Season of Giving: Practical Strategies to Encourage Holiday Generosity and Boost Fundraising

The holiday season isn’t just a time for celebration—it’s a critical period for nonprofits to connect with donors and drive impactful change. According to CAF America, nearly one-third of annual charitable contributions in the U.S. occur during November and December, with younger donors under 30 giving half their yearly contributions. For some, the holiday season is the only time they give, making it essential for nonprofits to maximize this moment of generosity. Success doesn’t happen by chance; it requires thoughtful planning and execution. In this article, we’ll share clear and actionable ideas on using a Fundraising CRM to help your organization make the most of this giving season.

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‍Understand and Segment Your Donors

Before launching your giving campaign, take the time to understand your target audience, those you’ll ask for gifts from this season. Start by diving into your donor CRM to analyze donor behaviour, especially trends from past campaigns. Look for key insights such as your best giving days, messages that resonated most, and the channels that drove the highest engagement.

Next, define your target audience. Are you aiming to reconnect with previous donors, those with similar demographics, or a new group to broaden your donor base? To do this effectively, segment your current donor list. Add filters like occupation, demographics and interactions. Tools like Stratly can simplify this step, ensuring you tailor your outreach for maximum impact.

The better you understand and segment your audience, the more personal and meaningful your messaging can be. By delivering the right message to the right people, you’ll increase the chances of turning this giving season into your most successful one.

Craft Your Messaging, Theme, and Brand Identity

With a clear understanding of your audience, it’s time to define the message and theme of your fundraising campaign. A strong theme brings consistency to your messaging and reinforces your mission across all platforms. Maintaining a unified look and feel, including your choice of campaign colours, fonts, images, and even the stories you share, is crucial.

The giving season provides an excellent foundation for your campaign, but tailoring your theme to reflect your mission will make it even more impactful. For example, Charity Water’s Year-End Campaign, Clean Water for the Holidays, uses powerful storytelling, precise visuals, and practical impact reporting to drive donations.

Charity: Water creates a strong emotional connection by highlighting the challenges communities face without access to clean water. Donors can see how their contributions will directly impact the lives of people in need.

When you know your audience, you can connect with them in a personal, meaningful, and impactful way.

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‍Choose Your Campaign Type and Tools

The next step is to decide what type of year-end campaign you want to run and the tools you’ll need to achieve your goals. Ensure all your tools are updated, branded, and fully prepared to make the most of the giving season.

While an optimized Fundraising Form for Donations is essential, consider incorporating additional methods and tools to enhance your fundraising strategy. From email marketing platforms to social media campaigns, peer-to-peer fundraising, or text-to-give solutions, selecting the right tools can significantly expand your reach and impact.

A well-equipped toolkit ensures that every touchpoint with your donors is seamless, professional, and aligned with your campaign’s mission.

Peer-to-Peer Fundraising: Mobilize Your Supporters

Peer-to-peer fundraising is a powerful way to extend your campaign’s reach and attract new donors. Encourage your most dedicated supporters to become champions of your cause by creating personalized fundraising pages they can share with their friends, family, and networks.

With Stratly Peer-to-Peer, you can effortlessly set up a primary campaign and invite your advocates to craft their unique fundraising pages. Every contribution made through these individual pages is automatically directed into your primary campaign, streamlining the process and amplifying your fundraising potential.

Text-to-Give: Simplify Donations On the Go

Text-to-give is an excellent fundraising option, especially for in-person events or gatherings. With just a simple text, donors can instantly receive a link to your donation page, making it easy and convenient to give directly from their mobile devices.

Stratly Text-to-Give offers a seamless experience for your donors, allowing them to repeat donations with a single text quickly. Make giving effortless with Stratly’s innovative text-to-give solution!

Conclusion

Planning and executing a successful giving season campaign can feel overwhelming, but leveraging technology can make it easier. By incorporating the right tools and strategies, you can maximize your fundraising efforts and engage with your donors.

Ready to see how Stratly’s powerful features can elevate your fundraising efforts? Book a demo today to explore how our platform can help you streamline your campaign, improve donor engagement, and drive meaningful results this giving season. Let’s work together to make this your most successful year-end campaign yet!

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