How Will You Finish Out the Year?

15 Dec How Will You Finish Out the Year?

16 December 2025

By David Allen, Development for Conservation

Fifteen days left in 2025 – two weeks. Take out weekend days (4) and Christmas Day and you’re left with just 10.

How will YOU use them?

Regular First Thing Tuesday readers will know that I strongly encourage fundraisers NOT to take these last two weeks off. Just like accountants can’t take the first two weeks in April off, we fundraisers can’t take these last weeks in December off. We are needed. This is our time.

At the very least, turn your phone and email ON and commit yourself to answering them during office hours. When I call you or email you about making a last-minute stock gift, or giving you my used F-150, or making a gift from my IRA, or leaving your land trust in my will – when I contact you about anything last minute – you answer. You are available.

So – we know what you’ll be doing on Friday after Christmas and Monday-Wedneswday before New Years. But what about the seven days between now and the 23^rd?

How will you use that time?

Here are several ideas to think about:

1. Make a list of those who haven’t given yet this year. Make a side-by side list of all the donors who gave money in 2024 together with their cumulative giving in 2024 and so far in 2025. Notice whose giving jumped. Notice also whom you haven’t heard from yet in 2025. Is there anything you can do NOW to improve the chances they will act before New Years?
2. This goes double for Board directors. Everybody in? Would a phone call or email help? Consider that this communication need not come from you – perhaps it would have more impact if it were to come from your Board President or Chair. What could YOU do NOW to make that more likely?
3. Set up your “last chance” email marketing messages for release on the 30^th and 31^st. One idea for chasing in last minute gifts is to send out marketing email. Just like any other email campaign, a matching gift could help, as well as a specific item you might be trying to raise money for. More than anything else, this is a reminder and your relative success will depend on making it easy for donors to find you. Hot links and QR codes leading to dedicated landing pages could help. Sounding FUN and URGENT is great. But avoid sounding desperate.
4. Dedicate yourself to speeding up the Thank You process. Pick up the mail every day if you don’t already. Let Board directors and other staff connected to the donors know right away about their gifts. To the greatest extent possible, make your thank-you messages PERSONAL. But get them out right away. Aim for 48 hours. If you can handle it, get on the phone to say thank you. (See also You Made My Day!)
5. Actually, that’s a good idea – go back and re-read You Made My Day. Out of the 600 or so blog posts I have written over the years, that’s one of the ones I’m proud of.
6. Reach out with “thinking of you” messages. Are there Board members, specific donors, volunteers, staff members, or anyone else who played an important role for you in 2025? Did your land trust close on a specific property or complete a specific project that was made possible through the efforts of someone special? Reach out in a personal way and share with them how you feel about it. Phone is best, but email can work as well. Even if you simply leave a message, or your email goes unreturned, the gesture will be felt by BOTH of you.

But most importantly, be there when the phone rings. Before they have a chance to call someone else.

Cheers, and Have a great week!

-da

PS: Your comments on these posts are welcomed and warmly requested. If you have not posted a comment before, or if you are using a new email address, please know that there may be a delay in seeing your posted comment. That’s my SPAM defense at work. I approve all comments as soon as I am able during the day.

Photo by David Clode courtesy of Pixaby. [YES – they’re turtle doves.]