This blog is written in collaboration with Lindsay McDermott of The McDermott Group, a nonprofit consulting organization that helps charities and nonprofits to uncover their strengths and build connections with passionate funders for transformational outcomes.

It’s the beginning of January, you sit down at your desk, shake off the holidays......now what?! 

It is well studied that gratitude, as a mindfulness practice, can ground us and is an important part of our individual and collective wellbeing. Because philanthropy is rooted in relationships, we should approach our work in the impact sector with an overflowing cup of gratitude. Although many fundraisers are recovering from the busiest time of year, once the dust settles, we have an opportunity to reflect on the powerful work we proudly deliver every day. Let this reflection spill over into your interactions with donors and partners of your organization. 

The new year is not necessarily a moment to recoup unmet funding targets or appeal to donors to help close gaps in operational funds. Donors will have received many requests for support, and will need a breather after the holiday season. Rather, use the slower winter months to build a culture of deep gratitude within your development team, and your donors will be more likely to give, and increase their gift, the next time you ask. Don’t let donor gratitude (stewardship) fall through the cracks while attempting to complete the multitude of tasks on your plate. In fact, I personally LOVE this part of my work. It is a feel-good action for everyone involved, and has a ripple effect for years to come. The following tips can be woven into your annual plan, and will pay off if prioritized: 

• Use this time to gather your data and metrics for your formal annual / impact report.
• Send an e-blast to all supporters with a story of impact, demonstrating the profound difference they have made. Perhaps include specific goals achieved last year.
• Send out happy new year hand-written cards to your top donors. Check out this tool for an automation level up on this personalized touch.
• Invite donors to your organization for a tour, or organize group volunteer opportunities (hint: corporate groups are prepared to donate as well as give back).
• Did you receive large grants or corporate gifts in the past 1-3 years? Add in quick touchpoints with these funders and partners, beyond the required reporting. Re-engage lapsed partners with a drop in visit or brief phone call update on your programs.
• Do you text with your major gift donors? I do. I send them quick photos/videos and updates of the work in action – it doesn’t have to be a formal interaction to be meaningful. But DO remember to track your actions in your CRM, whatever that may be.
• Does your organization have a stewardship matrix? This can be an easy way to start implementing ongoing gratitude and doesn’t have to be intricate. Ensure your communications team has an opportunity to provide input, since they will be responsible for implementing some of the tasks.
• For free resources, samples and templates of all things donor stewardship, check out this resource library from Donor Relations Group. 

Remember, it costs your organization between 5x to 10x more to acquire new donors than it does to retain them. Show them the gratitude that is a proven success factor to drive positive action and your organization will thrive. 

The winter months can also be an ideal time to revisit your fundraising plans for the year ahead, and have some fun being creative with your colleagues and volunteers. Involve your development team (or Board if you are the team) in a SWOT exercise of all annual activities – appeals, events, campaigns, etc. Were there areas you came up short in your goals? If so, these could be ripe opportunities to launch a micro campaign. Before you begin campaign planning, take the following items into consideration: 

What are you doing throughout the year to engage your supporters and followers? To gain new followers? Workshop creative ideas to grow your networks so that once you launch your campaign, you will have more engagement. Do you have the internal readiness to successfully implement a campaign? Are your systems in order, does your team have the training and knowledge required to carry out a successful campaign from start to finish? Tips: think about donor segmentation, clean data, gift processing, and of course, stewardship. 

Once you are ready to plan your micro campaign (hint: you will never be completely ready, so don’t let the pursuit of perfection stand in your way), you will want to think about the following: 

• Funding goal for the campaign – can you align this to a particular program, and include operational funding into your goal? Offset your bottom line as often as possible and be clear with what you are raising funds for.
• Develop a call to action that is impossible to ignore. Pair that with images and video.
• Can you quantify the impact? Example: $50 will help XX kids per month. It takes our organization $10,000 to make X impact. Your finance team can help navigate if you have not done this exercise.
• Do you have any physical spaces that can be offered to recognize donors for a set minimum gift? How public can you make these spaces, in person or virtually?
• Create a sense of urgency – when do you require these funds by? If you don’t reach that goal, what happens? Develop a landing page with a slider so donors can see the progress, and post regularly with updates.
• Create a “challenge” where donors inspire others – they can nominate other donors or businesses, which will encourage increased social engagement. A great example of this was the development team at HSLM who created a micro challenge campaign to support a larger capital campaign: Shelter Vet Clinic Challenge | Humane Society London & Middlesex
• Secure a gift match for your campaign – although they are no longer a unique tactic, gift matches are proven to be 71% more effective than an appeal with no gift match.
• Publicly thank your supporters – for donors above a certain threshold, tag and thank them online for their support. Offer a cheque presentation photo op. They can then share and expand your reach and engagement.
• Test, re-test and pivot – be flexible and shift as needed, respond to what works and what doesn’t. Failure is progress.
• Have fun with it! 

www.themcdermottgroup.ca

lindsay [at] themcdermottgroup.ca (lindsay[at]themcdermottgroup[dot]ca)