How to Digitally Thank Year-End Donors & Inspire Giving

By Dionna Dash

There’s no doubt that you’re grateful to your donors for the impact they’ve made on your community. But as the end of the year approaches, it’s easy to get caught up in finding ways to ask for donations and forget all about thanking the people who make those donations.

Turning your gratitude into recognition by consistently thanking your supporters reinforces their value to your organization, creates a sense of community, shows your appreciation, and motivates them to continue their generosity. In fact, recognition is one of the best fundraising strategies.

How can you effectively express your gratitude? Here are four key strategies for digitally thanking your donors at year-end.

1. Tailor your gratitude to each giving level

Different donors have different interests, values, and giving levels. By segmenting your donors into groups based on behavioral information like donation history and event participation, you can ensure that each supporter receives a gesture of gratitude that best fits them.

Personalized thank you notes are a meaningful gesture that goes a long way for lower-level donors. They can be handwritten or emailed depending on how many donors you’re sending them to and how much time your team has to prepare them, but either way, they’ll be appreciated. (More on this in tip #3!) Exclusive updates, like reports or newsletters, are another great way to show donors that you value them.

For major donors, public recognition with social media shoutouts, donor walls and mentions at end-of-year events or fundraisers is a gratitude strategy that is sure to impress. Offering these supporters access to special donor appreciation events or volunteer opportunities and recognizing them with annual awards, certificates or benefits will also encourage them to keep funding your mission.

2. Use a report template

Spice up your gratitude strategy by using a thank you template, like the ones offered by Storyraise, to provide exclusive updates to major donors. You can include beneficiary stories and video testimonials to let stakeholders know how much your organization values their generosity.

Storyraise lets you personalize your reports so that each donor can be shown stories that relate to the causes they care about most. A thank you directly from a beneficiary explaining how your organization changed their life is a powerful tool to encourage future giving.

3. Send a handwritten thank you note – digitally

If you want a quick, easy option to express your gratitude, you can use Storyraise’s new handwritten notes feature. Make each note personalized and impactful by typing your message and letting Storyraise transform it into a handwritten-looking card that you can send directly to donors through the platform. No ink stains, no stamps, no waiting for snail mail delivery.

And the best part? You can choose to include animated statistics, a leadership letter, or even a short video of you saying thank you.

See a preview of the handwritten notes feature.

4. Add an email to your fundraising campaign

You’ve likely crafted a series of fundraising emails to send throughout the month of December, showcasing your impact and asking for donations. One simple way to offer gratitude to your supporters is to send a thank you email at the end of your campaign. 

You can include details about how much was raised or the different projects those funds will be allocated toward. Either way, keep it short, sweet, and genuine, and you can’t go wrong.