Who Writes a Better Fundraising Letter, the Doctor or the Patient?
March 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
You have a dramatic, interesting, compelling story to tell about someone who has been helped by your non-profit organization. You are sure that this story will stir your donors’ emotions and boost your response rates and revenue.
So how should you tell the story? You have two options.
You can either (A) tell it from your point of view, or (B) you can let the person who experienced your organization tell their story in their own words. I recommend you go with Option B whenever possible, although this style of letter has its disadvantages.
In a first-person letter, the person that the story is about writes and signs the letter. For example, if you are a hospital, and you have an amazing story to tell about a patient who was dead on arrival but is alive today because of the intervention of your hospital staff, this type of story would be told in the patient’s own words.
The letter might begin like this: “On a sunny afternoon last September, I arrived at the Metro Health Hospital dead. I had no pulse, no blood pressure, and I wasn’t breathing. Not good, you’ll agree. But here I am a year later, telling you my story, and all because of the amazing staff of the hospital, who saved my life.” The letter would continue with the patient telling his story, and conclude by asking the reader to make a donation.
Advantages:
1. A story told in the first-person is invariably more dramatic and interesting than when the same story is related second-hand by a staff member. The writer of Amazing Grace wrote: “I once was blind, but now I see,” not, “John Newton once was blind but now he sees.”
2. They make your claims more believable because they get the people you serve to make them for you. An ex-patient who suffered a heart-attack, but whose life was saved by hospital staff, can say that the cardiology department is among the best in the world, and be believed, but if his surgeon says the same thing in a letter, donors will think he is just bragging.
3. Letters written by people who have been helped by your organization prove in a personal way that you are making a difference in the world. That’s because stories of lives changed, told by the people whose lives were changed, are more persuasive than stories told about them.
Disadvantages:
1. Letters written in the first-person by the people your organization helps or the people you serve have no institutional authority. A letter written by your CEO obviously speaks on behalf of your organization. But a letter written by someone who has used your services speaks about their experience, and nothing more. Only a letter written by a staff member or board member can tell donors about your strategic direction, describe your programs, and show how past support from donors is making a difference at your organization today.
2. Letters written by your clients are also unable to talk to donors about confidential matters. They cannot thank your new donor for her first gift, cannot ask your lapsed donor to renew his support, and cannot ask your monthly donor to make a one-time gift to a special appeal, since doing so would breach your privacy policy. (The way around this shortcoming is to include a note, written by your CEO or executive director, that describes all of the things that the writer of the letter could not write about.
Fundraising letters written in the first-person by the people your non-profit helps are likely the strongest letters you will mail, but not all of your letters can be written this way. Your clients cannot tell your story as well as you can, and you can’t tell their stories as well as they can. At least half of your letters need to come from your organization, written by and signed by a person in senior leadership.
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Learn more about how to write better fundraising letters. Read Breakthrough Fundraising Letters, Pushing the Envelope, or one of Alan Sharpe’s many handbooks about direct mail fundraising.
How to Create Compelling Direct Mail Fundraising Envelopes
February 13, 2012 By 1 Comment
By Billy Sharma
One of the hardest things to do in direct marketing is to get the recipient to open your direct mail package, therefore, the outer envelope is of prime importance. Its function is more than just holding the contents securely; it must entice the respondent to I open it.
Siegfried Vogele, a research professor of direct marketing, observed that the average person spends between five and fifteen seconds scanning their mail, screening and rejecting what to open, what to discard or what to save for later, all in the proximity of their wastebasket.
If your direct mail piece never gets opened, your message never gets read. So how do you ensure that your piece survives? Here are some simple yet effective ways to ensure that your direct mail piece is opened:
The first thing that goes through a recipient’s mind is WIIFM. What’s-in-it-for-me” Why is this company writing to me? What do they want from me? Remember, you are intruding on someone’s time, so make sure the piece has some relevance to the recipient. Otherwise you are just producing junk mail.
