9 Step Guide to Planning your Donor Recognition Project
Determine Your Objectives
Before beginning your donor recognition project, clearly define your objectives. Try to imagine how your donors would like to be recognized for their gifts and ask yourself the following questions:
Were any promises made to donors about how they would be recognized?
How many donors do you currently have—and how many do you expect to have in five years?
How many recognition categories will you need, and how many donors belong in each?
Should all donors appear on a donor wall, or should major donors receive dedicated plaques for specific rooms or spaces?
Answering these questions early will help guide every decision that follows.
1. Determine Your Budget
Establish an appropriate budget before starting your project. Your budget should be based on:
The type of organization you represent
The financial goals of the campaign
The anticipated number of donors
General budgeting guidelines:
For smaller campaigns, allocate up to 5% of the campaign total
For large campaigns, budgets can be as low as 0.001% of the campaign goal
Examples:
$100,000 campaign at 5% = $5,000
$100 million campaign at 0.001% = $100,000
2. Start Building the Team
In addition to fundraising staff, your internal team may include representatives from:
Facilities
Marketing
Leadership
External partners may include:
Architects
Interior designers
Building the right team early ensures alignment across departments and smoother execution.
3. Finalize the Donor Name List
Before fabrication begins, donors should approve their names and associated copy one final time.
This approval stage also presents an opportunity to:
Re-engage donors
Encourage them to increase their gift to reach the next recognition level
Accuracy at this stage prevents costly corrections later.
4. Create Donor Giving Levels
Donor categories help recognize varying gift sizes and motivate donors to aspire to higher levels. You may also consider using a donor pyramid to visually represent these tiers.
Best practice: Five giving levels typically provide the right balance of clarity and motivation.
5. Develop a Realistic Schedule
Avoid setting the donor wall unveiling date too early—especially for large projects. Based on experience, major donor wall projects can take up to six months.
Delays are often caused by:
Finalizing donor name lists
Internal design reviews and approvals
While quick-turn projects are possible when necessary, realistic timelines reduce stress and errors.
6. Plan for Growth
Your donor wall should accommodate at least five years of growth before renovation is required.
When planning:
Review past donor growth trends
Anticipate increased giving after installing a new donor recognition system
Design updates to be simple and economical
Updating donor names in batches (quarterly or annually) is far more cost-effective than frequent individual updates.
7. Be Prepared for Last-Minute Changes
Even fixed donor walls should include a strategy for adding donors at the last minute.
If you’re hosting an unveiling event, expect:
Late donor additions
Requests for recognition updates
Planning for flexibility avoids unnecessary stress and redesign costs.
8. Consider Past Donors
When planning your recognition program, consider including donors from previous or legacy campaigns.
Options include:
A single wall recognizing historic campaigns
A dedicated “Legacy Donors” section
Past supporters should never be overlooked—they are part of your organization’s story.
9. Create a Program Control Manual
Document the planning process in a program control manual before design begins.
This manual should:
Be approved by key stakeholders
Serve as the design criteria brief
Guide future updates and growth of the donor recognition system
A well-prepared control manual ensures consistency, clarity, and long-term success.