DECEMBER: THE GIVING MONTH

Did you know that last year 31% of ALL GIVING occurred in the month of December? Did you know that 12% of giving occurred in the last three days of the year?

Thus begs the question: Do you have a end of the year strategy for financial partnership development? If the answer is no, or you were even tempted to coast this month and just eat Christmas cookies, Christmas shop, and watch Elf and/or the Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie 6 times in one week… I plead with you to keep those percentages in mind and reach higher. Here is a couple of quick ideas for your year end strategy:

1. CREATE A GREAT CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER TO YOUR EXISTING PARTNERSHIP BASE. Sometime before December 31st (probably not on Christmas or Christmas Eve), send out a Christmas newsletter to your existing financial and prayer partner list. These should be people you have already communicated your ministry vision and details with. Make it short and sweet and include the following components:
   1. Merry Christmas greeting and express your authentic thankfulness for your support team.
   2. 3-5 bullet points of prayer requests.
   3. A percentage update of where you are at raising your finances.
   4. A gift-wrappy-Christmasy-wonderful-snowy graphic that is a clickable link to your organization’s giving website. (Make it pretty – I made this one in 5 minutes using Canva.com) 
2. HAVE FACE-TO-FACE APPOINTMENTS and DON’T STOP SCHEDULING THEM NOW BECAUSE YOU THINK EVERYONE IS TOO BUSY. Are you are tempted to put the breaks on contacting individuals for face-to-face appointments in the month of December? Let me tell you, experience has taught me that it is a GREAT time for face-to-face appointments. Don’t stop reaching out to connect with people over coffee and making the ask. Some tips:
   1. Pay for their coffee.
   2. Get a small gift for your potential financial partner and bring it to your appointment.
   3. Try and set up the appointment sooner than later. If they cant meet before the end of the year, put something in the calendar for January.
   4. Make it about them when you meet as much as it is about you. Ask questions and get excited about who they are.
   5. Send a thank you card after you meet with everyone!
   6. If you cannot reach someone now, don’t sweat it. Try reaching out to them again in January.
3. SEND YOUR FINANCIAL PARTNERS CHRISTMAS CARDS / SMALL GIFTS. Now is a great time of year to express your thankfulness to your support team. Send a Christmas card with a handwritten note and include a small gift of thanks. It can go a long way in letting your financial partners know you care about them.
4. CREATE A FACEBOOK CAMPAIGN IN DECEMBER. A well crafted, intentional, relational Facebook campaign can be helpful during this month of giving. Click here to find out more how to craft your own successful Facebook campaign.
5. DUST OFF YOUR CONTACT LIST AND TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT IT. Now is a good time to go back to the beginning of your season of itineration. Dust off that old initial contact list and go through it with a fine comb. As you comb through it create a new list of those you were not able to get ahold of, those who have committed to give but haven’t started yet, and those you never asked because you got too scared (whhaaatt you say?! How did she know that?!), and those that you just simply have yet to ask. Take that list and get back to contacting them about joining your team. BONUS POINTS: As you go through your list text / email / Facebook message those that are highlighted to you and just say hi.

I hope you find these helpful. Whatever you end up doing for your end of the year strategy, make it as relational as possible.

Also, MERRY CHRISTMASTIME! I pray it is an amazing time of fellowship and family for you.