EOFY Appeals: 5 tips for success
EOFY appeals are different from regular appeals in many ways. The hard deadline and tax deduction create donor behaviours that differ from other times of the year. Combine that with a competitive market and you get a much stronger fundraising result. Read on to understand why donors behave differently at this time and learn five important tips to implement for successful End of Financial Year Appeals.
Why EOFY Appeals are different
If your organisation has run EOFY Appeals and compared them to your other appeals, you’ll know this time of year attracts a much higher fundraising result. But, what are the reasons for this? What makes Tax Appeals different from others?
First of all, we know many individuals and businesses are looking to reduce their taxable income at this time. Australian Tax Office figures show that 4.2 million individuals claimed a deduction for gifts or donations in 2019-2020 for $3.7 billion given to charities and not-for-profits. Trusts will also fulfil their philanthropic obligations at this time.
The number of donors at tax-time is not the reason for better results. We all notice there are generally fewer donors leading up to June 30. However, we also see these donations are typically much higher when compared to giving throughout the year. Donors making a tax deductible donation act more like middle-to-major donors. They’re likely to make a one-off, high value contribution.
Tax-time donors are also more likely to have donated in the last 12-24 months. Phew! That makes it much easier to reach them. Then all you need to do is provide a clear message why they should give their one-time large donation to your charity or cause.
5 tips for Successful Tax Appeals
How can we leverage this time of year to achieve an even better outcome for our Tax Appeals? Here are five tips for getting the most out of your EOFY appeal:
1. Raise dollar handles significantly
For your EOFY Appeals, you can be confident to significantly raise your dollar handles by at least 15-30%. Showing an individual donation’s potential impact via custom dollar handles has also been known to compel donors even more. Major donors can often care more about their own impact than that of the organisations. Utilise mycause platform’s capability to provide engaging imagery when you customise dollar handles.
2. Move the conversation along
As we mentioned, EOFY Appeal donors have usually donated in the last 12-24 months. Your creative should reflect that your donors are already familiar with what you do and you have an existing relationship. Move the conversation along and provide more value to their perspective on what it means to donate to your organisation.
3. Plan for a flood of last minute donations
The majority of donations come through in the last 5-7 days as people and businesses hold out to know what their tax-deductible donation should be. Have your resources prepared, including how to collect $50,000 or $100,000 donations just before the deadline. Also, ramp up your campaign activity to match this trend.
4. Stand out from the crowd!
Make your organisation their one-off donation choice. Have a clear and compelling message for why they should support your charity or cause. As we saw in the latest census, millennials have now overtaken baby boomers in population numbers. Tap into the reasons they give and how they like to interact. Talk to a mycause project manager to learn more about adding interactive and engaging elements to help your EOFY appeal stand out from the crowd.
5. Get in early
In a crowded market, getting front-of-mind early is a clear advantage. Rely on your engagement strategy to begin cultivating tax-time donors sooner, so they are primed to act by June 30. Talk to mycause about successful strategies and how the mycause platform can help you.
There’s good news that support for tax-time giving is on the rise. A recent poll, including focus groups, showed 70% of respondents liked the idea of providing a choice to donate as part of the tax return process. We may well see institutionalisation of tax deductible giving as part of the Federal Government's plan to develop a strategy for doubling giving to charity by 2030.