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First-time donor survey template

Learn what moved a first gift, and how to keep the donor close

A thank-you screen and three quick questions for new donors: what inspired them to give, how they want to hear what their gift did and whether they would consider a small monthly gift. Use it as it is or change any question, and Usertick reads every written answer for you.

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What this first-time donor survey tells you

A first-time donor survey thanks a new donor and learns what brought them to you, a few days after the gift. This template opens with a thank-you screen and asks three questions in about 30 seconds: what inspired the gift, how they want to hear about its impact and whether they would consider giving monthly.

It is written for a few days after a first gift, sent by Usertick to a list of new donors, with the first question inside the email. The same survey runs as a link in the welcome email your donation platform sends, and on your website it can sit inside the thank-you page after the donation form when that page runs on your own domain.

Typed Other answers are read as they arrive and filed under a category from your list, such as giving and donations or impact and updates, with a type and a sentiment. Results shows the share of each reason to give, each way new donors want to hear back and the share open to a monthly gift, against the period before.

In an emailAs a linkOn your websiteAs a conversation
Questions
3
Time to answer
Under a minute
Written for
A few days after a first gift, by email to new donors
Plans
Every plan, the free plan included

See it on every channel

The same template on your website, behind a link, in an email and as a conversation.

In an email

Send it from Usertick to a contact list, with the first question inside the email. A tap on an answer opens the rest of the survey with that answer already kept. Usertick sends 50 emails a month on the free plan, or connect your own sender.

The 3 questions, one by one

What each question asks, why it is there, what it shows you and what to change.

Question 1 of 3 · Multiple choice

What inspired you to give?

Why ask it
A first gift has a trigger, and knowing which one tells you where new donors come from: a story, a friend, an event or a campaign. A single answer keeps the main reason clear.
What you learn
A donut shows the share and count of each reason, with typed Other answers listed beside it, and over time the stacked shares show which campaign brought new donors in each month. Select A story I saw to see whether those donors are open to a monthly gift.
Make it yours
Rename A campaign to your actual campaign, such as the winter appeal, so the share of each one is easy to read.
Question 2 of 3 · Multiple choice

How would you like to hear what your gift did?

Why ask it
The first impact update decides whether a new donor feels their gift counted. Asking how they want it means the update reaches them in a form they will read.
What you learn
A donut shows the share of each way to hear back. Select Letters by mail to see how many new donors want paper and what brought them in.
Make it yours
Keep I don't need updates, so donors who want fewer messages can say so and your team can respect it.
Question 3 of 3 · Yes / No

Would you consider a small monthly gift?

Why ask it
Asking about a monthly gift inside a thank-you survey is gentler than a separate appeal, and each yes tells your fundraising team who to invite. Answers from a Usertick email are tied to the donor's contact, so the inbox shows who said yes.
What you learn
Results shows the share who said yes. Select Yes to see what inspired those donors and how they want to hear back.
Make it yours
Send each donor who said yes a monthly giving link within a week, and keep the ask out of the first impact update.

What the answers show

Results turns each question into numbers you can follow week by week.

What inspired you to give?

The share of each answer with its count. Select an answer to narrow the whole page to those people and read what else they said.

How would you like to hear what your gift did?

The share of each answer with its count. Select an answer to narrow the whole page to those people and read what else they said.

Use this template in four steps

From the template to the first answers.

  1. 1

    Open the template

    Sign up free and pick First-time donor in the template gallery. It opens in a matching style, ready to change.

  2. 2

    Make the questions yours

    Reword any question, change the options, and add logic or more questions.

  3. 3

    Choose where it runs

    Show it on your website, send it by email, share its link and QR code, or switch it to a conversation.

  4. 4

    Publish and read the answers

    Answers arrive in Results and the inbox as people send them, each written one read and filed by Usertick.

Tips for this survey

Small choices that keep people answering and the answers useful.

  1. 01

    Keep the thank-you screen

    The welcome screen says Thank you for your first gift before any question, so the survey reads as a thank-you first. Rewrite it in your own voice, and sign it from a real person.

  2. 02

    Send it within a week

    Import the week's first-time donors as a CSV into a list each Monday and schedule the send, so every new donor hears back a few days after giving.

  3. 03

    Follow up on every yes

    On every plan, a workflow posts each yes to your fundraising channel in Slack or Microsoft Teams, or a Zapier step updates the donor in Salesforce, so the monthly invitation goes out quickly.

  4. 04

    Match the first update to the answer

    Send the first impact update in the form each donor chose. When most pick a short video, plan one for the next update to new donors.

Onboarding surveysNonprofit surveysEmail surveysDonors and giving questions

More onboarding templates and questions

Templates like this one, and single questions from the library to add to it.

Templates

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OnboardingVolunteer orientationCheck that new volunteers understand their role and feel ready for their first shift. Send it the day after orientation.
OnboardingOnboarding feedbackLearn how the first steps in your product felt, what new users came to do and where they got stuck. Trigger it when someone finishes setup or on their third day.
OnboardingTime to valueFind out how long new customers take to get real value from your product and what slows them down. Send it 30 days after signup.
OnboardingAccount openingFind out how easy it was to open an account and where people hesitated, especially during identity checks. Send it a day after the account is approved.

Questions from the library

Browse the question library
  1. How was the donation experience?Stars · Donors and giving
  2. How easy was it to give?Customer effort · Donors and giving
  3. What moved you to give?Multiple choice · Donors and giving
  4. How did you hear about the emergency appeal?Multiple choice · Emergency appeals
  5. Did you give to the emergency appeal?Yes / No · Emergency appeals
  6. How confident are you that emergency gifts reach people quickly?Big scale · Emergency appeals

Frequently asked questions

A few days after the first gift, once the receipt has arrived and before any new appeal, so the thank-you reaches the donor before the next ask does.

Export first-time donors from your donation platform, import them as a CSV into a list and send the survey to that list. Skip people who already received this survey is on by default, so a donor is asked once.

It is one yes or no, after a thank-you and two questions about the donor. Remove it if your plan for the first year doesn't ask new donors for monthly gifts yet.

Yes, when the survey went out by Usertick email: each answer is tied to the donor's contact, and the inbox shows it. Answers from a link in another email aren't tied to a name, so send by Usertick email when you need to follow up.

About 30 seconds: the thank-you screen and three questions, each a single tap.

Yes. Every template comes with every plan, the free plan included, and the free plan covers 150 responses a month across your surveys.

Yes. The template becomes your own survey, so reword any question, add or remove questions, and change the options and the logic. The gallery stays as it is.

Yes, from Starter. The template is written in US English. Add languages by hand or with AI translation, and each person sees the survey in their browser's language.

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