For most for-profit retailers, the sales that they earn during Christmas and other celebrations at the end of the year are critical for their survival. This peak sales period is literally a make or break time that can make up for sluggish revenues that occurred earlier in the year. This festive season is also equally important for charities and other nonprofits.

With all of the celebrations that occur during the holidays, most folks are in a more giving mood. To take advantage of this opportunity, you will want to start preparing for your end of year fundraiser now. The following tips will help you have your nonprofit’s most successful fundraiser yet!

Make it Easy to Give

Don’t wait for the Christmas rush, or giving Tuesday, to get started. Take a few moments, now, before the peak selling period begins, to investigate just how easy it is for others to give and donate to your NFP.

Ideally, potential donors should be able to give to your cause with just one click of the button or mouse, regardless of whether they are using a mobile platform or a traditional desktop to access your site. Simplify your site, especially your donations page, and include large, bright, buttons for donations

Make certain that your sites are optimised for mobile, and that calls to action on your website, as well as all of your social media channels, are easy to see, and use. Include QR codes and text-to-give to make it easier for others to make a donation.

Send the Right Message

As you begin to craft your fundraising message, make certain that you use empathy to connect and engage with potential donors and increase the amount that they are likely to give. Posts should tell human interest stories that show the impact of donations on your service community.

A “Why Donate” page can be a valuable tool for NFPs to show, and tell, donors just how important their donations are to the good work that you and your NFP do. Make certain to include compelling images that stir the emotions to increase empathy and support for your cause.

Make Certain to Target the Right Audience at the Right Time

While more people are in a giving mood at year’s end, NFPs also face more competition for donations. Make certain that you capture potential donor’s attention, and get put on their giving list, by taking time now to design a comprehensive marketing campaign for your end of the year fundraising drive.

Learn from the “ghosts” of past fundraisers. Evaluate the efforts and relative success of last year’s campaign before you begin to plan for this one.

What was the conversion rate for your donation page, and what was your NFPs percentage for online giving and matching gifts? Did you meet your targets? Why, or why not? Use the information that you gather during this investigation to shape your plans for this year’s fundraiser.

Segmentation is another valuable tool to help you get the right message sent to the right audience at the right time. Divide and group your list of past donors, as well as current prospects.

Criteria to consider using for segmentation include: the giving pattern of donors, the average dollar amount of a donation, how often the donor gives, the last time that the donor gave, communication channel donor prefers to use.

Make certain that you craft a compelling message for each channel, and expand your efforts and impact across all channels. This includes your NFPs email lists, traditional postal delivery, social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, as well as planning your list for personal calls and follow-up visits.

Use a content calendar to plan out the content that you will create and send out over the next several weeks. This ensures that the right content gets to the right segment of your audience at the right time.

Finally, as the year draws to a close, don’t forget to have fun! Keeping your nose to the proverbial grindstone, isn’t just boring, it may hurt your NFP in the long run, as well.

Make time to attend a few celebrations this season, and use this opportunity to meet new people and connect with others who share your interests and passions. Networking isn’t just good for you; it may benefit your NFP if you use your network to get out the message of how your NFP is working to benefit others!