FOURTH QUARTER

I’m not talking football here. The last quarter of each year is crucial for nonprofit fundraising. Forty percent of charities raise on average between one-third and one-half of their entire annual donations from October - December. Like the American Lung Association, for example, almost three in 10 charities raise more than half of their revenue in the fourth quarter. Nearly two in 10 respondents receive more than 40 percent of their annual contributions in the month of December alone!

How much the Wall Street crisis will affect people's charitable giving has yet to be seen. Some non-profit executives believe the prolonged primary election season and presidential campaigns will also adversely affect fourth quarter donations. Presidential campaigns raised $580.4 million in 2007 according to the Federal Election Commission, which is less than one-quarter of one percent of the $306 billion raised for charitable purposes, according to Giving USA 2008.

"If you look at the history of philanthropy since the '50s, it has dropped about 1 percent on average in a recession," said Reynold Levy, the president of Lincoln Center. Quoted in the Washington Post, he added, "Whenever there's a recession, or the closure of a given firm, the natural tendency is to extrapolate and predict a very strong downturn. But that has not been the case."

This is no time to cut back on marketing and communications. Do not give up on your long-range strategies and long-term cultivation plans, but be creative with your fundraising. Identify new sources of revenue.

When times are tough, we need to communicate that honestly and loudly! Be sure you are making a really compelling case. If you commiserate with your donors and allow them to sympathize with you and the people or cause you serve, they can come through for your organization.

Specifically, scrutinize each of your major donors; some have suffered a setback in this economy, some are still fine. Matthew Haag, senior director of major gifts and regional programs at the University of Rochester says, “Now is an opportunity to show that you are interested in them beyond the financial, because you know some just don’t have it to give right now.” This is a great opportunity to forge enduring, long-term donor relationships.

These last months of 2008 could support you through a thorny economy. Remember, in the face of our nation’s slow economy, Jerry Lewis’ annual Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy telethon raised a record $65 million, $1.2 million more this year than last.

You can win the game in the Fourth Quarter!