How To Increase Your Fiscal Year-End Fundraising

Fundraising is an integral part of nonprofit operations, and developing a solid fundraising strategy is crucial for success. According to the Blackbaud Institute’s 2017 report, December, the calendar year-end (CYE), is the most significant month for generating donations, and June, the fiscal year-end (FYE), is the second most important month for donations. In light of this data, here are three tips for developing a strong FYE fundraising campaign.

Adapt Your CYE Campaign Marketing Strategy

As in your CYE fundraising campaigns, consider a communications strategy that sends reminders to donors through various channels. According to Nonprofit Hub, successful CYE fundraising strategies include:

  1. Coordinating with other marketing campaigns,
  2. Optimizing mobile landing pages,
  3. Personalizing messages for each donor,
  4. Testing out strategies to see what works, and
  5. Following up with a personalized “thank you” for every donor.

Adapt these success tactics for your FYE fundraising campaign.

Create a Custom FYE Donation Page

A custom FYE donation page allows you to personalize your donor’s experience. According to Nonprofit Tech for Good, a custom donation page raises six times more donations than a generic page. Network for Good shares three tips for developing a custom donation page:

  1. Personalize your donation page by telling stories and including pictures that speak to donors,
  2. Brand your page by using your logo, slogans, and colors so that donors know they are in the right place to make a donation, and
  3. Promote this custom page and make sure it is easy to find by using buttons on your website and including strategic calls to action in your marketing communications.

Review Pledges

Instead of waiting for the CYE, review your list of donor pledges, and consider contacting those who have not yet given. While you do not want to badger donors, a carefully crafted, personalized reminder to honor a pledge could help you achieve your FYE fundraising goal. In an article about how long nonprofits should allow donors to fulfill fundraising pledges, Raise-Funds notes that donors often honor pledges before they originally intend to do so.

In addition to tried-and-true methods of thanking donors and ensuring that your data is accurate and updated, these three tips can help you develop an FYE fundraising strategy to maximize donations.

women making a donation online

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Each week, our team of experts will put share their experiences, tips and viewpoints in all areas of higher education consulting, leadership, and fundraising. We're a team that consists of tenured individuals who have made it their life’s work to help solve some of the issues surrounding community colleges today. Some of our topics include:

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