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Marketing Campaign Brief: Year-End Giving - Education Charity Campaign

Campaign Type: Nonprofit Fundraising - Year-End Giving
Date: December 3, 2025
Owner: Campaign Manager
Timeline: 30 days
Version: 1.0

Executive Summary

30-day year-end giving campaign targeting $75,000 in donations for education charity with $2,000 marketing budget. Multi-channel approach leveraging email, social media organic/paid, and storytelling content to reach existing donors and education advocates. “Invest in Tomorrow” messaging emphasizes year-end tax benefits and educational impact.

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Campaign Objectives

Primary Objective: Raise $75,000 in donations

• Metric: Total donations received (online + check + recurring)
• Target: $75,000 across 30 days (average $2,500/day, $18,750/week)
• Timeframe: December 3 - January 2

Secondary Objectives:

1. Donor participation: Secure 250+ individual donations (average gift $300)
2. Email growth: Add 500 new email subscribers to donor list
3. Recurring donors: Convert 30 one-time donors to monthly giving ($50+/month)
4. Social reach: Generate 100,000 impressions across social platforms

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Target Audience Profile

Primary Personas:

Existing Donors (Segment 1)

• Demographics: Age 35-65, middle to upper-middle income, college-educated professionals
• Giving history: Donated in past 12-24 months, average gift $150-500
• Motivations: Believes education breaks poverty cycles, wants to support youth, seeks tax deduction before year-end
• Pain points: Wants to ensure donation makes real impact, concerned about overhead costs
• Messaging angle: “You’ve already changed lives. Your year-end gift goes 3x further.”

Education Advocates (Segment 2)

• Demographics: Age 28-55, teachers, parents, education professionals, socially conscious professionals
• Characteristics: Active on social media, shares causes they support, values transparency and storytelling
• Motivations: Passionate about education equity, wants to give back to community, influenced by peer giving
• Pain points: Overwhelmed by charity options, wants tangible outcomes
• Messaging angle: “See exactly how your donation transforms a student’s future”

New Prospective Donors (Segment 3)

• Demographics: Age 25-65, local community members, socially engaged professionals
• Characteristics: May not know organization yet, responds to compelling stories and peer influence
• Motivations: Year-end giving tradition, tax benefits, local community impact
• Messaging angle: “Join 1,000+ donors investing in education this holiday season”

Media Consumption:

• Email newsletters (daily/weekly check)
• Facebook and Instagram (daily scrolling)
• LinkedIn for professional/career-focused donors
• Year-end charity research in late December

Key Messaging Angles:

• Tax benefit urgency: “Maximize your 2025 tax deduction”
• Impact storytelling: “Meet the student your donation supports”
• Community pride: “Local donors, local impact”
• Matching gift leverage: “Double your impact”

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Messaging Framework

Campaign Theme: “Invest in Tomorrow: Year-End Education Fund”

Core Value Proposition:
“Your year-end gift provides books, tutoring, and college prep to underserved students. Every dollar goes directly to programs. Donate by Dec 31 for your 2025 tax deduction.”

Key Messages:

1. Direct Impact: 92% of donations fund programs directly - students receive books, tutoring, SAT prep, and college counseling
2. Tax Benefit Urgency: Donate by December 31 to claim your 2025 tax deduction - every gift is 100% tax-deductible
3. Student Success Stories: Meet real students whose lives changed because donors like you invested in their education
4. Local Community: Over 1,000 local students served annually, 85% go on to college

Supporting Proof Points:

• “$100 provides books for one student for a full year”
• “92% program efficiency ratio” (low overhead)
• “85% of students we serve attend college” (outcome metric)
• “15 years serving the local community” (credibility)
• “1,200 students supported annually” (scale)

Primary CTA: “Donate Now - Invest in Tomorrow”

Secondary CTAs: “Become a Monthly Donor”, “Read Student Stories”, “Share Our Mission”

Tone & Voice:

• Hopeful and inspiring
• Warm and grateful
• Urgent but not desperate
• Focus on student dignity and potential, not pity
• Transparent about impact and use of funds

Urgency Tactics:

• December 31 tax deadline countdown
• Progress thermometer showing path to $75k goal
• Daily social media goal updates
• “Only X days left to give in 2025”

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Channel Strategy & Deliverables

Email Marketing (Budget: $0 | Effort: 2 days)

