Year-end giving amounts to an estimated 40-70 percent of many nonprofits’ annual budgets. The most charitable season of the year is a prime opportunity to secure new supporters and to lift the giving levels of current donors. In this blog series, we will review the steps to devising a strong campaign—including how to use data analytics to target your messaging, the importance of a compelling story, how to distribute your story through multiple channels, and when to follow up with donors.
DO A FINAL EMAIL PUSH THE LAST DAYS OF THE YEAR
Online donations peak during the final days of the year as donors capitalize on the tax benefits of giving. You can wrap up your year-end communications after Christmas with an email push that offers donors a last chance to give.
Consider sending the first of your final emails to your entire donor file, less those who have already given. Then, for the next send, suppress the names of those who opened the previous last-chance email and resend the email again.
Many people open charity emails on the 31st to make that last possible year-end gift. But don’t wait until the last two days to start your campaign! These reminder emails should be the final act in a series of well-timed messages.
Action Items:
- Plan the send times so that emails hit inboxes in the morning after 9 AM.
- Experience shows that email opens decrease through the course of the day.
- Remember that many other organizations may be using the same distribution system as you are. To avoid being late to the queue, have your final emails written, built, and ready to go well before the actual send dates.
- Focus your window between 12/27 and 12/31.
It’s not too late to start building your year-end campaign with Pursuant, but you must respond now. Let us help you raise more by sending the right messages to the right audiences at the right time.