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More than a third of annual charitable giving occurs in November and December. Donors are generally in the giving spirit during the holiday season, and it’s the perfect time for your nonprofit to engage with them.
From sending holiday cards and year-end impact reports to donors, to participating in GivingTuesday on Nov. 29 – there are many tried-and-true ways to engage with your donor base.
But the challenge with end-of-year giving campaign preparation isn’t finding the right marketing hook; the key is finding creative ways to distinguish your nonprofit from the rest.
Here are four effective and unique end-of-year giving campaign ideas that your organization can leverage in 2022:
Peer-to-Peer Fundraiser
Peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns – also called social fundraising – enable nonprofits to reach new, untapped prospects by leveraging board members and donor networks. Preparing a peer-to-peer fundraiser involves equipping your non-profit’s top promoters and volunteers with the resources, encouragement, and messaging they need to ask for gifts on your behalf.
There are many types of peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns to try this holiday season, including:
- Winter Fun Runs
- Cycling Events
- Matching Gift Drives
- Dance-A-Thons
- Read-A-Thons
- Pet Holiday Costume Contests
- Wellness Challenges
- Book Clubs
- Bake Sales
- Pub Crawls
- Winter Festivals
- Maker/Craft Fairs
- Recipe Challenges
- Holiday Galas and Auctions
- Lunch or Dinner Parties
- Fitness Challenges
- Chili Cookoffs
While the goal of peer-to-peer fundraising is to engage with new donors, don’t forget to express your gratitude to your supporters and volunteers throughout the campaign. Peer-to-peer fundraising is most effective when supporters are equipped with the tools and encouragement they need to help promote your nonprofit’s mission among their friends and family. Make it easy for supporters to solicit gifts by setting up text-to-donate functionality or mobile-friendly online giving webpages in advance.
Key Takeaway: The top peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns are engaging, well thought-out, and build community. Plan ahead to help minimize the amount of time and resources your supporters need to promote the campaign on your organization’s behalf.
Impact Crowdfunding Campaign
Inspire your donors, prospects, and community members to rally around an impactful cause this holiday season by launching a crowdfunding campaign. Digital crowdfunding is a cost-effective, quick way to collect gifts from many donors regardless of their location.
It’s important to explain the tangible impacts of each gift. What will a $100 gift be used for? What does hitting a $10,000 milestone mean for your organization in 2023? Donors want to know that they’re making a difference. Make sure your campaign’s web pages directly align giving with measurable outcomes. Don’t be afraid to use emotional success stories to help donors connect to your organization’s mission.
Storytelling Campaign
Make your mission relatable and inspire action through compelling, emotional, and shareable storytelling campaigns. Philanthropic storytelling usually focuses on three core themes:
Wins
Has your organization helped someone in your community overcome a big challenge that they’d be willing to talk about? Success stories can be utilized in two ways – they can inspire prospective and current clients to rely on your organization and enable donors to connect with your cause in a tangible way.
Needs
Does your organization have a holiday wish list? Are there specific projects that you want to roll out next year if you can rally some more support? Use stories to explain clearly how your nonprofit will use donor funds to address specific needs.
Dreams
Is your organization planning to expand down the road? What would meeting your end-of-year giving goal today mean five or 10 years from now? Casting the vision for a hopeful, impactful future is a powerful way to show donors how their generosity today can positively impact generations to come.
Storytelling Campaign Tip: Don’t forget to make your ask prominent in your storytelling campaign. Personally ask viewers to participate in the cause to create a better future by taking action today.
Gratitude Campaign
Aside from your other end-of-year giving strategies, don’t forget to spend extra time and resources to make your board members, donors, volunteers, staff, and community advocates aware of how much they mean to your organization. Use personalized hand-written notes, phone calls, emails, and video messaging to thank your support network individually.
If you can, tie in a brief success story into your messaging. Donors love to hear that a specific project or initiative would not have been possible without their support.
The purpose of end-of-year giving gratitude campaigns isn’t to make an ask, but rather to connect with everyone in your organization’s supportive network and show you care about them. Even if gratitude campaigns don’t directly solicit gifts, they are crucial to donor stewardship and paving the way for future philanthropic success.
Gratitude Campaign Tip: Be authentic. People will toss out canned emails and holiday cards that feel manufactured or gimmicky. Take extra time to write personalized messages that recipients might actually hold onto.
Demonstrating Impact in End-of-Year Messaging
Another essential asset that many nonprofits start preparing toward the end of the calendar year is their annual impact report. From maintaining accountability to board members and funding agencies to stewarding donors, nonprofit impact reports are a key tool that fundraisers use to show how contributions are making a real difference. Looking for more information on end-of-year giving messaging? In our recent article, we outlined the basics of developing an effective nonprofit impact report.