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Sent Your Fundraising Appeal? 3 Things to Do While You Wait

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Waiting for the mailYou’ve written the best fundraising letter you can: maybe, the ideal appeal letter.

It’s in the mail. The donors will get it next week.

Now what? Is there anything you can do besides waiting for the mail? (Or the online payments, of course.)

Yes! Here are three ways you can follow up on that fundraising letter: by phone, by email, and by social media.

Follow Up with a Phone Call

Even a polite voicemail message increases the chances that your donors will renew their support for you this year. But there are worse and better ways to make that phone call.

The worst thing you can do is to call someone who doesn’t want to hear from you by phone. My wife and I tell everyone who calls us, “We prefer not to give over the phone. Mail us.” If they call again, we send our donations somewhere else. And there are lots of people like us!

A good way to reach out is by having a well-trained volunteer call and start by thanking the donor for their past support. Give the donor a sense of accomplishment: “Thanks to you, twenty children had lunch every day this school year.” Tell them, “Your help is still needed.” Ask for a specific amount.

It’s even better if the caller is a donor like them. “Thank you. Here’s what we did together.” Better still if the caller is a donor AND a board member. You’re complimenting your donor by letting them know they’re worth the board’s attention and time.

The best, the absolute best thing you can do? Find a friend of that donor to make the call. Someone who knows them well and can speak to them from the heart about how much they appreciate the donor’s gift. When your friend is grateful for your donation, of course you have to renew!

ET, Phone from Home?

Now, to my mind it’s a real toss-up whether it’s better to ask your volunteers to call from their homes or get them together for a “phone bank.”

  • Ask them to call from home and it’s more convenient for them, but they may forget… and you may have to work harder to find out who they reached and who they didn’t.
  • Invite them to call together and you create camaraderie among those who show up, and you can be on hand to answer any questions, live…but fewer people will volunteer in the first place.

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. Do what fits your organization the best.

We’ll talk about using email and social media to follow up your fundraising letter in future posts. For now, happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

TY Thursday: 5 Ways Your Board Can Happily Thank Donors

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Over here, you’ve got a pile of donations. You sent each of these donors a thank-you letter, on letterhead, signed by your Executive Director, within a week of when you received their gift. But you haven’t been in touch with any of them personally since then.

And over there, you have your Board of Directors. Several of them have said, “I love this organization. I’ll do anything for this organization–except ask for money. I’m just no good at asking.”

Do you want to make your donors feel flattered and your directors feel useful, all at the same time? Then ask your Board of Directors to start saying thanks.

Donors and Directors, A Match Made in Heaven

Every thank-you matters, but an expression of gratitude from a Board member to a donor matters more. No matter how sincere you are, when you, a staff person at a nonprofit, says thanks, the thought crosses the donor’s mind: “I’m paying your salary.” When a member of your Board of Directors is the one thanking the donor, they have these advantages:

  • They are volunteers. They’re regular people who care about the organization enough to give their precious time.
  • They are donors themselves. When Board members make a monetary contribution, of whatever size is significant for them, they can talk with fellow donors about why the organization matters “to both of us.”
  • They are leaders. It’s impressive when someone who holds a position of authority is the one making the call. It makes the donor feel valued and honored.

Getting thanked by a Board member helps donors think, “I made a good decision when I gave.” But it helps your Board of Directors, too. It confirms their own commitment to the organization…and it gives them valuable firsthand information about how their organization is perceived.

5 Ways a Board Member Can Say “Thank You!”

Thanks in many languages

  1. Add a personal note to a thank-you letter. Especially if the donor knows the Board member, but even if they haven’t met…yet!
  2. Follow up with a phone call. Penelope Burk found that donors who got a call within 24 hours gave 39% more than those who simply received a thank-you letter…and check out Gail Perry’s story of how a thank-you call made her boyfriend a major donor for life.
  3. Throw a party. Maybe one of your Board members loves to entertain. Your staff have been meaning to hold a donor appreciation event for ages but never find the time. Ask the happy host or hostess to have the party at their place. (They will still need help inviting the donors to come, but it’s less work, for more return, than if staff do it.)
  4. Send a gift. Who’s the shop-a-holic on your Board? Ask her to pick out a small but thoughtful gift personalized to your donor, wrap it, and mail it with a note. Your donor will be surprised (and maybe make a new friend for life).
  5. Tell the world. Someone on your Board is on social media all day. Chances are you can figure out who it is–if you don’t know already! Ask that Facebook fanatic to “friend” a donor and then sing his or her praises online. Not only will you be thanking the donor all over again, you’ll be making the donor’s friends ask, “What’s that organization that loves my friend like that?”

If you ask a member of your Board of Directors to thank donors by doing something he or she likes to do anyway, you will have a happy Board, a happy donor base…and a happy result the next time you ask for money!

Establishing a Donor Base When You’re a New Nonprofit

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Guest post by James Gilmer

New nonprofits have the opportunity to fill so many under-served needs in their community. But how do you communicate the valuable difference you will make to donors? How do you even find the sources of income your nonprofit needs to survive?

The foundation of your nonprofit’s success is its people, specifically your board and volunteers. In your nonprofit’s early stage, your board of directors will determine the organization’s direction, and members should be able to use their money, connections, and ideas to network and gain initial traction in the community. That’s means it’s extremely important to select a board of directors that will actually earn your nonprofit a return.

The next thing is to understand what your donors want from you. To you, your nonprofit’s mission may be the greatest idea since sliced bread. No offense, but your donors won’t see it that way. They need to feel connected to your cause before they give. When you’re speaking with prospective donors, foundations, and corporations, tell a story. Otherwise, you’re just noise.

Equally importantly, donors want to see your 501(c)(3) exemption from the IRS. This status makes your organization exempt from federal income tax and is the first step to fundraising legally. It helps your donors know that you are a legitimate charity. More importantly, they can get a tax deduction when they make a contribution.

Lastly, stay in touch with your donors. After they give, send a thank you note. Invite them to events. Send them updates. Most of all, show them how their contribution made a difference. In that way, you’ll not only earn a gift, but hopefully a life-long supporter.

 

Author Bio: James Gilmer is a compliance specialist for Harbor Compliance, which establishes 501(c) nonprofits and helps them stay compliant. Harbor Compliance assists charities in every state and several countries abroad. James serves on the Board for two nonprofits in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

 

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