Year-End Planning: What to Do Now, Next Month and at Year-End

Back in my direct response days, August and September were crucial months to set the tone for the year-end fundraising push. But what you may not realize, if you haven’t been in direct response or annual giving, is that year-end planning starts months in advance. (Think March.)

Yet, too often, mid-level and major gift fundraisers don’t apply a similar planning process to their year-end strategy, which can put them behind before things have even gotten started. If you wait until October and November, you, your internal team and your donors will be too busy for you to implement a thoughtful communications strategy.

So, how do you solve this dilemma? As Theresa Tapocsi, one of my colleagues, likes to say, “Once you start seeing pumpkin spice on the menu (which happened early this year!), it’s time to start your fall planning.” This gives you a breathable window to step back and look at the big picture of your portfolio before gifts start flowing in and you get lost in the weeds of your day-to-day schedule.

This initial fall planning is when you can ask yourself some key questions:

• Are you meeting your financial expectations?
• Who hasn’t given yet this year?
• Who may be open to giving more?
• Who needs a reminder or would benefit from a note about your upcoming match opportunity?

You know how valuable the last couple months of the year are in your fundraising cycle, which is why it's so important to focus on creating (ideally, updating) a strong, strategic plan for your donors. If you can do this, your November and December will stop being stressful and overwhelming and start being fun, creative and impactful.

Here’s what you can start doing right now and set things in motion for the giving season.

Check Goals Variances

Assess the differences between your expected gifts and your actual gifts. Do you have any donors who typically give earlier in the year but haven’t given yet this year? (And have you reached out to them?) Are there any donors you think may be interested in making an additional year-end gift?

Even if a donor has told you, "I can't give $100,000 this year," it’s still important to relay the message to your leadership so everyone is aware of the adjustments they need to make.

Review Your Caseload

Identify the donors who typically contribute at year-end. Develop a tailored plan that includes reporting on their previous gifts, crafting a compelling offer that resonates with their interests and outlining additional strategies for further donor engagement.

You should also adjust your plan for those donors who you expected a gift from, but they haven’t given yet. Plan to check in with the donor in a way that honors and respects them. You may also decide to send a reminder out or attach a note to an upcoming communication.

Share Your Plan and Goals

Connect with your supervisor to share your goals and plans for all your top donors. Remember, you won’t meet with every donor in your caseload in the next two months. Nor should you!

Talk through what you need to share impactful donor offers, relevant and meaningful touchpoints and impact reporting with your key year-end donors.

Write Some Thank-Yous

Take out your pen and note cards. This can be a grueling task near the end of year when you’ve got piles of other work to complete. But you can prep for this earlier in the fall by starting letters that share a few sentences about donor impact and the year’s highlights.

When your donors send their gifts, you can then tailor each thank-you note with their names and amounts and share how their gift will be used.

Call Your Big Donors

Plan an early fall touch-base phone call with your A-tier donors. You might ask something like, "How was your summer? Are your kids back in school?" It could just be a simple dial to thank the donor for their support.

Many times, they'll be a bit surprised: "You're just calling to check in?" It’s a simple way to keep your organization top of mind as you anticipate asking for a larger year-end gift. You’d be surprised how many donors send a check right after hanging up.

Meet With Other Teams

Work smarter, not harder. Why build an impact report when your marketing team is already doing that? If you can meet now with members of your programming or marketing teams, you can determine which mid-level or major donors need more personalized (or impact-heavy) information sent to them. It will save redundant messaging and give your letters more meaning.

Keep It Simple

Now, once you get into November and December, it’s a great time to think about efficiency. There’s a tendency to send out more communication, which makes sense because there’s a lot to share about the organization and you want to keep your donors informed. But communicating more frequently, when donors are already inundated with mail and events could potentially lead to donors tuning out.

Our best advice? Keep things simple. Prioritize key donors who have yet to make a gift or who you haven’t connected with yet and send them relevant and engaging communications. Maybe that’s a handwritten note, a brief report on impact or an example of how your organization’s services have affected someone. It will resonate with donors more than a larger series of communications.

The bottom line?

Have a plan, but don’t be afraid to tinker and adjust it, especially as you audit your caseload and tailor your communication. If you have the proper planning and know where you’re going, you’ll be in a great position to take on the holiday season with the confidence it deserves.

The preceding blog was provided by an individual unaffiliated with NonProfit PRO. The views expressed within do not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of NonProfit PRO.