Outlining a fundraising calendar is an essential element of developing your nonprofit’s fundraising plan.

Mark the dates of the start and end of your fundraising push, budget meetings, board meetings and more in this fundraising calendar. 

Share this calendar across the different departments of your organization to keep everyone on the same page as you work through the tasks in your fundraising plan.

Having a detailed plan laid out in a calendar is especially important for large undertakings such as capital campaigns since these fundraising initiatives are split up into a series of phases, including:

• Planning Phase
• Quiet Phase
• Kickoff Phase
• Public Phase
• Conclusion and Follow-Up Phase

Each phase has a different timeline, so by noting each stage in your shared calendar, you can make sure your entire team is aware of where you are in the process. 

Remain flexible when necessary, but use the calendar as a way to track the progress of your fundraising efforts.

When developing your fundraising plan, your nonprofit should create a gift range chart to identify the donations needed to achieve your fundraising goals.

Gift range charts help nonprofits plan out efforts by breaking down fundraising goals into smaller, more manageable benchmarks.

So, how do you make a gift range chart? Here’s what to do:

1. Break down your gift sizes. Specify different tiers of gifts as well as how many donations you’ll need to secure within each tier. The largest gift should make up 10-20% of your goal. 
2. Add the number of prospects you should contact for each tier. Include more than you really need. For example, if you need two donors to make the highest gift, reach out to four prospects.
3. Note the cumulative totals for each gift amount. 

With a gift range chart, your team can see:

• The size of gifts necessary to meet your goal.
• The number of prospects needed to supply these gifts.
• The total proportion of your fundraising goal accounted for in each gift level.
• The need for additional fundraising pushes you’ll need to meet your overall goal, like partnering with a product fundraising company to sell different items to your supporters or launching a peer-to-peer initiative on social media. 

The major gifts at the top of your chart will take longer to cultivate, so it’s extremely helpful to know how many prospects you’ll need to connect with upfront. 

Remember, when you’re conducting a major fundraising push like a capital campaign, you’ll know you’ve reached the end of the quiet phase when you’ve obtained 50-70% of the gifts outlined on your gift range chart. 

Armed with this information, your team can be strategic when choosing which prospects to engage with during your fundraising effort. You can spend less time reaching out to supporters that aren’t needed to reach your fundraising total and ensure you do get in touch with the high-value supporters needed to help achieve your goal.

Prospects need to have a compelling reason to give to your organization. There is no better way to grab their attention than by creating a dynamic case for support.

Your case for support needs to be specific and actionable— no one wants to give their money to an organization that doesn’t have a clear direction for using those funds

Your case for support should include:

• A clear mission statement.
• A brief history of your nonprofit.
• Your specific fundraising goals.
• Your gift range chart.
• A detailed overview of what your organization will achieve with donor support.

This should be one of the first tasks your team works on so you can prepare all your marketing materials and donor information packages before the fundraising initiative kickoff. You can create a branded case brochure that delivers prospective donors everything they need to know about the initiative in a professional, detailed package. 

Also, community-specific appeals can highlight how a nonprofit impacts a community and how its network of local support is integral to the organization’s success. Check out how Aly Sterling Philanthropy serves the Cleveland, Ohio area to get an idea of how a local consultant can impact your team’s fundraising approach. A consultant can help you articulate your needs and craft a donor-centric fundraising appeal that’s informed by the fundraising landscape of your local area.

Your team should ensure that you do not encounter any surprises throughout your fundraising efforts. The best way to be prepared? Diligently breaking down the logistics of your upcoming fundraising projects.

Using a planning chart, identify as much relevant information as you can relating to your projects, such as:

• Date, time, location and attendance.
• The cost of the project (payroll expenses, marketing budget, cost of the venue, etc.).
• Goals associated with your projects.

By taking the time to lay out this information, you can marry your budget with your calendar to ensure you stay on track financially throughout the entire process. 

Plus, your team can more effectively delegate tasks among departments, set aside money in your budget for these projects and overcome potential roadblocks before they pose a real issue.

To successfully achieve your fundraising goals, your nonprofit should delegate fundraising activities across your organization. One way to optimize role delegation is to use a calendar matrix.

A calendar matrix helps team members in varying roles stay on top of their work by outlining fundraising activities by department.

In your calendar matrix, include logistical details to improve your team’s understanding of the big picture of your fundraising initiative. These details may include:

• Costs associated with events or projects.
• Anticipated fundraising income from each activity.
• Personnel required to carry out activities.
• Deadlines and benchmarks associated with each task.

Every team member should contribute to achieving your nonprofit’s fundraising goals. By using a calendar matrix, you help those in different departments see how their work fits into the big picture of your organization.