Raise Serious Money in 2026

How development staff can start the year in the strongest way possible.

As we return from the holidays and hopefully have recovered from the year-end fundraising frenzy, it’s time to ensure we have the strongest fundraising year possible for our respective organizations.  This simple step-by-step guide will help you start strong, stay focused, and set up your best fundraising year yet.

STEP ONE: Nail the thank you

1. When you get back to work, pull the list of all of your ‘25 donors and create your thank you plan. 

2. Call and/or send handwritten thank you notes to as many donors as possible, starting with your priority people.

3. The way this actually gets done is by blocking dedicated time in your calendar to write the notes and/or make the phone calls. 

4. Here’s a sample thank you script you can edit and use:

Thank Bank Call Script January 2026

You: Hi, is this (donor name)?
Donor: Yes, speaking.
You: Hi (donor name), this is (your name) from (your organization).
How are you doing?
Donor: Fine.
You: Good, I promise I’ll keep this quick. I’m calling today to thank you so
much for your generous support of our work. 
Thanks to you and other contributors, we were able to _(choose one from below). Thanks again!

• Option 1

• Option 2

Donor: Wow, that’s impressive!
You: We couldn’t have done any of this without your support. If you have a quick minute, I’d love to ask:

• What keeps you giving to us?

• What issues are most important to you right now?

• What else is keeping you busy right now? 

It’s an exciting time for us and we look forward to being in touch. Thanks again,
and have a great rest of your day!
Donor: You too, thanks for calling.

Voicemail script:

Hi (donor name), this is (your name) from (your organization). 
I’m sorry I missed you, but I wanted to leave a quick message to thank you
so much for your generous support of our work this past year. 
Because of you and other contributors, we successfully _______________.

• Advance our basebuilding and power building work for immigrant,
  economic and climate justice.

We promise to keep you updated on our work. You can always learn more
about our work at (website). Thanks again and have a good rest of your day!

STEP TWO: Visit your donors

Schedule individual donor visits with the major donors who gave in the first half of ‘25.

1. The donors who have previously given to your organization are the most important folks to follow up with in the new year. An individual donor visit is a 30-60 minute conversation in person or virtually where you build a rapport with the donor, talk about your work, and ask for a significant contribution.

2. You should do at least 10 donor visits in the first quarter. Here is the outline for those conversations:

1. Greeting, small talk

2. Agenda and time check

3. Your personal story

4. Getting to know the donor

5. Campaign story 1 - Organizational Victory

6. Campaign story 2 - Current campaign/work

7. Questions from donor

8. Ask for money

9. Paperwork, options to give, confirmation, next steps

Do what you can with the hours you have.

Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good- do what you can with the hours you have.  The most important priorities this month are:

1. Thanking your ‘25 donors

2. Scheduling donor visits with your early ‘25 major donors

Starting now will set you up to raise serious money in 2026.

Want to talk about this more and get some professional advice? Email Mary Grace Wolf at mgwolf@innovativefundraising.net.