When does your nonprofit organization do the majority of its fundraising? If you’re like most nonprofit organizations, you’ll receive about a third of your donations at the end of the year. As December draws to a close, many donors are looking for chances to express their end-of-year generosity. The opportunities for your organization to raise funds during this time are quite plentiful. But competition is also high. Consider the benefits of working throughout the year to communicate with donors and potential donors. Building these relationships year-round will have an impact when it’s time to write the check in December.
Relationships Require Time
All relationships require time commitments. In fact, the more intimate the relationship, the more time must be committed. Donor relationships are no different. Almost half of nonprofits start their year-end ask in November. This means that there’s a lot of “relationship-building” and fundraising campaigns happening all at once in the last few months of the year. But this is like believing that if you cram in lots of time with your spouse for a couple weeks, you won’t need to spend as much time with them throughout the rest of the year. This, of course, is absurd. In the same way, you can help your nonprofit organization stand out at the end of the year by keeping consistent communication with donors during the year.
Let’s Talk About Channels
This consistent communication can manifest itself in a lot of different ways. Communication with donors year-round doesn’t mean that your organization should constantly be asking for money. It simply means that you should be telling your story and showcasing your impact on a regular basis. You can do this through social media, a blog, or a series of video interviews with leaders in your organization.
The more you share about what your organization is doing from January to September, the more likely you’ll stand out when it comes time to give from October to December.
Donors Need To See Their Impact
Of course there are other reasons to consistently communicate with donors through your preferred channels all year round. Updating them on what your organization is doing will enable them to see their gifts in action. They will see their impact in real-time.
With the donor retention rate reaching under 50% in 2018, it’s undeniably essential to build consistent relationships with donors and continue to reinforce their decision to support your organization, even when you’re not actively fundraising.
Regularly ‘Touch Base’
It doesn’t have to be complicated or comprehensive. You don’t need to fundraise all year long. All it takes is consistent communication with your donors and regular updates about what your organization is doing. The consistency will pay off at the end of the year. Additionally, you’ll be in a good position to build stronger partnerships with donors and invite them to join your organization as volunteers.
All of this requires a great balance of intuition and logistics. Your organization needs the right strategy coupled with the right tools to succeed at fundraising. Tools like a functional online donation system, insightful analytics, and website hosting are essential to fundraising success. Five More Talents can help through our Fundraising Add-on Services.
