Ten Emails Charities Should Send to Donors During Year-End Fundraising

The end of the year is a great time to drive donations for your charity.

It's a natural reaction to feel like you should take it easy after a busy GivingTuesday campaign. However, this is the best time to send a few extra emails to stay top-of-mind for your donors. But what do you send?

To make things a bit simpler, we've put together a list of emails you can send during the end-of-year period, suggestions of when to send them, and examples of what you can put in the body of those emails.

‍

1. A Thank You Email For GivingTuesday

This email should be sent a few days before GivingTuesday to thank your donors for their gifts and participation during your GivingTuesday campaign. It's a great time for you to update them on any fundraising totals from the campaign.

Email Template

Subject: Thank you for an amazing GivingTuesday!

Body:   Hello [name],

We hope you had a wonderful GivingTuesday and we wanted to thank you again for your generous donation. We were so pleased with the response and can't wait to see how much we raise in total! If you haven't seen our GivingTuesday page, go check it out now: [URL]

It would be great to see your name on the leaderboard and we hope you'll make another gift today.

Thank you again for your support,

Your Charity Name Here

‍

2. End of Year Overview Email

This email should be sent shortly after GivingTuesday to thank your donors for another successful year. This is an opportunity to pull all the good work you've been doing together and show your donors that their efforts have not gone unnoticed. The goal of this email is to maintain donor engagement, increase donor retention, and grow your base of donors.

Email Template

Subject: Thank you for another year of support!

Body:   Hi there,

We just wanted to take a moment to thank you again for your incredible support this year. As we enter into the last month of 2021, please know that all your efforts have not gone unnoticed, and we can't wait to continue working together in the years ahead.

Thank you,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - If you're looking to make a tax-deductible donation before the end of the year, click here! (insert link to donation page)

‍

3. Mid-December Email

This email should be sent around December 15th as a reminder for donors to make their final donations for the year. The goal of this email is to remind your donors that their contributions are still tax-deductible and will help support your charity in the coming year.

Email Template

Subject: The end of the year is just around the corner!

Body:   Hi there,

As the end of 2021 approaches, it's important to remember that your contributions are still tax-deductible and will continue to help support our efforts in the new year. (insert link for donations)

Thank you for standing with us in 2021, we're excited for what 2022 holds!

‍

4. Your Biggest Supporters Email

This email should be sent around the middle of December to thank your biggest fans for their continuous support. The goal of this email is to boost donor engagement and show your donors that you're grateful for them sticking with you throughout the year.

Email Template

Subject: Name, thank you!

Body:   Hi there!

Two things:

1) We wanted to send a more personal thank you to the biggest fans of our organization for your incredible support in 2021. (insert line thanking them here, like "Thank you for believing in us")

2) On this cold winter day, it's important to remember that there are people out there who are in need. Your support helps us reach more people and make a bigger impact - we couldn't do it without you.

Thank you for being the amazing person that you are,

Your Name Here

P.S. - Want to make an even bigger impact? Click here to see how you can (insert link to donating page)

‍

5. Our Biggest Milestones Email

This email should be sent around the end of December to thank your donors for helping you achieve a major milestone over the year. The goal of this email is to show your donors that they played a crucial role in making an impact and reaching those milestones, as well as inspire them to continue their support.

Email Template

Subject: Thank you for helping us reach our greatest milestones yet!

Body:   Hi there,

2021 has been an incredible year for us and we couldn't have done it without your continuous support. (insert milestone)

You were a crucial part of getting us here, and as we head into 2022 - we hope that you'll continue to stand with us.

Thank you for being our greatest supporter,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - Click here to see how you can support us in 2022! (link)

‍

6. Only a Few Days Left Email

This email should be sent around the last week of December in order to encourage your donors to make a final donation before the new year. The goal of this email is to show your donors they have a limited amount of time left in the year to take advantage of their tax-deductible donations and encourage them to give one last gift.

Email Template

Subject: Only days left until the new year!

Body:   Hi there,

The end of 2021 is here which means you have only days to take advantage of your tax-deductible donations. Your support has been instrumental this year and we can't thank you enough for being with us in 2022! (insert link to donation page)

Thank you for being a part of our journey,

Your Charity Name Here

‍

7. December 30th Email

This email should be sent on December 30th as a final reminder to donors to make their last donations for the year. The goal of this email is to ensure that all donations are accounted for before the new year.

Email Template

Subject: Donation deadline reminder!

Body:   Hi there,

We just wanted to remind you that we close our doors to donations on December 31st and encourage you to make your last contribution of 2021. (insert link for donation page)

Thank you for helping us reach our greatest milestones yet,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - Get a tax deduction by donating before the end of the year! (link)

‍

8. December 31st Email

This email should be sent on December 31st as a final reminder to donors to make their last donations for the year. The goal of this email is to ensure that all donations are accounted for before the new year.

Email Template

Subject: Donation deadline reminder!

Body:   Hi there,

We just wanted to remind you that today is the last day to take advantage of your tax-deductible donations and we hope that you'll consider making one before the new year. (link)

Thank you for helping us reach our greatest milestones yet,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - Get a tax deduction by donating before the end of the year! (link)

‍

9. Happy New Year Email

This email should be sent on January 1st as a way to wish your donors a happy new year and thank them for their support throughout the year. The goal of this email is to inspire your donors to continue supporting your charity in the new year.

Email Template

Subject: Wishing you a happy new year!

Body:   Hello,

As we close the door on 2021 we want to take a moment and thank you for your support throughout the year. Your donations have helped us reach our greatest milestones yet and we can't wait to see what 2022 has in store for us.

We hope that you have a happy and safe new year,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - Click here to see how you can support us in 2022! (link)

‍

10. Celebration Email

This email should be sent on January 15th as a way to celebrate the success of your charity throughout the year. The goal of this email is to inspire your donors to continue supporting your charity in the new year.

Email Template

Subject: Thank you for helping us reach our goals!

Body:   Hello, 

We just wanted to take a moment and thank you for making 2021 our best year yet! You were there by our side through it all, helping us reach our greatest milestones. We hope that you'll continue with us in 2022, but if not we'd still like to take this opportunity to say thank you!

Best wishes for a happy new year,

Your Charity Name Here

P.S. - Click here to see how you can support us in 2022! (link)

‍

Save Time With Scheduled Emails

Scheduled emails will be your best friend during this final push. Scheduling emails will allow you to pre-write and schedule your emails to be sent at specific times without the need to constantly monitor them.

Scheduling can also help you decide which day of the week will work best for your email marketing campaign. For example, an email that reminds donors to take advantage of their tax deductions might do better on a Friday (as people are preparing their taxes over the weekend).

Your email marketing tool will also provide you with reports on how your emails are performing. This information can help you to adjust your email campaign as needed.

‍

We hope that these tips will help you run a successful end-of-year email campaign. For more email templates and year-end fundraising resources download our full GivingTuesday campaign toolkit.