Transparency: Not A Compliance Exercise But A Powerful Fundraising Tool
Catherine LaCour is the CEO and executive director of The Blackbaud Giving Fund, which catalyzes donor generosity and lasting impact.
One of the biggest fundraising challenges facing nonprofits isn’t donor acquisition; it’s donor trust. Almost 68% of donors cite trust as a top decision-making criterion when deciding which mission to support. So, the question is: What drives trust in today’s AI-driven world?
Today’s donors often discover nonprofits online, which means they evaluate organizations, first and foremost, through a series of digital signals, often without realizing they’re doing it. In an environment where donors have endless options, unlimited access to information and AI tools to inform decisions, organizations have an opportunity to use that digital landscape to build trust. They must be continuously visible, proactively deliver information that answers donor questions before they’re asked, maintain accountability and clearly demonstrate impact.
I believe trust is one of the most important drivers of long-term fundraising success. If donors don’t trust your nonprofit, they will not support or be an advocate for your mission. The nonprofits that make it easy for potential supporters to understand who they are and the impact they create will be better positioned to earn long-term support.
As the AI digital revolution takes shape (and changes the game seemingly every other day), donors expect nonprofits to be transparent not only about where their funding goes but also about how they use AI. Recent data from The Blackbaud Institute found that over 70% of donors support the use of AI by mission-driven organizations, knowing that it can help them do more with less but with the very important stipulation that it’s clearly communicated when and how it’s being used.
Thus, transparency has evolved from a compliance requirement into one of the most important drivers of donor trust and, ultimately, long-term fundraising success. As such, transparency should no longer be considered an administrative responsibility. It’s a strategic fundraising asset.
Donors expect ongoing visibility into an organization’s work, progress and stewardship. Stories, outcomes and evidence of impact can help donors understand how their gift fits into the broader mission and instill confidence that the nonprofit is doing good. Nonprofits that provide clear, accessible information about how funds are used, what they accomplish and how they operate can help close the gap between a donor’s interest in a cause and their trust in the organization.
The TRUST Framework
To seize on this opportunity, I recommend all nonprofits follow what I call the TRUST framework:
T — Tell Your Story Clearly: Can a first-time visitor quickly understand who you are, the problem you solve and why your work matters?
R — Reveal Your Impact: Share outcomes, stories, testimonials and measurable results that demonstrate progress.
U — Update Everything: Regularly audit your website, donation profiles, workplace giving platforms, leadership information and contact details for accuracy.
S — Show Accountability: Present financials, governance information and annual reports that are easy for anyone to digest.
T — Think Beyond Your Website: Maintain consistent information across nonprofit databases, workplace giving platforms, social media, advertising and pitch decks.
Here are three practical shifts nonprofits can make to enact this framework successfully.
From Compliance To Continuous Communication
Transparency used to mean publishing annual reports or financial statements. While those remain important, donors now expect ongoing visibility into nonprofits’ daily work, progress and impact. Stories, outcomes and data-driven evidence help donors understand how their support will fit into the overall mission.
Technology has changed expectations, making real-time visibility imperative for everything from shipments to money transfers. Being a transparent organization should be viewed as ongoing, real-time conversations rather than an annual update. Donors want understandable information, not announcements that are updated and announced yearly and are difficult to read.
From One Big Proof Point To Dozens Of Small Signals
Trust is created through dozens of small moments throughout the year that collectively answer donors’ questions before they ask. Some examples include:
- What is your mission?
- Who are your leadership and board members?
- What specific programs do you run?
- What measurable impact have you delivered?
- When and how are you using AI with donor data?
Missing or outdated information on any platform where your nonprofit shows up creates uncertainty. Every clear answer builds trust while every unanswered question creates friction, leading to lost donations.
From Compliance To Transparency
Transparency isn’t solely about checking a compliance box or meeting donor expectations; it’s also about whether people and AI search tools can find accurate and consistent information during their research.
Google now displays AI Overviews in roughly 43% of searches. This AI tool summarizes information before donors visit a nonprofit’s website. Inconsistent or outdated information can reduce a nonprofit’s visibility in AI-generated responses. Databases, giving platforms and social media accounts can all contribute to how nonprofits show up in search results. Maintaining accurate and up-to-date information on profiles and landing pages is one of the highest-impact, lowest-cost improvements nonprofits can make. The nonprofits that are easiest to understand will increasingly become the easiest to discover.
Trust is a nonprofit’s most valuable currency. In an environment where donors have endless options and unlimited access to information, organizations must proactively, clearly and consistently communicate to earn that critical trust. This work will ultimately support fundraising efforts, donor retention, corporate partnerships, volunteer recruitment, credibility and more for long-term success.
