Year-End Fundraising: 10 Quick Tips for a Successful Year-End Campaign
Year-end appeals are the fundraising campaign of the year. Nearly one third of all charitable giving is raised in December and 12% on the last 3 days of the year. Like everything about 2020, the election backdrop and the impact COVID-19 has had on our schools and lives make for a unique giving season. Most donors have been giving to causes at pre-COVID levels and plan to continue making gifts above and beyond their COVID contributions. We’ve seen donors give more for urgent needs addressing key gaps. Your campaign will need to express urgency, communicate authentically, and stand out from the hundreds of emails being sent by political campaigns, retailers, and even other nonprofits.
Planning a successful year-end campaign can be a daunting task. But, we know “you’ve got this.” Below is a list of quick tips to ensure you make the most of this giving season.
1. Set a Realistic Goal.
Start by giving careful thought to your campaign goals. Consider, what is the most important outcome?
· Are you looking to hit a dollar goal? (e.g., raise $10,000 by 12/31)
· Do you want to grow your donor base? (e.g., get 50 donors by 12/31)
· Are you raising funds for a specific program goal? (e.g., expand virtual learning tools)
· Did you launch a monthly giving program? (e.g., sign up 50 donors to give $10-25 monthly)
Set meaningful goals. What will motivate smaller donors most? larger donors? A small donor may see more impact to being 1 of 50 donors while it may be harder to see the impact of giving $25 towards a $10,000 goal. In contrast, larger donors may stretch to help us get a significant way there with a $1-2,000 donation.
2. Use Historical Giving Data.
We advise turning to historical giving data. Look back at the last 2-3 years. Now, set your goals based on this data. Development teams often set goals equal to what was raised last year or 10% higher. Note, we’ve seen some schools blow their goals out of the water over the last couple months. Donors want to provide support during this challenging time and schools are asking for help. Things to think about include:
How much did you raise the last 2-3 years?
How many donors gave from Oct-Dec those years?
What was the average small gift? mid-sized gift? large gift?
What was the average gift from mailings? emails? social media?
Who were your top 10 major donors?
It is worth segmenting by gift size: small (under $100), mid-sized ($100-500), and large ($500+) so you can tailor your “ask” based on the average gift by segment. Also consider segmenting by how donors gave: mailings, emails, or social media. With demographic differences for online vs. direct mail donations, you’ll want to adjust your “ask.” Social media gifts are often $25-50 while direct mail gifts are $50-100+ with some schools seeing $200-250.
3. Consider a Monthly Giving Program.
Every school should have a monthly giving program targeted to current donors and people close to your school, such as your board, leadership, staff, and parents. It is a smaller commitment today so it may be easier to engage new donors who want a large impact on a small budget. Monthly donors can bring in more over time – a $50/month commitment brings in $600/year – and when you keep them year-over-year the payoff is significant.
E.L. Haynes’ Return to Learn Monthly Giving Example
“With your monthly commitment (of even a few dollars), you’ll join a group of sustaining donors who provide the school with consistent, reliable funding. Partner with us to educate, empower, and engage our students by becoming an E.L. Haynes monthly donor! Your gift, whether one-time or monthly, provides an extra level of certainty as we ensure award-winning educational programs for every student, in every classroom every day.”
Monthly donations let donors “set it and forget it” and helps you sustain fundraising through difficult times so you have more flexibility as needs arise. Regular donations also further engagement. Plan monthly thank you’s to share your stories, impact, and cultivation events. Continual stewardship is needed for gifts to continue and grow.
Already have monthly donors? Reach out to them this giving season with updates and an end-of-year “stretch ask.” Some of these donors may surprise you. We’ve seen a few schools do this already. E.L. Haynes launched a Return to Learn monthly giving campaign in September tied to the impact COVID-19 has had on the school and students.
4. Tailor Your Ask.
Consider, what is “your ask”? The dollar amount and compelling reason to give now. Reflect how your work ties into what’s top-of-mind, such as racial equity, virtual learning, social connection, and more. Since the heightened visibility from #BLM, racial equity is driving more giving decisions. With so many DC public charter schools doing great work to address systemic racism, now is a great time to share your efforts and what you could achieve with more funding.
Remember, this is a year where all of our donors will be asked to support a number of interests – from political to food insecurity to racial equity. Your ask should be compelling on why a donation to your school really matters and what impact you can make together. Share why this work is important to your mission, students, and families.
5. Segment Your Lists.
It takes effort but it pays off to segment your lists by giving level and by audience. As we mentioned above, you’ll get far better results by looking at your school’s historical giving data vs. relying on industry averages. Once you know the average small, mid-sized, and large gift, you can set the starting ask similar to what donors gave last year.
Ask your board to call mid-level donors to say thank you. Your head of school and development team should reach out to your top 2-20 donors. It’s more effective to plan personalized calls, emails, or video chats, and take them off of the mass emails. Don’t think of it as an extra step but extra attention that pays off in retention and higher gifts.
Internal audiences, like parents, staff, and board members, are more vested and aware of your programs. External audiences, such as community members, philanthropists, and past event attendees, desire more details on our programs, philosophy, and impact. Each have different priorities, require tailored messaging and a different ask. You may ask parents for $25 while you may start at $1,000 for a philanthropist with more capacity. If your database allows, you can customize direct mail letters with the donor’s largest gift or average gift size from last year.
6. Customize Donation Levels.
You’ll want to customize your donate landing page and response cards to tailor to your audience giving level. You may have small donors start at $25, mid-sized donors start at $50, and large donors start at $250 similarly you would tailor the donate pages for social media and direct mail.
