When you’re mailing a Prospecting (or Acquisition) letter, you’re going after people who aren’t your donors, who may or may not know the first thing about your organization, the work you do, your track record and your value.
Your Prospecting Package needs to tell them all of those things and convince them you are a safe bet for their donation dollars. Which means your Prospecting letter needs to grab the reader by the shirtfront right away. Drop them into the middle of the action – explain the problem in the most immediate way you can…and then tell them you have the solution.
You can do this with a big, bold headline that sums up the purpose of your current campaign, like a recent package I received from NRDC that had this screamer across the top of the letter: POLAR BEAR SOS!
I like a Johnson Box (that copy above “Dear Friend,”) that paints a picture of the problem the organization is trying to address and what they’re doing to solve it – all in vivid, let’s-storm-the-castle-NOW language.
Personal, emotional moving stories about people or animals who’ve been helped by your organization are great motivational leads – nothing beats a testimonial for moving a potential donor to take that leap into actual donor.
Activist organizations can give people a chance to get involved. Ask your potential donor to share his or her opinions on your issue, or ask them for help petitioning political leaders. Let them know – right up front – that the action they take today will make a difference.
As you’re planning your mailing, sit down and think about which of these techniques might work best for your organization…then try to write it up in a way that grabs the donor and doesn’t let go.
Tomorrow: You’ve got your blockbuster lead…what’s next?
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