough review of sustainer retention best practices and investment in top-notch stewardship of high-dollar donors.
We’re also seeing increased adoption across the system of more convenient payment methods and payment cadences to make sustainer giving easier for the donors we are acquiring, as well as investments being made in technologies to support midlevel and major giving growth.
We’ll be keeping a close eye on retention of sustainers and high-dollar donors as we report on the Index and the state of fundraising next month with data through June or fiscal year-end for many public media organizations.
This monthly report on the fundraising performance of public media stations is provided through an editorial collaboration between Current and Contributor Development Partnership (CDP). The collaboration draws from CDP’s National Reference File, which collects monthly membership and revenue data from more than 170 public media stations. (Read more about the methodology.)
Deb Ashmore joined CDP as Analytics Strategist in September 2023. With more than 25 years of experience in the nonprofit sector and public media fundraising, she is passionate about working to help clients understand their fundraising data to inform strategies for long-term file health and growth. Her previous public media experience includes 10 years as director of individual giving for WXPN in Philadelphia.