How to Improve Your Donation Funnel Before Year-End Campaigns

For most UK charities, the final quarter of the year is a make-or-break moment. December alone brings a surge of generosity, with Giving Tuesday, Christmas appeals, and tax-year deadlines all converging. Many charities raise a significant share of their annual income in just a few short weeks. 

But while the opportunity is huge, the challenge is real. Competition for attention is fierce, and donor habits are shifting. Only 50% of UK adults gave to charity in 2024, down from 58% in 2019 (CAF UK Giving Report). That means the pool of donors is shrinking, even as need continues to rise. 

Against this backdrop, the effectiveness of your donation funnel – the journey a supporter takes from awareness to donation (and ideally, to giving again) – becomes critical. A strong funnel can maximise every click and every opportunity to give. A weak one will leak donations you can’t afford to lose. 

How the donation funnel shapes donor journeys

Think of your donation funnel as a pathway. Donors don’t simply land on your website and immediately hand over money; they travel through stages: 

• Awareness: They learn about your cause. 
• Interest: They start engaging with your content. 
• Decision: They consider making a donation. 
• Donation: They complete the giving process. 
• Stewardship: They’re thanked, engaged, and hopefully retained. 

At each stage, some people will naturally drop away. The aim isn’t to stop that completely (no funnel is 100% efficient), but to reduce friction and keep more supporters moving towards that vital moment of giving. 

Research from the Chartered Institute of Fundraising shows that only 21% of people who start an online donation actually complete it, meaning nearly four in five drop off before finishing (AAW Fundraising Benchmarks Report 2025).That’s a staggering level of leakage. Optimising the funnel isn’t a “nice-to-have”, it’s essential. 

Common donation funnel problems charities face 

So where do supporters drop off? Based on sector benchmarks and audits, some recurring pain points stand out: 

• Overcomplicated forms: Asking for too much information upfront. 
• Poor mobile experience: Over half of charity website visits in the UK now come from mobile, but many donation pages are still clunky on smaller screens. 
• Limited payment options: Donors expect choice: credit/debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay. Limiting options increases abandonment. 
• Lack of trust signals: Donors want to see your charity number, security badges, and quick examples of impact. Without them, hesitation sets in. 
• ‘Invisible’ recurring options: In the UK, regular giving now accounts for around 18% of voluntary income across larger charities, and 14% for smaller ones (AAW Fundraising Benchmarks Report 2025). Most donors still give only once. Without visible recurring options, charities miss the chance to turn one-off generosity into long-term, predictable support. 
• Generic messaging: One-size-fits-all asks that don’t resonate with specific donor motivations. 

Even a single weak spot can lose a donor. But combined, they can cause significant revenue loss at the exact moment you need it most. 

Donation funnel quick wins for year-end fundraising 

The good news is that small changes now can yield meaningful results. Here are practical improvements to focus on in the coming weeks. 

Simplify your donation forms 

Donation forms are often the biggest barrier to conversion. If it feels like filling out a tax return, donors will abandon it. 

• Only ask for what you truly need, such as name, email, payment details. 
• Make optional fields clear and consider moving extras (like Gift Aid declarations or marketing preferences) to a second step. 
• Use progress indicators so donors know how close they are to finishing. 

Research consistently shows that reducing the number of fields on a donation form boosts completion. The Baymard Institute, for example, found that shorter forms can lift conversions by 10–15%. In practice, that could mean the difference between losing or keeping thousands of donors at year-end. 

Focus on one task at a time 

Psychology and UX research consistently show that people complete forms more successfully when each screen or step presents a single, clear task. Too many choices or fields on one page increases cognitive load, which often leads to hesitation or abandonment. 

That’s why we’ve designed our Giant Giving platform with a single-task-per-screen approach. Supporters are guided through the donation process step by step, reducing friction and making it feel easier to complete. While many donation platforms still crowd multiple asks or fields onto one page, this streamlined flow helps keep donors focused and moving forward, which in turn leads to higher completion rates. 

Make mobile giving easy 

With more than half of traffic coming from mobile, this is non-negotiable. Test your donation form on multiple devices: is it fast, intuitive, and easy to complete with thumbs rather than keyboards? 

Multiple performance studies suggest that a delay of just one second in mobile load time can reduce conversions by 20%. That’s too big a risk during your busiest fundraising period. 

Promote recurring donations 

Recurring donors are the backbone of sustainable income. Yet UK benchmarks show just 14-18% of online gifts are regular, dependent on the size of your charity (AAW Fundraising Benchmarks Report 2025).  

To boost this: 

• Make monthly giving the default option. 
• Use persuasive copy like “Your monthly gift keeps the work going all year.” 
• Share stories that highlight the power of sustained support. 

Even a modest increase in recurring sign-ups now can pay dividends throughout 2025. 

