The Nonprofit Fundraising Solution

CHAPTER EIGHT

REAPING THE BOUNTY OF YEAR-END GIVING

THE GENTLEMAN BANK ROBBER WILLIE SUTTON was famous for saying that he preyed on financial institutions because “that's where the money is.” In Sutton's line of work, the where question was the fundamental one. Had he been a more conventional fundraiser, he might also have considered the when question: “When is the money there?”

From the fundraiser's standpoint, a harmonious convergence arises at the end of every year between two emotionally disparate elements: warm holiday cheer and cold income tax necessity. One of every three dollars donated to nonprofits is transacted in the month of December alone.¹ Some wealthy individuals wait to see which stocks they should donate to get the best tax ...