It’s the time of year for making lists and checking them two, three, and four times to ensure that you have everything taken care of before the holidays celebrations begin.

So here’s a quick checklist to ensure that you are on track to end the year and meet your nonprofit’s financial goals (Network for Good):

1. Review your fundraising plan to see if you’re on target.
2. Launch one last fundraising campaign (see below for ideas)
3. Review major donor pledges, and your notes from major donor meetings and conversations.
4. Review pledges and board giving commitments.
5. Invest any remaining funds before the end of the fiscal year.
6. Thank your donors.

The end of the year is a great time to reach out through a last minute fundraising campaign:

Online Giving: You don’t have time to wait for the post office. Skip that direct mail campaign and launch a year-end email appeal. Connect to your branded online giving page for immediate results. Write a compelling story featuring someone your organization has helped. Pull a segmented list of donors to target, and tailor your appeal to each segment for greater personalization. Link directly to your branded donation page that reflects the same message featured in your appeal.

Peer-to-peer: The power of social media combined with the ease of online giving has contributed to the rise in popularity of peer-to-peer fundraising in recent years. Leverage your network of loyal donors, supporters, staff, and board, and empower them to fundraise on your behalf.  Choose 5-10 supporters to serve as peer fundraisers. Provide them with everything they need for emails and social media posts. Actively engage them during the campaign, and celebrate their successes.

Lapsed donors: Reach out to donors who haven’t given a gift in the past 12 months. Use your donor management system to create a list of these donors, and look into their giving history. Specifically reaching out to lapsed donors with an appeal message that relates to their past giving history can reignite their interest in your organization.