Many nonprofits tend to spend their advertising dollars at the end of the year. This makes sense because people are generally in a giving state of mind at year-end, and you often see a higher return on your ad spend.

However, focusing your advertising budget on the end of the calendar year comes with several challenges. The competition in November and December is usually steep, making it difficult to set your messaging apart from others. That competition also causes ad prices to rise. The presidential election is an additional hurdle in 2024.

Most importantly, if you go heavy at year-end, you miss the opportunity to build momentum through a year-long digital presence. Prospects who don’t know you may be jarred to find your ad suddenly showing up repeatedly and asking for money.

Advertising throughout the year can help you warm up your audience so that they are ready to give when they see your year-end appeals. Let’s explore how a yearlong ad spend can grow your list and prep your organization for a successful year-end campaign.

Opportunities for a Year-Round Ad Spend

Before you budget for a yearlong advertising campaign, determine what other giving opportunities you can take advantage of. For instance:

• Food banks tend to see success with campaigns at the end of the school year to help feed children in the summer.
• Faith-based organizations could utilize religious holidays throughout the year.
• Spring graduation could be a good time for higher education foundations to target recent graduates and their parents.

You might also plan an annual giving day during your slower months for a mid-year pick-me-up. See if a major or corporate donor will offer a matching gift to maximize donations.

A year-round ad budget enables you to create a reserve fund for crisis responses. Develop messaging templates so you can quickly roll out appeals.

Tips for Year-Round Advertising

Review your current ad spend and scheduled campaigns to develop an advertising campaign that fits your budget. Then, look at the full fiscal year. Prioritize relevant dates for your organization, including holidays.

Keep in mind that your ads don’t have to ask for money. You can use them to reach other organizational goals, such as building brand awareness or growing your list of prospects. For instance, adding names to your email list or social followers throughout the year gives you a larger pool of prospects to retarget at year-end. So, make sure your objectives are clear.

Map out your budget based on your priority dates, goals, and year-end campaign. Use the remaining dollars to run evergreen fundraising ads, generate leads, and build brand awareness. This will enable you to develop a digital presence all year long.

Note that we don’t recommend spending money on ads with no clear call to action (CTA). Don’t use ads to run “touch-base” messaging that is better suited for emails. Be sure that every ad you develop moves a goal forward, whether it’s increasing followers, raising money, or upgrading donors.

Prioritize List Building and Lead Generation

If generating leads is your goal for your year-round ads, you must know what the hook is. Why would someone give you their contact information?

They may want to receive perks or premiums, or they might want to learn more about your research and innovation. Use what you know about your current donors through a data tool like GivingDNA to determine what best resonates with your audience and guide your ad development.

If you get this right — especially early in the year — you have months to tell a prospect about your organization, its impact and goals, and why you need their support.

A sample strategy might be to hook the prospect in Q1, nurture them through social media, email, and direct mail outreach in Q2 and Q3, and then target them with a straightforward ask in Q4. At this point, they should know who you are and be ready to act.

Election Year Considerations

The presidential election will undoubtedly impact your year-end campaigns, which is even more of a reason to start advertising earlier. We dug deeper into election-year fundraising in a recent podcast, but here are some quick tips to remember:

• As you near the election, it will take longer to get ads approved. Some platforms won’t let you launch or upload new ads during this time.
• Unless your organization is directly related to politics, we recommend pausing any direct asks for the days immediately before and after the election. This includes Giving Tuesday and year-end campaigns.
• Continue running evergreen ads for a smoother transition post-election when you launch your year-end campaigns.
• Watch the language you use. Election-related topics or issues could flag your ad as political. You may then have a more challenging time getting it approved, or your account may require additional user permissions.

Advertise All Year for a Strong Year-End

Advertising isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. As you spread your ad budget throughout the year, be sure to customize ads based on your objectives, budget, market, and ad category. Let donor data guide you to the most effective messaging for your audience.

When integrated into your omni-channel strategy, year-round advertising can help you boost brand awareness and attract new prospects. This will warm them to your organization so that when you come calling in November or December, they’ll know who you are and be ready to answer.

If you need help crafting a year-round advertising campaign, reach out to Allegiance Group + Pursuant. Our team can map out an effective ad spend budget that meets your goals and sets you up for a strong year-end.

This blog is based on a recent Go Beyond Fundraising podcast episode. Listen to the whole conversation.