Background
The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (SPCO), America’s only full-time professional chamber orchestra, relies heavily on individual philanthropic contributions as its primary revenue source. Like many arts organizations, SPCO faced increasing pressure to improve donor retention while reducing the operational burden on staff.
To solve this, SPCO embraced Sustained Giving—a monthly donation program modeled after popular subscription services. This approach lowers barriers for donors and creates a reliable revenue stream.
“Our Sustained Giving Program has become a crucial part of our fundraising work, with nearly 20% of our donors choosing to give this way,”
— Katie Berg, Director of Development, SPCO
The Challenge
Before adopting AudienceView Unlimited, maintaining the Sustained Giving program required significant manual effort:
SPCO needed an integrated solution that made the experience seamless for donors while automating as many back-end processes as possible.
The Solution: Automation with AudienceView Unlimited
AudienceView Unlimited’s automation and Business Intelligence tools now power SPCO’s Sustained Giving Program:
Once a donor enrolls, the system handles everything automatically, freeing staff time for higher-value work like donor cultivation.
The Results
Since implementing AudienceView Unlimited in 2016:
Sustainers give twice as much annually as one-time donors, creating a more predictable and sustainable revenue model.
What’s Next
SPCO plans to leverage AudienceView Unlimited even further by:
“By working closely with AudienceView, we can streamline operations and focus our talented team on growing the organization.”
— Katie Berg