Turning year-end donors into recurring supporters

This blog was written in collaboration with the team at Community Boost and Saiba Singh, Senior Partner Marketing Manager at GoFundMe Pro.

Historically, the year-end season brings in the largest number of new and reactivated donors. Engagement is high, generosity is top of mind, and supporters are ready to connect. However, without an intentional strategy, that momentum often slows in January.

The organizations that stop this pattern do something differently: They treat year-end as the starting point of deeper, longer-term relationship-building with supporters.

Below, we explore why your nonprofit should set a proactive plan for what happens after supporters make a donation and how to effectively nurture each connection to fuel deeper donor participation in the new year and beyond.

A common trap: Overinvesting in the ask, underinvesting in the journey

We know that year-end donors are uniquely high intent: They pay attention, are emotionally invested, and have demonstrated trust through their gift. However, high intent alone doesn’t guarantee a lasting connection.

Often, what organizations overlook is the broader supporter journey surrounding year-end moments. That’s why Community Boost developed the supporter journey framework to help organizations approach year-end and the moments that follow through a more holistic lens.

The supporter journey consists of three stages:

• Impact: Strengthening engagement and consideration
• Resonance: Turning interest into conversion
• Stewardship: Sustaining re-engagement, retention, loyalty, and advocacy

Most organizations excel at resonance but struggle with stewardship, often resulting in one-time gifts rather than ongoing support. While there’s a time and place for one-time gifts, loyalty is the key to strong donor lifetime value.

In fact, according to GoFundMe Pro’s The State of Modern Philanthropy report, recurring donors are 9x more valuable than one-time donors, emphasizing how critical recurring giving is to an organization’s long-term health.

As we enter 2026, the question becomes: How can your nonprofit put stewardship at the center of its strategy?

Stewardship: The real indicator of year-end success

Stewardship is the intentional design of touchpoints that move donors from a single transaction into a sense of belonging within your community.

Donors should feel understood, included in something ongoing, and invited to continue engaging. When stewardship is built into the core of year-end planning, donors stay engaged well past December, which results in:

• Donors who give monthly and grow their gifts naturally
• Supporters who understand their role in your mission
• Advocates who have the potential to become major donors, volunteers, and fundraisers

This is the key pivot that turns December generosity into new-year loyalty.

How GoFundMe Pro extends stewardship and long-term support

Stewardship involves more than follow-up emails—it requires clear, meaningful pathways for supporters to stay involved. This is where GoFundMe Pro plays a distinct and unique role in the year-end lifecycle.

Rather than limiting engagement to a single donation moment, GoFundMe Pro provides supporters with opportunities to continue participating in your mission in ways that feel personal, energizing, and motivating.

By offering supporters choices on how to engage—such as peer-to-peer fundraising, event attendance, social sharing, and recurring gifts—organizations can extend year-end momentum into sustained involvement.

Let’s explain:

     1. Peer-to-peer becomes a natural next step

Peer-to-peer fundraising is one of the most effective stewardship tools. It transforms a donor from someone who gives once to someone who represents your mission, transforming how supporters relate to you. Instead of responding to another appeal, supporters take initiative and tell their stories, driving a sense of ownership that helps fundamentally shift their relationship with your organization.

On GoFundMe Pro, peer-to-peer:

• Extends donor value beyond a transaction by activating supporters’ personal networks
• Builds commitment by showcasing support for your cause publicly
• Reinforces identity, turning supporters into visible advocates for your mission

For year-end donors who feel inspired but want to do more than give again, peer-to-peer becomes a natural and empowering next step.

2. Event participation represents continued engagement

Events play a powerful role in stewardship.

Where peer-to-peer emphasizes ownership, events emphasize belonging. They move supporters from individual action into a shared experience, which is a strong driver of long-term loyalty.

With GoFundMe Pro’s event fundraising and ticketing solution, organizations are:

• Carrying year-end energy into the new year through moments of community and connection
• Creating in-person and virtual touchpoints that deepen emotional investment
• Reinforcing community identity
• Layering fundraising into shared experiences

Events give supporters meaningful reasons to stay connected, even between major campaigns, keeping your mission top of mind all year.

3. Social sharing amplifies impact

Social sharing is often treated as an added bonus. However, with digital engagement increasing among younger and older generations, it’s a critical stewardship strategy and key driver of sustained engagement.

After all, supporters respond best to people and often give when someone they know invites them to do so, reflecting social sharing as a key driver of relationships.

When supporters share your campaign across Meta platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, they do more than just post a link. They’re:

• Signaling values publicly, reinforcing their commitment to your cause
• Inviting participation through trust, not institutional messaging
• Normalizing generosity within their networks, which increases response
• Keeping your cause visible over time, not just during the year-end rush

GoFundMe’s The Social State of Giving report highlights that generosity tends to grow through proximity. When people see giving modeled by someone they trust, they’re more inclined to participate. Social sharing enables that dynamic at scale, extending your year-end message well beyond December.

For supporters who aren’t ready to fundraise or attend an event, sharing becomes a powerful, low-lift way to stay involved, often leading to deeper engagement over time.

Year-end giving should be a beginning, not a peak

Year-end giving will always matter. However, organizations that focus only on December fundraising will find themselves repeating the same cycle: pushing harder each year for short-term results.

The nonprofits that grow sustainably are the ones that treat year-end as the beginning of a supporter journey, not the finish line. They design for what comes next: participation, belonging, advocacy, and recurring support.

By pairing intentional stewardship with strategic supporter journeys, organizations can turn seasonal generosity into year-round momentum. The result is a stronger, more resilient community that carries your mission forward long after the holiday season ends.

To design a supporter journey that sustains the year-end momentum you established in 2025, partner with Community Boost and GoFundMe Pro to turn that strategy into meaningful, ongoing supporter action.

Copy editor: Ayanna Julien