By Alan Sharpe, CFRE
The easiest way to encourage a donor to mail you another donation is to thank her properly for her last gift. There are right ways and wrong ways to thank your donor. Avoid these mistakes when mailing your donation thank-you letters, notes and cards.
Mistake #1: Be impersonal
Rather than address your thank-you letter to your donor by name, write, “Dear Friend.”
Mistake #2: Don’t say thank you
Rather than saying that you are thankful for your donor’s gift, say something clear and sincere, such as: “Feelings of gratitude are felt by us regarding the financial contribution made by yourself.”
Mistake #3: Be general rather than specific
Don’t mention the size of the gift ($20, for example). Omit the date that you received the gift. Don’t even call it a gift. I prefer “remittance,” myself. Avoid any mention of the campaign your donor responded to with his gift. Donors are not busy people who need to be reminded that they responded to your appeal.
Mistake #4: Don’t show how the donor’s gift is making a difference
Don’t bother reinforcing in your donor’s mind that sending a gift was a wise investment in the work of your organization. Rather than describe a recent success that was made possible by the donor’s generosity, simply say: “Your gift has been deposited in our general fund.” Or, even better, “Thanks for helping us chip away at our $3.2 million deficit.” You could show in specific, tangible ways, how or where the donors gift is making a difference in the lives of the people that your non-profit serves, but that takes time and mental effort, right? Plus, your board wants you to save money on paper and postage.
Mistake #5: Be thankful for the donation, not the donor
Treat every donor like an automated banking machine. Don’t acknowledge that you value your reader as an individual, a person, someone who supports your organization and believes in your mission. Instead, make no mention of them, and simply say you are thankful for their money.
Mistake #6: Make your thank-you letter a memo from head office
Make your communication one way. You write, they read. Don’t invite your donor to write you, or phone you, or visit your website, or drop by your mission, or in any other way strengthen your relationship.
Mistake #7: Always ask for another gift
Of course your thank-you letter should say thanks. But it should also contain an aggressive appeal for more funds. So what if you cheapen your thanks and offend your supporter? You need their money. So be bold, and hard-sell the request for another gift.
Mistake #8: Strive for banality
Don’t be fresh. Make your letter commonplace. Recycle phrases from all your other thank-you letters. Read your letter out loud to make sure it sounds like it was churned out by a bureaucracy.
If, on the other hand, you want to thank your donors well, do the opposite of this advice.
Handbook Number 3
51 Ways to Write Original Donation Thank-You Letters.
Profit by crafting original gift acknowledgement letters.
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