On this International Day of Charity (5 September 2025), we celebrate the vital work charities do and the role data insight plays in deepening relationships with supporters.
At Wood for Trees, part of Salocin Group, we’re proud to support organisations in building meaningful connections that last.
Celebrating success – Cats Protection Single Customer View
A recent example is our work with Cats Protection, where we helped them develop a Single Customer View (SCV). This centralises supporter data, giving the charity a clearer picture of supporter behaviour and enabling more personalised content and engagement.
A GDPR-compliant data hub – the Golden Record – was created. Bringing together 11 siloed systems into one SCV. This enabled an effective CRM migration but more importantly created stronger integration across donation channels – connecting the information, driving insight and ensuring long-term resilience and impact. Watch the video and read the case study to find out more.
This DataIQ and Charity Times award-shortlisted project will feature at the CIOF Insight in Fundraising Conference on Monday 22 September 2025, with our Consultant Analyst, Ali Ogden, and Cats Protection’s Head of Data & Analytics, Ben Perch, presenting our collaborative work to delegates at the event.
Looking ahead – exploring supporter motivation
An increasingly important area of analysis is understanding the ‘why’ behind a supporter’s engagement with a charity. We believe that only by truly understanding someone’s motivation can a charity build genuine, long-lasting connections. Supporter relationships are no longer an ‘ask-then-donate’ dynamic – they’re partnerships that benefit both sides.
Knowing why someone engages with your charity is metaphorical gold dust. Once you understand motivation, you can tailor how you communicate, creating a more meaningful and connected supporter experience.
Mass participation events are a great area to begin investigating motivations. By capturing motivational insights at the event registration stage, charities can use this information to help shape their stewardship approach. Take a marathon for example:
- A marathon runner with a ‘bucket list’ goal may prioritise personal achievement over the cause – meaning that communications should begin by celebrating the supporter’s experience, while keeping the charity’s mission as a secondary focus
- Others may take part because they’ve directly benefited from the charity’s services. Here, messaging that begins by highlighting the impact of giving back and supporting others in similar situations will help them feel closer to the cause
Building stronger relationships
The more we understand and nurture supporter motivations, the happier and more engaged they become. This not only benefits the donor but also strengthens retention and long-term growth for the charity.
At Wood for Trees, we’re optimisers of fundraising performance – striving to create a connected supporter experience and focused on helping charities uncover supporter motivations. By moving beyond what supporters do and focusing on why they do it – delving into data and insight – we can foster authentic relationships that stand the test of time.
If you’d like to find out more about our work and potentially working with us, please get in touch.
