October: EOY Mailings
Begin To Think About End of Year*
*if you haven't yet... 😉
Earlier this month, Empowered Nonprofits reintroduced Empowered Hour as a free webinar. Our first topic, "You've Got This: The Ultimate EOY Campaign Checklist", was a success! We were excited to have Allegra Mangione and Cheryl Wittenstein share their expertise on campaigns, and appreciated the thoughtful questions and participation from our attendees. If you'd like to watch the webinar, you may do so here. Keep reading for the main takeaways from the webinar, and
answers to some questions we received.
LOOK BACK TO LOOK AHEAD
The devil is in the data so pull those reports and look at financials, giving levels, gift numbers, gift types and anything else to which you can apply a measurable metric. To ensure success, only set your goals when you know exactly what happened last year.
SEGMENT, THEME & PERSONALIZE
Center your campaign around the people you want to reach and tailor your messaging accordingly. You can segment by giving level, program interest, generation and more. Include names, last gift amount, personal notes on letters. Choose a theme to use throughout all communications and outreach. The opportunities are endless.
VOLUNTEER AS AMBASSADORS
Think of end of year as an event; set up a committee, bring in key donors, staff members, those active on social media and give them roles. The more ambassadors, the wider your message can spread.
BRIEF THE MAIL HOUSE
You spend so long perfecting your campaign materials, only to have the mail house stuff the envelope so the return envelope is the first thing the opener sees. Brief the mail house on how you would like your materials arranged so the opener sees the most important information first.
FOLLOW UP
End of year doesn't end on December 31. Ensure you head into the new year with a plan to secure outstanding gifts, thank all your donors, and most importantly - continue to steward your supporters throughout
the year. Stay tuned as we talk more about follow up and stewardship in our November newsletter.
You Asked, We Answered: End of Year
Q: When should we start our end of year campaign?
A: We recommend sending out the first end of year communication right after Thanksgiving*, so working backwards from then, decide how much time you need to plan (typically 4-6 weeks). *Timing is organization-specific, so do what works best for you and your supporters!
Q: How do we decide if we should use electronic or mailed communication?
A:This is a great use of segmentation! If you aren't able to send a letter to your full list, segment it by giving level and mail your larger donors a letter and send electronic communications to everyone. We also recommend personalizing your mailed letters as much as possible, including: contact information, most recent gift amount, and ask amount.
Q: Should we solicit anyone over the phone?
A: If you have the staff (and volunteer) capacity to do so, absolutely! This is an especially important solicitation tool for donors who are at your highest levels of giving, as well as donors who typically give each year and/or around end of year who haven't yet.