Audience: Existing donor/subscriber list

Deliverables:

1. Launch announcement (1 email, 350 words) - December 3
   • Introduce campaign, share goal, tax benefit reminder, student story teaser
2. Student impact story (1 email, 400 words) - December 10
   • Feature one student’s transformation, include photo, quote, program details
3. Mid-campaign progress update (1 email, 250 words) - December 17
   • Progress thermometer, thank top donors, urgency message, recurring donor ask
4. Tax deadline reminder (1 email, 300 words) - December 26
   • Final week urgency, tax benefit emphasis, easy giving options
5. Last chance - 48 hours (1 email, 200 words) - December 30
   • Countdown, final student story, simple CTA
6. Thank you to donors (1 email, 300 words) - January 3
   • Campaign results, gratitude, impact preview, recurring donor invitation

Specifications:

• Mobile-optimized, prominent CTA button, progress bar graphic
• Segment list: past donors get personalized acknowledgment
• A/B test subject lines focused on urgency vs. impact

Facebook & Instagram Ads (Budget: $1,400 | Effort: 3 days)

Platforms: Facebook ($900) and Instagram ($500)

Deliverables:

1. Student story carousel ads - 3 variations (1080x1080px, 5 slides each)
   • Slide 1: Hook (“Meet Maria”), Slides 2-4: Her story, Slide 5: CTA
2. Impact graphic ads - 4 variations (1200x628px for Facebook, 1080x1080px for Instagram)
   • “$100 = Books for one student for a year” visual breakdowns
3. Video testimonial ad - 30-second student or parent testimonial (1:1 format)
4. Year-end urgency ads - 3 variations with countdown timer (1080x1080px)
   • Final week push with tax deadline messaging

Targeting:

• Warm audiences: Retarget website visitors, email list lookalikes
• Cold audiences: Local 30-mile radius, interests in education, nonprofits, community service, age 28-65
• Donor lookalikes: Lookalike audience based on past donor list

Timeline: December 3-31 (continuous), increase budget December 26-31

Budget allocation:

• Week 1-3: $900 spread evenly ($300/week)
• Week 4 (final push): $500

Organic Social Media (Budget: $0 | Effort: 3 days)

Platforms: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn

Deliverables:

1. Daily campaign updates - 30 posts total
   • Progress thermometer graphics
   • Donor shoutouts and thank-yous
   • Student photos and quotes
   • Program highlights
   • Countdown posts (final week)
2. Instagram Stories - Daily stories (8-10 slides/day)
   • Behind-the-scenes of programs
   • Staff and volunteer spotlights
   • Donor testimonials
   • Real-time donation celebrations
3. LinkedIn posts - 6 posts over 30 days
   • Professional/corporate giving angle
   • Education impact data and outcomes
   • Volunteer and partnership opportunities
4. Facebook Live event - Mid-campaign (December 15)
   • 20-minute Q&A with Executive Director
   • Tour of programs, student interviews
   • Live donation thermometer

Content themes:

• Student success stories (40%)
• Program impact and transparency (30%)
• Donor recognition (20%)
• Urgency and CTAs (10%)

Website & Landing Page (Budget: $300 | Effort: 2 days)

Deliverables:

1. Campaign landing page - Dedicated URL (/year-end-giving)
   • Compelling hero with student photo
   • Campaign video (60 seconds)
   • Donation form with preset amounts ($50, $100, $250, $500, custom)
   • Recurring donor option prominently featured
   • Progress thermometer
   • Student story grid (3-4 featured students)
   • Impact breakdown infographic
   • Donor wall (names of donors who opt-in)
2. Homepage takeover - Banner and pop-up
   • Countdown timer
   • Direct link to campaign page
3. Mobile optimization - Ensure seamless mobile donation experience

Content & Storytelling (Budget: $300 | Effort: 4 days)

Deliverables:

1. Student impact stories - 4 written stories (400-600 words each)
   • Before/after narrative arc
   • Photos and quotes
   • Specific program details
   • How donations made the difference
2. Campaign video - 60-90 second video for landing page and social
   • Student testimonials
   • Program footage
   • Emotional storytelling
3. Impact infographic - Visual breakdown of donation impact
   • “$50 = tutoring session”, “$100 = books for a year”, “$500 = SAT prep course”
4. Donor testimonial quotes - Collect 6-8 quotes from past donors
   • Why they give, impact they’ve seen