Provide a hint of what’s inside. Partially revealing the contents through a window can be exceedingly effective. Many books have suggested this, but the most conclusive evidence is a piece of research that tested two envelopes.
One had simply the words ‘Free Book Inside’. The other had a large window that partially revealed an actual book with the same words, ‘Free Book Inside’. The envelope that revealed the book out pulled the other by 30%.
Clear polybags display the entire contents. Polybags are great for mailing unique offers, posters or several booklets or multiple pieces. Publishers and catalogues use polybags extensively.
Capture the reader’s imagination. Remember that if the reader can decipher what you are selling without even opening the envelope, then it is a bad envelope. The bad envelopes do not reveal everyt5hing-they only tantalize you to look inside.
Use teaser copy. Teaser copy can arouse curiosity and interest, either by using a provocative statement or by asking a question. The teaser can be a partial one to lead the recipient inside or it can be split on the front and back of the envelope. If it is enticing, the recipient will flip it over to get the complete message.
When targeting a very select group, the message should be meaningful to the audience. For example, “Your copy of a report on osteoporosis” is more likely to be opened by someone concerned with osteoporosis.
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Excerpted from The Handbook of Direct Marketing for Non-Profit Organizations, by Billy Sharma. Available in paperback from www.expertfundraiser.org
The Art and Science of Keeping a Direct Mail Donor
February 1, 2012 By 2 Comments
By Billy Sharma
The art lies in building and fostering a strong bond with your supporters. This is best achieved through compelling communications and quick responses to their generosity.
- Your appeal must give a persuasive reason for giving and should identify the financial goals essential to your charity
- Work to understand your donors and offer them an appropriate plan of action
- When a gift comes in, send a thank you promptly
The science is how you use the data, research and testing methods available to you.
- Segment your donor files. Remember the RFM (Recency, Frequency and Monetary Value) rules of direct marketing
- Spend more time, effort and money on people who have given more recently, more frequently and more generously. They are the most likely to give again and could very well keep increasing their donation amounts. They are also the ones who need to be constantly reminded about your organization and should receive more communication pieces annually
- Research and test what works best for which group of donors
- Use data mining to determine affinity for giving. Some donors have a higher propensity to give than others. You could determine this by researching their lifestyle behavior and or just by noting their postal or area codes
- Track your donors’ giving history in terms of size and frequency of giving
Know your Donors
New Donors are first time givers.
Transition Donors are those who give sporadically. They have a history of giving once in a while in a 16-24 month period.
Core Donors are those who have given a gift to the charity regularly either each year or within sixteen months.
High Value Donors are those who give big gifts.
Lapsed Donors are those who have stopped giving. They fall into two categories:
- Recently Lapsed donors who have not given in the last 13-24 months;
- Deeply Lapsed donors who have not given in the past 25 months.
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Excerpted from The Handbook of Direct Marketing for Non-Profit Organizations, by Billy Sharma. Available in paperback from www.expertfundraiser.org
Capturing US Federal Funding for Your Ministry or Church
January 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment
by Bev Browning
The legislation is in place, for now. Remember, though, with each new President, priorities change; old initiatives fall by the wayside and new, hopefully better legislation is written and passed. If they want to see faith-based initiatives continue, faith-based groups must make a powerful statement: “We want this money and we are demonstrating our capabilities by applying for and winning federal grant awards!”
Step 1 – Become a Participant
How can your church or ministry join the list of federal grantees? By understanding the intent of the federal law, by learning how to qualify as an eligible grant applicant agency; and by aggressively pursuing federal grants from agencies that participate in faith-based grantmaking. This book gives you the tools, if you read, reread, and share the contents of each chapter with members of your congregation willing to help you go after grant funds.
