If you’ve ever opened your CRM, stared at your task list, and thought, “I want to be more personal with donors… but I don't know what else to add,” you’re not alone.
Here’s the good news: one of the most effective stewardship habits I’ve heard lately is also one of the simplest.
On a recent episode of The Focused Fundraiser, Serena shared a low-tech move that creates high-touch donor moments: she sets up Google Alerts for key supporters, their employers, and the topics they care about. When an alert hits, she uses it as a natural reason to reach out. No forced “just checking in,” no overthinking.
Sometimes the alerts are spot-on. Sometimes they’re hilariously wrong.
Either way, they give you what small teams need most: a timely, relevant excuse to be human.
What is Google Alerts, and why does it actually help donor stewardship?
Google Alerts is a free tool that emails you when Google finds new results that match a search term. You can set alerts for a donor’s name, their company, a project they’re involved in, or a topic they care about.
Why it matters: donors don’t stick around because you sent another newsletter. They stick around because they feel known.
And right now, retention is not something you want to leave to chance. FEP's recent reporting shows new donor retention around 14.0% year-to-date, with repeat donor retention around 43.6% (unadjusted).
That gap is basically stewardship in a spreadsheet.
Google Alerts helps you do the thing that moves retention: timely, relevant, human outreach.
Here are stewardship-friendly moments Alerts can surface:
- A donor gets promoted, wins an award, or is quoted in the news
- Their company announces a merger, expansion, or big initiative
- They join a board, speak at an event, publish an article, or launch a project
- A passion topic shows up (youth sports, mental health, veterans, local arts) that gives you a reason to say, “Saw this and thought of you.”
And yes, sometimes Alerts are wrong. But even the wrong Alerts can become a relationship moment.
Touchpoints don’t have to be profound. They just have to be real.
How do you set up Google Alerts for donors without creating more noise?
Let’s keep this true to DonorDock’s vibe: more focus, less frenzy.
Google’s setup is simple: go to Google Alerts, type your search term, adjust options, and click Create Alert.
The trick is configuring Alerts so they don’t become yet another inbox firehose.
My recommended “fundraiser settings” for Alerts
When you click “Show options,” choose:
- How often: “At most once a day” (or once a week for lower-priority names)
- Sources: Start with “News” and “Blogs,” then expand to “Web” if you’re missing things
- How many: “Only the best results”
- Deliver to: a shared stewardship inbox (or a label/filter if you’re in Gmail)
Alert recipes you can copy and paste
Google Alerts works like Google Search. You can use quotes and minus signs to tighten results.
For an individual donor
- "Jamie Rodriguez" "Chicago"
- "Jamie Rodriguez" -basketball -soccer
- "Jamie Rodriguez" AND (award OR promotion OR keynote OR board)
For an employer or corporate partner
- "Acme Manufacturing" AND (grant OR donation OR foundation OR community)
- "Acme Manufacturing" AND (new CEO OR expansion OR acquisition)
For a passion area
- "affordable housing" AND "Springfield"
- "veterans" AND (funding OR initiative) AND "your state"
Start smaller than you want to
If you add 75 people on day one, you’ll hate this system by day three.
Instead, start with:
- Your top 10–25 relationship-critical donors and prospects
- 2–5 key companies
- 2–3 passion topics that overlap with your mission
That’s enough to create momentum without making you dread your inbox.
Which donors should you add first?
If you’re a small team, the answer is not “everyone.”
Pick the people where a little extra personalization creates outsized impact.
Priority #1: Major donors and major donor prospects
If you’re building or refining a major gifts program, Alerts are an easy way to stay current without creeping on LinkedIn every morning. DonorDock’s guide on building a major donors program emphasizes focusing on a smaller, qualified group so you can go deeper. Google Alerts supports that depth by handing you timely reasons to connect.
Priority #2: Board members
Board relationships thrive on relevance. An Alert about their business, alma mater, or community leadership can give you a natural “saw this and thought of you” opener that leads to real conversation.
Priority #3: “Drift risks”
These are the donors who like you, but could quietly disappear:
- recently upgraded givers
- donors who gave at year-end and then went silent
- recurring donors you haven’t talked to in months
If you’re mapping donor journeys, DonorDock’s breakdown of donor segments is a helpful way to decide where your limited time goes.
Priority #4: Lapsed donors you plan to win back
Because “recapture” is hard. FEP data has shown recapture hovering around 2.0% (unadjusted), which is a polite way of saying: if someone lapses, you need a smart plan to bring them back.
An Alert can surface the perfect re-entry moment.
What do you do when an Alert hits? Use this simple 3-touchpoint playbook
The goal is not to forward articles all day. The goal is to turn signals into relationships.
Here’s a lightweight playbook that works even when you’re juggling 19 other priorities.
1) Respond fast (2 minutes)
Keep it short, warm, and human.
Email script: Congratulate
- Subject: Congrats!
- “Hi Jamie, I just saw the news about your new role at Acme. That’s huge. I’m cheering you on and I’m really grateful for how you’ve supported our work.”
Email script: Shared interest
- Subject: Thought of you
- “This made me think of our last conversation about workforce development. No agenda, just wanted to share because it felt right up your alley.”
Email script: The “wrong alert” smile
- “Is this you? Because if you secretly play pro basketball, I have questions.”
2) Log it (1 minute)
If it’s not written down somewhere, it vanishes into the fundraiser void.
You don’t need more staff to be personal, you need a consistent system for tracking what matters.
So wherever you keep donor records, capture:
- what happened (promotion, award, article, event)
- what you sent (congrats email, text, voicemail)
- what you should do next (call in 2 weeks, invite to coffee, ask about their new priorities)
3) Create a next step (30 seconds)
This is where most stewardship breaks down. The touchpoint happens… and then nothing.
Pick one:
- add a follow-up call to your calendar for next week
- add a soft invitation (“Want to grab coffee in January?”)
- tag them for your next small gathering or site visit
- drop a note into your next quarterly “relationship check” list
If you’re building a lightweight moves management approach, our guide for small teams is built around this exact idea: keep the process simple enough that you actually do it.
A simple weekly routine that makes Google Alerts sustainable
Try this simple rythm to stay on top of alerts and not get overwhelmed:
- Monday (10 minutes): scan your Alerts email, star anything actionable
- Wednesday (15 minutes): send 2–3 touchpoints
- Friday (5 minutes): log notes and set next steps
That’s it. You’ve just created a mini stewardship engine that doesn’t require a new tool, a new committee, or a new personality.
And if you want to go one step further, combine Alerts with a simple donor journey approach. Your communication should match where they are. Alerts help you personalize those stages without guessing.
Conclusion: Let Google do the remembering so you can do the relating
Google Alerts can remove friction, especially when your team is small and your donor list is big.
Start with 10 names. Use “once a day.” Send two messages a week. Log the note. Set the next step.
That’s how you cut through the noise and stay personal without burning out.
If you want a donor management system that makes it easier to track these touchpoints, remember preferences, and keep stewardship moving forward, DonorDock supports focused fundraising for small and growing teams.