PR & Outreach (Budget: $0 | Effort: 1 day)

Deliverables:

1. Local media pitch - Press release to 5 local newspapers/blogs
   • Campaign announcement, student story, community impact angle
2. Corporate partnership outreach - Email to 10 local businesses
   • Matching gift opportunity, employee giving programs
3. Community calendar listings - Submit to local event calendars

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Campaign Timeline

Week 1: December 3-9 (Launch & Momentum)

• Dec 3 (Tue): Campaign launch day
  • Email blast #1 (launch announcement)
  • All paid ads go live
  • Social media launch posts
  • Press release sent
• Dec 4-6 (Wed-Fri): Build early momentum
  • Daily social posts with donation updates
  • Monitor ad performance, optimize targeting
  • Reach out to top past donors personally
• Dec 7-9 (Weekend): First weekend push
  • Instagram Stories takeover
  • Share first major donor milestone

Deliverables this week: Launch across all channels, secure first $15,000

Week 2: December 10-16 (Storytelling & Engagement)

• Dec 10 (Tue): Email #2 (student impact story)
• Dec 12 (Thu): New ad creative rotation (student testimonial video)
• Dec 15 (Sun): Facebook Live event with Executive Director
  • Q&A, program tour, student interviews
  • Promote heavily via email/social Fri-Sun
• Dec 14-16: Mid-campaign social media push
  • Highlight progress toward goal
  • Donor recognition posts

Deliverables this week: Engage audience with storytelling, secure $15,000-20,000

Week 3: December 17-23 (Progress Update & Recurring Donor Push)

• Dec 17 (Tue): Email #3 (mid-campaign progress update)
  • Progress thermometer, recurring donor ask
• Dec 19 (Thu): Launch recurring donor campaign
  • Dedicated social posts
  • Email follow-up to engaged non-donors
• Dec 21-23 (Weekend): Pre-holiday final push before Christmas
  • Urgency messaging: “Give before the holiday rush”
  • Increase ad frequency

Deliverables this week: Hit 60% of goal ($45,000), convert 15 recurring donors

Week 4: December 24-31 (Tax Deadline Urgency & Final Push)

• Dec 26 (Thu): Email #4 (tax deadline reminder - final week)
• Dec 27-29 (Fri-Sun): High-intensity social and ad push
  • Daily countdown posts
  • Ad budget doubled for final week
  • “Only X days left” messaging everywhere
• Dec 30 (Mon): Email #5 (last chance - 48 hours)
• Dec 31 (Tue): All-day final push
  • Hourly social updates
  • Email reminder in morning
  • Real-time donation celebrations
  • Midnight countdown

Deliverables this week: Final $15,000-30,000 push, close at $75,000+

Week 5: January 2-5 (Post-Campaign Wrap-Up)

• Jan 3 (Fri): Email #6 (thank you and results)
• Jan 4-5: Campaign performance analysis
• Jan 6: Stakeholder debrief meeting

Deliverables this week: Thank donors, analyze results, document learnings

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Budget Allocation

Category	Channel/Activity	Amount	% of Total
Paid Advertising	Facebook Ads	$900	45%
	Instagram Ads	$500	25%
Creative Production	Video Production	$300	15%
Website	Landing Page Design	$300	15%
Total		$2,000	100%

Contingency: No formal contingency buffer. If urgent needs arise, reallocate from paid social to highest-performing channel.

Notes:

• Email, organic social, and PR leverage owned channels (zero direct cost, internal effort only)
• Website assumes existing donation platform (no payment processing fees in marketing budget)
• Video production uses volunteer videographer or smartphone footage
• Ad spend weighted toward final week (tax deadline urgency)

Target ROI: $75,000 raised / $2,000 spent = 37.5x return

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Success Metrics & Reporting

Primary KPI: $75,000 total raised

Channel-Level Metrics:

• Email: Open rate (target: 30%+), CTR (target: 5%+), donations per email, revenue per email
• Paid Social: Impressions, reach, CTR, CPC, cost per donation, ROAS (target: 30:1+)
• Organic Social: Engagement rate, shares, reach, website traffic, attributed donations
• Website: Landing page conversion rate (target: 3%+), average gift size, recurring donor conversion rate

