Apteco Mission Field Guide Schedule Time with an Apteco Architect Play with a Live System

Win-Back With a Listening Step

6 steps · Email, Forms, Google

Before you ask a lapsed supporter for money, check whether they really left, then ask what changed.

See it with your own dataSee every step
Watch the pathwayabout a minuteIn OrbitAs built in Orbit
Watch the pathway · about a minute
Re-engagement · Why they're here, in Apteco Orbit: The Why they're here tab: donuts of Donor Status and Giving Trend, with a table of days since last gift.
Re-engagement · Why they're here The Why they're here tab: donuts of Donor Status and Giving Trend, with a table of days since last gift. Most are stable, so a fundraiser can start with the Trending Up group, who are still warm.

Sample charity: the people and numbers in these screens are made up, so the picture shows the tool, not a result.

The problem it solves

Lapsed supporters asked what changed.

Why your CRM misses this. A giver the CRM calls lapsed may still be volunteering or coming to events, logged somewhere else. Without that, the win-back appeal chases someone who never left.

Data

4 of its 4 sources usually sit outside the CRM

Signals

it reads 5 of them

Reach

3 channels: email, forms, google

Journey

6 steps, start to finish

Connect: the data it draws on

Mission joins these into one record per person, beside your CRM.

Sources

  • Donationssupporter ID, gift amount, gift dateUsually split across systems: the CRM plus online giving platforms, each with its own copy of the person.
  • Participantsevents attendedUsually outside the CRM: ticketing tools, a box office or paper sign-in sheets.
  • Volunteer timesheetsshifts workedUsually outside the CRM: a volunteer platform or one coordinator’s spreadsheet.
  • Emailsemail addressUsually outside the CRM: the email platform, whose counts often don’t match the CRM.

Analyze: who it finds

  • Donor Status Is this supporter active, lapsing, lapsed, deeply lapsed, or someone who never gave? Sort any report by Donor Status, and start year-end appeals and re-engagement campaigns from it.
  • Days Since Last Donation How long has it been since this supporter's last gift? Use it to start re-engagement messages as days pass, or to pick recent lapsers for phone calls first.
  • Volunteer Donor Status Does this supporter volunteer, give, do both, or neither? See which volunteers also give, and build campaigns that turn volunteers into donors.
  • Last Event Attended When did this supporter last attend an event? Check it before a phone call or meeting as a quick note on their latest event.
  • Giving Trend Is this supporter's latest gift bigger, smaller, or about the same as their usual gift? Talk upgrades with donors trending up, and call donors trending down before they lapse.

Audience: Re-engagement

Supporters 1 to 2 years past their last gift. Not deeply lapsed yet, and still recoverable with the right message at the right time.

What to do: Send a re-engagement sequence. Lead with impact, not the ask. Remind them why they gave.

Read the audience, tab by tab

Re-engagement · Who's in it, in Apteco Orbit: The Who's in it tab: four donuts of donor status, volunteer status, donor stage and lifetime value.
Re-engagement · Who's in it The Who's in it tab: four donuts of donor status, volunteer status, donor stage and lifetime value. Most gave only once, but a good number are Major or Premium givers worth a personal call.

Activate: the journey

Each step names when it happens and the channel it uses. Under the steps is the campaign as it is built in Orbit, in 2 parts. Read them in order.

  1. Day 0

    Journey logic

    Lapsed givers who still volunteer or come to events are split out. They get a thank-you for their time, not a chase.

  2. Day 0

    Email

    Everyone else: an impact update on what has happened since their last gift.

  3. Day 10

    Email + form

    A two-question survey: what changed, and how they would like to hear from you.

  4. Day 14

    Email

    Not answered: one reminder.

  5. Day 20

    Journey logic

    Split by answer: fewer messages for some, an ask on their preferred channel for others.

  6. Day 30

    Google Ads

    Non-openers see a matched-audience reminder on Google.

  • Unsubscribes and survey answers are respected on every later step.

The campaign in Orbit

Win-Back With a Listening Step · journey, part 1 of 2, in Apteco Orbit: The first half of the journey: the Re-engagement audience splits on Still showing up?, with a thank-you email one way, and an impact email, a survey and an answer…
Win-Back With a Listening Step · journey, part 1 of 2 The first half of the journey: the Re-engagement audience splits on Still showing up?, with a thank-you email one way, and an impact email, a survey and an answer check the other. The win-back listens before it asks.
Win-Back With a Listening Step · journey, part 2 of 2, in Apteco Orbit: The second half of the journey: people who answered the survey leave, the rest get a reminder email, and an open check sends those who missed it to a Google Ads…
Win-Back With a Listening Step · journey, part 2 of 2 The second half of the journey: people who answered the survey leave, the rest get a reminder email, and an open check sends those who missed it to a Google Ads reminder. Follow-up runs across email and ads.

Learn: what flows back

Survey answers come back as data, so the next journey uses the channel and frequency they asked for. A gift moves their Donor Status back to Active.

Results land on the same supporter record, so the next run starts from what just happened.

Proven. Automated journeys for new donors, lapsed supporters and retention, with targeted reactivation and churn prevention campaigns, brought an estimated £33,813 a year from reactivated donors and saved about 13 staff hours a month. See a similar use case

Where you see it in Orbit

This Week's Actions · Main, in Apteco Orbit: The Main tab, with tiles for supporters to call, donors about to lapse and people to rest from appeals, plus a Top of the call list table.
This Week's Actions · Main The Main tab, with tiles for supporters to call, donors about to lapse and people to rest from appeals, plus a Top of the call list table. A fundraiser opens it each Monday to plan who to call or thank.

Questions people ask

What problem does Win-Back With a Listening Step solve?

Lapsed supporters asked what changed. Before you ask a lapsed supporter for money, check whether they really left, then ask what changed.

Who does Win-Back With a Listening Step reach?

Re-engagement: Supporters 1 to 2 years past their last gift. Not deeply lapsed yet, and still recoverable with the right message at the right time.

Which data does it need?

Donations: supporter ID, gift amount, gift date; Participants: events attended; Volunteer timesheets: shifts worked; Emails: email address

Why can't my CRM do this on its own?

A giver the CRM calls lapsed may still be volunteering or coming to events, logged somewhere else. Without that, the win-back appeal chases someone who never left.

Which channels does it use?

Email, Forms, Google. Day 0: Journey logic Then Day 0: Email Then Day 10: Email + form Then Day 14: Email.

Who runs it?

Fundraising.

Every pathway in the Field Guide runs on Apteco Mission, beside your CRM.

See it with your own data

An Apteco Architect walks you through this pathway on your own data.

Schedule Time with an Apteco Architect

Fundraising

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