3 Things to Include in Your Org’s Year-End Plan
Strategies to Hit Your Goals for 2022
estimated read time: 5 minutes
The pandemic changed the way we all fundraise, but if one thing has remained constant, it’s that a huge portion of donations are still made in the month of December, making year-end fundraising a critical ingredient to our annual success. In fact, according to the Nonprofit Source, 30% of all annual giving happens in the last month of the year.
To help ensure you have a strong quarter, we’ve pulled together some tips to make the most out of this generous time of year.
1) Decide on a theme and stick to it. Studies have shown over and over again that stories about our work are 22x more compelling than data alone. If you haven’t yet, engage colleagues in a conversation about what mission stories stand out from the past year and then prioritize down to one story you’re going to focus on. This is tough because we all have great options to choose from, but focusing on one story and building your year-end theme around it will help avoid confusing donors with multiple messages at a time when they are most likely to give.
If you need help narrowing it down, here are some things to think about:
Which story feels the most relevant right now?
Which story will resonate most with your donor base?
Which story provides the greatest opportunity to extend it through the rest of the year, and on lots of different channels?
After you bring the story to life (interviewing the subject and/or involved staff members, writing out key points, etc.), now it’s time to build out how it shows up consistently in the following places:
Homepage
Donation page
Holiday card
Social media profile pages and content
Newsletters (print and digital)
Email signatures
Event promotion and scripts, including ROC the Day
Appeal letter
2) Personalize your ask. When drafting various appeals–whether it’s a letter, follow up email, or other touchpoint, there’s a few things to check off the list before they go out the door:
For current donors:
Recognize that they are already a donor in the top half of the communication
Reference their gift(s) from the previous year as a reminder (they likely won’t reminder and may end up giving less than they intend to if they don’t know how much they have given in the past)
Enlist the help of staff and board members to write a personal note (ideally someone who knows the person receiving the communication)
For lapsed donors:
Thank them for their past support
Reference their previous giving level
Invite them to return as an investor/partner in your work
Give them an entry point back into the organization by suggesting a dollar amount
For all donors:
Use the word “you” multiple times throughout each communication
Make it easy to donate by offering multiple ways to give
3) Don’t skip the follow up. After sprinting to the finish to get the appeal and other communications out the door at the end of the year, it can be tempting to breathe a sigh of relief and sit back while the donations (hopefully) roll in, but follow up plan is one of the most important pieces.
Thoughtful and intentional thank you’s and follow up communications to donors drastically increases the likelihood of a future gift. Based on the theme/story you selected and the make-up of your donor base, think about meaningful ways to say thank you, and to keep them up-to-date about future impact. Consider the following:
Who should be the one to say thank you for their year-end gift? The answer is different for every organization, but some options might be the ED, a board member, a development team member or the person from your org that signed the letter or wrote the personal note.
How should the thank you be delivered? Think about sending a handwritten note, giving a phone call, writing a letter or even giving a public thank you.
Is there a way to incorporate the story into the thank you message? Think about a quote from someone featured in the story, a picture drawn by a child or, a pre-recorded video message.
Your year-end campaign is ultimately about building relationships with your supporters so when crafting the initial story, think about how that could tie into the initial thank you, and ongoing communications throughout the year.
Here’s a quick example from a University in NYC. After a donor gave for the first time, they received a thank you postcard connected to the theme of “firsts,” with images of the big “firsts” in life like buying a home, taking your first steps, etc. and language such as “Thank you for your first gift! Firsts mean a lot. Your first gift helped to provide students with scholarships, fill library shelves with new publications…” and so on.
Within the next quarter, donors received a phone call thanking them for their gift and specifically recognizing them as a first time donor. The following quarter, they received a handwritten note from a student through the thank-a-donor program. Finally, a month before the anniversary of their first gift they received a final impact piece explaining how their donation was used, with a soft ask for another gift of a similar or greater amount.
Considering the primary reason why people stop giving is because they don’t feel appreciated, building in meaningful ways to say thanks and keep donors up-to-date is well worth the time and effort. After all, losing donors every year makes our jobs as nonprofit professionals a whole lot harder. Expressing gratitude – especially at year-end – and thinking about how to demonstrate the impact donors have had help establish a healthy donor base in addition to closing the year strong.
Given the many challenges we’re facing as a nation, donors have a lot of choices when it comes to making a difference with their dollars. Leverage storytelling, make it as personal as possible and follow up in thoughtful ways. These are all opportunities to end the year as strongly as possible.
Need more guidance on planning for year-end, or even getting a jump start on 2023? Start here: email info@causewave.org to schedule a free conversation with one of our expert team members.
As a nonprofit that is all about nonprofits, we’re always here to help you navigate challenges big and small and connect you to the resources you need to meet your mission.