This is the 201st Fundraising Writing Newsletter. If you find value here, please tell a fundraising friend. (Your fundraising friend can ​subscribe here for free.)​

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

Hi Reader,

Do you remember the Wish Book?

The Sears holiday catalog would land in my family’s mailbox. And I'd grab it. Within hours, I’d dog-ear pages and circle dolls and other toys with a glitter marker. You know... starting to build my case for Santa.🎅

(Maybe for you it was the Toys "R" Us Big Book or JCPenney Christmas Book?)

That browsing and dreaming was a special part of many of our childhoods. And, you know what? It works in fundraising, too.

So I wonder...

Have you ever considered a gift catalog as part of your year-end fundraising?

(I ask because last week, a client and I talked about winter coats and boots for their catalog... in 90-degree weather.☀️Christmas in July is very real in fundraising.)

Why donors (and fundraisers) love charity gift catalogs

Charities like Heifer Int’l, World Vision, Save the Children, Best Friends, and others have been mailing gift catalogs for decades.

What you may not know, Reader, is that you don’t need a Heifer-size budget. In fact, some of the most charming catalogs we’ve seen and written are for small-to-medium, local nonprofits. Eight items on a single folded sheet (or ~16 items on 2 folded sheets).

Here are some reasons a gift catalog works, no matter your org’s size:

It sounds obvious, but people fund what they can easily picture. You can certainly picture what “program support” means because you live it day in and day out. But donors aren’t thinking about your cause much. So, for them, the gift catalog makes a general concept into something super concrete. For example, "$75 to support our programs" feels foggy. However, "$75 = a coat, boots, hat, and mittens for one child" creates a clear picture in the donor's mind.

When donors get to choose, they feel a sense of ownership. Instead of one decision (give or don't give), a charity gift catalog offers dozens of small yeses. (Which item or items should I select? How many?) The quantity line on the order form lets donors upgrade themselves.

A gift catalog is also the perfect excuse to put the full scope of your work on display. Include one or more items per program (e.g., a warm coat, a cooking class for a young parent, a therapy session, a week of hot meals), and donors discover services they never knew you offered. It’s an effective way to educate donors without them feeling like they’re cramming for finals.

There’s an item for every donor’s budget. A well-built charity gift catalog welcomes the $25 giver and the $5,000+ giver in the same piece. And figuring out the price points is a super fun puzzle to assemble!

A gift catalog leads with joy. Of course, the need is real and present, but also full of uplifting language and photos. It's a lovely change of pace in a season full of urgent appeals (including your usual December asks).

Another nice thing about a gift catalog is that it lends itself to honor gifts. This is a nice benefit for a donor who's thinking of all their loved ones and what to get them for the holidays. You simply create a card with a downloadable link for your donors. Yay! 'Tis the season!

If a gift catalog has been tugging at you for this year-end, hop on board: the sleigh is now loading!

Randomly yours

For your brain, heart, and funny bone...

• Fundraisingly Informative — How to Figure Out if Your Fundraising is ‘Working’ by Steven Screen (an eye-opening blog post about the importance of making sure every fundraising activity has a declared core purpose and a way to measure its effectiveness)​
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• Maybe Memeworthy — just this...

• Incredibly Sonorous — Top Ten Billboard 1984 via (an Instagram Reel in which you can hear a snippet of every #1 song from 1984; almost every one is a banger that still gets airplay today)

Until next time: May your fundraising always deserve your donors' dog-earing.

Grateful,

Julie Cooper & Brett Cooper
(and dog Charlie)
Fundraising Copywriters​
​FundraisingWriting.com​
​Fundraising Copywriting & Design​​
​100% human, thank you very much.

PS: Want to get going on your year-end fundraising? A gift catalog of your own perhaps? 🎁 Or maybe you'd like to start chatting about 2027? Book a free 30-minute call. We'd love to jump on a Zoom with you.