6 Ways to Gear Up Now for Successful Year-End Fundraising

Do you have a plan in place to meet your year-end fundraising goals?

Just imagine: The average nonprofit raises more than 40 percent of its annual revenue during the last quarter of the calendar year. And an entire third of the donations made in December occur on the 31st of the month!

Start getting ready for year-end fundraising with the following tips you can start implementing now:

1. Take a deep dive into your donor database. Remember, all donors are not created equal. You always will make your biggest impact when you segment as thoroughly as possible. I first learned the power of segmentation in one of my earliest jobs, when I segmented our small donor base (less than 500) into eight different groups—and increased giving by 30 percent.

Think beyond your LYBUNTs (Last Year But Unfortunately Not This Year), SYBUNTs (Some Year But Unfortunately Not This Year) and major donors. Think about segmenting by your donors’ reasons for giving.

How are you moving up those donors who have given $25 to $75 every year for the past five years? How are you rewarding loyalty?

2. Get closer. Create as many genuinely personal touches as possible. Begin now by connecting with your board members to learn who knows whom. Then begin recruiting those members who can write personal sticky notes, make phone calls, meet one-on-one with donors and make thank-you calls.

3. What’s the first rule of direct mail? Get your envelope opened! And nothing quite piques the curiosity like a hand-addressed envelope. Recruit your board members and volunteers to hand-address envelopes to your best donors.

4. Infuse gratitude and donor love into your year-end letter. Remember my mantra is always to lead with gratitude and make your donor the hero. (If you’re stumped on donor-love language, here are 20 ways to achieve it.)

5. Find the one emotionally compelling story. This will form the basis of your year-end campaign. (Depending on those segments, you may have more than one.)

6. Determine who handles your website. Prepare now for rapid changes to your homepage (Will you be implementing a homepage takeover?), donation page and thank-you page.

Incorporate these six tips into your year-end fundraising plan now, and then register for "Supercharge Your Year-End Fundraising | Basics & More" at early-bird pricing!