Show the impact of donations 

Donors want to know exactly how their money helps. Avoid vague asks like “Donate £20 today.” Instead, tie amounts to tangible outcomes: 

• £10 provides clean water for one family for a week. 
• £20 funds a counselling session for someone in crisis. 
• £50 supplies educational materials for a whole classroom. 

These anchors make giving decisions easier and more compelling. 

Build donor trust online 

Trust is fragile. In a recent survey, 38% of UK donors said they are giving less because they are worried about how money is spent (CAF UK Giving Report). You can’t afford to leave doubt hanging. 

Reassure donors by: 

• Displaying your registered charity number clearly. 
• Using security badges for payment processing. 
• Including quick testimonials or impact quotes from beneficiaries. 
• Sharing links to your latest impact report. 

These small touches build confidence and encourage follow-through. 

How to improve the donor journey online 

Optimising your funnel doesn’t end at the donation form. The whole journey matters – from the first click to the thank-you message and beyond. 

• Map the journey: Step into a donor’s shoes. Where might they get stuck, confused, or distracted? Fixing even one blocker in the process can mean more people actually complete their donation instead of abandoning halfway through. 
• Personalise asks: Segment audiences into new, repeat, and major donors for more relevant communication. Tailored asks are more likely to resonate, and they typically lead to higher average gifts that one-size-fits-all messaging. 
• Go multi-channel: UK charities are seeing success with SMS, WhatsApp, social ads, and peer-to-peer fundraising. Higher-income households in the UK were 20% more likely to give more when prompted across multiple channels (Everywhere+ UK Giving Behaviours Report). That means diversifying your outreach isn’t just ‘nice to have’, it directly increases the value of donations you receive. 
• Prioritise accessibility: Ensure donation journeys work with screen readers, keyboard navigation, and strong colour contrast. An accessible donation funnel ensures that no willing donor is excluded, opening your cause to a wider base of supporters.  

Creating urgency in year-end digital fundraising 

One of the biggest advantages of year-end fundraising is natural urgency. Donors expect deadlines and goals; use them well. 

• Use fixed dates: “Help us raise £50,000 by Christmas Eve.” Give donors a reason to act now, rather than putting it off and forgetting. 
• Leverage matching funds: The Big Give Christmas Challenge raised over £44m in 2024 thanks to match-funding campaigns. Donors are more likely to give – and to give larger amounts – when they know their gift will be doubled in impact. 
• Highlight tax benefits: Remind donors they can claim tax relief on eligible donations. This makes their gift go further at no extra cost to them, which can nudge undecided donors into action.  
• Use countdowns: Progress bars, live donation totals, or timers all nudge last-minute action. These provide social proof and a sense of momentum, encouraging donors to join in and help push the campaign over the line. 

Urgency works best when paired with impact stories – people want to know their gift matters now, not just at some future point. 

How to test and optimise your donation funnel 

You don’t have to guess what works. Testing and tracking can provide quick wins even during a live campaign. 

• A/B testing: Try different subject lines, CTA buttons, or donation amounts. Small tweaks can reveal what resonates best, often unlocking higher conversion rates without extra spend. 
• Analytics: Track where donors come from, how long they stay, and where they drop off. Google Analytics and heatmap tools like Hotjar make it easy to spot friction points. Fixing these pain points means fewer lost donors and more completed gifts. 
• Benchmarking: Compare your results with sector averages through the UK & Ireland Charity Digital Benchmark. This helps you see whether performance dips are sector-wide or unique to you, and where you can gain ground alongside your peers. 

Even small improvements – like a 5% higher completion rate – can mean thousands more pounds raised. 

Next steps to improve your year-end fundraising funnel 

The UK charity sector is facing headwinds: fewer donors overall, rising costs, and increased competition for attention. But the opportunity at year-end is still significant. By reducing friction in your funnel, encouraging recurring gifts, and sharpening your messaging, you can make sure your campaigns perform at their best. 

And remember: you don’t have to do this alone. At Giant Digital, we specialise in building donation funnels that work – fast, accessible, mobile-first, and optimised for conversion. 

Strengthen appeals with campaign landing pages 

Alongside optimising your funnel, the way you frame your campaign has a huge impact on results. A dedicated campaign landing page gives your appeal focus: it tells a clear story, links donations directly to impact, and removes distractions that might pull supporters away. 

At Giant Digital, we offer a package that combines bespoke campaign landing pages with our Giant Giving donation platform. Each landing page is designed using proven UX and accessibility principles, while Giant Giving provides a streamlined donation flow that makes giving simple and intuitive. Together, they create a seamless journey that builds confidence and maximises results. 

We also recognise that flexibility matters. Campaign landing pages can be connected to your existing donation provider if you’re not ready to switch, and Giant Giving integrates with platforms like CRMs, so supporter journeys and data flows remain connected across your wider digital ecosystem.