How to Plan to Make 2012 Your Best Year Ever

This is when you have to have a large dose of reality. If your president insists on approving all copy and she expects a minimum of a week to do so, schedule accordingly. If your board chair wants to be part of the event planning and his calendar is almost impossible to work around, you need to extend your lead times. If you are taking a vacation for two weeks this summer, you have the luxury right now to plan the calendar to allow you to take that time off because your projects are on schedule.

Finally, be sure you assign the key person responsible for each activity. If you want blogs posted every Wednesday, who is responsible to write them or solicit them from others, and then make sure they are posted? Who will lead the process to get your direct-mail letter in the mail, and the follow-up e-mail sent a week or two later?

One of my favorite sayings is, “Hope is not a strategy.” By planning your fundraising activities for 2012 before Jan. 20, you’ll not only have more opportunities to raise money; you’ll also have the stamina to rise to the challenge when the unexpected comes up and you need to pull out all the stops to respond.

Pamela Barden is the creative juice and the copywriting machine behind PJBarden Inc. You can follow Pamela on Twitter @pjbarden.