I’ll often ask the same question: “What is an active cash giver?”
It’s a simple question, but one guaranteed to stir up emotions — and usually the response: “What do you mean? Of course I know.”
But often, as an organisation, we don’t actually have a shared answer. One person says active means 12 months. Another says 36. Higher value might mean £100 to one team and £5,000 to another. This happens all the time. We assume our understanding is the organisational truth, when often it’s just our own.
It might be:
- segment definitions
- retention rules
- “return to sender” notes
- campaign logic hidden in old queries
So how do you fix it?
Start by listing the labels and definitions your organisation uses. Then ask people to define them. This is where it gets interesting. Once you agree the definition, write it down somewhere visible. Not buried in a CRM query or hidden in a report title. Add ownership and review dates. Then check where it’s being used – reports, selections, dashboards, policies and campaign rules.
There will be some pain. Counts will change. Reports will look different. But that doesn’t mean the old answer was right.
Definitions don’t need to stay fixed forever. Organisations evolve. Fundraising evolves. What matters is that everyone understands the current answer. Because if five people answer the same question five different ways, you don’t have five insights- you have five versions of reality.
If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Most organisations already have definitions – they’re just hidden in people’s heads, inherited processes and “the way we’ve always done it”.
I’ve got some space over the coming months to help teams untangle definitions, reporting and CRM logic and turn them into something people can actually use.
And if you know a team struggling to get consistent answers from their systems, I’d really appreciate an introduction.
