How Musicians On Call grew recurring giving by 24% year-over-year with Campaign Studio
Mission
To bring live and recorded music to the bedsides of patients, family members, and caregivers in healthcare environments
Challenge
Deepen connections to the mission to create lifelong supporters
Solution
GoFundMe Pro’s Campaign Studio enables Musicians On Call to create a recurring donor program built on storytelling and connection.
“Having a donation platform that’s easy to use and mobile-friendly on the supporter experience side, AND that we can nicely incorporate our brand into, is really important to us. It’s definitely been a perk of GoFundMe Pro.”
– Kathryn Bennett, Director of Individual Giving
Recurring giving results*:
24% growth
in active recurring plans year-over-year
$44.08
average recurring donation amount
25 months
average recurring plan length
*Based on 2023-2025 GoFundMe Pro data for Musicians On Call
The path to scaling recurring giving
Musicians On Call was looking for ways to attract new recurring donors by simplifying the giving process and deepening their connection to the mission, with the hope that they would become lifelong supporters.
Half the battle is connecting with people and inspiring them to support your cause. But if someone clicks on a link and it’s a difficult donation process, there are too many steps, or their preferred payment method isn’t accepted, you’re going to lose them.
Bringing recurring giving to life with Campaign Studio
Musicians On Call prioritizes recurring gifts whenever possible, even defaulting the gift frequency on its main donate page to monthly. The team also created a dedicated campaign for the Backstage Pass Club, Musicians On Call’s recurring donor community, using GoFundMe Pro’s Campaign Studio builder.
Campaign Studio’s customization options gave the Musicians On Call team the same freedom to design their donation page as they would have with a fully custom webpage. Thanks to that flexibility, they can clearly illustrate their mission with a sleek, tailored donation form. The Backstage Pass Club campaign page is now an engaging experience that highlights how and why donors support Musicians On Call.
Having user-friendly technology is essential in getting a donor to set up a recurring gift. The process with GoFundMe Pro is so seamless and requires no extra steps, which makes it as easy as possible to commit to a monthly investment.
Musicians On Call encourages supporters to make recurring gifts with:
- A recurring nudge that suggests a monthly donation when someone selects a one-time gift frequency.
- An abandoned cart nudge that prompts supporters to finish their donation when they leave the checkout flow.
- Custom donation amounts that display an intentional donation amount array and the impact of a monthly gift.
- A series of emails sent to first-time donors over the course of a month, introducing them to the Musicians On Call community, encouraging them to volunteer, and inviting them to make their gift monthly.
- This is one of Musicians On Call’s most effective methods for attracting new monthly donors.
When you can create a sense of community around supporting a cause, people are more incentivized to become long-time supporters.
Musicians On Call strives to make recurring gifts as accessible as possible by asking for donations starting at $21 per month. The intentionality of nurturing and supporting its donor base has led to impressive results, including a 24% year-over-year increase in the number of active recurring plans, with an average recurring donation amount of $44.08 and an average recurring plan length of 25 months. Some Backstage Pass Club members have been giving monthly since the program’s inception in 2016!
Evolving the Backstage Pass Club to meet donor needs
Musicians On Call is focusing on modernizing the Backstage Pass Club by reassessing donor preferences, exploring new incentives, and surveying recurring donors to understand what keeps them engaged. The team also developed a cohesive year-end campaign that launched on Giving Tuesday, centered on the theme of connection—highlighting how donations help bring more volunteers to patients who may be missing family traditions during the holidays.
Kathryn’s GoFundMe Pro tips:
- Take the time to review and evaluate your donation experience, approaching it from the perspective of a donor. Think through how you’re presenting the information—is it all relevant? Is the experience mobile-friendly? Do the suggested donation amounts resonate with donors?
- GoFundMe Pro’s tools can help you optimize that experience, like the recurring nudge or abandoned cart nudge, to gently guide people in the direction you want them to go without having to do all the legwork.
