By the time you read this, I hope you have sent out your ideal end-of-year fundraising letter. Maybe you did it by mail. Maybe you sent it by email. Either way, it’s tempting to sit back and let it do its work.
Don’t give in to temptation! There’s more to do if you want to stay atop your donors’ mind…and donation list!
Your appeal is one of many, many appeals your donors are receiving this time of year. (Just look at your own mail or inbox and you will agree.) To make yours stand out, it cannot be one and done. Here are some ideas to bring your appeal to the top of your donors’ list.
What to do after you ask
- Follow up a letter with email.
- In the From: line, send the message in the name of a real person.
- Make sure you choose a Subject: line that will make the donor perk up and open the message.
- Talk about what the donor wants, not what your nonprofit wants.
- Include a link to your Donate page–twice or three times!
- Follow up a written message with a phone call.
- Prepare a good script.
- Train your volunteers.
- Invite your Board to get involved. Following up an ask will be easier for many of them than making the ask themselves!
- Follow up a personal message by talking to all your donors on social media. Now is the time to make the donor the hero of the story.
“Here is a person who’s struggling, and you can help them get over the hump and have a happy ending.” There is no better message to post in December!
December is different. As Double the Donation points out, “30% of annual giving happens in December, with about 10% of all annual donations coming in the last three days of the year.”
The rest of the year, telling success stories helps donors feel happy and proud that they gave to your organization. But in December, you want to make the donor feel that the ending of the story is all in their hands. When you call, or email, and especially when you post, bring them to the brink, and then ask. And always make it easy to give by including the link to your donation page!
