Gen X* reference/ear worm FTW.
As I'm writing this there are 7-ish weeks remaining in the year.
And in those 50 days we've got American Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Giving Tuesday, and a whole slew of holidays and celebrations.
We fundraisers have big goals to hit and a lot of work to do over the next month-and-a-half, so how do we keep our head above water and make this time of giving a success?
First Things First: Mindset
There are a whole of reasons we can use to convince ourselves that fundraising will be especially tough at this time of year:
The economy is bad and people are spending less
Well, first, we tend to see giving go up during times of economic struggle, but even more importantly, all economic trends right now are really strong. The Consumer Confidence Index went up, inflation has gone down (but, yes, overall prices are still higher), the markets, which were already experiencing record highs before the election, are very strong, and presidential elections tend not to affect philanthropy in the negative.
People are tired from the election and political campaigns; we shouldn't be hounding them for money and it's more difficult to get their attention.
Let's stop thinking of fundraising as begging/hounding/bothering/interrupting - let's think of fundraising as invitation to be a part of a mission and important work. Even so, we've all been barraged by political messaging and now we're entering into the holiday onslaught. Yes, marketing fatigue is a real thing, but notice the response that 95% are likely to revisit a brand or retailer following. positive experience.
Donors are incentivized by tax benefits, so we should focus on that.
This discussion can get a little spicy. There is some evidence to indicate that wealthier donors may be more incentivized by tax deductibility but, honestly, most are not. Especially "lower-end" donors. The number of individuals who itemize their deductions dropped to just 9% of tax filers with the 2018 tax law changes - down from 30%. Which means most people are taking the standard deduction and not itemizing their charitable contributions.
In other words - stop making decisions for your donors. And be the internal advocate/champion for all things good in giving when you get pushback from your leadership. Generosity is alive and well and vibrant - and, certainly, values are front-and-center right now as people are really thinking about what's most important to them.
Second: Focused Activity
Seven weeks is not a lot of time. If you don't have a specific plan right now, it's time to get one in place to make the most of this season.
1) Segment, Segment, Segment
You'll have much greater potential for success by identifying different target groups within your database and targeting messaging to them.
Current Donors - anyone who's made a gift in the last 12 months. Thank them for what they have done and offer a 2nd or additional gift - tell them why its important, but above all recognize that they have already made you a priority.
Lapsed Donors - anyone who has not made a gift within the last 12 months, but did give within the last 24-36 months. Let's be honest, they may not remember you, so remind them of their generosity, explain what their gift did before, thank them for being a part of the important work, and invite them to renew their thoughtful support.
Pro-Tip: A lapsed renewal appeal is going to work best when there's been strategic stewardship. Start planning now on how to re-engage lapsed donors in the new year.
Long Lapsed - anyone who made a gift more than 36 months ago. Same approach as the lapsed, but measure it carefully to gauge success. Long Lapsed tend to respond at about the same rate as acquisition.
MAJOR DONORS: Hopefully you've been having ongoing conversations with your major donors and you have a good idea of where they are and what their plans are. Some may have waited until after the election to make their final decisions, so engage in good stewardship and conversation now. Remember that your priority for a year-end goal isn't theirs and "year-end" is not a strong enough case for support.
2) Personalize
The impact of personalization on fundraising results is huge. Today's consumers -- i.e. people i.e. donors -- are demanding more personalization and feeling seen and heard by the causes they support. 81% of consumers prefer companies that provide a personalized experience.
Personalization goes beyond just dropping their name in an email or letter, but recognizing they've given before or have some connection to you adds to the impact of your messaging, i.e., acknowledging their previous giving, recognizing they attend an event or purchased an auction item, etc.
The days of "Dear Friend" need to be far, far, far behind us.
Pro-Tip: Start investing now, if you haven't already, in capturing and taking care of data that helps you personalize. Asking people on giving forms or in follow up surveys, "what would you like us to call you?" Ensuring gift entry is timely and correct. Updating and cleaning addresses and email addresses. Invest time now in making next year's data easier and better to use.
3) Use Different Approaches
Enable your board and key volunteers to run a peer-to-peer campaign.
Position recurring giving front-and-center - give people the option to make a larger impact by giving a smaller gift each month.
Recognize the power of omni-channel fundraising and maximize social medial, email, telephone, and direct mail. Yes, they all still work when used effectively.
Be Cautiously Optimistic about Giving Tuesday. Personally I don't think we can afford, any longer, to not participate - but also acknowledge its one day out of the year and don't put all your eggs in the Giving Tuesday basket.
4) Recognize That Your Best Investment Now Might Be Next Year
I don't want to dissuade you, but if you don't have plans in motion, time is TIGHT, so the effect of any last-minute tactics likely might not have huge impact right now.
Do remember that every single thing you do before year-end does have an impact on future fundraising potential. Every action is a potential stewardship and touchpoint, so here are a few things you can start working on now to make your new the best ever:
Plan - have a very clear, defined plan for next year starting January 1.
Clean - invest in cleaning your data, appending missing information, standardizing existing info, de-duping, and making sure you've got the best possible contact info.
Audit - This is a great time to audit your data for quality and historical trends so that you can use that to create your plan and know precisely what to expect next year. (From now until 12/31 we're happy to offer a 20% discount on any audits up to 25,000 records - reach out to us at hello@nextriverfundraising.com or visit www.nextriverfundraising.com/audits.
Consider a screening to identify trends in capacity and affinity in your donor data.
Rest. Take care of you this holiday season and remember you can't pour from an empty vessel.
Third: Resources
There are some tremendously good resources out there for year-end giving:
Let me leave you to it with two additional thoughts:
1) Stay the course, don't make decisions for your donors, and make sure that your communications are engaging, delightful, focused, and bring the donor into the mission and the work. This is not the time to tell them everything your organization did but, instead, what they can do with and through your mission.
2) We call this time the Giving Season because "this is when most people give." OK, so there is something to the Bandwagon Effect and thinking of charities at times we're thinking of giving gifts . . . but this is also the time most people give because this is the time when we ask the most. Next year, invest just as much energy into a random Tuesday in June or Thursday in September and spread the giving out over time. Those who truly care don't wait for a calendar reminder t be generous.
You've got this - and thank you for the important work that you do as a fundraiser!
(*Speaking of Gen X, pardon the digression, we are in the beginnings of the largest wealth transfer in history, where Silent and Boomer generations' assets will begin transferring to younger generations. Gen X stands to inherit the largest percentage of that transfer, but, please, go head and focus on Millennials and Gen Z, we're used to being left out, we're the latchkey generation, we'll just let ourselves into philanthropy and make ourselves a snack, thanks. That's great, it starts with an earthquake, birds, snakes, and aeroplanes . . . . )
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