Every fall for 15 days in October Washington Latin launches their annual Latin Pride campaign which raises money to support general school activities. It is a short and intense campaign, where families are asked to give what they can. The school’s development team was initially unsure whether this year’s annual parent campaign would hit the goal, given that many in the community are struggling. In fact, parents proved to be extra generous, with many increasing their gifts or adding donations on top of ongoing monthly giving. They feel their results come down to their ability to recruit parent volunteers and getting them excited about the campaign’s impact.
It works well to motivate donors and volunteers when you’re specific on what donations support, like the example below. Just be careful to word your donation page to reflect that these funds will support these initiatives and ongoing operations. Consider adding an option for donors to designate their gift “to be used where it’s most needed.”
7. Plan Storytelling Emails.
Center your appeal around stories. Schools with storytelling appeals outperform those who focus on the “ask.” Donors want to learn about your mission, how you solve a gap, and your impact on students and your community through stories. And we’re seeing that donors will take the time to dive into a longer story told authentically. Vary the stories you tell – from your students, parents, board and donors – and who the email comes from on your team. Share one story or video each week and follow up later that week with your specific “ask.”
Give donors reasons to celebrate the amazing work you’re doing – this year and pre-pandemic. Education looks different, but it isn’t less important. It is helpful to share how you’ll use these funds and your successes to date.
Example from Edgewood Brookland’s 2019 Holiday Campaign
Make memories this holiday season for children like Regina.
Dear <first name>,
Imagine not being able to provide a holiday gift for your child or not having the resources to provide a Thanksgiving meal for your family. Now think about your favorite holiday memories. The holidays should be a time for laughter, smiles, and family. The holidays are about making memories and giving back. This is why we need your help to make memories this holiday season for hundreds of children in DC.
For two decades, supporters like you have made memories for over 3,000 children, parents, and individuals during the holidays. Children like four-year-old Regina, who had the opportunity to make Thanksgiving dinner with her father. Parents like Caisha, who’s young children were overjoyed Christmas morning to receive everything on their list. It’s because of supporters like you that Regina, Caisha and thousands of families have memories to cherish forever.
Will you join us in making memories for hundreds more people, by donating today?
Your financial contribution helps to make memories this holiday season for hundreds of children and families. It, more importantly, provides essential resources to our year-round programs partnering with individuals, children, parents, and neighbors who need a little help sometimes. Edgewood/Brookland Family Support Collaborative helps individuals and families access affordable, stable housing, identify career pathways, strengthen neighbors and families, and partner for student success.
By making your donation today, you can make memories this holiday season when people need it most.
Thanks for being a part of Regina’s story,
Ron Smith, Chief Programs Officer
P.S. There are many ways to help families this holiday season, contact Rebecca if you want to help in another way.
8. Plan Multi-channel Communications.
You gain more momentum when your campaign reaches your audience through multiple channels – mailed letters or branded postcards, email series, social media, videos, Facebook fundraisers, calls, texts and more. It takes 3-7 touches for your audience to open and recall your message, and often more before it engages them to donate. By reaching donors through different channels, you’ll have a higher likelihood of breaking through the noise.
We recommend offering multiple ways to engage. Cash donations are always desired. It’s helpful to give the choice of a one-time or monthly gift. It is also effective to list specific in-kind needs or specific ways to volunteer so everyone can find a way to support you. And encourage people to share the campaign on social media. KIPP had success with this branded mailer that offers multiple ways to give involved: teach, volunteer, visit, and donate.
Consider 1-3 mailings when it fits your budget. While some audiences love emails, others tune it out, especially older donors who are still more likely to respond to direct mail. Mailed letters are effective and we’ve seen more schools using branded postcards or trifolds. KIPP pivoted to a nice trifold where donors give online, which generated over $100,000. Many schools direct donors to donate online but some still include a reply envelope. If you go this route, we suggest tracking how many come back to see if this expense is worthwhile.
9. Consider the Timing.
In election years, we see a drop in giving with attention going to political campaigns. Political giving has been at an all-time high this fall and donors are still getting political asks, even with the election having ended. As we pull away from election day in mid to late November, more people will be less distracted and ready for an inspiring message from causes they care about.
This year, we need more time for direct mail to be received. It looks like a safe bet is to plan for 2-5 day delays over previous years from mid-November to early-December but expect longer delays in the latter half of December due to holiday shipping. Consider launching your appeal right before Giving Tuesday. Starting with an email will be reliable for the date received. When launching with direct mail, you’ll want to add more mailing time. We suggest email a few days prior to “look in the mail” – it prompts donors to let you know if it’s not received.
Giving Tuesday is competitive for donor attention, but it can be worth planning emails and social media the week prior, Monday, and Tuesday morning and evening since some donors plan to give. Consider asking your board and parents to “friendraise” – sending personalized emails or texts to friends or a personal fundraiser on Facebook.
10. Plan the Right Frequency.
We’ve seen it works well to send emails twice a week for the length of your campaign, 2-3 mailings (letter, postcard or trifold) when budgets allow and always plan emails on 12/29, 12/30 and 12/31, the highest giving days each year. When you deliver a storytelling campaign, donors are eager to receive your emails. For higher engagement, plan one story or video each week telling your impact and a second email focused on your “ask.” As donors make donations, remove them from the remaining “ask” emails but you can keep them on the “story” emails. You may want a footer message, such as “You’ll receive frequent emails during this appeal. Click to opt out of these emails.”
In Network for Good’s Year-End Campaign Guide, they suggest 2-4 social media posts per week featuring impact stories, donor profiles, and board videos. Recommend personalized video messages and text-to-donate messages to VIP donors. In a year with more people spending time online at home, you shouldn’t overlook your online presence, including website banners, donate pages, organic search and online or social media ads.
Year-end campaigns are critical to hitting your fundraising goals for the year and cultivating new donors. Thoughtful planning and a compelling storytelling campaign can make all the difference in how much you raise.