Step 2 – Put Your Elected Officials to Work for Your Ministry
Prior to your state’s Congressional elections, your church or ministry likely hosted a candidate’s night or even allowed individual politicians to speak at weekly worship service. There even may have been campaign signage allowed on church or ministry property. Now that the election is over and local and regional politicians have moved to Washington, DC, it’s time to put your elected officials to work for your ministry.
Here are some ways to begin and sustain a federal connection:
- Get to know staff members at the local legislative office on a first-name basis.
- Plan annual visits to your Washington, DC-based Congressional team members.
- Call or e-mail Congressional team members monthly. Ask for information on federal grant funding opportunities and ask to be included in any e-mail funding alerts sent to other constituents, including nonprofit organizations, in your state and community.
- Keep Congressional team members updated on happenings in your church or ministry programs, activities, and events via frequent e-mail or newsletter mailings.
- When you identify a federal grant opportunity that you want to apply for, notify Congressional team members of your intent to apply. Give them the name of the funding agency, name of the grant competition, and due date. Ask that a letter of Congressional support be sent directly to the Secretary (President-appointed head) of the federal agency.
- Send or email a final copy of your grant application to your Congressional team members at the same time you electronically submit your grant application via the http://www.grants.gov or other federal e-grant upload systems. Make sure to include your Application Control Center tracking number issued when the online e-grant system accepts your grant application submittal.
- your Congressional team members to track the progress of your grant application once it is received at the federal agency.
The formula for netting a monetary award for your church or ministry is simple: Exemplary Needs Assessment Research + Outstanding Creative Grant Proposal Narrative Writing + Congressional Advocacy = A Funded Federal Grant Application.
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Excerpted from Faith-Based Grants: Aligning Your Church or Ministry to Receive Abundance by Bev Browning. Available for immediate download.
Charity Golf Tournaments: Five Ways to Raise Funds with Your Next Golf Fundraiser
January 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
By Frank MacGrath
1. Player Registration Fee
Your organization needs to determine what registration fee is marketable in your geographic area, while still covering all hard costs (green fees, power carts, meals, taxes, etc.) and providing a per-player financial contribution over and above that cost, so that each registration contributes to your overall net profit.
While registration fees for charity tournaments will vary from city to city and course to course, it is important to bear in mind the market rate of a round of golf, cart, lunch and dinner at the chosen course. Many tournaments then add a range of $25-$50 over and above those costs as the basis for the registration fee.
The Organizing Committee might want to research what other charity golf tournaments have charged at the selected course in determining the player registration fee. You should also get a sense from your Committee members what the golfers likely invited to this tournament will be willing to pay to participate. This will help not only with budget planning, but also with selecting a golf course that meets your group’s pricing expectations.
2. Sponsorship Revenue
For budget purposes we recommend that sponsors be divided into categories and that any benefits given to sponsors (eg. complimentary foursome for a title sponsor) be recognized in the budget either as “less player registration revenue” or as “additional player cost.”
3. Day-of-Event Fundraising & On-Course Activities
Several on-course activities can raise money on the day of your golf tournament. These activities include sales of contest packages at registration, mulligans, and raffle and draw tickets.
4. Auctions
Many tournaments will have either a silent or a live auction (and some events have both). The Organizing Committee should assign two members to coordinate what items will be auctioned and if they will be auctioned with a silent bid (signing up on a sheet) or via a live bid run by the emcee or auctioneer.
5. Donations
Some corporations or individuals who wish to support your organization either may not golf or may not be able to attend on your tournament date. Ensure that your registration package includes the option for a direct donation.
Excerpted from The Complete Handbook for Planning, Implementing and Sustaining a Successful Fundraising Golf Tournament by Frank MacGrath. See this book and others on event fundraising at www.expertfundraiser.org
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Nine Truths about Monthly Giving Fundraising
January 6, 2012 By 1 Comment
Does your charitable organization want to recruit more monthly donors? Or raise more money from your monthly giving program? Here are nine truths about monthly giving that apply to most non-profit organizations. [Read more...]
