Year in Review 2020

A Note from our Board Chair & Executive Director

A group of people sitting in a bright, casual office space

Dear Council friends and supporters,

We’re excited to share our 2020 year in review with all of you. Guided by our 2018–2021 strategic plan, the Council team has been hard at work delivering on our vision and mission statement to transform philanthropy by building donor and nonprofit relationships for strong, vibrant and just communities.

Check out the full board chair & executive director letter

Population Served

Charities Review Council serves donors/funders, nonprofits, and the relationship between the two.


Program Services & Accomplishments

We deliver on our mission through three key programs: Donor-Nonprofit Relations, Donor Services, and Nonprofit Services. Below are our 2020 program accomplishments.

Donor-Nonprofit Relations 

The Council’s work focuses on building strong, authentic relationships between donors and nonprofits. In 2020, we:

  • Two men are seated in an orange booth holding a meeting.Used our social media platforms to share relevant information around philanthropy and the nonprofit sector
  • Saw some of our highest social media engagement numbers of the year during our November Give to the Max Day campaign when we championed our nonprofit partners and their accomplishments on Twitter
  • Achieved a 5.29% click rate on our e-newsletter, almost double the non-profit industry average (2.79%) according to Mailchimp, and increased our e-newsletter open rate to 27%

Donor Services

We support donors in partnering with strong, trustworthy, and accountable nonprofits in ways that advance the greater good. In 2020, this work included:

  • One woman sitting in an orange armchair with a laptop open. Another person is sitting on the arm of the chair, looking at the laptop screen.Increasing our annual unique pageviews of our list of reviewed nonprofits by 52.89%
  • Responding to more than 1,000 donor support calls and emails, providing unique giving guidance to each potential donor who contacted us
  • Sharing our biannual Smart Giver Newsletter, our print publication that includes giving advice, Council updates and our list of reviewed nonprofits, with 7,158 recipients

Nonprofit Services

We partner with nonprofits to build, recognize, and share their internal strength. This work came to life in 2020 as we:

In 2020, our Accountability Wizard® nonprofit review process helped:

  • 75% of Meets Standards® nonprofits increase their knowledge around governance
  • 53% of Meets Standards® nonprofits better and more effectively work toward their missions 
  • 91% of Meets Standards® nonprofits make their organizations more accountable and transparent

Financials

A woman stands in front of glass windows that are covered in large sheets of paper and post-its for brainstorming. She is pointing to the brainstorming page.

At Charities Review Council, we believe that public disclosure of financial information demonstrates a nonprofit’s commitment to transparency and accountability. Therefore, we’ve included our year-end financial statements and IRS Form 990 below.


Our People

Get our latest and greatest monthly!

Subscribe

Charities Review Council

Our mission is building donor and nonprofit relationships for strong, vibrant and just communities. We envision healthy communities for all, benefiting from effective and trustworthy nonprofits that are supported by a well-informed public’s generosity.

Let’s Connect

1915 Highway 36 W Ste 133 • Roseville, Minnesota 55113-2709
Phone: (651) 224–7030 • E-mail: info@smartgivers.org

Privacy Policy (5/9/19) • Terms of Use (5/9/19)

MENU
Log In