Nonprofit Leadership Podcast — Smart Ways to Boost Your Year-End Giving

Host: Rob Harter
Guest: Britton Stockart (Fundraising Coach, Donorbox)
Date: August 18, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Rob Harter is joined by Britton Stockart, a fundraising coach at Donorbox, to discuss practical, human-centered strategies for supercharging year-end giving. With the giving landscape facing new challenges—donor fatigue, financial downturns, and organizational burnout—this episode offers actionable advice for nonprofit leaders on optimizing donation forms, making donor follow-up meaningful, and keeping fundraising simple, effective, and authentic.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Current State of Nonprofit Fundraising

• Burnout and Fatigue ([04:16]–[05:41])
  • "90% of nonprofit leaders, they're feeling burnt out." – Britton Stockart [05:06]
  • Despite surviving Covid, many leaders now face new funding cuts and increased demand with fewer resources.
  • The climate forces many teams into reactive fundraising, with vital relationship-building communications getting deprioritized.

Transforming Donation Forms from Transactional to Relational

• Missed Opportunities ([07:11]–[10:21])
  • "Most donation forms, they weren't built with people, with relationships in mind… Our donation forms feel very transactional and cold." – Britton [07:27]
  • The donation form is often a one-time setup, left unchanged even as it represents a direct point of contact with donors.
  • Britton’s Story: After following a friend's advocacy work, she made her first donation via a form that asked, "What inspired you to give to my family today?" This simple prompt sparked a long-term connection and significant fundraising impact. ([08:08]–[09:40])
  • "Most donation forms… miss honoring the kind of vulnerability that allows for that two way relationship to even happen." – Britton [09:52]

Three Simple, High-Impact Tweaks for Donation Forms

• 1. Ask for the “Why” ([11:11]–[12:06])
  • Add a custom question on the donation form like “What inspired you to give today?” to surface motivations, values, and stories, enabling more personalized follow-up.
• 2. Give Donors a Choice ([12:06]–[14:17])
  • Use “designation” features on donation forms to let donors choose which program or area their gift supports. "It just builds that connection." – Britton [13:06]
  • If back-end systems can't track restricted funds, it's fine to keep to a general fund, but where possible, choice deepens connection.
• 3. Nudge Towards Monthly Giving ([14:17]–[14:26])
  • Default the donation form to monthly giving, especially if you have many repeat one-time donors. Tools like Donorbox offer subtle prompts for this.

Recap: "Ask a meaningful question, give folks a choice and make monthly giving feel natural." – Britton [14:18]

Low-Lift Follow-Up to Deepen Donor Relationships

• Rhythms, Not Drip Campaigns ([15:02]–[16:55])

  • Follow-up often falls by the wayside during planning. The old “7 touches” marketing model is outdated—quality beats frequency.

  • Three-Part Rhythm:

    1. Gratitude – “Tie the gift to something, a very specific, tangible outcome.”
    2. Impact – “Show behind-the-scenes, a quick story or photo…”
    3. Deeper Involvement – “Invite people in deeper ways that are not always tied to money.”

  • "It's really about rhythm... and then really meeting donors where they're at." – Britton [15:57]

Pivoting and Adapting Strategies Mid-Season

• Keep it Simple and Integrated ([18:11]–[19:09])
  • If a pivot is needed late in the year, focus on optimizing the donation form, keeping follow-up authentic, and ensuring all systems/tools are integrated for a smooth workflow.
  • "Make sure all your systems are talking with each other… set up and integrated now in August as opposed to waiting." – Britton [18:56]

Crafting Year-End Appeals that Resonate

• Be Honest, Be Present ([20:06]–[22:55])
  • Fundraisers may freeze if unclear about programming—don’t overthink. Focus communications on real, current impact.
  • "It is absolutely okay to be very transparent with your donors. I think in 2026, people are valuing honesty more than ever." – Britton [22:22]
  • Tie your appeal to what’s happening now, even if it’s a short-term focus.
  • “Keep it human.” – Rob [22:55]

Engaging Top Supporters for Maximum Effect

• Prioritize Simple, Early Engagement ([23:38]–[24:29])
  • Rather than launching complex ambassador programs, identify a few major donors and bring them in early for feedback and involvement, even informally.
  • "It doesn't have to be a beautifully polished PDF... get clear on the messaging so they could share it with their networks." – Britton [24:10]

Overcoming Obstacles by Slowing Down

• Reflect, Simplify, and Use Data ([25:00]–[27:03])
  • "Help listeners get curious… about what actually felt hard this past year and why." – Britton [25:23]
  • Pair initial observations with three simple data points:
    1. Retention – Who gave last year but not this year?
    2. Engagement – Are people opening/responding to outreach?
    3. Giving Patterns – When do most gifts arrive?
  • Use these to refine messaging, timing, and approach.

