5 Steps to Get Your Data Year-End Ready
As the busiest giving season approaches, most small nonprofits are racing to pull together appeals, reports, and donor updates. But many will be slowed down by messy data. Incomplete records, duplicates, and formatting inconsistencies don’t just waste time, they cost you relationships and dollars.
Small teams need a donor list that’s clean and usable so you know exactly where to focus your year-end efforts.
The good news? You don’t need to invest in a pricey CRM overhaul to get there. My simple 5-step cleanup process helps you identify immediate fundraising opportunities already sitting in your data.
In this guide (and in the post below), I’ll walk you through each step, explain why it matters, and show you how to apply it. The result: your donor data stops being a burden and starts working like the revenue-generating tool it was meant to be.
Why Donor Data Matters More Than You Think
First-time donor retention rates are as low as 19%. That means 4 out of 5 new donors will never give again.
But with consistent stewardship, retention can climb to 60% or higher. And a 10% boost in retention can increase donor lifetime value by 200%.
Retention isn’t just about loyalty, it’s about sustainability. It costs 5 times more to acquire a new donor than to keep an existing one. If you’re constantly replacing lapsed donors, you’re spending more to stay in the same place.
The problem isn’t that nonprofit leaders don’t care. It’s that messy data makes consistent stewardship nearly impossible. Donors feel forgotten. And too many never come back.
The 5-Step Data Cleanup Checklist
Use this simple process to get donor-ready before the year-end push:
Step 1: Start with Active Donors (Last 18 Months)
Don’t try to fix everything at once. Focus on donors who’ve given in the last 18 months and are most likely to give again.
Ask yourself:
Who gave last year but not yet this year (your LYBUNT list)?
Which one-time donors could be invited into monthly giving?
Who increased their gift last year and may be ready to step up again?
Pro Tip: Look beyond totals. Frequency matters. A donor who gave $50 twice last year is more engaged than one who gave $100 once.
Step 2: Standardize Formats
Inconsistent data creates frustration at the worst time. Addresses, dates, names, and phone numbers must be recorded consistently to prevent errors in mail merges and reports.
Choose one format for:
Addresses (Street vs. St.)
Dates (10/25/2025 vs. October 25, 2025)
Couples (Jane and John vs. John & Jane)
Phone numbers (with or without dashes/parentheses)
Pro Tip: Create a one-page data standards sheet for staff and volunteers to follow. Consistency is the fastest way to reduce chaos.
Step 3: Merge Duplicates
Duplicate records split giving history and risk sending multiple appeals to the same donor. This erodes trust and weakens your stewardship.
Set aside time to:
Search for duplicate names, emails, or households.
Merge them into one record with a complete giving history.
Note family or household connections so you can understand gifts in context.
Pro Tip: Watch for variations like “Bob Smith” vs. “Robert J. Smith.” It’s the same donor, and unless merged, you’ll never see their full impact.
Step 4: Fill in the Gaps
Incomplete records slow down appeals and block meaningful communication.
Start with the essentials:
Primary email and mailing address
Preferred name and salutation
Employer information (for matching gifts and corporate engagement)
Communication preferences
Use past emails, event sign-in sheets, LinkedIn, or staff and board to input missing details.
Pro Tip: Even one new data point, like an employer, can lead to matching gifts or sponsorship opportunities.
Step 5: Tag Your Audiences
Tags turn a static list into a powerful fundraising tool. They allow you to personalize outreach and make donors feel seen.
Useful tags include:
LYBUNT (last year but not this year)
Monthly donor
Event attendee
Volunteer
Interest tags (e.g., youth programs or animal rescue)
Pro Tip: Use tags to connect stewardship to strategy. For example, tag all gala attendees this year so you can re-invite them next year with: “You joined us last year—will you join us again?”
The Power of Clean Data
When your donor list is clean and organized, you can be much more strategic in your year-end campaigns.
Faster stewardship: When you call donors and thank them within 24 hours, their next gift often goes up by as much as 39%.
Cleaner reports: Stop wasting hours wrangling spreadsheets before board meetings.
Smarter decisions: Ensure you can quickly pull your retention, average gift size, and LYBUNT data.
More personalized appeals: Make donors feel like they’re valued partners.
Next Steps: From Data to Strategy
Every nonprofit has untapped fundraising potential in its donor list. The key is cleaning it up and putting it to work.
If your team is short on time, Sprout Fundraising & Consulting can help you get year-end ready.
We offer:
Done-in-a-Day Support to build your year-end campaign (including copy, design, timeline, and data strategy) in just one day.
SproutTable VIP to consolidate your spreadsheets, clean and tag your data, and set up automations with ready-to-use dashboards.
Grab Your Free Session (Limited Available)
This October, I’m offering a limited number of free year-end Strategy Sessions to help you narrow your focus, identify quick wins, and confidently head into year-end. Grab yours now before it’s gone!
