The Coach’s End-of-Year Planning Edition

It’s September, which means it is time to start thinking, planning, and praying about your end-of-year giving strategy. Every September, I know it is time to focus on end-of-year giving as I am already getting end-of-year appeals from non-profit charities. So, I want to help you start your planning process now with this Coach entitled The Coach’s End-of-Year Planning Edition.

As much as 30% of non-profit annual giving occurs in December, with 10% occurring on the last three days of the year. In my experience, churches also see an increase in giving in December, especially if they have a plan and work that plan.

If you want to have a successful end-of-year giving campaign, you must understand that:

Preparation is the key to a successful end-of-year giving campaign. Every NFL team has a 2-Minute Drill strategy that they practice every week. They know that the difference between winning and losing is how you finish the game’s last quarter. Often, the game is decided in the last few minutes. They plan for the inevitable. To be successful in end-of-year giving, you have to plan! You would think that would be a no brainer but…

One of the biggest reasons churches underperform in their end-of-year giving is the lack of preparation. Whether it is the Tyranny of the Urgent or something else, in my experience, most churches have zero plans to increase giving. Giving is the last thing we think of until the Treasurer tells us there isn’t money to pay the bills or your salary.

Here are the basics for how you can actively plan out your end-of-year appeal.

• Deciding what your “ask” will be. You must be careful when you say that line out loud! A key point to remember is need drives the “ask.” If you are behind budget, that is where you want to focus. Let’s say, however, that you are ahead of budget but need help in other areas like a capital campaign or a special need. The fourth quarter is one of the best times to jump-start lagging giving. Determine where you need the money the most, which is what the appeal needs to focus on.
• Craft the story behind the “ask.” Every “ask” or appeal must have what I call a driver behind it. In other words, what will drive or motivate me to give you more money? The story is the vision of the appeal. The more compelling the story or vision, the more successful that “ask.”
• Be positive! You might be way behind on giving, but you want your donors to WANT to give, not feel like they MUST give.
• Make the appeal not about reaching some number but about advancing the Kingdom. Even if you are working to close out a budget shortfall, appeal for doing ministry rather than hitting your budget number. Most of your donors don’t care about a number, but they do care about people.
• Make it personal. Churches do poorly in telling people all the amazing things they do. So, blow your horn, celebrate the year’s wins, and then ask people to help you keep on reaching people! One of the best ways to do that is to share personal stories of life change. Then, end by saying, “Your generosity helps make stories like this happen.”
• Focus on one thing, not multiple things. One big mistake churches often make is sending multiple messages about what to give to and where. Asking, for one thing, will give you a better chance of success.
  
  The exception is combining all the various things you want end-of-year giving to support into one offering. I have a client who runs a Christmas offering every year but announces the three to four ministry areas the money will be used for. It is one offering working to meet multiple needs.
• Make it easy for them to contribute. The easier you make it for people to give, the more likely they will give. Contact my sponsor, OnlineGiving.org, at (615) 206-4000 or support@onlinegiving.org.
• Get your tools ready to support your end-of-year appeal. My goal for clients is that by mid-October, we have identified the need and built out the message or story for the call to action.

As I always say, you can’t wait until Saturday night to start planning for an end-of-year appeal! This is why I start hammering away at you in September. Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing with you more information and advice on how you can have your best end-of-year giving ever.

2025 changes to The Stewardship Coach – I’m announcing a major change in direction with the Stewardship Coach. I will be moving it to become a column within another newsletter I have produced for Southern Baptists, the Stewardship Journal. Additionally, I am moving to a magazine type monthly format rather than a weekly newsletter. I intend each month to focus on a key stewardship topic like budget planning, end-of-year plans, and more. Each issue will essentially contain what is now my Stewardship Coach newsletter, as well as other articles I write and those I use from other sources. If you want to see how this looks now, you can visit the site at https://stewardshipjournal.com/.

My ultimate goal is to write on key topics so that church leaders can have at their hands the resources they need for every season in the life of a church. My passion has, and will remain, reversing the decline in giving one church at a time, starting with your church!

Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach
mark@acts17generosity.com

OnlineGiving.org, the leading online giving processor in America, sponsors my writing. Find out more about their services at https://www.onlinegiving.org/.