Rethinking Year-End Timing: Start Early, Spread the Load

• Skip the Giving Tuesday Burnout ([27:42]–[28:47])
  • Britton advises deprioritizing Giving Tuesday to avoid overwhelming donors and staff: "Do away with Giving Tuesday, spread out your campaigns over a longer time, and then start much earlier… start your year-end push in August." – Britton [28:25]
  • "You're the first person that said, you know, de-emphasize Giving Tuesday. But I get what you're saying, the logic of that, because there's so much that goes around that that's where the high burnout really kicks in." – Rob [28:40]

Facing and Avoiding Burnout

• Less is More; Care for the Team ([29:05]–[29:58])
  • Many leaders are hyper-focused on urgent needs. Pare down, simplify; sustaining the team is essential for long-term effectiveness.
  • "This is not a sprint right. It's a marathon. And we really need to care for ourselves so we can be here for the long haul." – Britton [29:52]

Memorable Quotes

• On Emotional Connection:
  "What that one question did was, it gave me a chance to see myself in the giving… That is what I'm trying to convey… most donation forms, they miss this intentional design, this human element." – Britton [09:05], [09:52]

• On Simplicity in Strategy:
  "Keep it simple. Three things. Your launching point is your donation form... making sure that the follow up is authentic and real and it's less about the frequency." – Britton [18:11]

• On Transparency:
  "Don't overthink it, okay? Just tell donors what's really happening right now in the moment, not overall.... I think… people are valuing honesty more than ever." – Britton [21:05], [22:22]

• On Avoiding Burnout:
  "If you really want to prioritize your sanity, your mental health... do away with Giving Tuesday, spread out your campaigns, and start much earlier." – Britton [28:28]

• On Self-Care:
  "We really need to care for ourselves so we can be here for the long haul." – Britton [29:52]

Key Timestamps

• [04:16] — Nonprofit burnout and sector fatigue
• [07:11] — Donation form misconceptions and a transformative story
• [11:11] — Three practical donation form tweaks
• [15:02] — Low-stress, effective donor follow-up strategies
• [18:11] — How to pivot fundraising strategy mid-season
• [20:06] — Crafting an authentic, compelling year-end appeal
• [23:38] — Engaging top supporters with simplicity
• [25:00] — Using reflection and three metrics to overcome obstacles
• [27:42] — Spreading the campaign load, starting in August, and skipping Giving Tuesday
• [29:05] — Mindset and tactics to counter burnout

Practical Takeaways

• Update Your Forms: Add questions to learn why donors give and offer them program choices where feasible; emphasize monthly giving.
• Prioritize Quality Follow-Up: Focus on heartfelt, specific gratitude, impact stories, and non-monetary invitations for involvement.
• Simplify Year-End Pushes: Start asking earlier (as early as August), and consider dropping Giving Tuesday to reduce burnout.
• Be Honest & Present: Center year-end messaging on your organization’s current reality and immediate impact, not perfection.
• Leverage Major Donors Strategically: Don’t create new programs—just bring key donors in for early feedback and minimal yet meaningful involvement.
• Use Retention, Engagement, & Timing Data: Let these three KPIs guide 2025’s approach.
• Take Care of Your Team: Recognize the marathon ahead—pare down, integrate, and focus on the essentials.

Closing

Britton Stockart’s core advice revolves around humanizing fundraising, simplifying systems, and honoring both donor and staff well-being—actionable wisdom for a tough nonprofit climate.

Connect with Britton and Donorbox:

• Visit donorbox.org for free resources, educational content, and their own podcast (hosted by Britton, Jenna, and Karen).

(All timestamps MM:SS refer to the podcast edit, excluding ads and intros/outros.)