The months leading up to the holidays and the end of the year are some of the busiest times at nonprofits. You are working hard to write year-end appeals, send holiday cards and thank you letters while also preparing the campaigns for next year. After putting in the hard work and long days, it’s easy to take off work between Christmas and New Years to relax and recharge.

But those are some of the most crucial days to close gifts.

As the holidays wind down and the year is coming to a close, many donors will be making their philanthropic gifts just in time for their tax-deductions. Even though fewer people are itemizing their charitable donations, this is the time of year many donors are making last minute year-end gifts. And the wealthier donors who do itemize their deductions will often wait until the last few days of the year to contribute.

This means that donors will be looking for assistance during this time when nonprofits like to close. But if they are unable to reach you, they will likely take their money to a different organization. This is a time to let your donors know that you care about them and are there to provide assistance if they need it. Luckily, this is a lot easier to do today with the technology available. By forwarding your office phone calls and checking your email periodically, your organization can be accessible to your donors during the last days of philanthropic giving. And, Many organizations rotate this responsibility from year to year between different members of the staff.

Follow this link to learn more about how your organization can be more donor centric during this time of year and how Charities Aid Foundation of America was successful in addressing this situation. And Happy Holidays!

Photo credit: Erika Used under a Creative Commons (CC-BY-2.0) license