Donor Metrics:

• Total donors (target: 250+)
• Average gift size (target: $300)
• New vs. returning donors
• Recurring monthly donors acquired (target: 30)
• Donor retention rate

Reporting Cadence:

• Daily: Real-time dashboard review (total raised, donor count, daily pace)
• Weekly: Stakeholder email update (progress, highlights, adjustments)
• End of campaign: Comprehensive campaign performance report with ROI analysis

Success Thresholds:

• On Track: $18,750+ per week ($2,500/day average)
• Needs Attention: $12,000-18,000 per week (increase urgency, add donor outreach)
• Critical: <$12,000 per week (major strategy pivot: emergency donor calls, matching gift extension, deadline extension consideration)

Daily Tracking Dashboard (Google Sheet or CRM):

• Running total donations
• Donor count
• Average gift size
• Channel attribution
• Progress to goal (%)

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Stakeholder Roles & Responsibilities

Role	Name/Title	Responsibilities
Campaign Manager	Development Director	Overall campaign execution, donor communications, daily monitoring, stakeholder updates, strategy adjustments
Content Lead	Communications Coordinator	Email copywriting, student stories, social media content, messaging consistency
Social Media Manager	Marketing Coordinator	Facebook/Instagram ads setup and optimization, organic social posting, community engagement, daily content calendar
Executive Director	Executive Director	Major donor personal outreach, Facebook Live hosting, media interviews, corporate partnership outreach
Finance/Operations	Finance Manager	Donation tracking, receipt generation, CRM data entry, budget monitoring
Volunteer Coordinator	Program Manager	Student story coordination, photo/video capture, program documentation

Communication:

• Daily check-ins: Campaign Manager + Social Media Manager (Slack, async)
• Weekly meetings: Full team, Mondays at 10am (30 minutes)
  • Review progress, discuss adjustments, plan week ahead
• Final week: Daily 15-minute standups (Dec 26-31)
• Escalation path: Campaign Manager -> Executive Director for major donor issues or budget/strategy pivots

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Risks & Mitigation

Risk	Impact	Likelihood	Mitigation
Slow start (first 2 weeks)	High	Medium	Early personal outreach to top 20 past donors, offer matching gift if major donor available, increase email frequency
Ad performance underdelivers	High	Medium	Daily monitoring and optimization, shift budget to highest-performing ad sets, test new creative weekly, increase organic social to compensate
Donor fatigue from other year-end campaigns	Medium	High	Stand out with compelling student stories, emphasize tax benefit, highlight unique local impact, recurring donor option reduces urgency pressure
Low email engagement	Medium	Medium	A/B test subject lines, segment by giving history, personalize content, shorten emails, add video
Tech issues on donation page	High	Low	Test donation form thoroughly pre-launch, have IT support on standby Dec 31, provide alternative giving methods (check, phone)
Missing year-end goal	High	Low	Week 3 strategy check-in, consider matching gift extension, emergency major donor outreach, extend deadline to Jan 5 if necessary
Staff burnout during holidays	Medium	Medium	Batch-create content in advance, automate social scheduling, distribute workload, plan rest days post-campaign

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Next Steps

Immediate (This Week - Dec 3-6):

• Finalize campaign brief and get stakeholder approval
• Set up campaign landing page and donation form
• Collect and write 4 student impact stories with photos
• Create email templates and schedule sequence
• Design Facebook/Instagram ad creative (8 variations)
• Build campaign tracking dashboard

Pre-Launch (Week 1 - Dec 7-9):

• Launch all paid ads on Facebook/Instagram
• Send launch email to full list
• Begin daily social media posting
• Send press release to local media
• Reach out personally to top 20 past donors

During Campaign (Dec 10-31):

• Monitor daily donation progress and adjust strategy
• Host Facebook Live event (Dec 15)
• Send mid-campaign email (Dec 17)
• Launch final week urgency push (Dec 26-31)
• Execute New Year’s Eve countdown finale

Post-Campaign (Jan 2-6):

• Send thank you email to all donors
• Generate tax receipts
• Compile campaign performance report
• Hold stakeholder debrief meeting
• Document lessons learned for next year

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Document Owner: Development Director
Last Updated: December 3, 2025
Campaign Ends: December 31, 2025 (11:59pm)
Next Review: January 6, 2026 (post-campaign debrief)

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