Background
QIMR Berghofer had been on a journey to transform their individual giving strategy, placing donor relationships, rather than transactions, at the heart of their fundraising. This meant rethinking how they could connect with their most committed supporters and optimising every touchpoint, to create a committed donor program. The team set out to improve the experience of their mid-value donors, and their 2025 Tax Appeal became the flagship test of this approach.
The Campaign
QIMR Berghofer engaged Fundraising Every Day (FED) for strategic support and campaign execution. With our guidance, QIMR Berghofer applied a top-down approach, to deepen donor engagement and in-turn improve their overall Net income result.
The primary objectives of the 2025 Tax Appeal were to:
- Increase gross income to $600K (15% uplift on 2024) while maintaining a strong net return.
- Deepen donor loyalty among high-value and mid-value supporters ($500–$49,999 annually).
- Encourage upgrades from existing supporters to lift average gift value.
Previously, the supporter experience was largely uniform — the same content and treatment regardless of a donor’s history, bequest status, regular giving commitment, or depth of connection to QIMR Berghofer. These missed opportunities meant mid-value donors, monthly givers, and confirmed bequestors were not always acknowledged in ways reflecting their loyalty.
In 2025, QIMR Berghofer replaced that “one-size-fits-all” approach with a personalised journey. The team strategically reduced the overall number of supporters mailed and re-focussed their direct mail component on mail responsive supporters, most likely to generate a positive net return. This approach required clear segmentation, based on giving level, recency, frequency, channel preference and known relationships.
By identifying and segmenting high and mid-value donors, elevated creative treatments could be applied, including premium, stationary, hand-addressed envelopes and thoughtful cause-related gifts (mirror decals and sunscreen); all anchored by an emotional and compelling case study (Dan’s melanoma journey).
The creative and copy worked hard to reflect each donor’s role in making research possible, shifting from using jargon to personalised, impact-focussed storytelling.
QIMR Berghofer also invited 807 select donors to regional events, creating face-to-face connections that deepened relationships and drove additional large gifts.
The Result
QIMR Berghofer achieved a Gross Income result of $677,786 (their highest Tax Appeal result to date).
Net return increased by 24% year on year ($618,399, up from $495,204 in 2024).
QIMR Berghofer also received 146 donations of $1,000 or more (a 20% uplift in donations of >$1,000 from Tax 2024), with their mid/major segments producing the majority of donations, justifying the additional focus on high and mid value supporters.
In addition, we saw a 3.2% increase in overall response rate (17.8%, up from 14.5% in 2024), and an incredible 31% uplift in average gift ($575, up from $438 in 2024).
Regional donor events also amplified engagement: 807 invitations generated 133 responses (16%) and $46,000 in gifts. Donors praised meeting researchers locally and called for the events to be annual. These interactions strengthened the mid-value and Gifts in Wills pipeline.
The insights-driven approach taken replaced a static experience with one that acknowledged each donor’s history, preferences, and value, deepening connection and driving stronger year-on-year results.
QIMR Berghofer were recently announced as FIA Queensland 2026 State Award Winners for ‘Best Supporter Experience’, for their outstanding 2025 Tax Appeal.