Communicate!

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TY Thursday: Thank Donors by Keeping Them Informed

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Why do donors give? Because they want to know they made a difference.

Sending the ideal thank-you letter is a good start. You can ward off donor’s remorse and make the person who pulled out their credit card or checkbook feel immediately, “That was a good decision. I did the right thing.”

But if that’s all you do to say thanks, chances are very high that the next time you ask, they won’t give again. They may not even remember they gave the first time!

So, one of the best ways your nonprofit can say “Thank you” to donors is to give them what they want. Show them the difference they made: the impact of their donations.

How do you do that? Who’s doing a good job of it now that you can emulate?

Example: The Welcome Project

The Welcome Project logo

Back in May, I asked my friends on Facebook:

Question for my friends who donate to their favorite charities: which organizations are doing an especially good job right now of letting you know what your donations are doing for people in need?

More than one person mentioned a local organization that I’ve supported for years, The Welcome Project. The Welcome Project builds the collective power of immigrants to participate in and shape community decisions.

Since the November 2016 election, TWP has pushed the city government and schools of Somerville, Massachusetts to serve the needs of all its residents–no matter what is happening in Washington. Since the start of the pandemic, it has created a fund to help immigrants who aren’t eligible for other kinds of relief.

What is TWP doing to tell its story…and to let donors know they are making a difference?

  1. On its website, TWP has helped immigrants to find the help they need during the pandemic, from food to small business loans. It provided the information in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Kreyol.
  2. By email, the Executive Director issued a strong and personal statement about the death of George Floyd. He also spotlighted the need to enforce the mask wearing ordinance without giving police an excuse to target people of color.
  3. By social media, TWP invited its friends and supporters to:
    • Advocate for efforts to clean up air pollution that’s affecting communities of color more than anyone else.
    • Stand up and be counted in the U.S. Census.
    • Assist TWP in analyzing the Mass. police reform bill being considered in the state legislature.
    • Lobby for a state law making drivers’ licenses easier to obtain. (One of Somerville’s state reps is the sponsor of the bill.)

TWP also presented useful information about events affecting immigrants at the local and the national level, from Covid testing to DACA.

As a donor myself, when I see and hear all this news from the Welcome Project, I feel:

  • Gratified that the organization I supported is so active.
  • Included in its efforts, almost as if I were there.
  • Informed about issues I care about.
  • Empowered to take action, from attending demonstrations to lobbying the legislature.
  • Identified with TWP. They make me feel, “This is my organization–I am a part of it.”

And although I have already donated to the organization and to the immigrant assistance fund, the next time they ask, I will be more likely to make an additional gift. Because I know it makes a difference when I do.

Does your nonprofit say thank you by keeping donors informed and involved? Look at this example to learn how. Share on X

Fundraising Tuesday: How to Ensure Donors Read Your Letter

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Yes, you can raise funds this summer.

I’ve been showing you how asking for donations in the middle of a pandemic and an uprising against racism is actually doing your donors a favor. One of the things donors want most in times like these is the feeling of making a difference, and you can give that to them! (If you don’t, other nonprofits will.)

I’ve also been explaining how to raise funds even if your nonprofit works on issues that have very little relation to Covid-19 or to murders of Black people and other people of color by police. Take the A-B-C approach to fundraising: Acknowledge the crises. Be responsive. Continue to pursue your mission.

 

 

 

 

Direct mail works–better than asking by email, and much better than fundraising online. Sure, the best approach is a multichannel fundraising campaign. But it all comes back to the letter. And job #1 is to make sure the donor actually reads it!

So, how do you give the donor everything she needs to want to open and read your fundraising appeal?

Here’s how to make sure that letter you worked so hard to write gets read:

Envelopes Make Donors Want to Open Your Mail.

Once your donor opens the envelope, the postscript is the most important part of your appeal letter. (So important that here are four more ways to use postscripts!)

If you want a donor to read your letter, “Dear Friend” won’t cut it. Get their name right.

“But how do I know what the donor likes to be called?” Ask their name.

Use photos that tell the story.

Ms. Marvel hero

How your donor should see herself

Tell stories in words, too! And be sure to make the donor the hero of the story.

Follow these six steps and donors will be intrigued by the envelope, attracted by the letter, moved by the story, and motivated to give.

 

 

 

 

 

TY Thursday: Thanking Donors is Good for Your Health

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Dennis with mask

How are you feeling, reader? I hope you’re safe at home, and keeping your distance while wearing a mask when you go out.

If you show symptoms of the coronavirus, don’t be bashful, call your doctor. If you need food, or other help, don’t be shy, call your neighbor. We can help one another.

There’s one other thing you can do to stay healthy, and it may surprise you.

Thank your donors.

Saying thank you is good for your mental health Share on X

A lot of people aren’t used to working from home. Seeing the same four walls every day. Being cooped in with family, and being kept out of our usual social communities. Doing everything online.

In these circumstance, it’s not selfish–it’s vital–to do things that make us feel happy. Mental health boosts our immune systems, and gratitude helps renew and replenish our mental health.

As reported in Inc. magazine, “A team of researchers out of Indiana University led by Prathik Kini recruited 43 subjects suffering from anxiety or depression. Half of this group were assigned a simple gratitude exercise — writing letters of thanks to people in their lives — and three months later all 43 underwent brain scans.”

The results?

The participants who’d completed the gratitude task months earlier not only reported feeling more gratefulness two weeks after the task than members of the control group, but also, months later, showed more gratitude-related brain activity in the scanner.

And their attitude of gratitude is linked with happiness, optimism, calmness, willpower, and other psychological benefits.

“Something as simple as writing down three things you’re grateful for every day for 21 days in a row significantly increases your level of optimism, and it holds for the next six months. The research is amazing,” Harvard researcher and author Shawn Achor told Inc.com.

Be good to yourself: say “thank you”

Writing thank-you letters is a way to express gratitude. We know donors want it. We know nonprofits benefitHappy grateful from it. And now, we know it’s a work task you can carry you that will actually be good for you.

So, why not try it? Write three thank-you letters every day for the next twenty-one days. You’ll be making your outlook brighter AND making donors feel appreciated. A happy result!

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