The Year-End
Major Gift Playbook
The scripts, templates, and strategy to close more major gifts between October and December 31st.
30% of all charitable giving happens in December. Are you ready for it?
of all annual giving happens in December
of giving occurs in the last 3 days of the year
higher response rates with year-end-specific asks
Instant digital download
Year-end is coming.
Are you ready?
Every year, you tell yourself this will be the year you get ahead of year-end giving.
And every year, December sneaks up. You're scrambling to send emails, making last-minute calls, and hoping the donors who said "maybe" will come through, without a plan, without scripts, and without a system.
What's Inside
Everything you need for year-end.
No theory. No fluff. Just the exact tools Mary uses with her coaching clients to close major gifts during the most critical giving window of the year.
Year-End Ask Scripts
Word-for-word scripts for every year-end scenario - from the warm prospect who's been waiting, to the lapsed donor you're re-engaging, to the brand-new contact who gave at the gala.
Email & Letter Templates
Done-for-you email sequences and direct mail letter templates designed specifically for the year-end giving season. Copy, paste, personalize, send.
The 90-Day Countdown Calendar
A week-by-week roadmap from October through December 31st. Know exactly what to do, when to reach out, and when to make the ask.
Prospect Prioritization Matrix
A simple framework to identify which donors to focus on during the critical year-end window - so you're not wasting time on the wrong people.
Discovery Questions for Year-End Meetings
The exact questions to ask in a fall discovery meeting that set up a December ask. Uncover capacity, inclination, and timing without feeling pushy.
Objection Handling Guide
The most common year-end objections - 'let me think about it,' 'talk to my accountant,' 'maybe next year' - and exactly what to say back.
From someone who's closed year-end gifts for 25 years.
Mary Petersen spent 25 years as a working major gift officer before she started coaching. She's raised millions from living rooms, boardroom lunches, and farmhouse tables.
She is the author of What to Say (International Impact Award Winner) and Small Table Big Philanthropy, and the founder of Hey Fundraiser. This is someone who did the work, not someone who studied it.
The Year-End Playbook is built from the exact scripts, templates, and strategies she used to close a $100 million gift in 7 months - adapted for the year-end window where most fundraisers leave money on the table.
What fundraisers are saying
"I used Mary's year-end scripts last December and closed two five-figure gifts I'd been cultivating for over a year. The language just works."
Jennifer R.
Director of Development, Regional Food Bank
"The countdown calendar alone was worth the price. For the first time, I had a plan for October through December instead of winging it."
Marcus T.
Executive Director, Community Health Clinic
"Mary's email templates got a 40% open rate. We raised more in the last week of December than we had in the previous three months combined."
Prashant N.
Director of Development, Global Health Initiative
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The Year-End Major Gift Playbook
One-time payment · Lifetime access
Your Playbook includes:
Questions?
Here are the most common ones.
Q.What exactly is the Year-End Major Gift Playbook?
It's a complete digital toolkit designed to help you maximize major gift revenue during the critical year-end giving season (October through December 31st). It includes ask scripts, email templates, a countdown calendar, prospect prioritization tools, and objection handling guidance - all based on Mary Petersen's 25 years of closing major gifts.
Q.Is this a physical product or digital download?
It's a 100% digital product. The moment you complete your purchase, you'll get instant access to download everything. No shipping, no waiting.
Q.Will this work if I'm new to major gifts?
Absolutely. The scripts and templates are written so anyone can use them, whether you've been asking for major gifts for 20 years or this is your first year-end season. Mary's approach is practical, not theoretical.
Q.What if I already have a year-end plan?
Even the best plans have gaps. The Playbook is designed to plug the holes - the prospect you're not sure how to approach, the email you keep rewriting, the objection you freeze on. Use what you need, fill in what's missing.
Q.How is this different from Mary's books?
Mary's books (What to Say and Small Table Big Philanthropy) teach the philosophy and framework. The Year-End Playbook is the tactical, done-for-you execution layer: specific scripts, templates, and a calendar built for the year-end window specifically.
Q.Is there a guarantee?
There is a promise, which I think is better, and there is one thing I will not promise. I will not promise you a gift. I do not control your donors, your board, your economy, or whether your biggest prospect has a bad year. Anybody who guarantees you fundraising revenue is guaranteeing something that is not theirs to give. What I will promise is that you leave with the work finished. Come to the days, do the work in the room, and if your prospect list, money map, scripts and ninety-day plan are not complete when your coaching calls run out, I keep coaching until they are. No extra fee. If that is not enough certainty for the size of this decision, email me and tell me what would make it feel safer. I would rather have that conversation than have you talk yourself out of something that would work.
Don't wait until December.
The fundraisers who close the biggest year-end gifts are the ones who start in October. Get the Playbook today and walk into the giving season with a plan.
Get the Playbook for $97