The Summer To-Do List

It's important to know who is giving to your ministry, and how consistently they are giving: You may have people giving monthly and you didn't even realize it, you may have people who have stopped giving that you need to touch base with, or you may find that someone has given for the first time ever a few months ago. 
​
The point of this year-to-date review is to figure out who you need to thank, who you should spend time with (maybe having lunch or coffee), and who to send a reminder to or maybe a quick email telling them a story about your ministry. 

---

Practicing Handwritten Notes
Thanks to the ease of social media and email, people rarely receive hand-written notes or thank you's these days. Though it is time consuming and costs money, handwritten letters are extremely personal and thoughtful, which is why we encourage you to make the extra effort. We believe sending a handwritten note to your entire donor list each year is imperative to keeping up relations. If this sounds too daunting to tackle right away, start small. Try sending a note this month to each of your monthly supporters. Then, next month, send one to each of your larger one-time supporters, plus the first time givers who gave in the last three months.

---

Mid-year update - TELL STORIES
The summer is a notoriously busy time for everyone. Because of this, the summer months are historically low revenue months for nonprofits. Knowing this, don't be offended or discouraged if supporters don't respond to your communications. Instead, take time to plant seeds about your work, remind them that you're still making a difference and that your ministry appreciates their contributions. Your update needs to be enthusiastic, cast a vision for the ministry and renew the drive for what's ahead. This is not a great season to make big asks, so if you can avoid requesting additional support until the fall, we encourage you to do so. (Plus, this can create a good season of leaning on Jesus for provision - He is the great provider!)

Regardless of the busy season, a mid-year update is very important! But there is a little bit of a trick to standing out to donors in the summertime! Appeal to their imaginations! Tell stories of the impact your ministry is having in people's lives. Stories are the absolute best way to remind people of why they should be supporting your ministry. Try not to bog down your update with boring stats or fundraising issues. Make the impact all about the stories that have taken place thanks to their support!
​
Checkout our three part guide to Writing Great Donor Letters

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

---

Social Media
Even though it's summertime, you want to remember to keep scheduling your social media posts. Your supporters will still be on social media throughout the summer. This is a great time to post some of the following on your social media platforms:

• Keep sharing your story - future supporters want to see what your ministry is all about
• Share ministry updates - people love to see how their support is making an impact
• Thank your supporters!

For social media tips, checkout our blog post Keeping up with Social Media

---

Plan something fun!
Getting together with even just 8-10 people or (20-40 to have a BBQ and play Cornhole) is a great way to have some important relationship building time with current supporters and potential supporters. As we talked about in our last Launch Pad post, Cultivating Relationships is a long process but the only truly authentic way to grow and sustain a ministry. Just as work with the people your  ministry  is impacting is all about relationships, so is fundraising.  
​
Here's a list of 25 FUN things you could do for fun fundraisers in the last half of this year. 

Creative Summer Fun!

---